Join SAJA-DC for a book chat with NPR's Morning Edition host Steve Inskeep (@NPRinskeep). He will discuss his new book, "Instant City: Life and Death in Karachi," based on his in-depth reporting in Pakistan.

Morning Edition producer and SAJA-er Asma Khalid will moderate a discussion following a short reading.

Event is free but a donation of $5 is suggested to cover light refreshments.

Registration required.

About the Instant City:

“In recent decades, the world has seen an unprecedented shift of people from the countryside into cities. As Steve Inskeep so aptly puts it, we are now living in the age of the 'instant city,' when new megacities can emerge practically overnight, creating a host of unique pressures surrounding land use, energy, housing, and the environment. In his first book, the co-host of Morning Edition explores how this epic migration has transformed one of the world's most intriguing instant cities: Karachi, Pakistan.

Karachi has exploded from a colonial port town of 350,000 in 1941 to a sprawling metropolis of at least 13 million today. As the booming commercial center of Pakistan, Karachi is perhaps the largest city whose stability is a vital security concern of the United States, and yet it is a place that Americans have frequently misunderstood.

Drawing on interviews with a broad cross section of Karachi residents, from ER doctors to architects to shopkeepers, Inskeep has created a vibrant and nuanced portrait of the forces competing to shape the future of one of the world's fastest growing cities.”

– Penguin Group