A conversation with Clara Kumagai, author of "Catfish Rolling"

American Writers Museum presents a discussion and reading from Irish-Japanese-Canadian author Clara Kumagai about her debut young adult novel "Catfish Rolling." Presented in partnership with the Consulate General of Ireland, Kumagai shares insights into themes of coming of age, identity, myth, legend and folklore. This conversation originally took place October 28, 2023 and was recorded live at the American Writers Museum. For a full list of upcoming programs and events with the American Writers Museum, click here: americanwritersmuseum.org/cal...
About "Catfish Rolling:"
There's a catfish under Japan, and when it rolls the land rises and falls. At least that's what Sora was told after she lost her mother to an earthquake so powerful that it cracked time itself. Sora and her father are some of the few who still live near one of these "zones"-the places where time has been irrevocably sped up or slowed down.
Sora's father leads a research team studying the zones, and even as his colleagues begin to fall ill, he refuses to stop entering the zones himself. Sora finds herself stuck and increasingly alone as her father starts behaving strangely-he's disoriented and his memory seems to be deteriorating. Sora, meanwhile, has been secretly conducting her own research on the zones, tracking down a time expert in Tokyo and surprising herself with a crush on a strikingly confident girl named Maya, another hafu girl with whom she forms an instant bond.
But when Sora's father disappears, she has no choice but to return home, with Maya in tow, and venture deep into the abandoned time zones to find him and perhaps the catfish itself...
Order your copy of "Catfish Rolling" here: bookshop.org/a/628/9781419768514
Born in Canada, CLARA KUMAGAI was raised in Cork and Galway by her Irish mother and Japanese father, she graduated from Trinity College, Dublin and returned to Canada for a masters degree, and spent the past five years in Japan. She has recently returned to live in Ireland and is celebrating the launch of her first novel, "Catfish Rolling." She is also developing an essay collection centered around multiracial identity, hybridity and belonging.
This event was hosted by the Consulate General of Ireland and we were delighted to welcome friends from Galway Sister Cities, the Chicago Cork Association and the Consulate General of Japan.