The Diverse Bookshelf

This week I’m speaking to the wonderful Wharton, who is of Chinese and white European heritage. Wiz’s debut nove, Ghost Girl, Banana follows Sook-Yin in 1960s England, exiled from Kowloon, and her daughter Lily in 1990s, embarking on a secret pilgrimage to Hong Kong to discover the lost side of her identity, following  a mysterious letter telling her she has inherited a LOT of money from a stranger. It’s no surprise that this sweeping story is being adapted for TV, and it is such a brilliant read.Wiz Wharton was born in London of Chinese-European heritage. She is a prize-winning graduate of the National Film and Television school, where she studied screenwriting under the filmmakers Mike Leigh, Stephen Frears and Kenith Trodd. Her debut novel Ghost Girl, Banana deals with issues of identity, belonging and familial secrets. In 2023, she was named by the Scottish Government Expo Fund as one of the 40 writers predicted to set the literary world alight. I’m so glad she's my guest today.  Support the show

On the show this week, I’m joined by Mahvish Ahmed, talking about her beautiful and poignant memoir, On My Way, which has been one of my favourite recent reads. Mahvish has had a super interesting life so far, full of love, empowerment, change, new adventures, unlearning and re-learning, establishing new boundaries, and challenging those things that no longer serve her. Mahvish was born and grew up in Pakistan, and later lived in the UK for her studies. Her memoir offers us a deep and reflective insight into her life, but also into important themes such as gender roles, motherhood, mental health, love and marriage, and so much more. Mahvish is a former economist, successful content creator, and now an author. Mahvish’s debut book, On My Way has become an Amazon bestseller, offering reflections on her personal growth and experiences in a new country.In addition to her writing, Mahvish runs a thriving clothing line and a travel company. Based in Rotterdam, Netherlands, she manages a popular Instagram blog that addresses women-centric issues such as challenging societal norms, advocating self-love, mental health awareness, conscious parenting, and the realities of motherhood.You can find Mahvish on instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/mahvish.ahmad/Support the show

Today marks one year since the most recent escalation of violence and aggression against Gaza, and the genocide that has unfolded before us. This episode was recorded prior to recent bombardments of Lebanon. On this week’s episode, I’m speaking to Mahmoud Muna, who's taking part in this conversation from his bookshop in Jerusalem. Mahmoud Muna, along with co-editor Matthew Teller and with Juliette Touma and Jayyab Abusafia have worked on a stunning and heartbreaking book called Daybreak in Gaza. Daybreak in Gaza is a collection of almost 50 accounts, essays, interviews and diary entry from Palestinians, mainly in Gaza. They share their experiences of life in Gaza over the last year amid genocide, bombardments, raids and immense loss of life. What permeates through the pages of this book is not only courage, but hope, in essence, the day-break in Gaza.  Mahmoud Muna, born in Jerusalem and raised in a refugee camp (Shu’fat), is a notable Palestinian figure known as the bookseller of Jerusalem. He runs his family’s two renowned bookshops: The Educational Bookshop and the Bookshop at the American Colony Hotel. Muna is a computer science graduate and a trained communicator who has become an influential voice in Palestinian cultural and literary circles. His work extends to writing for local and international cultural magazines and newspapers, and he is deeply involved in various cultural initiatives.Order Daybreak in Gaza here: https://saqibooks.com/books/saqi/daybreak-in-gaza/---If you find my podcast helpful, inspiring or thoughtful, please do consider supporting me so I can put out great episodes like this. You can buy me a coffee (or anything really) here:https://ko-fi.com/readwithsamiaSupport the show

On this week’s episode, I’m speaking to Dr. Pragya Agarwal all about motherhood, gender-based stereotypes and biases, infertility and so much more. In her book, Motherhood – on the choices of being a woman – Pragya shares her own journey of becoming a mother at a young age, and then facing years of secondary infertility until her two beautiful twin daughters were born through surrogacy. It’s a pheonomenal book, focusing on intersectionality, offering us a perspective that merges race, class and other elements of identity when talking about motherhood and infertility.  Pragya Agarwal, Ph.D., is a visiting professor of social inequities and injustice at Loughborough University, writer, speaker, and consultant. Following a Ph.D. from the University of Nottingham, Pragya held the prestigious Leverhulme Fellowship and has held senior academic positions and visiting fellowships at various U.S. and U.K. universities.Pragya is the author of a number of scholarly articles and four non-fiction books.  Just a little trigger warning, in this episode, we talk about some difficult topics including infertility, IVF, abortion and baby and pregnancy loss. So if you need to return to this episode at a later date, or skip it altogether, please do. Support the show