Ep. 105: Thrity Umrigar (Author of Honor) + Book Recommendations

Sarah's Bookshelves Live

Sarah Dickinson

Bookrecommendations, Bookpodcasts, Sarahsbookshelvespodcast, Sarahsbookshelveslivepodcast, Sarahsbookshelveslive, Bookpodcast, Literarypodcast, Whatshouldiread, Arts, Bookreviewpodcast, Reading, Readingpodcast, Books, Sarahsbookshelves

4.9 • 732 Ratings

🗓️ 23 February 2022

⏱️ 48 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In Episode 105, Sarah and Thrity (author of Honor) tackle some hard-hitting questions related to the themes in her emotional book: religion, women’s rights, and identity. Thrity discusses the complicated relationship an immigrant often has with their homeland and the complex duality of human nature.

This post contains affiliate links, through which I make a small commission when you make a purchase (at no cost to you!).

Highlights

Spoiler-free summary of Honor.
The real-life story behind the inspiration for her book.
How Thirty constructed the present-day India in the book.
Character development and which character’s (Meena’s or Smita’s) story came first.
The ways miscommunication and misunderstandings drive real-life and fictional tensions.
How she conveyed the joy and beauty of India, juxtaposed against the horrific events of the story.
How rural vs. urban landscapes each form different composite communities.
From working title to finished product, what Thrity wants readers to know about the title and the layered meaning of the word honor.
Thrity shares details about her next novel.

Thrity’s Book Recommendations [32:48]

Two OLD Books She Loves

The Waves by Virginia Woolf | Amazon | Bookshop.org [33:02]
A Burning by Megha Majumdar | Amazon | Bookshop.org [34:08]

Two NEW Books She Loves

The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz | Amazon | Bookshop.org [35:38]
The Committed by Viet Thanh Nguyen | Amazon | Bookshop.org [42:48]

One NEW RELEASE She’s Excited About

The Candy House by Jennifer Egan (April 5, 2022) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [43:28]

Last 5-Star Book Thrity Read

The Overstory by Richard Powers | Amazon | Bookshop.org [45:13]

Other Books Mentioned

The Space Between Us by Thrity Umrigar [1:16]
Caste by Isabel Wilkerson [19:33]
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald [33:50]
Bombay Time by Thrity Umrigar [37:35]
The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen [43:07]
A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan [43:56]
Bewilderment by Richard Powers [45:27]

About Thrity

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

Thrity Umrigar is the bestselling author of eight novels, including The Space Between Us, which was a finalist for the PEN/Beyond Margins Award, as well as a memoir and three picture books. Her books have been translated into several languages and published in more than fifteen countries. She is the winner of a Lambda Literary Award and a Seth Rosenberg Award and is Distinguished Professor of English at Case Western Reserve University. A recipient of the Nieman Fellowship to Harvard, she has contributed to the Boston Globe, the Washington Post, the New York Times, and Huffington Post.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to Sarah's Bookshelves Live. I'm Sarah of the blog Sarah's Bookshelves. Each week I'm
0:15.5	talking with one bookish guest about two old books they love, two new books they love, one book they don't love, and
0:22.1	one new release they're excited about. We're going to get real and sometimes a bit snarky
0:27.1	about all things books. If you like the show, I'd really love your support. Spread the word
0:32.6	to your reader friends, subscribe to the show, rate and review it wherever you listen to podcasts. Let's get rolling.
0:39.6	Hey, everyone. If you all remember from the Winter Preview episode, I shared that one of
0:45.7	Catherine's picks, Honor by 3D Ummergar, was my first five-star books since July of 2021. And I think
0:53.0	that's the longest drought of five-star books I've
0:55.7	ever had in my entire reading life. So I was thrilled to come across Honor and have it leave
1:00.8	such an impression on me. Catherine and I both got to share our thoughts about Honor in that episode.
1:06.9	So you can imagine how thrilled I am that Thriddy is joining me today.
1:11.9	Thridi is the best-selling author of eight other novels, including The Space Between Us, which was a
1:17.8	finalist for the Pinned Beyond Margins Award as well as a memoir and three picture books.
1:23.1	She is the winner of a Lambda Literary Award, a Seth Rosenberg Award, and is distinguished professor of English at Case Western University.
1:31.1	A recipient of the Neiman Fellowship to Harvard, she has contributed to the Boston Globe, the Washington Post, the New York Times, and Huffington Post.
1:39.5	Welcome, 30.
1:40.6	Hey, Sarah.
1:41.3	Thank you so much for having me on your show.
1:43.5	And thank you for taking the time to come on. I know a lot of my listeners have been reading Honor over the past month or so and are really excited to hear from you.
1:52.0	Well, I'm thrilled to be here. For those listeners who have not yet read, Honor, can you tell us a little bit about it without spoiling anything?
1:59.1	Oh, absolutely. I've become quite proficient
2:01.6	at not revealing spoilers. So, Honor is basically, it tells the story of two women, very, very,
	...

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