Rutvik | themindlessmess
Independent Journalist (Books, Culture, Travel + Lifestyle) Content Creator (Books + Lifestyle)
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Interviews
Satoshi Yagisawa at KLF 2026: "Daily life is dramatic" (The Nod)
Satoshi Yagisawa at KLF 2026: "Daily life is dramatic" (The Nod)
Author Satoshi Yagisawa on why he writes about bookstores, cafes and other everyday things, the bias against “comforting” books, and dark fiction he recommends
Ocean Vuong: “War is the most common and steadfast reality of our species” (HT)
Ocean Vuong: “War is the most common and steadfast reality of our species” (HT)
The author of The Emperor of Gladness on his relationship to ideas of success, the anxiety of newness, and how literary fiction is about safe lives even though war is what actually haunts us
Omar El Akkad: “I write about things that make me angry” (HT)
Omar El Akkad: “I write about things that make me angry” (HT)
At the Ubud Writers & Readers Festival, the author of One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This, which won the US National Book Award 2025, spoke about hope, engaging with systems of power, and how all literature is political
David Szalay: “Life isn’t solely a matter of individual will and agency” (HT)
David Szalay: “Life isn’t solely a matter of individual will and agency” (HT)
The author of Flesh, which won the Booker Prize earlier this week, on how socio-economic factors and political events shape people
Hanako Footman at JLF 2026 : “You write what you fear” (HT)
Hanako Footman at JLF 2026 : “You write what you fear” (HT)
At the Jaipur Literature Festival, the author of Mongrel spoke about how being an actor affected her writing and about telling a story in multiple voices
Ayşegül Savaş: “Daily life is deeply important” (HT)
Ayşegül Savaş: “Daily life is deeply important” (HT)
At the Ubud Writers and Readers Festival, the author of The Anthropologist spoke about her pared back prose and about writing in English instead of her native Turkish
Harini Nagendra: “I didn’t come up with the character; she came to me” (HT)
Harini Nagendra: “I didn’t come up with the character; she came to me” (HT)
The author of the Bangalore Detectives Club series on her mathematical, sari clad protagonist, and on using the tropes of the cosy mystery to shine a light on the flaws of 1920s India
Bora Chung: “We Asians are proud of our ghosts” (HT)
Bora Chung: “We Asians are proud of our ghosts” (HT)
The author of The Midnight Timetable on her writing process, trusting her translator completely, and the jump scares in her stories
Benjamin Wood: “Creativity has saved me from mental trauma” (HT)
Benjamin Wood: “Creativity has saved me from mental trauma” (HT)
Gurnaik Johal: “The events of the past act as prophecy” (HT)
Gurnaik Johal: “The events of the past act as prophecy” (HT)
Reviews (Books, Movies)
The Emperor of Gladness - Ocean Vuong (HT)
The Emperor of Gladness - Ocean Vuong (HT)
Written in poetic prose and set in a fictional town in the US, this is a novel that captures the mundanity and the beauty of existence
Rejection - Tony Tulathimutte (HT)
Rejection - Tony Tulathimutte (HT)
A novel-in-stories that makes pointed jabs at contemporary internet culture while illuminating young people’s struggles in a politically, socially, and technologically volatile world
Audition - Katie Kitamura (HT)
Audition - Katie Kitamura (HT)
Full of subtle tension, carefully observed ambiguities, and prose that is fluid yet precise, the Booker-shortlisted novel lays bare the deep vulnerabilities of an artist’s mind
Book to screen: From Shy to Steve (HT)
Book to screen: From Shy to Steve (HT)
Porter’s novella is built like a mind under strain — it’s splintered, restless, and grasping for a rhythm which it can never quite find.
The Secret of Secrets - Dan Brown (HT)
The Secret of Secrets - Dan Brown (HT)
The bestselling author’s new book weaves together real-life locations, historical events, and organisations even as it blurs fact and fiction
Capital Christie - Agatha Christie (The Federal)
Capital Christie - Agatha Christie (The Federal)
A new, curated collection of 12 stories set in London, Capital Christie reveals the full range of Agatha Christie, the Queen of Crime, as a writer of dark twists and tender, moody romances
The Safekeep - Yael van der Wouden (TNIE)
The Safekeep - Yael van der Wouden (TNIE)
Yael van der Wouden’s debut novel The Safekeep, shortlisted for the 2024 Booker Prize and now winner of the 2025 Women’s Prize for Fiction, is a quiet storm. It
Madwoman - Chelsea Bieker (TNIE)
Madwoman - Chelsea Bieker (TNIE)
Ten Incarnations of Rebellion - Vaishnavi Patel (TNIE)
Ten Incarnations of Rebellion - Vaishnavi Patel (TNIE)
Book to screen: The Thursday Murder Club (HT)
Book to screen: The Thursday Murder Club (HT)
A Hiding To Nothing - Chhimi Tenduf-La (TT - India)
A Hiding To Nothing - Chhimi Tenduf-La (TT - India)
Great Big Beautiful Life - Emily Henry (TNIE)
Great Big Beautiful Life - Emily Henry (TNIE)
The Glassmaker - Tracy Chevalier (HT)
The Glassmaker - Tracy Chevalier (HT)
The Wedding People - Alison Espach (TNIE)
The Wedding People - Alison Espach (TNIE)
The Trunk - Kim Ryeo-Ryeong (TNIE)
The Trunk - Kim Ryeo-Ryeong (TNIE)
The Other Sister - Amrita Tripathi (TNIE)
The Other Sister - Amrita Tripathi (TNIE)
Headshot - Rita Bullwinkel (TNIE)
Headshot - Rita Bullwinkel (TNIE)
Atmosphere - Taylor Jenkins Reid (TNIE)
Atmosphere - Taylor Jenkins Reid (TNIE)
Into The Leopard's Den - Harini Nagendra (TNIE)
Into The Leopard's Den - Harini Nagendra (TNIE)
We'll Prescribe You A Cat - Syou Ishida (TNIE)
We'll Prescribe You A Cat - Syou Ishida (TNIE)
Marigold Mind Laundry - Jungeun Yun (HT)
Marigold Mind Laundry - Jungeun Yun (HT)
Features (Culture/Lifestyle)
In the age of AI-everything, be Rosalía’s ‘LUX’ - The Nod
In the age of AI-everything, be Rosalía’s ‘LUX’ - The Nod
The Spanish pop star’s new album has her singing in 13 languages, with every second of music performed using real strings, real instruments, & real people
A Booker is life-changing. Three past winners reveal how. - The Nod
A Booker is life-changing. Three past winners reveal how. - The Nod
Authors Banu Mushtaq, Deepa Bhasthi, and Jenny Erpenbeck open up about the opportunities and anxieties that follow fiction’s biggest prize
Report: Ubud Writers & Readers Festival (HT)
Report: Ubud Writers & Readers Festival (HT)
With an Upanishadic theme, Aham Brahmasmi, that collapses the distinction between the individual and the infinite, the literature festival held in Bali introduced the largely international audience to the richness of Indonesian stories
Listicle: 10 books about Japan to celebrate #Japanuary (HT Brunch)
Listicle: 10 books about Japan to celebrate #Japanuary (HT Brunch)
It’s #Japanuary, the month to celebrate all things Japan. Start with these 10 books which offer a glimpse into the country through manga, poetry and whodunnits
Features (Travel/Tech)
Check-In: Hotel Irada, Pune (The Nod)
Check-In: Hotel Irada, Pune (The Nod)
Designed as a “five-star wine resort” in Pune, this boutique hotel is perfect for a staycation, sipping on wine and indulging in some R&R
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