The Novel Tea

The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen: loyalty and duality


Listen Later

Neha and Shruti discuss The Sympathizer, the 2016 Pulitzer winner for fiction, through the themes of loyalty and duality. This book is a thriller and a satire, following a mixed race narrator who moves to the United States after the fall of Saigon, and must navigate his identity and his role as a communist spy. We talk about the book's historical context, its commentary on race and pop culture, and more.


Links:

Interview with Viet Thanh Nguyen [NPR]


Shelf Discovery:

The Great Indian Novel by Shashi Tharoor

The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver


If you would like to get more in-depth analysis, book recommendations, and cultural commentary, subscribe to our free newsletter.


We love to hear from listeners about the books we discuss - you can connect with us on Instagram or by emailing us at [email protected].

This episode description contains links to Bookshop.org, a website that supports independent bookstores. If you use these links we may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

The Novel TeaBy Neha & Shruti

  • 4.9
  • 4.9
  • 4.9
  • 4.9
  • 4.9

4.9

35 ratings


More shows like The Novel Tea

View all
The Book Review by The New York Times

The Book Review

3,888 Listeners

What Should I Read Next? by Anne Bogel

What Should I Read Next?

5,165 Listeners

All the Books! by Book Riot

All the Books!

1,210 Listeners

Book Riot - The Podcast by Book Riot

Book Riot - The Podcast

1,003 Listeners

World Book Club by BBC World Service

World Book Club

372 Listeners

The History of Literature by Jacke Wilson / The Podglomerate

The History of Literature

1,107 Listeners

Bookclub by BBC Radio 4

Bookclub

239 Listeners

The Bookshelf by ABC

The Bookshelf

37 Listeners

The Daily by The New York Times

The Daily

112,946 Listeners

The Stacks by Traci Thomas

The Stacks

1,776 Listeners

Books Unbound by Ariel Bissett and Raeleen Lemay

Books Unbound

477 Listeners

Strong Sense of Place | Travel Through Books by Melissa & Dave

Strong Sense of Place | Travel Through Books

547 Listeners

Maintenance Phase by Aubrey Gordon & Michael Hobbes

Maintenance Phase

16,680 Listeners

The Ezra Klein Show by New York Times Opinion

The Ezra Klein Show

16,095 Listeners

Plain English with Derek Thompson by The Ringer

Plain English with Derek Thompson

2,282 Listeners