Amitav Ghosh Is Writing A Book That Will Remain 'Unread' For 100 Years: All You Need To Know
Amitav Ghosh joins Norway’s Future Library, sealing his next manuscript until 2114. A forest-grown project where literature waits a century to be read.
The celebrated Indian novelist, Amitav Ghosh, known for his sweeping explorations of empire, migration, and climate, has committed his next manuscript to a project that unfolds on a timescale almost unimaginable in today’s fast-moving world. Ghosh has been named the 12th author to contribute to the Future Library, a century-long literary artwork that will remain sealed until the year 2114.
Until then, his words will rest quietly in Oslo, waiting for readers who have not yet been born.
A Book Written For The Future, Locked In The Present
Ghosh’s manuscript will not appear on bookstore shelves, reading apps, or library catalogues anytime soon. Instead, it will be sealed inside a specially designed 'Silent Room'” at Oslo’s main public library, where it will remain untouched for 100 years.
His work joins an extraordinary and growing archive of unseen texts by some of the world’s most acclaimed writers, including Margaret Atwood, author of 'The Handmaid’s Tale', and Han Kang, who wrote 'The Vegetarian'. Together, these manuscripts form the heart of 'Framtidsbiblioteket', Norway’s Future Library, a project where literature, time, and nature are deeply intertwined.
Founded in 2014 by Scottish artist Katie Paterson, the Future Library invites one writer each year to submit an original manuscript. None of the texts will be read or published until 2114, when all 100 works will finally be revealed at once.
A Library That Grows With Time
The Future Library is not just an idea, it is rooted in the earth itself.
At the edge of Oslo, in the forested region of Nordmarka, a thousand spruce trees were planted at the project’s inception. These trees are essential to the artwork’s vision. In 2114, they will be felled and turned into paper for printing the long-hidden manuscripts, transforming a living forest into a once-in-a-century anthology.
Ghosh will officially submit his contribution in June at a ceremony held in this very forest, reinforcing the connection between storytelling, time, and the natural world.
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