Jenny Bhatt (born September 18, 1972) is an Indian American writer, literary translator, and literary critic. She is the author of an award-winning story collection, ''Each of Us Killers'', an award-shortlisted literary translation, ''Ratno Dholi: The Best Stories of Dhumketu,'' and the literary translation, ''The Shehnai Virtuoso and Other Stories'' by Dhumketu''.'' She is the founder of ''Desi Books'', a global multimedia platform for South Asian literature, and a creative writing instructor at Writing Workshops Dallas.

Personal life

Bhatt was born in

Rajkot, Gujarat Rajkot () is the fourth-largest city in the Indian state of Gujarat after Ahmedabad, Vadodara, and Surat, and is in the centre of the Saurashtra (region), Saurashtra region of Gujarat. Rajkot is the 35th-largest metropolitan area in India, w ...

, India, and grew up in

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

. She did most of her high school at

Kimmins High School Kimmins High School is a girls' boarding school in Panchgani in the state of Maharashtra, India, founded in 1898. It was founded as the "sister" school of Queen Mary School, Mumbai, providing boarding school capability for girls who could not att ...

in Panchgani, Maharashtra. She attended the

University of Hertfordshire The University of Hertfordshire (UH) is a public university in Hertfordshire, United Kingdom. The university is based largely in Hatfield, Hertfordshire. Its antecedent institution, Hatfield Technical College, was founded in 1948 and was ident ...

in England as an engineering undergraduate. Thereafter, she worked in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

, and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

at various multi-national corporations until 2012. From 2012 to 2014, she worked as a personal

financial advisor A financial adviser or financial advisor is a professional who provides financial services to clients based on their financial situation. In many countries, financial advisors must complete specific training and be registered with a regulatory ...

to people running small businesses. In 2020, she founded Desi Books LLC, a global multimedia forum that showcases

South Asian South Asia is the southern Subregion#Asia, subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geography, geographical and culture, ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, ...

literature and connects readers and writers through conversation and community. She's based in the

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County w ...

area.

Writing (fiction and nonfiction)

From 2016 onward, Bhatt's short fiction has been published in various literary journals. Her non-fiction and literary criticism have been published in various venues like ''

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

,'' ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

,'' ''

Literary Hub Literary Hub is a daily literary website that launched in 2015 by Grove Atlantic president and publisher Morgan Entrekin, American Society of Magazine Editors Hall of Fame editor Terry McDonell, and Electric Literature founder Andy Hunter. Conten ...

,'' ''

The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...

,'' ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of B ...

'', and others. In 2022 Bhatt guest-edited a collection of Gujarati literature in translation works at ''

Words Without Borders ''Words Without Borders'' (''WWB'') is an international magazine open to international exchange through translation, publication, and promotion of the world's best writing and authors who are not easily accessible to English-speaking readers. The ...

''. Bhatt's weekly newsletter,
We Are All Translators
has received mentions at venues like

Los Angeles Review of Books The ''Los Angeles Review of Books'' (''LARB'' is a literary review magazine covering the national and international book scenes. A preview version launched on Tumblr in April 2011, and the official website followed one year later in April 2012. ...

, ''

'', and ''

The Dallas Morning News ''The Dallas Morning News'' is a daily newspaper serving the Dallas–Fort Worth area of Texas, with an average print circulation of 65,369. It was founded on October 1, 1885 by Alfred Horatio Belo as a satellite publication of the ''Galvesto ...

''.

''Each of Us Killers'' (short story collection)

A winner in the Foreword INDIES 2020 Book of the Year Short Stories award category and a finalist in the Multicultural Adult Fiction category'','' Bhatt's debut short story collection was cited as one of the most anticipated debuts of the second half of 2020 by ''

Electric Literature ''Electric Literature'' is an independent publisher founded by Andy Hunter and Scott Lindenbaum in 2009 as a quarterly journal. It launched the first fiction magazine on the iPhone and iPad. The print version of the journal is produced via print ...

,'' ''

The Millions ''The Millions'' is an online literary magazine created by C. Max Magee in 2003. It contains articles about literary topics and book reviews. ''The Millions'' has several regular contributors as well as frequent guest appearances by literary not ...

'', and ''Entropy Magazine''. Published by ''7.13 Books,'' the story collection received a starred review from ''

Shelf Awareness Shelf Awareness is an American publishing company that produces two electronic publications/newsletters focused on bookselling, books and book reviews. Overview With offices in Seattle, Washington, and Montclair, New Jersey, ''Shelf Awareness' ...

'', with praise that “ allenging assumptions, confronting power, manipulating barriers whenever possible–even at grave personal cost–Bhatt’s cast surprises, inspires, frightens, beguiles, but never disappoints.” ''

'' wrote that Bhatt's "stories are memorable on their own, and they add up to a powerful expression of the hunger for success on one's own terms." ''

Kirkus Reviews ''Kirkus Reviews'' (or ''Kirkus Media'') is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus (1893–1980). The magazine is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fic ...

'' called it a "formally diverse collection with exquisitely crafted stories about longing, striving, and learning what we can control" and listed it as one of the must-read collections of Fall 2020. ''Debutiful,'' ''

Ms. Magazine ''Ms.'' is an American feminist magazine co-founded in 1971 by journalist and social/political activist Gloria Steinem. It was the first national American feminist magazine. The original editors were Letty Cottin Pogrebin, Mary Thom, Patricia Ca ...

.'' ''Bustle'' listed it as a must-read book of September 2020 and as one of the best collections of 2020. ''Largehearted Boy'' listed it as a favorite short story collection of 2020. ''Book Riot'' listed it as one of the top ten short story collections of 2020 by Asian authors. Other venues that gave positive or rave reviews: ''

''; ''

Texas Public Radio Texas Public Radio, or TPR is the on-air name for a group of public radio stations serving south central Texas - including San Antonio and the Texas Hill Country - and the Big Country region of West Central Texas. All are affiliated with Nati ...

''; '' Open the Magazine''; ''The National Book Review;'' ''New York Journal of Books''; ''NRI Pulse''; ''

India Currents ''India Currents'' is, according to the ''San Jose Mercury News'', "the oldest and largest Indian-American magazine on the West Coast" of the United States. Fully digital today, it earlier offered Northern California, Southern California, and Wa ...

''; ''

Puerto del Sol ''Puerto del Sol'' is a non-profit literary magazine run by faculty and graduate students from the MFA program in Creative Writing National Book Critics Circle Award, National Book Critics' Circle;'' '' Phoebe Journal;'' ''Vagabond City;'' ''Platform Magazine;'' and '' The Hindu Business Line.''.

Tabish Khair Tabish Khair is an Indian English author and associate professor in the Department of English, University of Aarhus, Denmark. His books include ''Babu Fictions'' (2001), ''The Bus Stopped'' (2004), which was shortlisted for the Encore Award (U ...

, writing for ''

The Hindu ''The Hindu'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper owned by The Hindu Group, headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It began as a weekly in 1878 and became a daily in 1889. It is one of the Indian newspapers of record and the secon ...

'', described the work thus: ". . . Bhatt gets under the skin of her characters with an ease that is difficult to achieve when creating characters beyond the pale of capital and caste. . .using lively, sculpted language that avoids the stilted, literary English often afflicting Indian English writing."

Anthologies

Bhatt's story 'Return to India' was included in ''The Best American Mystery and Suspense 2021'', selected by

Alafair Burke Alafair S. Burke (born October 1969) is an American crime novelist, professor of law, and legal commentator. She is a'' New York Times'' bestselling author of 18 crime novels, including ''The Ex, The Wife,'' and ''The Better Sister,'' and two ...

and series editor,

Steph Cha Steph Cha is a Korean American novelist and fiction writer, who has released three novels in the crime fiction genre about her detective protagonist Juniper Song, ''Follow Her Home'' (2013), ''Beware Beware'' (2014) and ''Dead Soon Enough'' (2015) ...

. In her introduction, Burke wrote: "In “Return to India”, Jenny Bhatt uses the structure of witness statements to build a tightly woven mystery, while effortlessly balancing a broad cast of diverse characters and voices as they collectively narrate the painful series of facts leading to a crime of violence." In 2023, the crime/noir forward anthology,
The Dark Waves of Winter
', edited by David M. Olsen, included a short story by Bhatt titled 'Lili's Song'.
IndieReader
' called the anthology "a first-rate anthology for literary short story fans with consistently excellent writing throughout." Also in 2023, Bhatt's short story, 'The Weight of His Bones' was included in
South to South: Writing South Asia in the American South
'' an anthology edited by Khem K. Aryal.

Literary Translation

''Ratno Dholi: The Best Stories of Dhumketu'' (literary translation)

Shortlisted for the ''Valley of Words Book Award'' in the 'English Translations From Regional Languages' category, this book is a translation of 26 short stories by the

Gujarati Gujarati may refer to: * something of, from, or related to Gujarat, a state of India * Gujarati people, the major ethnic group of Gujarat * Gujarati language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by them * Gujarati languages, the Western Indo-Aryan sub- ...

writer, Dhumketu, published by ''

HarperCollins India HarperCollins Publishers LLC is one of the Big Five English-language publishing companies, alongside Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, and Macmillan. The company is headquartered in New York City and is a subsidiary of News Co ...

'' in October 2020. ''

The Hindustan Times ''Hindustan Times'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper based in Delhi. It is the flagship publication of HT Media, an entity controlled by the KK Birla family, and is owned by Shobhana Bhartia. It was founded by Sunder Singh Lyall ...

'' praised the translation as "reasonably fast-paced and eminently accessible." ''Womensweb.in'' said that "Jenny Bhatt’s translation is nuanced but simple, and does justice to these stories.” ''

Firstpost ''Firstpost'' is an Indian online news and media website. The site is a part of the Network 18 media conglomerate owned by Reliance Industries, which also runs CNN-News18 and CNBC-TV18. The ''Network 18'' group was originally owned by Raghav ...

'' wrote that "Her translations make for a crisp and honest rendering of 20th century Gujarat . . ." ''

'' wrote: "The translator of this collection, Jenny Bhatt, contextualizes humketu'swork in the introduction while providing insightful details about his craft." ''

The Indian Express ''The Indian Express'' is an English-language Indian daily newspaper founded in 1932. It is published in Mumbai by the Indian Express Group. In 1999, eight years after the group's founder Ramnath Goenka's death in 1991, the group was split betw ...

'' described the translation as mellifluous and wrote that "well-informed choices for pivotal words open new possibilities of re-readings for a Gujarati reader." The ''

Deccan Chronicle ''Deccan Chronicle'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper founded by Rajagopal Mudaliar in the 1930s & currently owned by Samagrah Commercial Pvt Limited. It is published in Hyderabad, Telangana, by Deccan Chronicle Holdings Limited ( ...

'' praised the depth of each story, adding: “. . . which means that a) the translator has done an excellent job and b) every story in the book is satisfying, something that does not often happen with short story collections.”

''The Shehnai Virtuoso and Other Stories by Dhumketu'' (literary translation)

In 2022, the US edition of Bhatt's literary translation of Dhumketu's selected short stories was published as ''The Shehnai Virtuoso and Other Stories'' b
Deep Vellum Books
''

'' called it "a love letter to the power of art and the human spirit." ''

'' said that "Complex characters, vibrant imagery, and descriptions of rural Gujarat State bolster each of the stories." ''

'' reviewed it as a "skillful translation." '' Asymptote Journal'' described it as “. . . a kaleidoscope, abundant in variegating depictions of both landscapes and the human interiors populating them.” The translation also made ''

World Literature Today ''World Literature Today'' is an American magazine of international literature and culture, published at the University of Oklahoma. The stated goal of the magazine is to publish international essays, poetry, fiction, interviews, and book review ...

''s 75 Notable Translations of 2022 list. In an interview with
Five Books
', Bhatt said that "Not only is it the first ever book-length translation of his vast oeuvre, it is also the first ever translation from Gujarati being published in the US, where we have the largest Gujarati diaspora."

''Desi Books'' LLC

Bhatt started
Desi Books
' as a podcast in April 2020 to spotlight books by writers of

South Asia South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.;;;;;;;; ...

n origin. South Asia refers to the

SAARC The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) is the regional intergovernmental organization and geopolitical union of states in South Asia. Its member states are Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, ...

countries: India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Nepal, Bhutan, and The Maldives. ''

Mid-Day ''Mid-Day'' (stylised as mid-day) is a morning daily Indian compact newspaper owned by Jagran Prakashan Limited. Editions in various languages were published in Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore and Pune. In 2011, the Delhi and Bangalore editions were ...

'' called it a venue for "the best of desi reads." ''

Eastern Eye The ''Eastern Eye'' is a British weekly newspaper. It was created in 1989 and was first published by ''The Guardian'', before becoming a standalone newspaper. History Sarwar Ahmed Sarwar Ahmed ( bn, সরয়ার আহমেদ; bor ...

'' described it as one of the most "popular podcasts redefining real talk." ''

'' featured Bhatt an
''Desi Books''
saying "This North Texas author is shining a light on Desi authors from around the globe." ''

The Los Angeles Review of Books The ''Los Angeles Review of Books'' (''LARB'' is a literary review magazine covering the national and international book scenes. A preview version launched on Tumblr in April 2011, and the official website followed one year later in April 2012. ...

'' described it as follows: "What started as a modest program now has several channels, featuring conversations on craft, book reviews, and even video episodes." In August 2021, ''Desi Books'' was registered as an LLC and a global multimedia forum that showcases South Asian literature and connects readers and writers through conversation and community. In February 2023, Bhatt announced that she would be winding down the platform although the archives would remain online.

Teaching

Bhatt teaches creative writing at ''Writing Workshops Dallas.''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bhatt, Jenny American writers of Indian descent 21st-century American women writers 21st-century American short story writers American literary critics American women literary critics Writers from Gujarat 21st-century Indian women writers 21st-century Indian writers 21st-century Indian short story writers 21st-century American writers Women writers from Gujarat Literary translators Indian women translators Gujarati–English translators Alumni of the University of Hertfordshire Living people 1972 births Writers from Dallas American people of Gujarati descent American women writers of Indian descent