Susan Choi

Atul Gawande, a surgeon and public health expert, dives into the dire outcomes of USAID budget cuts, revealing how they led to a collapse in health systems and rising death rates in places like Kenya. He emphasizes that these global health issues also have troubling repercussions domestically. Susan Choi, an acclaimed novelist, shares insights about her book 'Flashlight,' discussing themes of identity and belonging while critiquing the current wave of book bans and their impact on cultural discourse.

Andrew Miller, a British novelist, discusses his Booker Prize-nominated work, The Land in Winter, delving into its gothic tone and complex character portrayals. Katie Kitamura shares insights on her novel Audition, exploring the intersections of performance and social media. David Szalay reflects on the themes of alienation in Flesh, emphasizing narrative gaps and emotional resonance. Susan Choi highlights disappearance and loss in Flashlight, tying her research in Japan to her story's haunting motifs.

Join Susan Choi, an award-winning novelist, as she explores cross-cultural family dynamics and the Zainichi Korean community in Flashlight. Kiran Desai, a former Booker Prize winner, discusses loneliness and globalization in her long-gestating novel, The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny. David Szalay shares insights on capturing realism and physicality in Flesh, while Ben Markovits reveals how his own lymphoma diagnosis influenced the road-trip narrative of The Rest of Our Lives. A deep dive into themes of identity, illness, and the human experience awaits!