Mother Ocean Father Nation

Order the book through your local bookstore, online, or check your local library for digital and physical loans.

Context Links

• Q&A with Nishant Batsha, author of Mother Ocean Father Nation (The Offing)
• On a South Pacific Island, Two Siblings Face a Difficult Choice as Racial Tensions Flare (ElectricLit)
• Writers & Books: Nishant Batsha: Mother Ocean Father Nation (YouTube)
• Indo-Fijians and Fiji’s Coup Culture (The Diplomat)
• Minorities and the Making of Postcolonial States in International Law (Third World Approaches to International Law Review)
• When Uganda Expelled Its Asian Population in 1972, Britain Tried to Exclude Them (New Lines Media)

Guiding Questions

1. Who was your favorite character? What character did you identify with the most? Were there any characters that you disliked? Why?
2. Did you draw parallels between the imagined history on this imagined island nation and what postcolonial nation building looks like in other countries?
3. What surprised you the most about the plot?
4. Was there any part of the plot or aspects of Bhumi or Jaipal that frustrated or upset you? If so, why?
5. Have you read books with similar themes? Which themes? How did they relate?
6. What do you think of the book’s cover? How well does it convey what the book is about?

Recordings

• Ann Arbor District Library TV discussion
• Author Interview