Booktalk with Diana Korte

“A floundering second-generation teen growing up in Atlanta’s suburbs, Neil Narayan doesn’t have the same drive as everyone around him. His parents’ expectations for him are high, but he just wants his neighbor Anita Dayal.  But Anita has a secret: she and her mother, Anjali, have been brewing an ancient alchemical potion from stolen gold that transfers the ambition of the jewelry’s original owner to the drinker. Anita needs just a little boost to get into Harvard, but when Neil – who needs much more – joins in the plot, events spiral into a tragedy that rips their community apart.”

Sanjena Sathian’s debut novel, Gold Diggers, introduces readers to an Indian American community in a suburb of Atlanta.

Like the author herself, many of the book’s characters were born in the US into immigrant families. As the story unfolds, high achievement is the expected norm and the families’ version of the American Dream often proves unrealistic.

Sam Turnbull’s second cookbook, Fast Easy Cheap Vegan, makes the case that an animal-free vegan diet doesn’t have to be time-consuming, too much work or even expensive.

This cookbook is all about smart tips and easy techniques that simplify cooking. Many recipes are one-pot, freezer-friendly, and make-ahead meals. And Sam says you can make any one of 101 recipes in fewer than 30 minutes.

Follow Turnbull on twitter: Sam@bonappetegan

“In the decade I’ve worked for the New York Times, I’ve reported from terrorist hot spots in West Africa, to wildfire ravaged California, and the globe. And as soon as I file each story, I do one thing before I head home. I search for the horses.”

Sarah Maslin Nir‘s first book, Horse Crazy: The Story of a Woman and a World in Love with an Animal describes why so many people are passionate, even obsessed, with horses.

Lifelong Manhattanite Nir began riding horses when she was just two years old and hasn’t stopped since.

New Yorker staff writer John Colapinto is the author of five books and numerous science-linked articles. This is the Voice begins with a story about how he blew out his own voice singing in a band. 

Along the way, he shows us why the voice is the most efficient, effective means of communication ever devised. Even babies hear their mother’s voices in the womb. Our voices can be calibrated to reach one other person or thousands. One of his many research stops is up the Amazon to meet the Piraha, a reclusive tribe whose speaking sounds like singing.

In our conversation, he compares the political voices of Presidents Obama, Trump, and Biden.