We are proud to present this extraordinary blend of fiction, myth, dream and memory – filled with haunting literary pleasures.
ADVANCE PRAISE FOR A FASHION DICTIONARY
“A Fashion Dictionary is a literary masterwork in which Gaurav Monga firmly and clearly displays his enviable talents, and marks him as a writer to be reckoned with. Make no mistake, the entries he has written are alive with story. Monga’s impressive ability to find and firmly entrench story in the terms, phrases and articles of clothing he references is a literary feat worth noting, and admiring.”
—Jason E. Rolfe, author of Invisible Influences and The Puppet-Play of Doctor Gall
“A subtle and deft exploration not only of fashion but of everything fashion rubs up against: identity, selfhood, desire, death. Monga strikes a very delicate balance in this dictionary that both is and isn’t a dictionary, sliding from the descriptive to the narrative and back again, creating a pattern as elegant as a spider’s web draped quivering and fragile over the tips of one’s fingers.” —Brian Evenson
“What a little gem of a book for anyone who uses clothes or words, but especially for those who are used to reading and writing about fashion, as it offers a respite from the tired and familiar narratives of both academic fashion theory and fashion journalism. It manages to “make strange” the most familiar and mundane items like ankle socks, buttons and hair bands; it gives body, sensuality and a defiant flair to Pathani suits and Phirans; it endows neck ties with an eerie sensibility. Oscillating between fact and dream, real and imaginary spacetimes and histories, literary and fashion references, it perpetually keeps the reader on their toes and trains us to (sometimes anxiously) question the agencies and agendas of everyday objects whose close proximity to us usually allow them to remain unnoticed.”
–Jana Melkumova-Reynolds, cultural sociologist
“Highly recommended!”
—Seb Emina, READ ME
A Fashion Dictionary
Gaurav Monga
151 pp., $14.95
ISBN 979-8989433032
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Gaurav Monga is a writer and teacher originally from New Delhi. He is the author of Tears for Rahul Dutta (Philistine Press, 2012), Family Matters (Eibonvale Press, 2019), Ruins (Desirepath Publishers, 2019), Costumes of the Living (Snuggly Books, 2020), My Father, The Watchmaker (Hawakal Publishers, 2020), The English Teacher (Raphus Press, 2021) and Raju and Kishore (Raphus Press, 2022). His work has appeared in numerous literary magazines, including B O D Y, Fanzine, Dismantle and Vestoj. He is a regular contributor to Outlook India.
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blackscatbooks.com 