News2Novel - Argentina, Darjeeling Tea and Nuclear Fusion #10
3 novel suggestions based on news this week
Hello! This is the 10th issue of News2Novel - the newsletter that suggests novels to read based on weekly news.
I’m writing today’s edition from a café in Munich, Germany, where I’m sipping black coffee and munching buttered pretzels. It’s been a wonderful few days of seeing my brother, visiting second-hand bookshops (where I spotted past News2Novel suggestions like The Clan of the Cave Bear) and walking in snowy parks.
Now onto the newsletter.
#Argentina ➡️ Hopscotch
After a 3-3 draw, Argentina beat France 4-2 in a dramatic penalty shootout to win the FIFA World Cup 2022
The match is considered to be the greatest World Cup Final ever - given the superstar rivalries, penalties, memorable goals and remarkable saves
Both countries have faced each other at three previous World Cups in 1930, 1978 and 2018
A novel that sits between Argentinian and French cultures is Hopscotch by Julio Cortázar, published in 1963
It follows the story of an Argentinian writer who lives in Paris with his mistress, and is surrounded by a circle of bohemian friends, known as “the Club”
Following a child’s death and his mistress’s disappearance, the writer returns to Buenos Aires where he works in multiple roles: first as a salesman, then a keeper of a circus cat (that can count), and then an attendant in an insane asylum…
#DarjeelingTea ➡️ A Psalm For The Wild-Built
Darjeeling tea estates in India are facing bankruptcy due to competition from cheaper Nepalese teas and the effects of climate change on yields
The Tea Board of India, a regulatory body, has requested a $120M rescue package for the industry
Darjeeling is known as “the champagne of teas” and was beloved by the late Queen Elizabeth II - it’s loss would be tragic, ending a way of life for 55,000 growers and pickers
Perhaps what tea lovers need is inspiration, which comes in no better form than A Psalm For The Wild-Built, a solarpunk novella by Becky Chambers about machines, humanity and tea
It’s set in a sustainable futuristic world where robots have gained self-awareness, wandered into the wilderness and not been seen by humans for centuries
One fateful day, a robot (named Splendid Speckled Mosscap) approaches a tea monk, to ask a simple yet profound question: “What do people need?”
#NuclearFusion ➡️ The World Set Free
US Scientists ran a nuclear fusion experiment that yielded more energy than was put in
Headlines about limitless clean energy followed but were premature: the calculations did not include the total energy needed to run the apparatus, which was considerable
Regardless, the breakthrough is significant, with experts predicting that a commercially viable power plant could be ready after a few more decades of research
A world powered by nuclear energy, was first prophesised by H.G. Wells in his visionary novel The World Set Free
Written in 1913, he predicted nuclear warfare years before any research had begun; he had even described the chain reactions and consequent radiation
Physicist Leo Szilard read the novel in 1932 and it inspired him to mastermind the atom bomb
Before you go…
Here are some final morsels and thoughts:
The news about Darjeeling tea is particularly close to home: my family is from Darjeeling and it’s also my favourite tea. I’ve been speaking with growers in the region to better understand the situation and how people can support
I first discovered A Psalm For The Wild-Built at an exhibition on care robots in Leeds, England. The novella paints a beautiful vision for the future and I couldn’t recommend it enough
If you end up reading any of the novels mentioned in News2Novel, I’d love to hear about it! Just reply to this email or tweet me @dhrupadkarwa
Do share this newsletter with anyone who might enjoy the suggestions
Have a merry Christmas filled with fiction and possibilities! 🎄
Dhru