Manjushree Thapa

No prizes for guessing where we were this evening. 🩵

Ivan Klima, Czech Novelist Who Chafed Under Totalitarian Regimes, Dies at 94

Read Love and Garbage. Read My Golden Trades. Read everything Ivan Klima wrote.
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/04/w...

I picked up these books today, and expect to be a lot more intelligent by the time I’m done reading them—Tsering Wangmo Dhompa’s The Politics of Sorrow and (ed) Benjamin Linder’s Kathmadu: A Reader. 📚

“Each one of these groups can by themselves take the nation down, but none of them can by themselves build it up again”—my favourite analysis about Nepal as we go into the festivals. 🇳🇵

As it did after the 2015 earthquake, the Government of Nepal has established a reconstruction fund following the widespread destruction of the Gen Z movement of Sept 8 & 9. Anyone can donate from anywhere in the world. (Screenshot from X).

Also, are we noting the incredible hyper-masculinity of Nepal’s political sphere?

Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose?

I’d like to be wrong.

Is anyone else feeling overwhelmed by the analysis-to-action ratio in Nepal? So much language around what has happened, and what will/will not. It really brings to mind the Lacanian framing of language as the main means through which we understand and address psychic wounds.

How misinformation fuelled panic during Gen Z uprising Experts suggest proactive cautioning of the public against possible disinformation, especially during times of crisis.

The Kathmandu Post
kathmandupost.com/national/202...

तमाम बाधाहरूबिच नेपालले लोकतन्त्रको सपना देख्न छाडेको छैन हालिफाक्सको सार्वजनिक पार्क होस् वा टोरन्टोको स्थानीय ग्रोसरी पसल वा मोन्टरेलको मेट्रोमै किन नहोस्, मानिस नेपाली भाषामा कुरा गरिरहेको सुन्नु

The Nepali translation of my op-ed has been published in Ratopati: www.ratopati.com/story/514805...

Despite decades of setbacks, Nepal still dreams of democracy A new generation of Nepalis is yet to figure out what no previous generation has: how to make democracy serve the people

What do you do with a democracy that refuses to serve the demos – the people?

For 75 years now, following Nepal’s short-lived experiment with democracy in 1950, each generation has had to answer this question anew.

My view on where Nepal stands now:
www.theglobeandmail.com/gift/b6403fe...

#NepoKids to #NepPM Nepali Times ईspecial 12 - 18 September 2025 #1278

Lots to read in the latest issue of Nepali Times. nepalitimes.substack.com/p/nepkids-to...

Nepal’s New Government Calls Elections. Its Critics Cry Foul.

Nepal’s New Government Calls Elections. Its Critics Cry Foul. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/13/w... Gift article

Nepal’s Social Media Ban Backfires as Citizens Nominate New Leader in Chat Room

We’ve read this? (Gift link)

Nepal’s Social Media Ban Backfires as Citizens Nominate New Leader in Chat Room www.nytimes.com/2025/09/11/w...

This transition should rightly be civilian- not army-led.

But the right wing (monarchists, Hindutva) is poised to take advantage by creating chaos. Dangerous times.

It’s very encouraging to see everyone who has been part of these struggles speak up in favour of maintaining a civilian-led constitutional order to achieve more democracy for Nepal, not less.

It’s also good to see the President finally speak up.

After all the gains of the 1950 democracy struggle, the 1979/80 referendum, the 1990 movement for democracy, the 2006 rejection of Gyanendra Shah’s army coup, and the 2008-2015 search for a more inclusive, federal democratic state.

Every generation has to fight the permanent establishment of Nepal anew. (Thank you forever to CK Lal for giving us that term—the PEON).

Does Gen Z really want to help the Hindu caste-based order, the monarchy, and an undemocratic system return?

The worry for those of us who have lived through and supported Nepal’s many democracy movements before is that sincere GenZ activists will be used to stage a soft (or hard) right-wing coup. Is this movement going to result in more democracy, or less? That’s what I’m watching for.

My observations on 🇳🇵from afar: the next few days are very crucial, as is the main question before the Gen-Z leadership: do they want to stay within the current (2015) constitution or not? And if not, how do they plan to ensure that Nepal remains a democracy?

Okay, Boomer. Over 2 turbulent days, & at the sacrifice of many young lives, Gen Z in Nepal has succeeded in ousting the country’s top political leaders. Here’s hoping the change they usher in takes Nepal towards more democracy, rule of law, and civil and human rights. 🕊️🇳🇵

19 dead in Gen Z protests across Nepal Hundreds injured as police open fire; curfews imposed in multiple cities.

Police open fire on demonstrators across Nepal killing 19. That death toll will rise, I'm sure. Banning WhatsApp was the inciting incident but government corruption lies at the heart of unrest. kathmandupost.com/national/202...

The KP Oli government has murdered 19 people On today's protests and the tragedy that unfolded

The KP Oli government has murdered 19 people
open.substack.com/pub/kalamwee...

Good graphics! It’ll be interesting to see how this goes.🇳🇵

Source: x.com/enoughisenou...

I’m surprised by how much people buy into what are essentially marketing categories—Boomers, Gen X, Millennials, Gen Z, etc.. it seems like a way to avoid acknowledging that we all have universal experiences/sufferings, with different technologies/times of course.

Why is Nepal banning social media? On the Nepal government's move to block access to almost all social media

Kalam Weekly has a good explainer on Nepal’s social media ban. And on Nepal’s plan to track all foreign visitors through digital portals and mobile apps. And on other plans to forbid public disturbance. All pretty idiotic. Do read if you haven’t already. open.substack.com/pub/kalamwee...

4 Arabic Titles Longlisted for 2025 National Translation Awards The American Literary Translators Association (ALTA) today announced the longlists for the 2025 National Translation Awards in two categories: Poetry and Prose. Three novels translated from Arabic were on the prose longlist, while one poetry collection translated from Arabic made the poetry longlist.

4 Arabic Titles Longlisted for 2025 National Translation Awards

The American Literary Translators Association (ALTA) today announced the longlists for the 2025 National Translation Awards in two categories: Poetry and Prose. Three novels translated from Arabic were on the prose longlist, while one…

The Wayzgoose 2025, where I got to chat with my Toronto go-to @shawnmicallef.bsky.social, and hang out with my wonderful agent Carolyn Forde—and got to follow the entire printing process at Coach House Books. What fun. 📚🙏🏼📚

Recommended Reading! From the American Literary Translators Association's National Translation Prize

open.substack.com/pub/manjushr...

This year’s prose judges are @unpoetaloco.bsky.social, @rekognition.bsky.social, @ilzeduarte.bsky.social, @manjushreethapa.bsky.social, and Peter Constantine. This year’s judges for poetry are Conor Bracken, Dongshin Chang, and Rachel Galvin.

The 2025 NTA longlists feature authors writing in 12 different languages and books from 21 different presses, celebrating the diversity of literature in translation in English and the large, vibrant community of translators, publishers and readers.