We are honored to host a visit by Vauhini Vara, author of THE IMMORTAL KING RAO, in conversation with Ruby member, Esmé Weijun Wang, author of THE COLLECTED SCHIZOPHRENIAS.
Vauhini Vara will read from her masterwork of a debut novel, the genre-busting, epic, THE IMMORTAL KING RAO. Set over the course of over a century, Vara maps the journey of a Dalit immigrant who creates a corporate-ruled global society and the daughter who must grapple with and reconcile his legacy. Both intimate and expansive, THE IMMORTAL KING RAO's ambitions are matched only by its humanity as it bravely explores our past, present, and impending future
Following the reading, Vauhini Vara and Ruby, Esmé Weijun Wang will take part in what will be a fascinating discussion on mythology, corporate technological dystopia, and our cultural and environmental inheritances.
Both authors' books will be available for purchase at the event, courtesy of bookstore partner, Dog Eared Books!
About THE IMMORTAL KING RAO
One of Vulture's Books We Can’t Wait to Read in 2022
One of The Millions' Most Anticipated Books of 2022
One of The Observer's Fiction to Look Out for in 2022
One of Ms. Magazine's Most Anticipated Books of 2022
One of Literary Hub's Most Anticipated Books of 2022
A Times of India Most Anticipated Book of 2022
In an Indian village in the 1950s, a precocious child is born into a family of Dalit coconut farmers. King Rao will grow up to be the most accomplished tech CEO in the world and, eventually, the leader of a global, corporate-led government.
In a future in which the world is run by the Board of Corporations, King’s daughter, Athena, reckons with his legacy—literally, for he has given her access to his memories, among other questionable gifts.
With climate change raging, Athena has come to believe that saving the planet and its Shareholders will require a radical act of communion—and so she sets out to tell the truth to the world’s Shareholders, in entrancing sensory detail, about King’s childhood on a South Indian coconut plantation; his migration to the U.S. to study engineering in a world transformed by globalization; his marriage to the ambitious artist with whom he changed the world; and, ultimately, his invention, under self-exile, of the most ambitious creation of his life—Athena herself.
The Immortal King Rao, written by a former Wall Street Journal technology reporter, is a resonant debut novel obliterating the boundaries between literary and speculative fiction, the historic and the dystopian, confronting how we arrived at the age of technological capitalism and where our actions might take us next.
About Vauhini Vara
Vauhini Vara has worked as a Wall Street Journal technology reporter and as the business editor for The New Yorker. Her fiction has been honored by the O. Henry Prize and the Rona Jaffe Foundation. From a Dalit background, she lives in Fort Collins, Colorado.
About Esmé Weijun Wang
Esmé Weijun Wang is a novelist and essayist. She is the author of the New York Times-bestselling essay collection, The Collected Schizophrenias (2019), and a debut novel, The Border of Paradise, which was called a Best Book of 2016 by NPR. She was named by Granta as one of the “Best of Young American Novelists” in 2017 and won the Whiting Award in 2018. Born in the Midwest to Taiwanese parents, she is the founder of The Unexpected Shape™ Writing Academy for ambitious writers living with limitations. She can be found at esmewang.com and on Twitter @esmewang.
Health & Safety Notes: We are closely monitoring local conditions and health advisories. You must be fully vaccinated to attend this event and we will be checking at the door. Masks are highly encouraged though not required. We have KN95s available to all at the front desk. Thank you for your support!