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The Haunting of Hajji Hotak and Other Stories Audiobook
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Publisher Description
FINALIST FOR THE 2022 NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FOR FICTION
WINNER OF THE 2023 ASPEN WORDS LITERARY PRIZE, AND THE 2023 O. HENRY PRIZE
NAMED ONE OF THE NEW YORKER'S BEST BOOKS OF 2022
"An endlessly inventive and moving collection from a thrilling and capacious young talent." —Jess Walter, author of Beautiful Ruins.
A luminous new collection of stories from a young writer who “has brought his culture’s rich history, mythology, and lyricism to American letters.” —Sandra Cisneros
Pen/Hemingway finalist Jamil Jan Kochai breathes life into his contemporary Afghan characters, moving between modern-day Afghanistan and the Afghan diaspora in America. In these arresting stories verging on both comedy and tragedy, often starring young characters whose bravado is matched by their tenderness, Kochai once again captures “a singular, resonant voice, an American teenager raised by Old World Afghan storytellers.”*
In “Playing Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain," a young man's video game experience turns into a surreal exploration on his own father's memories of war and occupation. Set in Kabul, "Return to Sender" follows two married doctors driven by guilt to leave the US and care for their fellow Afghans, even when their own son disappears. A college student in the US in "Hungry Ricky Daddy" starves himself in protest of Israeli violence against Palestine. And in the title story, "The Haunting of Hajji Hotak," we learn the story of a man codenamed Hajji, from the perspective of a government surveillance worker, who becomes entrenched in the immigrant family's life.
The Haunting of Hajji Hotak and Other Stories is a moving exploration of characters grappling with the ghosts of war and displacement—and one that speaks to the immediate political landscape we reckon with today.
*The New York Times Book Review
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"“The Haunting of Hajji Hotak is a book of shape-shifting. Kochai constantly experiments with form and voice, deftly stepping between photorealism and fantasy to create a vivid, surreal short-story collection that is both a modern parable of American imperialism and a testament to Kochai’s skill as a writer…As Afghanistan fades into the background of American discourse, Kochai’s voice is essential. We may not wish to see what we have wrought; Kochai, it seems, will ensure we do not forget."
— Vox
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“A brilliant, crazy quilt exploring filial devotion, religious beliefs, family, history and the effects of endless war."
— San Francisco Chronicle -
“Lighthearted yet powerful and oftentimes funny, The Haunting of Hajji Hotak is an incredible work of deep empathy and care, with witty writing and sharp stories that take unpredictable turns."
— Chicago Review of Books -
“Jamil Jan Kochai is a once-in-a-generation talent.
— Karan Mahajan, author of The Association of Small Bombs -
"The Haunting of Hajji Hotak and Other Stories is beyond brilliant. These stories build and amass, individually and collectively, open then close as if the fingers and palm of some great power making a fist... There is so much range and breadth and depth in this collection. Here we have humor and rage and style in spades, with storytelling as inventive as it is enthralling. One of the best books I’ve read in a long time.
— Tommy Orange, author of There, There -
[A] profound and visceral short-story collection…More than almost any other work of fiction I’ve read in the post-9/11 era, Kochai’s collection lays bare the surrealism that colors nearly every interaction between one of history’s most powerful empires and the people it considers disposable…The result is a dark literary impeachment, a fable in which the emperor is missing not clothes but a conscience.
— The Atlantic"A remarkable collection…seamed with sharp wit, and often hilarious…Kochai is a thrillingly gifted writer, and this collection is a pleasure to read, filled with stories at once funny and profoundly serious, formally daring, and complex in their apprehension of the contradictory yet overlapping worlds of their characters. -
"A brilliant, crazy quilt exploring filial devotion, religious beliefs, family, history and the effects of endless war.
— San Francisco Chronicle -
"Lighthearted yet powerful and oftentimes funny, The Haunting of Hajji Hotak is an incredible work of deep empathy and care, with witty writing and sharp stories that take unpredictable turns.
— Chicago Review of Books -
“[A] captivating collection…in turns amusing and devastating, the stories are rich with vivid scenes and distinct narrative voices…the range of framing and styles keeps the reader on their toes and delivers emotional impact in one hard-hitting entry after another. Readers won’t want to miss this.
— Publisher's Weekly (starred) "Kochai has a gift for knowing what makes the engine of a story turn over and go, what formal choices might deliver a narrative in such a way as to coax a reader to endure a set of experiences that, whatever their frequent delights— and the stories are uncommonly full of them— are rooted in sorrow, loss, and rage. -
A master class in storytelling, and a beautiful reflection on a people that have endured decades upon decades of tragedy. Stunning, compassionate, flawless.
— Kirkus Reviews -
“There’s magic here…in this visceral, timely collection.
— Booklist
Awards
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Finalist for the National Book Award
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About Jamil Jan Kochai
Jamil Jan Kochai was born in Afghanistan and grew up in the United States. He has a masters in English from University of California, Davis and a bachelor’s degree in English from California State University, Sacramento. He is currently attending the Iowa Writers’ Workshop and has been published in A Public Space and The Capilano Review.
About the Narrators
Peter Ganim, an Earphones Award–winning narrator, is an American actor who has appeared on stage, on television, and in film. He has performed voice-over work since 1994.
Suehyla El-Attar Young is an actress and writer based in Atlanta, Georgia. She dabbled in radio for a bit, working with several well-known stations as a morning news personality and DJ. Eventually, she returned to acting, on stage and in film. She has nurtured both crafts of acting and writing, working with local companies such as Theatre du Reve, Synchronicity Theatre, the Alliance Theatre Company, and Horizon Theatre Company as dramaturge, actress, and playwright on several projects.