Along U.S. highways, roadside Punjabi restaurants called dhabas are popping up to serve American truckers, almost 20% of whom are of Punjabi descent. I visited one along the I-40 in Vega, a small town in the Texas Panhandle. Read the story here: https://t.co/xDF8JyxDqh

"Is it possible to be Asian and Other, or only Asian or Other? Is there a tension between the two terms, or are they one and the same? In our pursuit of self-definition through labels, must we only pick one label?" A review of ‘Asian/Other’ by @mvenk82: https://t.co/fZ8ja0hGsF

Read my latest for @Himalistan on Vidyan Ravinthiran's "Asian/Other," cultural memory, and combating the Western canon

CURRENT TOP READ: While Europe was at war, the exiled Emperor Haile Selassie plotted Ethiopia’s resistance from Somerset, England — writing, lobbying and fighting for his nation’s freedom. @mvenk82 traces this neglected history for @newlinesmag.

Read my essay in @newlinesmag on Haile Selassie's exile at @FairfieldHouse_ in Bath, UK — critical to his political mission advocating for Ethiopia's freedom during WWII. Thank you @lsmwilson and @kliwewe for edits!

NEW: While Europe was at war, the exiled Emperor Haile Selassie plotted Ethiopia’s resistance from Somerset, England — writing, lobbying and fighting for his nation’s freedom. @mvenk82 traces this neglected history for @newlinesmag. https://t.co/qus1pCBr87

Brick Lane’s Jamme Masjid, the famed mosque at 59 Brick Lane, used to be a Jewish synagogue; before that, a Methodist church; and even before that, a Huguenot chapel. Meena Venkataramanan (@mvenk82) explores Brick Lane’s storied history, new at PB:

“Unlike in the US, where South Asians mostly began to shape the country in the late 20th century and are still making inroads into the country’s cultural landscapes, in Britain the sheer depth of South Asian history and culture has always moved me.” https://t.co/UJ7HrAWHqQ

During the rise of the far-right British National Party in the 1980s, London’s predominantly Bangladeshi Brick Lane was targeted almost weekly by far-right agitators. Meena Venkataramanan (@mvenk82) recounts this history and more, new at PB:

London’s Brick Lane has a unique Bengali character, featuring curry houses, grocery stores, textile shops, and bilingual street signs. Meena Venkataramanan (@mvenk82) explores the history of Banglatown, new at PB:

For @PublicBooks, I wrote an essay on Brick Lane and its unique history as a refuge for the Huguenot, Jewish, and Bangladeshi communities, featuring perspectives from @AsmaBegum__ @tajstores @nijjormanush @DrFRajina and Leo Epstein Read it here: https://t.co/j1mP6W0wgy

Review by Meena Venkataramanan: In “Searches,” Vauhini Vara collaborates with a chatbot to write essays on digital technology, surveillance capitalism and her family’s immigrant experience. https://t.co/XnsIjWkGGf

In the latest installment in our series Public Streets, Meena Venkataramanan (@mvenk82) explores the multicultural history of London’s Brick Lane. https://t.co/UJ7HrAWHqQ

This review is an interesting read in itself!

For @washingtonpost @BookWorld, I reviewed @vauhinivara's compelling, genre-defying essay collection "SEARCHES," recently published by @PantheonBooks @penguinrandom. Read my review here: https://t.co/AWI2bZ4KXi

I reviewed "The Urban Refugee" for @PlacesJournal's fall bookshelf roundup. Read my review here: https://t.co/igVbFj1EPq

NBCC member @mvenk82 created a literary map of South Asian America for @ElectricLit, illustrated by Nuri Bhuiyan. It maps out post-2010 fiction set across the American landscape—beyond just the two major coasts—by South Asian authors. Check It out here:

Follow Meena Venkataramanan (@mvenk82) on a coast-to-coast journey through the literary landscape of South Asian America

I hope the map will help reframe the Great American Road Trip — which our immigrant families love — and put South Asians in the driver's seat. There are so many more up-and-coming — and underrated — South Asian American authors writing fiction spanning America beyond the coasts!

The literary map of South Asian America features work by @vauhinivara, @ayadakhtar, @smathewss, @SanjenaSathian, @SopanDeb, @ninawyo, @ashathanki, @AmandaJayatissa, @sindyabhanoo, @rishi_reddi, @JaiChakrabarti, Mira Jacob, and Amitava Kumar https://t.co/73iz3k2Sft