Nooroongji Book Club Author Edition: May It Have a Happy Ending
About this Event
The theme of our books vary by month, always with a mind to forwarding uncommon international works that will nourish and enrich our understanding of the world and each other.
For July we're thrilled to welcome Dr. Minelle Mahtani, the author of May It Have a Happy Ending, for an intimate and lively conversation filled with tenderness, delicious food, and hopefully a few cackles as well.
MIHAHE is one of those books we love recommending at Nooroongji Books to people from all walks of life. For anyone navigating uncharted career paths, health advocacy for loved ones, ebbs and flows in familial relations, the subtle windings of Canadian racial politics, or simply wishing to read a sharp yet nuanced voice... this memoir is it.
Minelle Mahtani had taken a leap of faith. A new mother in a new life, she'd moved across the country for love, and soon found herself facing the exciting and terrifying prospect of hosting her own radio show. But as she began to find her place in the majority white newsroom, she was handed devastating news: her Iranian mother had been diagnosed with tongue cancer.
Just as Minelle was finding her voice, her mother was losing hers.
What does it mean to amplify the voices of others while the stories of your ancestors are being buried in your mother's mouth? Why do we cling to superstition and luck when we’ve lost all faith in healing those we love? And how do we juggle bearing the burden of looking after an ill parent when we are trying to parent our own children?
In exquisitely lyrical and inventive prose, Mahtani recounts the experience so many of us recognize: a life calibrated through calculating when to speak and when to be silent in a world that feels like it forces us to be broken.
-
Please join us in our Whatsapp group chat (link shared in order confirmation email) if you'd like to connect beforehand~
This special edition of our book club will be a larger format than our usually intimate group setting. We will set up seating in the main atrium space, as well as a table of delectable foods, to help us stay nourished through the evening. Please purchase your ticket through eventbrite ahead of time to help us prepare for the evening.
Past Nooroongji Book Club Picks:
Nov 2023: The Guest Cat, by Takashi Hiraide
Dec 2023: The Wall, by Marlen Haushofer
Jan 2024: Difficult Loves, by Italo Calvino
Feb 2024: All Your Children, Scattered, by Beata Umubyeyi Mairesse
Mar 2024: Kim Ji Young Born 1982, by Cho Nam Joo
Apr 2024: The Inhumans and Other Stories, Edited by Bodhisattva Chattopadhyay
May 2024: Her Body and Other Parties, by Carmen Maria Machado
Jun 2024: How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia, by Mohsin Hamid
Jul 2024: Victory City, by Salman Rushdie
Aug 2024: An Apprenticeship, Or The Book of Pleasures, by Clarice Lispector
Sept 2024: The Love of Singular Men, by Victor Heringer
Oct 2024: Coexistence, by Billy-Ray Belcourt
Nov 2024: Ryder, by Djuna Barnes
Dec 2024: Welcome to the Hyunam-Dong Bookshop, by Hwang Bo-reum
Feb 2025: Assembly, by Natasha Brown
April 2025: The Brothers Karamazov, by Fyodor Dostoevsky
July 2025: The Last Supper, by Rachel Cusk
August 2025: The Houseguest, by Amparo Dávila
September 2025: The Serviceberry, by Robin Wall Kimmerer
November 2025: Change, by Edouard Louis
April 2026: Time of the Flies, by Claudia Piñeiro
Agenda
🕑: 06:45 PM - 07:00 PM
Doors Open at 6:45!
Info: We close the shop at 6:15, so please allow us these few minutes to set up before you enter the building! We will open the doors at 6:45!
🕑: 06:45 PM - 07:15 PM
Mingle & Graze
Info: We'll let you get settled in, chat with and meet new friends, and enjoy the grazing table.
🕑: 07:15 PM - 08:00 PM
Author Introduction & Discussion
Info: Okay we're diving in! For this larger group format, Jennifer will introduce our special guest first, and engage with the author for the first half of our discussion time.
🕑: 08:00 PM - 08:45 PM
Audience Q&A
Info: We'll have ample time for everyone to engage with the author. All thoughtful questions welcome! If shy, feel free to share any questions or comments in our Whatsapp group ahead of the event.
🕑: 08:45 PM - 09:15 PM
Author Signing and Next Book Club Pick
Info: We will have a signing station for our special guest author. Our next book club pick will be announced, and the bookstore will be open for purchases.
🕑: 09:15 PM - 09:30 PM
Cleanup & Hometime
Info: Time for us to clean up and head home! Thank you all for coming~
Where is it happening?
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
CAD 6.99
