Summary: <br> We talk with <a href="https://amitavghosh.com/">Amitav Ghosh</a> about his masterful history of the opium trade, <a href="https://us.macmillan.com/books/9780374602925/smokeandashes">Smoke and Ashes: Opium’s Hidden Histories</a>.<br> <br> <br> <br> Then, <a href="https://www.manjulamartin.com/">Manjula Martin</a> tells us about her personal and “pyro-natural” history of California wildfires — the ones she lived through in 2020 and the ones Indigenous people lived with before white settlers moved in and took their land. Her book is <a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/711111/the-last-fire-season-by-manjula-martin/">The Last Fire Season</a>.<br> <br> <br> <br> And finally, we read a poem from Mosab Abu Toha’s book Things You May Find Hidden In My Ear.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Writers Voice— in depth conversation with writers of all genres, on the air since 2004.<br> <br> <br> <br> Find us on Facebook at Writers Voice with Francesca Rheannon, on Instagram @WritersVoicePodcast or find us on X/Twitter @WritersVoice.<br> <br> <br> <br> Key Words: Amitav Ghosh, history, opium trade, author interview, Manjula Martin, climate change, global warming, fire season, memoir, podcast, book podcast, author interview, Writer’s Voice, Francesca Rheannon<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Narco States of Colonial Capitalism<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> When Amitav Ghosh finished the novels of his famed Ibis Trilogy, he became curious about the opium trade. The lives of his characters, 19th-century sailors and soldiers who navigated the vast expanse of the Indian Ocean, were intertwined with the currents that carried not just ships, but their precious cargo—opium. <br> <br> <br> <br> He was surprised to find how much that commodity had shaped the destinies of not only India, but of China, colonial empires — and the United States.<br> <br> <br> <br> What startled Ghosh even more wasn’t just the historical backdrop, but the realization that his own family history was entangled in that trade.<br> <br> <br> <br> Enter Smoke and Ashes: a book that combines travelogue, memoir, and historical research to weave together threads of horticultural history, the myths of capitalism, and the enduring impacts of colonialism.<br> <br> <br> <br> <a href="https://us.macmillan.com/books/9780374602925/smokeandashes">Read An Excerpt</a><br> <br> <br> <br> <a href="#TranscriptAmitav" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Read The Transcript</a><br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Fire Season: Past, Present and Future<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Manjula Martin traded city life for the serene woods of Northern California in pursuit of a deeper connection to the wilderness of her childhood. Struggling with chronic pain, she sought solace in tending her garden beneath the majestic redwoods of Sonoma County. <br> <br> <br> <br> However, the very landscape she cherished was under threat from escalating wildfires exacerbated by climate change. <br> <br> <br> <br> As wildfires ravaged the West in 2020, Martin and countless other Californians were forced to evacuate amidst a global pandemic. The Last Fire Season delves into the intricate role of fire in the ecology of the Western landscape while at the same time shining a critical lens on the colonialist practices that have contributed to their current plight.<br> <br> <br> <br> <a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/711111/the-last-fire-season-by-manjula-martin/">Read or Listen to an Excerpt</a><br> <br> <br> <br> <a href="#TranscriptManjula" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Read The Transcript</a><br> <br> <br> <a class="wp-block-read-more" href="https://www.writersvoice.net/2024/03/amitav-ghosh-smoke-and-ashes-manjula-martin-the-last-fire-season/"></a>
