Uzbekistan’s literary luminaries will make their first appearance at the Southern Festival of Books in Nashville, Tennessee. Now in its 37th year, this iconic event is one of the biggest and most celebrated literary festivals in the U.S., and this year, attendees will get a taste of Uzbek storytelling. Avid readers will dive into the vibrant and poetic world of Uzbek literature, where Southern hospitality meets Central Asian artistry.

“Nashville is a publishing powerhouse — we love our books here,” Mark Reese, the organizer behind the showcase, told The Times of Central Asia. “I’m proud that my city has come together to support this exciting cultural exchange and open the door to new literary voices.”

Reese partnered with Akbar Toshtemurov, founder of Booktopia in Tashkent, to bring the vision to life. “Booktopia is a natural ally in the effort to spread awareness of Uzbek literature abroad through professional translation,” Reese said. “Akbar Toshtemurov has sponsored the translation of over fifty English-language titles into Uzbek and brings deep expertise to the table.”

Mark Reese – image courtesy of the subject

Among the featured writers is Abdulla Qodiriy, one of Uzbekistan’s most revered authors. His novel Oʻtkan Kunlar (Bygone Days) — a cornerstone of Uzbekistan’s literary heritage — will be central to the presentation. “Qodiriy will certainly be a focal point,” Reese said, “but I expect other authors, both past and contemporary, to have a seat at my table.”

Reese has spent over 30 years bridging cultures. He has created education programs across Central Asia and the U.S., spearheaded eLearning, curriculum reform, and translation projects. As the founding director of the Center for Regional Studies at the U.S. Naval Academy, he crafted top-tier academic content, cementing his legacy in cultural diplomacy. His efforts to promote the Uzbek language and culture, including his English translation of Oʻtkan Kunlar, earned him Uzbekistan’s Presidential Order of Doʻstlik.

“My career in Uzbekistan started with the Peace Corps in 1994,” Reese told TCA. “I served in Kokand as one of the first volunteers in the city as an English teacher.

“What has always fascinated me and that I’ve admired are the layers of culture that inform each other – Uzbekistan’s rich ecumenical heritage — it has everything from petroglyphs, Zoroastrianism, Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam. Being able to witness the birth of a republic is an extremely rare experience as well. I’ve been a student of Uzbekistan ever since.”

TCA: How did you come across Uzbek literature, and what universal themes might appeal to a U.S. audience?

“Kokand is known as the center of literary Uzbek, which is mainly attributed to Umar Khon and Nodira. So, I learned the Kokand dialect of Uzbek. The University of Washington’s graduate program in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, as well as Tashkent’s Sharqshunoslik University, underpinned my academic knowledge.”

TCA: What inspired you to feature Abdulla Qodiriy’s work at the festival?

“Uzbekistan suffers from a structured soft power presence abroad. Thirty-plus years of independence, and their narrative still remains relatively obscure, even among experts who travel there. I was shocked that post 9/11, the U.S. built whole programs to understand radicalization, women in Islam, Islam and governance, and the cultural landscape, yet no one read any of the region’s literature. Can we understand the formation of English identity without reading Shakespeare? Defoe? That said, I don’t really feel that Uzbekistan’s diplomats understand American culture either. New York City and Washington DC ain’t America.

“Qodiriy’s work is a historical novel that reflects his views of the past and his present reform agenda. I love how, at times, he speaks directly to the reader, meaning me, and that holds a special emotional value to me. Also, the historical events depicted in the novel occurred – the ethnic cleansing of the Qipchaks and Musulman Kul happened.

“Despite the extensive commentary on Ferghana, we have a literary artifact that captures those events. It begs the question: if O’tkan Kunlar is the first full-length novel in the Uzbek language, does the Massacre of the Qipchaks mean it is the first depiction of ethnic cleansing in Ferghana? How did those events and the novel influence historical memory? Imperial types, I’m thinking of Ernst Renan here, further a polemic that there is no basis for human rights in Islam, yet we have a novel that furthers the value of human life and dignity.

“We know that Qodiriy was greatly influenced by one of the fathers of Arab nationalism – Jurji Zaydan. Could O’tkan Kunlar be a spin on Arab or Turkic nationalism? It’s hard to say without primary sources, but these questions have always fascinated me. I also love Qodiriy’s humor! He was a brilliant comedic writer, and his Uzbek is laugh-out-loud funny. Comedy is the hardest literary form of them all.”

TCA: I read that DOGE cuts threatened the festival this year — any comments?

“As much as I hate it… much of what DOGE did represents the will of many American voters. It made me want to go expat again, but it’s a real sentiment that goes back a century or more.

“Nashville is the center of publishing in America, and has been the center of Bible printing for at least a century. From that grew music, printing, and now, content development. Many iconic albums were recorded in Nashville. Amazon made Nashville its third choice as a center after its expansion from Seattle, and the city is one of the largest centers of medical data in the world. Taylor Swift and many others have homes here for a reason. I think of New York City as the storefront, and Nashville is where the business gets done. So, when DOGE made their cuts, a number of Nashville orgs came forward.”

The Southern Festival of Books takes place in Nashville on October 18 (9 a.m.–6 p.m.) and October 19 (10 a.m.–5 p.m.), 2025, at the Bicentennial Mall, Tennessee State Museum, and Tennessee State Library.