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One of my favourite Indian authors happens to be Ms. Jaishree Misra . I have been a fan of her writing ever since I read # Afterwards  and # AncientPromises , two heart-touching novels. Her latest work, "A Love Story for my Sister" is a compelling read from start to finish. Spanning across time zones and generations, it tells the stories of Margaret Wheeler, a 19th century British expat, and Tara, a 20th century Indian teenager, who are curiously alike in their choices. And the connector of both these stories, is the pragmatic to-be novelist Pia, who discovers her sister's choices in the process of unearthing the truth. If you love historical fiction, you will love this account of India in the pre-1857 stages, where the suppressed anger and resentment of Indians, simmering underneath the seemingly calm societal fabric, suddenly gives way one day to sheer terror and mayhem. A young British girl, Margaret, devoted to her parents and brothers, watches their horrifyi...

An expatriate Indian writer, writing in English, tends to fall into the stereotype of diaspora story telling. Typical themes of diaspora writing are conflicting world views of Gen X and Y expats, settlement and adjustment issues, dealing with culture shocks, dealing with discrimination and racism, etc. Very rarely do you find an author who brilliantly merges the worlds of traditional wisdom with an incisive view of the western way of thinking. So vivid are her characters, ranging from the rural Indian grandmother to the ultra modern disillusioned gen Y, from the academic in a state-of-the-art US university to the clerk in a modest sweet shop, from a wannabe beautician to a business magnate struggling with emotional issues, that one wonders where she gets her material from? Some extraordinary stories abound in "One Amazing Thing", "Arranged Marriage and other Short Stories", "Queen of Dreams", "Before We Visit the Goddess", "Mistress of ...

So "And There Were None" has been voted the best Christie mystery in a poll conducted by BBC. I knew it! It has been my favourite ever since I devoured it a few years back. It is easily one of the most intriguing, riveting story ever written, by a crime writer or otherwise. Along with a finely detailed plot, it boasts of some interesting character sketches as well. And it harks back to the eternal theme of crime and punishment, of sin and retribution. Somewhere, the story strikes a chord in all of us, as none of us are beyond sinning. Only we thank our stars that we have not sinned as heavily as the characters in the novel, so as to face such terrible annihilation. Also we feel glad to have some iota of guilt in our hearts along with regret, unlike the characters in "And There Were None". Throughout the novel, there is a tussle in our minds: we want the characters to be safe, but we cannot resist the delicious twists and turns. So much so we start expecting the...

A complex saga covering three generations, and vast spans of time and space – that’s how one can describe The Lowland.  Heart-wrenchingly real and relentlessly honest, the story evokes strong emotions in readers. What is right, what wrong, what is real, what imagined, what is proper, what improper, all lines get blurred. What remains is a very humane story of very relatable characters, of people who seem to come alive on the pages, who remind you of people you have met somewhere. Jhumpa Lahiri has always handled complex relationship tales in her past literary forays, but this tale is at a different level altogether. Here we have a tapestry of the complex socio-political backdrop of 60s’ Calcutta, which triggers all events and eventually shapes the fate of the characters. The Naxalite movement in Calcutta, is described in so much accurate detail, down to its gory, misplaced ideologies, how it stamped the collective consciousness of an entire generation of youth in the country,...

Jaishree Misra is an immensely readable author, with an easy and engaging style. She writes about people like you and me, ordinary characters undergoing extraordinary crises in their lives. Though her books don't exactly fall in the realm of serious literature, I found a lot of deep insights and reflection in her heart-wrenching tales. And unlike other popular Indian English writers, she does not write chick lit, or about the ultra-modern IT or BPO generation, so it becomes easier for ordinary middle-class folk like me to identify with her characters. As a Malayalee married to a north Indian, she has seen both cultures well enough to write about them. She sets her stories either in Kerala or in Delhi, both places being close to her heart. Her protagonist makes the proverbial journey from India to the west, in this case, London, where life altering experiences take place. Or they leave India to escape tumultuous situations in their lives here. Destiny or nemesis catches up with t...

Today is the 123rd birthday of the grand dame of detective fiction, Dame Agatha Christie . What a wonderful repertoire of detective fiction novels, starting from 'The Mysterious Affair at Styles'! I have always marvelled at her genius in devising and unravelling complex mysteries replete with dramatic and romantic tension. Her quirkily brilliant Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot , and the good old homely, solidly English Jane Marple are two of English literature's greatest fictional detectives. One could not be more different than the other. Poirot is proud, often rude and unapologetically vain about the quality of his " little grey cells ". While one marvels at his genius and unparalleled acumen in solving puzzling cases, his attitude to poor Hastings and other police detectives often put us off. His nose up in the air, he looks down upon all us ordinary mortals, often mocking us for not being able to deduce the "logical conclusion". But hats off ...

All journeys we undertake are journeys of the heart. This statement can sum up the theme of Divakaruni’s latest work Oleander Girl. Mapping the journey of protagonist Karobi (Oleander in English-from which the novel gets its name), the book takes us through her life and the lives of its myriad characters. The journey is both literal as well as internal, a metaphysical journey towards personal growth.  Her cocooned existence shattered by an unexpected revelation, Karobi launches on a search for her mysterious father. This takes her away from her closest people, and pushes her into an unfriendly, hostile America. She discovers the wells of strength and resolve within her after battling the injustices and scars that life deals out to her. Her very foundations of trust are shattered, yet she retains a child-like innocence and basic faith in life. Karobi’s innate goodness shines through and touches all characters positively. She is the touchstone against which each character is...