Amitav Ghosh: River of Smoke

Amitav Ghosh: River of Smoke

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In 2008, critically acclaimed novelist Amitav Ghosh dazzled CHF audiences with Sea of Poppies, his captivating, multigenerational tale of the 19th-century opium trade. Now comes River of Smoke, the richly drawn second book in his Ibis trilogy. In conversation with journalist Victoria Lautman, Ghosh discusses his craft and reads from this page-turner three years in the making.

This event is part of the 22nd Chicago Humanities Festival. It’s theme is tech·knowledgē. It’s ‘technology’ with ‘knowledge’ at its center. Human experience is inextricably linked to technology. At its root is the impulse to craft a better, easier, more informed life. From the creation of stone tools to the development of the printing press, the assembly line, and the microprocessor, technology is the expression of human ingenuity and a catalyst for the next big idea.

How has technological innovation shaped history and human creativity? Join us as leading thinkers of all stripes wrestle with big questions.