Read more
"A queer writer travelling through India can't escape the regrets of his past, nor the impending ruin of his present. "I am leaving for the winter -- I have to get away from this small town and all its dangers -- to write, read, think, all the most important things in the world but which are thought the least important, the most expendable." Thus begins the Indian winter of our narrator, a queer writer and translator much like the author, a winter that includes a meandering journey through India, trying to write about a long-ago lover whose death he has just learned of. While on this journey into memory, he flees his current faltering relationship in search of new friendships and intimacies. Indian Winter finds itself where the travel diary, the kunstlerroman, poetry, and autofiction meet. But the heartbreak brought on by his unravelling relationship and his family's inability to accept his queerness cannot be outrun; as he traverses India, our narrator can't help but repeatedly encounter himself and the range of love and alienation he has within."--
About the author
Kazim Ali was born in the United Kingdom and has lived transnationally in the United States, Canada, India, France, and the Middle East. His books encompass multiple genres, including the volumes of poetry
Inquisition, Sky Ward, winner of the Ohioana Book Award in Poetry;
The Far Mosque, winner of Alice James Books' New England/New York Award;
The Fortieth Day; All One's Blue; and the cross-genre texts
Bright Felon and
Wind Instrument. His novels include the recently published
The Secret Room: A String Quartet and among his books of essays are the hybrid memoir
Silver Road: Essays, Maps & Calligraphies and
Fasting for Ramadan: Notes from a Spiritual Practice. He is also an accomplished translator (of Marguerite Duras, Sohrab Sepehri, Ananda Devi, Mahmoud Chokrollahi and others) and an editor of several anthologies and books of criticism. After a career in public policy and organizing, Ali taught at various colleges and universities, including Oberlin College, Davidson College, St. Mary's College of California, and Naropa University. He is currently a Professor of Literature at the University of California, San Diego. His newest books are a volume of three long poems entitled
The Voice of Sheila Chandra and a memoir of his Canadian childhood,
Northern Light.
Summary
CBC BOOKS: 2024 SPRING FICTION PREVIEW
A queer writer travelling through India can't escape the regrets of his past, nor the impending ruin of his present.
"I am leaving for the winter – I have to get away from this small town and all its dangers – to write, read, think, all the most important things in the world but which are thought the least important, the most expendable."
Thus begins the Indian winter of our narrator, a queer writer and translator much like the author, a winter that includes a meandering journey through India, trying to write about a long-ago lover whose death he has just learned of. While on this journey into memory, he flees his current faltering relationship in search of new friendships and intimacies. Inspired by Antonio Tabucchi's Indian Nocturne, and by the writings of Anaïs Nin, Rachel Cusk, and Carole Maso, among others, Indian Winter finds itself where the travel diary, the künstlerroman, poetry, and autofiction meet. But the heartbreak brought on by his unravelling relationship and his family's inability to accept his queerness cannot be outrun; as he traverses India, our narrator can't help but repeatedly encounter himself and the range of love and alienation he has within.
Foreword
Promotion and galley giveaway to author’s contacts at AWP
Feature title at Winter Institute with galley giveaway
CALIBA holiday catalogue 2024
Promotion through author's social media channels (combined 15k)
Advance reader copies (digital and print)
Major bookseller outreach
National print and online campaign
Social media campaign and giveaways
