In this episode, we interview author Bsrat Mezghebe about her debut novel, I Hope You Find What You’re Looking For. Bsrat describes her approach to connecting the 10,000-foot view of society with everyday human life and explains the novel as a story about Eritrean women seeking freedom in the DC suburbs on the eve of Eritrean independence in 1991. We discuss the Eritrean War for Independence, diaspora, and the moral complexity of revolutionary choices. Bsrat reflects on writing about liberation across shifting American politics.

00:00 Welcome to the Podcast

00:35 Meet Bsrat Mezghebe

02:07 Debut Novel Overview

03:05 Characters and Structure

04:25 What Readers Take Away

05:37 Writing Liberation in America

12:06 Staying Grounded

13:50 What She Reads Now

14:50 Next Projects and Nonfiction

15:52 Fiction Versus Nonfiction

17:21 Advice for Community Impact

19:08 Social Media and Focus

20:31 Where to Find Bsrat

21:09 Closing and Call to Action

Bsrat’s Book

I Hope You Find What You’re Looking For

Other Books Mentioned

Toni at Random: The Iconic Writer’s Legendary Editorship by Dana A. Williams

The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson

Where to find Bsrat

bmezghebe.com

Instagram

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