Granta Best of Young American Novelists launched at DLF

One of the most prestigious literary magazines, Granta, launched its third issue of the Best of Young American Novelists at Dhaka Literary Fest on Saturday. Granta’s Best of Young issues are released every decade and introduce the world to the most important voices of each generation, starting in 1983. So far there has been a British, American, Brazilian and Spanish edition. The launch was held in a plenary session, introduced by DLF Director Ahsan Akbar, on the last day of the Lit Fest at Abdul Karim Sahitya Bisharad Auditorium at the Bangla Academy. Granta’s Luke Neima and Eleanor Chandler took part, along with Indian-American writer Karan Mahajan, who was short-listed for the DSC Prize for South Asian Literature. The third issue of the Best of Young American Novelists was launched in Dhaka in the hopes of introducing such writers to a Bangladeshi audience, said Luke Neima, Granta’s online editor. At the session, the panelists discussed different aspects of contemporary American literature, including politics, migration, racism and Islamophobia. Speaking about whether the Trump era would have a significant impact on American literature, Karan Mahajan said: “It was 9/11 that might have had an impact on American writing. I am not sure if this Trump era is going to change anything. My fear is that a lot of people are beginning to get sick of the news cycle and are leaving the news out altogether.” Two other American panelists, Jesse Ball, a novelist and poet, and Catherine Lacey, a writer, were unable to attend the session due to unavoidable circumstances.