Writer’s Postcards

Essays on literature, language, and global communities, through the lens of a modern Asian nomad

Part travelogue, part memoir, and part commentary, Writer’s Postcards is a collection of essays that examine imagination and culture through the lens of geography.

A flaneuse and person of the world, Dipika Mukherjee takes readers through various encounters from her highly mobile life: the lugubrious literature of Brazil; the linguistic diversity in China and Tibet; and meeting the Dalai Lama while traveling as a lone woman through New Delhi. She examines the political unrest in Myanmar after the brief international reach of Burmese books; weighs in on Chicago’s literary landmarks and famous writers; reminisces on the languid feasting of Diwali celebrations at Port Dickson by the Malaysian–Bengali community; and finds new notions of home, identity, and belonging in the Netherlands—among many others.

Thought-provoking and unabashed in its entirety, this is a collection of essays that goes beyond the personal and communal to examine issues of international concern.

Dipika Mukherjee is an internationally acclaimed writer and sociolinguist with a passion for Southeast Asian literature. With over two decades of experience, she has mentored aspiring writers in the region and founded the prestigious D.K. Dutt Award for Literary Excellence in Malaysia in 2015. Mukherjee has edited five anthologies of Southeast Asian fiction, including the notable titles Endings and Beginnings and Bitter Root Sweet Fruit.