Posts By: Amitava Kumar

The Writer as Father

In a few hours, I will have the privilege of handing my daughter her diploma during Vassar College’s 161st commencement. The ceremony will be live-streamed, starting at 10 AM EST (7.30 PM IST). The title of this post comes from a short-story by Grace Paley called “Friends.” A woman is dying from cancer and her… Read more »

House of Speakeasy

“A literary mixtape [with] perfect flow and variety.” — The New York Times, March 2016 House of SpeakEasy continues its electrifying 2025 season at Joe’s Pub on May 13 with a night of fresh, original storytelling from four celebrated writers. Inspired by the theme “Let the Great World Spin,” each author will take the stage… Read more »

Train Dreams

  I’m lucky to have an essay of mine published as the Weekend Essay at the New Yorker. Please read the piece here. I have also compiled a few images from my trip in my latest Substack newsletter. Here’s an image that I was unable to include in the album, of Bihari migrant workers from… Read more »

Happy Pub Day

Feb 11. Happy pub day. The paperback of A Time Outside This Time comes out today. When the hardcover was published, The New Yorker described the book as “a shimmering assault on the Zeitgeist.” Also, it is my father’s birth anniversary today. Here is a link to a piece in Granta magazine; the piece was… Read more »

The Green Book

HarperCollins India announces the release on Dec 5, 2024 of The Green Book, the final volume in my trilogy of drawing books-plus-diaries. My eternal thanks to Udayan Mitra of HarperCollins India and to Hemali Sodhi of A Suitable Agency.  An excerpt: Many of the drawings and paintings in this book are the result of the… Read more »