Near the end of 2020, the pandemic had lasted long enough for author Jodi Picoult to try something that seemed unthinkable for novelists in its early stages — turn it into fiction.

Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey, narrated by the author (Random House Audio)

“Parityekta” is a work of fiction, written in the first person’s stream-of-consciousness narrative. The story unravels the internal landscape of a woman, who branching out into many roles of daughter, beloved, wife and mother, nevertheless constantly stumbles upon the well of loneliness from which the sense of abandonment springs perennially.

19-year-old Pragya Mallick has been reading for as long as she can remember. Mallick, who is currently in her third semester of Bachelor’s in Electrical and Electronics Engineering at Kathmandu University, claims that she spends a good chunk of her free time reading novels and when she isn’t doing that, she is browsing through the stack of novels at her college library. Mallick names sci-fi, fantasy and historical fiction as her favorite genres and admits that she is pretty picky about the book she reads. Here, she lists five of her favorite books and explains why she recommends everyone to read these books at least once.

It’s only in rare instances that we come across strangers with familiar souls. Sometimes they come from the same place as us. Sometimes it’s the way their thoughts blend with ours—intangible and inseparable. And sometimes it’s the quirky habits, unapologetic hobbies, and inextinguishable interests that bind us together.

Numbers, a science fiction novel by Rachel Ward, was a whole lot better than I expected it to be. I was captivated by the first chapter, which gave me a slight hint that the novel deals with a teenager’s inability to fit into the society. The plot turned out to be quite thrilling and fast paced. The character development was also good and the element of romance that Ward had chosen to add kept the story interesting.

You never know when you glow Stiffen up that little shoulder And rise from the low You have been in the cave of your ‘self’

The weak and fragile boat, we hurriedly hopped in carried around six or seven of us. Everyone started to be in motion, trying to sail the boat, despite the challenging weather with the intermittent occurrence of thunder and lightning.

My disinterest in fiction is deeply rooted in my past when we were compelled to read 17 fictions during MA first year at Central Department of English in Kirtipur

What makes for a compelling read? – This is a question that has always baffled and continues to baffle writers, would-be writers, and publishers. Even for a reader like me, this is a perplexing question. For every book I read, I have a different thought about what did or didn’t make it special. It’s even more difficult to make a translation of a non-fiction – a spiritual book for that matter – a compelling read.

Throughout history women have fought and criticized oppression and discrimination via literature showing that they too can be as powerful and as creative as anyone else in the world. Here we bring to you a list of five books with iconic female leads that are worth a read (and perhaps a reread).

KATHMANDU, April 3: The 'Mainali Fiction Honour' has been conferred on fiction writer Bijaya Sagar. At the 37th fiction day organised by Nepal Academy and Literary Journalists Association on Tuesday, the award instituted in memory of noted fiction writer Guru Prasad Mainali was handed to literary writer Sagar.

Marcia Clark insists she’s not reliving her post-O.J. Simpson trial life in the new series 'The Fix.'

KATHMANDU, May 31: Fictionalized account of the historic portrayal of the last Malla King Ranajeet Malla written by a scholar of History, Yogesh Raj is to be launched on June 2.

OBOR membership is a desperate attempt of Nepali government to establish its nationalist credentials by appearing close to China

When it comes to picking out books for ourselves, we know exactly what we like and what we don’t. The blurring of boundaries between fiction and non-fiction may have been going on for a while now but it is very common to come across readers who still stick to one or the other option.

BERGSHAMRA, Sweden, Oct 8:  Emelie Eriksson has a bond with her son that hardly seems possible: She and her son were born from the same womb.