The Wandering Book Collector - Osman Yousefzada on writing about a community that didn’t want to be documented; on illiteracy; on being polite; on his photographic memory and eye for detail; on being on an eternal road; on the right passport and the wrong passport — with TWBC

Osman Yousefzada on writing about a community that didn’t want to be documented; on illiteracy; on being polite; on his photographic memory and eye for detail; on being on an eternal road; on the right passport and the wrong passport — with TWBC

02/07/23 • 37 min

Welcome to the travel/literary podcast The Wandering Book Collector with host Michelle Jana Chan. This is a series of conversations with writers exploring what's informed their books and their lives around themes of movement, memory, sense of place, borders, identity, belonging and home.

In this edition, I speak with the writer Osman Yousefzada to discuss his debut The Go-Between: A portrait of growing up between different worlds. It’s a coming-of-age memoir, reflecting on his early life in Birmingham, a childhood within the embrace of an ultra-conservative community of immigrants from Pakistani Pashtun.

Please consider supporting your local bookshop.

The Wandering Book Collector would like to thank the supporter of this podcast:

Abercrombie & Kent — Creating unique, meticulously planned journeys into hard-to-reach wildernesses and cultures.

If you’re enjoying the podcast, I’d love you to leave a rating or a review. To learn about future editions, please subscribe or hit “follow” on your podcast app of choice. Thank you for listening! For more on the podcast, book recs, what books to pack for where’s next, and who’s up next, I’m across socials @michellejchan. I’d love to hear from you.

And if you’ve missed any, do catch up. From Janine di Giovanni to Bernardine Evaristo to Afua Hirsch to Carla Power to Maaza Mengiste to Kapka Kassabova to Sara Wheeler to Brigid Delaney to Horatio Clare to Rebecca Mead to Preti Taneja to Kathryn D. Sullivan to Emmanuel Jal to Jennifer Steil to Winnie M Li to Mona Arshi to Tim Mackintosh-Smith to Karen Joy Fowler and Shannon Leone Fowler to Ariana Neumann to Anthony Sattin to Roger Robinson to Justin Marozzi to Frances Stonor Saunders.

All credit for sound effects goes to the artists and founders of Freesound.org and Zapsplat.com. All credit for music goes to the artists and founders of Soundstripe.com

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

Please consider supporting your local bookshop.

The Wandering Book Collector would like to thank the supporter of this podcast:

Abercrombie & Kent — Creating unique, meticulously planned journeys into hard-to-reach wildernesses and cultures.

All credit for sound effects goes to the artists and founders of Freesound.org and Zapsplat.com. All credit for music goes to the artists and founders of Soundstripe.com

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

Previous Episode

undefined - Frances Stonor Saunders on stamp-collecting; on Alzheimer’s and collective amnesia; on folding maps the wrong way; on what you would take if you were fleeing; on subversive humour; on inanimate objects; on never writing another book again — with TWBC

Frances Stonor Saunders on stamp-collecting; on Alzheimer’s and collective amnesia; on folding maps the wrong way; on what you would take if you were fleeing; on subversive humour; on inanimate objects; on never writing another book again — with TWBC

In this edition, I speak with the writer Frances Stonor Saunders to discuss her book The Suitcase, Six Attempts to Cross a Border.

Please consider supporting your local bookshop.

The Wandering Book Collector would like to thank the supporter of this podcast:

Abercrombie & Kent — Creating unique, meticulously planned journeys into hard-to-reach wildernesses and cultures.

All credit for sound effects goes to the artists and founders of Freesound.org and Zapsplat.com. All credit for music goes to the artists and founders of Soundstripe.com

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

Next Episode

undefined - Kylie Moore-Gilbert on her most treasured possession in prison; on training herself to memorise everything in a room, and on recall; on solitary confinement, hope and freedom; on how it feels to be in an airport immigration queue — with TWBC

Kylie Moore-Gilbert on her most treasured possession in prison; on training herself to memorise everything in a room, and on recall; on solitary confinement, hope and freedom; on how it feels to be in an airport immigration queue — with TWBC

In this edition, I’m joined by the writer and scholar Kylie Moore-Gilbert to discuss her book, THE UNCAGED SKY: My 804 days in an Iranian prison. Kylie was arrested at Tehran Airport in September 2018 by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards and convicted of espionage. She was sentenced to 10 years in prison, but released early in a three-nation prisoner swap.

Please consider supporting your local bookshop.

The Wandering Book Collector would like to thank the supporter of this podcast:

Abercrombie & Kent — Creating unique, meticulously planned journeys into hard-to-reach wildernesses and cultures.

All credit for sound effects goes to the artists and founders of Freesound.org and Zapsplat.com. All credit for music goes to the artists and founders of Soundstripe.com

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