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The Indian National Congress (INC) has outlined its commitment to prioritize relations with neighboring countries, including Nepal, in its election manifesto for the 2024 Lok Sabha Elections. 

“We will re-establish the primacy of our special relationship with Nepal and Bhutan and strengthen them to our mutual benefits,” the manifesto states.

Furthermore, the INC manifesto pledges to enhance economic and cultural ties with Bangladesh, as well as address political issues in Sri Lanka, particularly concerning the Tamil community. Additionally, it aims to mend relations with the Maldives and support Myanmar in protecting the political and human rights of its people.

The party also emphasizes bolstering India’s role in multilateral institutions, collaborating with other Global South countries on key issues, and advocating for reforms to address transnational challenges.

Asserting a commitment to continuity in India’s foreign policy, the manifesto underscores the influence of historical figures like Jawaharlal Nehru. 

“Congress affirms and will uphold continuity of India’s foreign policy. Our approach was profoundly shaped by the freedom movement and developed through the wisdom of visionary leaders like Jawaharlal Nehru,” the INC says in its manifesto. 

The party has criticized the Bharatiya Janata Party and the National Democratic Alliance (BJP/NDA) government for deviating from this consensus, particularly regarding the Gaza conflict, and pledged to restore India’s reputation as a proponent of peace and moderation on the global stage.

Those who love reading know there are only a few things that are better than reading a good book. One of them is discussing a book you’ve read and loved with other readers. In Nepal, except for a few Instagram pages and corporate book clubs, there aren’t many groups where we can discuss our favorite titles, recent reads, and other bookish things.

Reading doesn’t have to be an isolated affair if you can connect with others who share your love of authors and characters. While physical meet-ups, with steaming cups of tea or coffee and generous slices of cake, might be an ideal way to talk about the book you’re reading, online book clubs can cross international barriers and connect you with readers and authors from across the globe.

Here are five of our favorite book clubs where you can get some really good book recommendations, connect with other like-minded readers, and discuss your thoughts and opinions on everything related to books and reading.

Reese’s Book Club

Reese Witherspoon, an American actor and film producer, runs an online book club called the Reese’s Book Club. It has over two million followers on Instagram. Every month, she chooses two fun and thought-provoking books with female leads, one for adults and one for YA readers. You can then read along with Reese and others by following the online book club on Instagram and Facebook. There’s also an app and you can subscribe to the newsletter for some upbeat content in your inbox. Reese has also adapted some of her book club picks into movies, notably ‘Wild’, ‘Big Little Lies’, and ‘Little Fires Everywhere’.

Our Shared Shelf

Founded by Emma Watson in 2016, this Instagram community is focused on intersectional feminist literature. During the initial days, Emma selected a book with feminist themes every two months. Emma stepped back from the group in 2020, requesting its Facebook and GoodReads community members to continue sharing recommendations. The hashtag #oursharedshelf is going strong for like-minded and lively discussions. Some books on this list will make you smile and some will make you cry. But what’s for sure is that they will all inspire you and encourage you to be the best version of yourself.

Sonali’s Book Club

On her book club’s website, Bollywood actor Sonali Bendre Behl says she has always been passionate about reading but juggling motherhood and her career made it difficult to read as much as she would like. So, she started Sonali’s Book Club as a means to interact with book lovers from across the globe. It was a way to ensure she got her reading life back on track as she would have to compulsorily read at least one book every month. Every month, she picks a book for the members of the book club to read and sets a date to discuss any thoughts and questions that they might have. The discussion happens via Facebook Live or a textual discussion online on the Sonali’s Book Club Facebook group.

Oprah’s Book Club

Oprah Winfrey’s book club is arguably America’s most influential literary hit-maker, turning unknown titles into massive bestsellers. Every book Oprah picks for her club becomes an instant bestseller. The Instagram page of the book club is a virtual delight. You will find yourself scrolling through it for hours on end since it has over 2100 posts to date. The books she tends to pick are usually thick volumes so make sure you have the time and patience for such long reads before getting into them. The book club picks have over 100 titles—both fiction and non-fiction. Visit OprahDaily.com for book-related articles and many author interviews. You can also sign up for a book club newsletter to get a complete experience.  

Belletrist

Belletrist, co-founded by actresses Emma Roberts and Karah Preiss, is an online reading community dedicated to books and reading. Each month, the book club selects a book and hosts discussions about it. There are often author interviews too. This allows readers to get an insight into the workings of the author’s mind while writing the book. Since its launch in 2017, the community has chosen over 75 titles, and the books are discussed on TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram.

Which is that one place which comes to your mind when you think of trekking? Is it Annapurna Base Camp, Mardi, or Everest Base Camp? There are many places in Nepal that are yet to be explored. A beautiful trekking destination which has not gained much popularity, even among people who love to be in the lap of mountains, is Api Himal Base Camp Trek in the far-western region of Nepal.

This trekking route doesn’t have a long history. It was officially made accessible to the public only in 2020.

Though Api Himal Base Camp Trek is one of the shortest trekking destinations, it offers breathtaking sights, rocky mountain terrain, amazing food, pristine free-flowing river, steep gorges, and unique local culture. 

We got an offer to explore this off-beat trekking destination, and without a second thought we packed our bags and bid adieu to Kathmandu.

We traveled on a bus for around 30 hours, enjoying the magical forests, beautiful landscapes, and sceneries of Doti, Dadeldhura, Baitadi, and Darchula, to reach the Api Himal Base Camp in Darchula, situated in the remotest part of Nepal. 

We spent the first night on the bus and stayed at a hotel in Gokuleshwor of Darchula on the second. The next day, after indulging in a typical Nepali breakfast, we took a jeep at around 6: 30 am and headed towards Makarigaad.

We traveled in the four-wheeler for almost four hours along a perilous stretch of road.

After reaching Makarigaad, we had Nepali food—dal, bhat, tarkari with chicken—for lunch. I have never tasted such scrumptious food on the trekking route so far. We started heading towards Khandeshwori Village, our home for the night. 

After climbing around 4,000 stairs, we reached the top of the hill from where we got a glimpse of a traditional village high up. We didn’t find a source of water on the way to the village. Finally, we reached Makarikot and found a tap. We were exhausted and at the same time excited to reach Naupata Homestay in Khandeshwori Village, where we were going to spend our third night. 

We were so taken by the natural beauty of the surrounding that we didn’t even realize that we had walked for two hours to reach the village. We saw many eye-pleasing varieties of flowers everywhere in the village. There were traditional mud houses with clay stone roofing with maize laid out on it to dry.

A mothers’ group clad in traditional attire came to welcome us. They offered us flowers and tika and performed the traditional folk dance. Our team members couldn’t stop themselves and started dancing with them, donning traditional dresses.

The next day, as we were leaving, the owner of the homestay packed us some parathas and fried corn for lunch. She didn’t even charge us for it. Her kindness and love made us feel at home, creating a sense of belonging in that remote corner of Nepal.

We left the homestay at around eight in the morning and headed towards Siti. After walking through well-trodden trails for some time, we crossed a suspension bridge over the Chaulani river. The sounds of the water felt melodic and meditative.

The excitement turned into fear when we found out we had to climb uphill through a narrow trail. After walking for around half an hour through a steep trail, we reached Ghusa.

We were given cucumbers with the paste of salt and chilies by a woman and her grandson in Ghusa which helped us unwind and recharge ourselves to reach Nali, where we had pre-ordered lunch. After having lunch at Nali and resting for some time, we reached Siti in the evening. 

Our next destination was Dhauliodar. We started hiking early in the morning, had breakfast at Khayakot, and moved towards Chirchire to have lunch. Enjoying picturesque views of alpine forest and vegetation, grasslands, flora and fauna, green pastures and mystic region with Chaulani river flowing on our side, we reached Dhauliodar in the evening.

Unfortunately, there was only a tea house which had only mattresses and sleeping bags. The night was chilly and we couldn’t sleep properly. The next day, after walking for around an hour and a half, we reached Api Himal Base Camp.

We were rewarded with views of snow-capped mountains and sounds of nature. The moment was surreal. Words can’t describe how we felt at that moment. 

We took a lot of photos and videos. After that, we walked for two hours to reach the main attraction of the Api Nampa Base Camp, holy Kalidhunga Lake that lies at an altitude of 4,100 meters from sea level. The view was stunning and awe-inspiring. It had a calming effect on us. We felt like we had stepped into a fairytale world.

Though we wanted to stay there for hours enjoying the beauty of the lake, scenery, music of nature and the mountains, we had to return to the Base Camp as we had already planned to spend that night at Chirchire. The next day we reached Gokuleshwor at around 10 pm and headed back to Kathmandu.

Situated at an altitude of 7,132 meters from sea level, Mt Api is the highest mountain in Yoka Pahar Gurans Himalayan region. Api Nampa Conservation Area has been protecting this hidden treasure of the far-west Nepal bordering India to the west and Tibet to the north.

The trek offers spectacular views of Mt Api (7,132 meters), Mt Kapchuli (6,850 meters), Mt Rajama (6,537 meters), Mt Thado Dhunga Tuppa (5,368 meters) and the Api Himalayan ranges.

The trek can be completed in nine days. March to May and September to November are the best months for trekking to Api Himal Base Camp. The cost comes around to Rs 15, 000-20,000 per person.

Despite the challenges and its remoteness, we would highly recommend this adventure to those looking for an authentic Nepali experience.

Elizabeth Strout has a knack for bringing characters to life. She explores them in great detail, adding layer upon layer of nuances to their personalities, and thus makes us resonate with them. I read ‘Olive Kitteridge’ in high school and remember falling in love with the character and the setting. The character comes back in ‘Olive, Again’. Both the books are set in a fictional town in Maine.

Lucy Barton, the protagonist of ‘Oh William’, which was longlisted for The Booker Prize in 2022, is another character Strout seems unwilling to let go of. Lucy has appeared in Strout’s short story collection ‘Anything Is Possible’ and the novel ‘My Name is Lucy Barton’. It’s a delight getting to know Lucy. She’s every bit as endearing and complex as Olive and I’m hoping Oh William won’t be the last we will see of her, though I fear it is probably where her story ends.

In ‘My Name is Lucy Barton’, Lucy Barton was a young mother. She wakes up after an operation to find her mother, whom she hasn’t seen in years, sitting beside her. The story moves back and forth between the five days her mother stays with her at the hospital and Lucy’s traumatic childhood in Maine. The novel explores childhood trauma and poverty. It’s a portrayal of how childhood trauma almost always defines your life.

In Oh William, Lucy is divorced from her first husband (William). She had remarried but David is no more. In My Name is Lucy Barton, her children, Chrissy and Becka, were young but now they are married. There is some gap in the stories between the two books but we get to know what has transpired in flashbacks. Oh William is focused on William but the story is told through Lucy’s perspective.

After the death of his mother, William discovers that she had another child before him. This shocking piece of information is what sets him off to Maine to look for his half-sibling. He asks Lucy to accompany him and this trip forms the main plot of the book. We get to know William but we also get to know Lucy and all her thoughts and emotions as well as the things and incidents that have shaped her.

William is Lucy’s ex-husband but she ‘has only ever felt at home with him’. Despite his repeated affairs and Lucy’s decision to leave William, the two are still a team for their children. Lucy confesses that David, her second husband, made her happy and that they were made for each other. But she calls William after finding out about his illness and later after his death as well.

Strout is an empathetic writer and the result is that we never judge Lucy for her decisions. Nothing comes across as shallow or callous. Instead, we are left to wonder if first love never really leaves us, and how, as human beings, we are all inherently flawed, as much as we’d like to believe otherwise.

Fiction

https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/56294820  

Oh William!

Elizabeth Strout

Published: 2021

Publisher: Penguin Random House UK

Pages: 240, Paperback