Guest Post ~ Author of Schooled, Anisha Lakhani

Working on my book blog Planet Books has helped open many new doors for me in the book reviewing field.  I have had the pleasure of reading great new books and the privilege of meeting and corresponding with their authors. 

One of my most memorable and special correspondences has been with the wonderful and charming Anisha Lakhani, author of Schooled.  She has joined us for a guest post here at Planet Books.  Her debut novel will be in stores this Tuesday, August 5th, and I couldn’t be more excited for her.  I enjoyed this book very much and hope that you will too.  Anisha discusses a little bit of everything here and has surprisingly flattered me beyond words.  So without anything more from me… Anisha Lakhani.

Hello all – this is Anisha Lakhani, author of Schooled.  OMG as my students would say, what a lame-o way to start a guest post, but this is my first guest post ever (will admit I am having a terribly good time already) and have decided to relax and be myself.  Okay, I did spend Friday trying to think of clever openings and amazing tips for first time authors, but in the end have decided to stick to simple and true.

I fell in love with this blog because its author has one incredibly good-looking dog named Rocky.  Sorry if you think that’s weird, but I dedicated Schooled to my shitzu Harold Moscowitz (another lengthy blog required to explain that name) and anyone with a cool dog is a friend of mine.  Once you get past Rocky’s good looks and start navigating the site, you realize that it’s a place real book-lovers go, and that’s me.  So truly I am quite honored to be posting.

Photographed by Jim Dratfield

Schooled is a book that comes directly from my personal experiences.  Like Harry Potter’s cape, I use “fiction” and some healthy doses of dramatization and embellishment to keep me safe. . . after all, I live in the lion’s den: in the heart of the Upper East Side.  I was a teacher and a tutor for ten years, and left both two years ago to write full time.  If you read Schooled seriously – which I know is difficult to do after encountering the faux-mitzvah bash at Cipriani 42nd street – you’ll see that I have some strong feelings about what I think is, at base, wrong with education in certain schools across the country.  But if you take Schooled to the beach and it makes you laugh, then I’m equally happy. Someone on Amazon reviewed my book as “fluff,” and I was like, “I’ve always had a predilection for marshmallows.”  And using “like” non-stop is a disease I caught while teaching and sadly, it like conquered me.

I’m currently working on my next novel, and drinking way too many Vitamin Waters (lemonade flavor and YES partially because I think it will make me healthy) and suffering from massive doses of writer’s block.  Please visit me at my website and drop me a line – people keep saying “You must be so busy your book is coming out” but really all I have been doing when not hard at work on my next novel (not really I just enjoy saying that a lot) is madly and passionately falling in love with Edward Cullen, the completely hot vampire in Stephanie Meyer’s four-book saga.  So do write because I’m planning on having a reputation of writing back. I hope you enjoy getting Schooled!

Warmly,

Anisha Lakhani

Schooled will be available for purchase Tuesday, August 5th.  You can visit Anisha Lakhani’s website HERE.  Anisha will also be over at The Debutante Ball grog (group blog) on August 9th.