Book Review: Nonfiction / The courage to speak: The life, ideas, and legacy of Ambassador M. Serajul Islam
25 August 2026
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Reviews
Ambassador Islam passionately believed that a nation of 180 million people should chart its own path, maintaining good but never subservient relationships with global powers. He was acutely aware of “our traits as a nation” but remained firm in his belief that the country could only thrive under Lincoln's doctrine of government “of the people, by the people, and for the people.”
Literary Curtains / Patriarchy inversed: Reimagining Rokeya’s Ladyland in 2026
23 August 2026
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Books & Literature
Book Review: Fiction / A novel of radical softness
20 August 2026
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Books & Literature
BOOK REVIEW: FICTION / Cooking up heat
20 August 2026
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Books & Literature
Event Report / In Transit: The Third Annual Slam Poetry at North South University
19 August 2026
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News
Essay / Poet Shamsur Rahman’s drama translation: Eugene O’Neill’s ‘Marco Millions’
15 August 2026
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Essay
Poetry / Coins in the wishing wells
15 August 2026
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Poetry
Poetry / Reminiscence of life
15 August 2026
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Poetry
News Report / P. Paramita’s ‘Appetite’ sells out on launch day at New York’s Strand Bookstore
13 August 2026
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News
Interview / In conversation with Sonia Bahl: Author of ‘Eighteen Inches Apart’
What becomes increasingly evident across Bahl’s three novels is her sustained fascination with the emotional significance of almosts and maybes.
News Report / Kazuo Ishiguro set to return with new novel in 2027
20 June 2026
Ishiguro’s novels have, over his 40-plus-year career, ranged from historical fiction to fantasy to science fiction.
Event Report / Dhaka Zine Mela 2026: A celebration of creativity and community
11 June 2026
On June 6 and 7, 2026, at Goethe-Institut, Dhanmondi, Zine Mela Dhaka 2026 was held, organised by Sister Library (Dhaka) and Colors Publishing. The two-day event brought together independent artists, writers, and creators to celebrate self-publishing, artistic expression, and community engagement.
The shelf / 7 Asian healing fiction recommendations for rainy days
18 June 2026
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The Shelf
You know when the sky trades its brightness for a low, silver hue, and you wrap your fingers tightly around your tea, seeking that small, steady pulse of warmth. This is the essence of healing fiction. Often rooted in the Japanese concept of iyashikei, these stories focus on the quiet spirit through small, everyday moments. You may have already heard of Days at the Morisaki Bookshop or We’ll Prescribe You a Cat. While those popular favourites have opened a door for many, there are a few other tales worth the read.
Reflections / In the age of AI allegations
13 June 2026
Fiction / Body Selim
18 April 2026
Amitav Ghosh visits ancestral home in Gopalganj
Ulpur village served as the seat of the Zamindari and Jagir of the Basu Roy Chowdhury family.
22 January 2023
Revisiting German and Bengali folklore in ‘Myth Bridge’
Here, Rapunzel, Hercules, Bon Bibi, and King Solomon might be having a gala time over tea, or fighting their own battles.
21 January 2023
On a Thursday on Kazi Nazrul Avenue
On a Thursday, I went back home, and I took a walk./ On the sidewalk, I saw a splash of maroon on a grey block.
20 January 2023
Are you okay/do you want to talk about it
You’re sitting on the couch/ And you’re tapping your feet at 135 miles per hour/ You’re waiting for something to happen
20 January 2023
Ghosts in Bangla literature and culture
“Bhoot”, the Bangla word for ghost, derives from the Sanskrit word Bhūta, referring to living beings and the past. Later, it also came to mean ‘disembodied spirit.’ Ghost stories carry a special tradition in Bangla literature and the root lies in folklore and rural culture.
20 January 2023
Fail better: A new year’s resolution
But I understand.
I am part of a historic pattern.
So not everything is personal. I can't help but fall into some of the traps and become prey to some of the vultures.
20 January 2023
First look at Rumaan Alam’s ‘Leave The World Behind’ adaptation
Netflix’s adaptation of the novel features Julia Roberts, Ethan Hawke, Mahershala Ali, Myha'la Herrold, and Kevin Bacon in lead roles, with the film being directed by Sam Esmail, creator and director of popular TV show, Mr. Robot.
20 January 2023
To be human for the corporation: Olga Ravn’s ‘The Employees’
These characters, human and machine alike, are invited to provide witness statements about their working environment to a commission, which form the entirety of the novel—a design that helps Ravn bring about an atmosphere of tension.
19 January 2023
Livraria Lello: the bookstore that inspired Flourish and Blotts
Visiting the Livaria Lello transports any Harry Potter fan to Flourish and Blotts.
19 January 2023
‘Eken Babu’ writer Sujan Dasgupta found dead under mysterious circumstances
He was reportedly found lying on the floor of his bedroom, according to the police.
18 January 2023
William Dalrymple plays a role in world’s largest Commonwealth heritage conservation programme
The 216-year-old building of the former British Residency of Hyderabad (also known as Koti Residency or Hyderabad Residency) has been fully restored after a remodelling work of nearly 20 years.
16 January 2023
Hanif Kureishi's Twitter diary and why he couldn't make it to Bangladesh
"I realised I had to start again as a person and a writer. I had to become a comic writer, a serious writer, a writer who could integrate the madness and most interesting elements on the same page."
16 January 2023
Italian man steals unpublished books by award-winning authors
The more than 1,000 stolen manuscripts included a work by a Pulitzer Prize-winning author.
15 January 2023
‘Border Crossings’ hopes to reconcile diasporic identities
Syed Afzal Hasan Uddin says of first generation immigrants that they—who are already grappling with the duality of their multifaceted identities—were not seen as being Bengali enough by their parents.
14 January 2023
The art of moderating literary conversations
Rifat Munim highlighted how a moderator can be a catalyst to an engaging dialogue between the panellists and the audience,
13 January 2023
Foreign literature is a very precious tool for peace
Daily Star Books’ panel on January 8, Day 4 of the Dhaka Lit Fest sought to take the audience to a more existential aspect of what the festival attempts to do. Who chooses which stories deserve to become books? Who chooses whether news of those books will even reach readers? Does book criticism truly help the flow and business of literature within and across national borders?
13 January 2023
Goddesses of Bengal: The living myth of Devi Manasa, Bon Bibi and more
There is absolutely no necessary relationship between the worship of goddesses and the treatment of women.
13 January 2023
‘Khandito Nazrul’: Why he is and should be relevant
The difficulty of translation is one of the reasons why Nazrul is not discussed as extensively as Tagore in the west.
13 January 2023
Colleen Hoover cancels ‘It Ends With Us’ colouring book on domestic abuse
Readers are questioning how “a coloring book was ever going to ‘tastefully mirror Lilly Bloom’s story’ of violent domestic abuse.”
13 January 2023
Books to look forward to in 2023
Here are some of the books that will be hitting the shelves in 2023.
12 January 2023
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