I somehow missed one of the most inventive, marvelous books of the summer and now that I’ve finally read Tania James’ “Loot” I have to share it with you!
James transports us to 18th century India where a sultan has summoned a brilliant and impoverished teenager who knows how to carve and create wondrous toys.
The sultan orders his French clockmaker to collaborate with 17-year-old Abbas to whip up a mechanical tiger with its teeth clamped around the neck of an Englishman.
The toy really does exist! I’ve seen it at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London!
But the novel weaves an enchanting story of the sultan’s workshop, the remarkable sounds, scents and flavors of colonial India and the adventures that young Abbas will have.
The answer to last week's mystery character is: Lady Macbeth.
What book did you read this year that you immediately recommended to all your friends?
That was the topic MPR News host Kerri Miller tackled Monday at 9 a.m. for a special live edition of her regular Friday show, Big Books and Bold Ideas. Instead of chatting with an author, Miller took calls and chatted with Glory Edim, the founder of Well-Read Black Girl, and Julie Buckles , the co-owner of Honest Dog Books in Bayfield, Wis.
Amy Jiron of HearthFire Books in Evergreen, Colo., recommends a visit to the Nile this December, in the form of Isabel Ibañez's novel "What the River Knows."
In his new book “Crossings: How Road Ecology is Shaping the Future of Our Planet,” environmental journalist Ben Goldfarb illustrates how roads that are helpful for humans can be disastrous for wildlife. How can we design transportation that’s good for all?
In “The Gravity of Love” we meet David, a college professor from the Twin Cities who has spent years in France as a student and teacher. Now back in Minnesota, Duren said David is tormented by memories of his dead father, and questions about this man everyone loved — but who openly despised him.
Last week on Big Books and Bold Ideas, Sinclair joined host Kerri Miller to talk about the perils of fundamentalism and patriarchy, in all its forms, and how she wrote a memoir about her childhood that both honors her family and her own truth.
First published in French in 2021 as “Journal d'Anne Marbot,” Élodie Durand's book is a welcome addition to the growing number of graphic novels exploring transgender and genderqueer identities.
Through the eyes of an autistic woman named Sunday, Viktoria Lloyd-Barlow explores family relationships and friendships in her debut novel, longlisted for the Booker Prize.
