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Gurnaik Johal

Gurnaik Johal


Interview: Saskia Vogel, author of ‘Permission’

Interview: Saskia Vogel, author of ‘Permission’

Gurnaik Johal talks with author and translator, Saskia Vogel, about ‘Permission’, her debut novel about LA’s BDSM community
The Women’s Prize for Fiction announces 2019 long list

The Women’s Prize for Fiction announces 2019 long list

The Women’s Prize for Fiction announces a diverse long list, featuring a wide-range of debut novelists.
Review: ‘Bangkok Wakes To Rain’ by Pitchaya Sudbanthad

Review: ‘Bangkok Wakes To Rain’ by Pitchaya Sudbanthad

Pitchaya Sudbanthad’s debut novel ‘Bangkok Wakes To Rain’ masterfully follows the connected lives of a wide range of characters in the city of Bangkok
Manchester’s Comma Press launches new podcast

Manchester’s Comma Press launches new podcast

Manchester-based publisher, Comma Press, launches a brand new podcast
Andrea Levy, author of ‘Small Island’, dies aged 62

Andrea Levy, author of ‘Small Island’, dies aged 62

Andrea Levy, author of critically acclaimed novels like ‘Small Island’ and ‘The Long Song’ has died at the age of 62
What’s On: Live Literature in Manchester

What’s On: Live Literature in Manchester

A quick roundup of all book-related events coming up this term in and around Manchester
Review: ‘Mouthful of Birds’ by Samanta Schweblin

Review: ‘Mouthful of Birds’ by Samanta Schweblin

One of Argentina’s most prominent writers, Samanta Schweblin, reaches new levels of eeriness in her latest short story collection ‘Mouthful of Birds’
Opinion: Identity-based poetry is nothing new

Opinion: Identity-based poetry is nothing new

After a report stating that poetry sales are at a record high, Gurnaik Johal takes a look at repeated criticisms of modern poetry
Review: ‘Go Ahead In The Rain’ by Hanif Abdurraqib

Review: ‘Go Ahead In The Rain’ by Hanif Abdurraqib

Gurnaik Johal reviews Hanif Abdurraqib’s ‘Go Ahead In The Rain: Notes To A Tribe Called Quest’, his newest book of music criticism
Review: Godsend by John Wray

Review: Godsend by John Wray

John Wray’s Godsend works best on a big picture level, and because of that, doesn’t fall flat like most American fiction about the ‘War on Terror’
Celebrated poet Mary Oliver dies age 83

Celebrated poet Mary Oliver dies age 83

American author Mary Oliver has passed away at the age of 83
The Mancunion’s most anticipated books of 2019

The Mancunion’s most anticipated books of 2019

The Mancunion previews 2019’s most exciting literary releases
Interview: Stuart Turton and Laura Purcell

Interview: Stuart Turton and Laura Purcell

Books Editor Gurnaik Johal interviews Laura Purcell and Stuart Turton before the first show of their joint UK book tour
Review: ‘I can handle university’ by Rachael Alexander

Review: ‘I can handle university’ by Rachael Alexander

‘I Can Handle University’ is a pocket-sized self help guide designed to help new students
Manchester students start new academic journal

Manchester students start new academic journal

Students in The University of Manchester’s English Literature, American Studies and Creative Writing department have created a new academic journal, called Polyphony. Founded by third-year-student Hana Jafar with the aim to spread “creative, innovative, and high quality writing” by other undergraduate students, Polyphony will “provide […] readers with an accessible resource to enrich their experience […]
Review: ‘Codex 1962’ by Sjón

Review: ‘Codex 1962’ by Sjón

Books editor Gurnaik Johal reviews Sjón’s latest work, Codex 1962, a sprawling work that catalogues every person born in Iceland from 1962 who has died since
Opinion: “It’s sexist but…”

Opinion: “It’s sexist but…”

Books Editor, Gurnaik Johal, discusses the misogyny at the heart of the work of critically acclaimed writers like Hemingway, Nabokov and Naipaul.
Obituary: Ntozake Shange

Obituary: Ntozake Shange

On the 27th October 2018, acclaimed poet and playwright Ntozake Shange died at the age of 70
Review: Faber New Poets

Review: Faber New Poets

Gurnaik Johal reviews the Faber New Poets reading at The International Anthony Burgess Foundation as part of the 2018 Manchester Literature Festival
Anna Burns wins the 2018 Man Booker Prize

Anna Burns wins the 2018 Man Booker Prize

Gurnaik Johal discusses Anna Burns’ novel Milkman, which has made her the first Northern Irish writer to win the Man Booker Prize