Sonora Jha in Conversation With Emma Pattee

In the follow-up to Sonora Jha’s The Laughter — winner of the Washington State Book Award — a middle-aged woman starts a firestorm when she holds a contest, based on an ancient Indian ritual, in which men must compete to win her affections. A woman who has left two husbands announces she will celebrate her 55th birthday by holding a swayamvar. Drawn from an ancient custom in her Indian culture, this is an event in which suitors line up to compete in a feat of wills and strength to win a beautiful princess's hand in marriage. The woman, a [...]