World as Family: A Journey of Multi-Rooted Belongings

We must "treat the world as family" in our age of global crises, and Vishakha N. Desai's book World as Family offers a new perspective on what it means to live globally and connect across borders. She shares her personal story of growing up in India and arriving in the United States as an exchange student, and how she has navigated the complexities of a life rooted in multiple places. The book is a must-read for anyone who aspires to bring about the ideal of a global family.

\n Format: Hardback
\n Length: 296 pages
\n Publication date: 11 May 2021
\n Publisher: Columbia University Press
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In our era of global crises, such as pandemics, climate crisis, and crippling inequality, the Vedic phrase "treat the world as family" becomes increasingly essential. To address these seemingly insurmountable challenges, we require innovative approaches to thinking and acting locally, nationally, and transnationally, often simultaneously, rather than in a sequential manner. This mindset encompasses individuals like immigrants, exchange students, global natives, and those who have chosen or been compelled to make a life in a new place. However, what we desperately need is a profound and expansive thinking that is urgently required to navigate these complex circumstances.

Vishakha N. Desai, through her personal experiences, delves into the significance of living globally and its pressing relevance in our current time. Her narrative spans from her upbringing in a Gandhian household in Ahmedabad to her arrival in the United States as a seventeen-year-old exchange student and her subsequent career as a dancer, curator, institutional leader, and teacher. Against the backdrop of political and social changes in both countries, she weaves her story, offering a fresh perspective on what it means to be global. Desai challenges the notion of singular belonging and explores how to lead a life of multiple belongings without losing connection to local and national identities. Through vivid imagery, she evokes the complexities and exhilaration of a life rooted in multiple places, making World as Family a vital book for those who aspire to bridge borders, both real and perceived, and foster the ideal of a global family.

\n Weight: 568g\n
Dimension: 165 x 242 x 25 (mm)\n
ISBN-13: 9780231195980\n \n