Naomi Elegant

Hong Kong, New York

Writer at Monocle

my debut novel, GINGKO SEASON, is OUT NOW!

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Articles

'Gingko Season,' by Naomi Xu Elegant

1 month ago | nytimes.com | Naomi Elegant

Abandoned by both her mother and a really bad ex, the 25-year-old narrator of "Gingko Season" avoids her own traumas by focusing on grand historical ones. When you purchase an independently reviewed book through our site, we earn an affiliate commission.
The Fact and the Fiction of Philly: Writing Place From Research, Memory and Intuition

1 month ago | lithub.com | Naomi Elegant

For nearly my entire life, the SS United States, a 990-foot-long, 80-year-old ocean liner that in 1952 broke the world record for the fastest transatlantic voyage by any ship, was parked on the banks of the Delaware River in South Philadelphia, accumulating rust.
Inside the Reserve, Singapore's largest and most stylish vault

2 months ago | monocle.com | Naomi Elegant

Vaults are usually secretive. Yet The Reserve, Singapore's newest repository for bullion, is gaining an interest by showing off. Gregor Gregersen looks down at the bar of gold in his hands. It is a slim trapezoid of burnished, ochre-hued metal, a 12.5kg brick that gleams gently in the light and is worth - at time of writing - about $1.2m (€1.1m).
Back to life

Nov 21, 2024 | monocle.com | Naomi Elegant |Faris Mustafa |Adam Amengual

LFrom entrepreneurs who are rediscovering Nice’s hidden charms to the trio reviving a faded hotel in the desert outside San Diego, we meet the business folk who know how hospitality, drinking and dining can nourish a neighbourhood. 01. NiceFranceThe courtyard at Hôtel du Couvent feels more like a sleepy village square in the south of France than the scene of one of the season’s most anticipated hospitality openings.
Lucky escapes

Oct 23, 2024 | monocle.com | Naomi Elegant |Ivan Carvalho |Claudia Jacob |Georg Roske

LFrom a new beach club on the sandy shores of the Aegean to a freshly revamped hotel that Parisian writer Honoré de Balzac once called home, we round up some of the best hospitality spots across the globe. The year’s not over yet... ScorpiosBodrumSoho House & Co’s Scorpios beach club has opened an outpost on Turkey’s Bodrum peninsula. Alongside Med classics including lemon and courgette linguine, the menu features local favourites such as cig kofte (meatballs) and ariani (a yoghurt drink).
At the front

Oct 23, 2024 | monocle.com | Simon Bouvier |Naomi Elegant |Jake Kenny |Trisha Ward

LOur new-look Opener offers an inside view into the world of Monocle. Come on in... HOW WE LIVE: ACTION PLANOpen seasonTyler Brûlé on why Monocle is expanding – and subtly sprucing up the shops you already love.
The Agenda: Culture

Sep 25, 2024 | monocle.com | Lucrezia Motta |Sophie Monaghan-Coombs |Fernando Augusto Pacheco |Naomi Elegant

CHaute couture on the big screen, kiosk culture in the US and a Thai filmmaker’s Paris presence. Q&A –––– FRANCELambert WilsonFrench-language show La Maison on Apple TV+ follows two rival families as they compete for dominance in Paris’s high-fashion world. The cast includes Lambert Wilson as star designer Vincent Ledu. Here he discusses his role, his character’s taste and learning to sew. Your character is a harsh person. Did you enjoy playing Vincent? I like playing kings.
The Agenda: Affairs - Issue 169 - Magazine

Nov 29, 2023 | monocle.com | Josh Fehnert |Christopher Lord |Naomi Elegant |Tomos Lewis

LThe stories you should be paying attention to – and the ones you might have missed. Josh Fehnert on why, despite not quite making the cut in Monocle’s Soft Power Survey, Ireland’s moderation, spirit and diaspora are quietly influential the world over. If there’s such thing as a softly spoken superpower – able to quietly project goodwill and often get its way – Ireland is surely a contender.
Affairs - Issue 168 - Magazine

Oct 19, 2023 | monocle.com | Andrew Mueller |Lucrezia Motta |Louis Harnett O’Meara |Naomi Elegant

LThe stories you should be paying attention to – and the ones you might have missed. With 1,187 career wins and a record 45 grand tournament victories, Hakuho Sho is often described as the greatest sumo wrestler of all time. His retirement ceremony in 2021 was attended by dignitaries including a former Japanese prime minister and the president of the Toyota Motor Corporation. But Hakuho is not a typical yokozuna (those who have achieved the highest rank in sumo).
Growth spurt - Issue 168 - Magazine

Oct 18, 2023 | monocle.com | Naomi Elegant

LThough soon to be stripped of its status as a capital city, Jakarta remains the beating heart of Indonesian entrepreneurship. The imf predicts that Indonesia will be among this year’s fastest-growing major economies. The retail sector is booming as domestic tourism surges.