"Sisters of Mokama is proof that faith and courage does move mountains."—Abraham Verghese, author of Cutting for Stone The never-before-told story of six intrepid Kentucky nuns, their journey to build a hospital in the poorest state in India, and the Indian nurses whose lives would never be the same New York Times editor Jyoti Thottam’s mother was part of an extraordinary group of Indian women. Born in 1946, a time when few women dared to leave their house without the protection of a man, she left home by herself at just fifteen years old and traveled to Bihar—an impoverished and isolated state in northern India that had been one of the bloodiest regions of Partition—in order to train to be a nurse under the tutelage of the determined and resourceful Appalachian nuns who ran Nazareth Hospital. Like Thottam’s mother’s journey, the hospital was a radical undertaking: it was run almost entirely by women, who insisted on giving the highest possible standard of care to everyone who walked through its doors, regardless of caste or religion. Fascinated by her mother’s story, Thottam set out to discover the full story of Nazareth Hospital, which had been established in 1947 by six nuns from Kentucky. With no knowledge of Hindi, and the awareness that they would likely never see their families again, the sisters had traveled to the small town of Mokama determined to live up to the pioneer spirit of their order, founded in the rough hills of the Kentucky frontier. A year later, they opened the doors of the hospital; soon they began taking in young Indian women as nursing students, offering them an opportunity that would change their lives. One of those women, of course, was Thottam’s mother. In Sisters of Mokama, Thottam draws upon twenty years’ worth of research to tell this inspiring story for the first time. She brings to life the hopes, struggles, and accomplishments of these ordinary women—both American and Indian—who succeeded against the odds during the tumult and trauma of the years after World War II and Partition. Pain and loss were everywhere for the women of that time, but the collapse of the old orders provided the women of Nazareth Hospital with an opening—a chance to create for themselves lives that would never have been possible otherwise.

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Sample Book Insights: #1 On August 14, 1945, the Japanese emperor’s surrender was announced in Nazareth, Kentucky. The chimes from the stone chapel next to the convent began to sound, and Mother Superior Ann Sebastian Sullivan listened as the ringing pierced the air. #2 The Sisters of Charity, who were the primary nursing staff for four hospitals in three states, refused to join the war effort overseas. They felt that to operate their hospitals during the war was in complete accord with the wishes of President Roosevelt. #3 The decision was baffling to the young nurses of the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth, who were ready to volunteer. Nearly all of them had brothers in the military, and they had watched the lay people they worked with answer the call. #4 By the 1820s, Kentucky’s land had all been settled, and the balance of power had shifted between two competing ideals of white womanhood: the competence and resourcefulness of frontier women and the useless and decorative women of the cities.

Buzz Books 2022: Spring/Summer is the 20th (!) volume in our popular sampler series. As always, Buzz Books presents passionate readers with an insider’s look at the buzziest books due out this season. Such major bestselling authors as Geraldine Brooks, Sloane Crosley, Chris Pavone, Emma Straub, and Adriana Trigiani are featured, along with literary greats Abdulrazak Gurnah (our first Nobel Prize in Literature winner), NoViolet Bulawayo, Mohsin Hamid, and Marianne Wiggins. Other sure-to-be readers’ favorites are by Denny Bryce, Karne Joy Fowler, Jane Green, plus 14 more. Buzz Books has had a particularly stellar track record with highlighting the most talented, exciting and diverse debut authors, and this edition is no exception. Co-creator of the Emmy-winning series How I Met Your Mother, Carter Bays’ first novel is featured, along with Nishant Batsha, Jumi Bello, Melissa Chadburn, and Sopan Deb, and 13 other debut writers. Our nonfiction selections cover such fascinating subjects as a symbolic World War 11 Marine Corps football game by Pulitzer-Prize winner Buzz Bissinger; a literary memoir of recovery from opioid addiction; a true crime story; and a primer on brain health. Be sure to look out for Buzz Books 2022: Fall/Winter, coming in May.

Joseph C. Hoskins grew up hearing stories about India from his father's college roommate, who is affectionately known as "Uncle Sunil." Uncle Sunil is from India. When Hoskins was a little kid, Uncle Sunil would regularly visit his home; Hoskins's interest in India was SPIKED by Uncle Sunil's stories of MAJESTIC Indian Tigers roaming the PRISTINE jungles of India, and the INFALLIABLE beauty of the GLORIOUS Taj Mahal. Hoskins desperately wanted to travel there but never thought he would have the chance. Until one day he did-and that trip became an unforgettable adventure. Filled with surprising-and sometimes shocking-accounts, Hoskins's book delves into his experiences as he meets the people of India and observes their culture. Yet beyond his immediate impressions, Hoskins also details India's rich background throughout the narrative. For those interested in cultural heritage or world history, Hoskins calls attention to the myriad events that created the India he came to appreciate. This enjoyable memoir leaves no stone unturned, weaving together inspiring stories of the great inventors who ushered in modernity with Uncle Sunil's thoughts on the differences between Indian and American relationships. While detailing the incredible natural and manmade beauty of the country and its most significant landmarks, Hoskins also shares his observations of the poverty and income inequality gap in India. He unabashedly reveals a reality that many prefer to ignore-for better or for worse. At its core, My Heart Belongs to India is a love song to this fascinating country and its compelling people.

This volume challenges the dominant discourse that perceives Asian women as either "mail-order" brides or overseas workers. Providing the first sustained critique of the artificial analytical division between brides and workers, the book demonstrates women's transition from brides to workers and from workers to brides. Focusing on how women workers use marriage as a strategy to gain citizenship and how migrants for marriage become workers, the authors present these modern Asian women in their multidimensional roles as wives, workers, mothers, and citizens.

Majgull Axelson is the author of four works of non-fiction as well as one previous novel, Far from Nitetheim, for which she was awarded the 1994 Moa Stipend. The 1997 publication of April Witch in Sweden earned her the prestigious August Prize. She is married, has two children and lives in Stockholm.