Kaliane Bradley: A Rising Star in the Literary World

Kaliane Bradley is a name to watch in the literary world. She 4️⃣ has just published her first novel, "The Ministry of Time," a time-travel romance cum sci-fi comedy set in near-future London. 4️⃣ The novel has received praise from writers such as Eleanor Catton and David Nicholls and has a TV adaptation 4️⃣ in the works.

From Walthamstow to the World

Bradley was born and raised in Walthamstow, east London, where she still lives with 4️⃣ her partner and cat. She grew up in a multicultural household, with a British father and a Khmer mother who 4️⃣ moved to the UK during the Cambodian civil war. She spent her childhood sharing a bedroom with her twin sisters 4️⃣ and her half-brother while her parents rented out the house.

"The Lucky Jumper" and The Ministry of Time

Bradley wrote "The Ministry 4️⃣ of Time" by accident, as she puts it. She had been working on a "thankless, loveless" project for years but 4️⃣ found herself drawn to time-travel stories during the pandemic. She immersed herself in the TV series "The Terror" and became 4️⃣ fascinated by Lt. Graham Gore, a man of "great stability of character and sweetest of tempers." This fascination led her 4️⃣ to create a "nerdy literary parlour game" online, which eventually turned into the novel.

In "The Ministry of Time," Bradley explores the experience of immigrants 4️⃣ in modern Britain by placing "expatriates from history" in modern London. She uses time-travel as a metaphor for the assimilation 4️⃣ of immigrants into British society, as they are told they must assimilate, have certain values, and be productive for society. 4️⃣ The hilarious and sparky one-liners afforded by the time-travel conceit make the novel a fun and thought-provoking read.

"Maybe this is 4️⃣ the British-Cambodian novel I was supposed to be writing."

Through Gore, Bradley found a way to express her mother's past and 4️⃣ the inherited trauma of Cambodia's history. Gore's realization that "they are all dead" and the world he knew is gone 4️⃣ is a poignant reflection of the trauma experienced by refugees and immigrants. While Bradley has no plans to give up 4️⃣ her day job, she is already deep into her second novel, an extension of her prize-winning short story.