Episode 90: Interview with Author Shobha Rao

In episode 90 of Literary Prospects, we talk with author Shobha Rao about her highly anticipated second novel, Indian Country.

Shobha moved to the United States from India at the age of seven. She is the author of the short story collection, An Unrestored Woman, and the novel, Girls Burn Brighter, which was long listed for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize and was a finalist for the California Book Award and the Goodreads Choice Awards. Her sophomore novel, Indian Country, is out now. Shobha is the winner of the Katherine Anne Porter Prize in Fiction and was a Grace Paley Teaching Fellow at The New School. Her story “Kavitha and Mustafa” was chosen by T.C. Boyle for inclusion in Best American Short Stories. Shobha lives in San Francisco.

In this interview, Shobha talks about how land holds memory, the damning effects of colonialism, the importance of reading for writers, our responsibilities as artists, and much more…