बुक क्लब

“Book reading” is not a new term in Nepal. But it definitely is a new trend. Although it is already one hundred and fifty years since printing press was brought to Nepal, the speed of publication of books is slow. So is the book-reading culture too.
Before the establishment of democracy, talking about books was virtually banned. Due to the Rana Regime’s policy of keeping people out of reach of education, people were not allowed to read. Therefore, no discussions on books were held. However, talks on the Upanishsadas and the Vedas were held.
Even after demomcracy was established, there is no record of any book club registered. It was in 1975 that youths like Hari Sharma and Kedarbhakta Mathema established a book club. The would talk on books on a monthly basis. The primary data is not available because there is no need of registration in government bodies.
Recently, a few book clubs are at work. A synopsis of the study of thoses Book Clubs is given here.


Fine Print Book Club
It was established in 2006. Its objectives are to encourage people to read for pleasure and knowledge, to provide a forum for young writers where they can share and critique each other’s work.
Its Activities:
Monthly Discussion: It organizes discussion on a book once every month inviting national and international authors for talks and reading sessions.
Weekly Discussion: It invites members and intellectuals to share their book-reading experiences. They express their views on the book they have loved the most.
Publication: It publishes a quarterly magazine “Read”, the contents of which include features about bookstores, critiques about books, and information about recently published books. It has also ventured in publication of new books by national and international authors as well as reprint of previous best-sellers.
Other Major events:
It organized a talk program on the book “Forget Kathmandu: An Elegy for Democracy” with diasporic writer Samrat Upadhyay in December, 2006.
It organized an editing workshop on book editing in collaboration with the American Center in January, 2007.
It organized panel discussion on the book “The World is Flat” with corporate leaders as panelists, in April, 2007.
It organized a panel discussion on the book “Ghanchakkar” with the author Sanjeev Uprety.
It organized a Creative Writing workshop with diasporic writers Samrat Upadhyay and Sushma Joshi.
Membership Base: It has one hundred and twenty annual members.
Membership Fee: It charges two hundred rupees for annual membership which includes free subscription of its magaine ‘Read’.


Wave Book Club
It was established in 2005. It is supported by the British Council. Its objective is to promote reading culture in peers and school children. In this forum, members discuss about reflections of the books on the society.
Activities:
Monthly Discussion: It organizes monthly discussions on recently published books. The title of the book to be discussed is fixed in the previous month. It provides books for free to the members and calls them for discussion with their critiques. It also invites the author of the book if available.
International Book Day Program: It organizes a two-day program in the international book day. It invites authors, journalists and educationists to discuss on various topics related to books. It also holds a week-long book show at the library premises.
Membership Base: It has forty regular members.
Membership Fee: Membership is free for all.


Read to Lead
It was establilshed in 2006. Its objectives are to create a literary circle of book-lovers, and to educate people about the current affairs.
Activities:
Fortnightly Discussion: It organizes book discussions every alternate Sundays. It invites authors and critiques to share their views on the book.
Educational Program: It organizes public awareness events in collaboration with different social organizations. From July 2007, it has been launching discussion forums on the Constituent Assembly. Most recently, it is organizing education campaigns on diferent colleges throughout the country where it provides free materials to the students.
Membership Base: It has sixty regular members.
Membership: Membership is free for all.

Informants(if needed): Ajit Baral, Manager, Fineprint Book Club
Suman Sharma, Manager, Read to Lead
Kiran Bhattarai, Co-ordinator, Wave Book Club

controversy

In Jammu
Latest controversy - please find ways to PROTEST
Kathmandu, Dec 4 (IANS) Indian-origin author Kiran Desai's bestselling novel 'The Inheritance of Loss', that won the Man Booker prize for fiction this year, has created a hullabaloo in Nepal with readers calling her insensitive, colonial and prejudiced.

The 34-year-old's second novel moves from Kalimpong, a sleepy town in east India, to Britain and the US, recording racism, the plight of the Asian illegal immigrant in the west and the insurgency spearheaded by the Gorkha National

Liberation Front in eastern India.


A large number of the characters in the novel are people of Nepali origin and their depiction has angered Nepalis, who accuse her of having a warped vision.


A strong protest came from Nepali author and educator D.B. Gurung, who was educated in eastern India.


While reviewing the 'Inheritance' for the Kathmandu Post last week, Gurung came down heavily on the portrayal of the Nepali diaspora, calling it the result of 'living a bastardised life inside and out of India that Desai seems unable to acclimatise herself (to) either in the western milieu or her own home'.


The Nepali author says Desai has portrayed the Nepali inhabitants of Kalimpong as 'crook, dupe, cheat and lesser humans' while the 'truth' is that the hill community still retains its language, culture and dignity despite exploitation by the 'hungry jackals from the plains of Calcutta'.


Gurung has also taken exception to Desai's creation of Biju, the son of a Nepali cook, struggling as an illegal immigrant in New York.


'I have seen many Indian engineers and executives doing the same sort of job or selling hotdogs in the streets of Los Angeles, New York, Chicago and Washington,' he wrote scathingly. 'They would perhaps make more poignant characters than Biju.'


Letters from enraged readers began pouring in, agreeing with Gurung.


Calling Desai 'schizophrenic', Dinesh Kafle said contrary to her 'prejudice-ridden characterisation' of Nepalis, the community had been able to preserve their dignity at all times.