a good reading list for India
Jun 13th, 2006, 02:01 AM
#1
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a good reading list for India
Hi all
What books would you recommend I read in preparation for my first trip to India? Historical or fiction, or good guidebooks too. Anything at all.
Growing up with a European background I had so much already instilled in me as far as history and culture (before my trips to Europe), but, I have so little knowledge of India apart from what you just pick up along the way.
My first visit will be the Golden Triangle area, most likely.
What books would you recommend I read in preparation for my first trip to India? Historical or fiction, or good guidebooks too. Anything at all.
Growing up with a European background I had so much already instilled in me as far as history and culture (before my trips to Europe), but, I have so little knowledge of India apart from what you just pick up along the way.
My first visit will be the Golden Triangle area, most likely.
Jun 13th, 2006, 02:25 AM
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I am sure this issue has been debated before in this forum, but here is my hapennyworth:
1. Midnight's children [Salman Rushdie- fiction]
2. Freedom at Midnight [Dominique Lapierre and Larry Collins- history]
3. The Great Indian Novel [Shashi Tharoor- fiction]
4. Love in a dead language [Lee Siegel- fiction]
5. The God of Small Things [Arundhathi Roy- fiction]
1. Midnight's children [Salman Rushdie- fiction]
2. Freedom at Midnight [Dominique Lapierre and Larry Collins- history]
3. The Great Indian Novel [Shashi Tharoor- fiction]
4. Love in a dead language [Lee Siegel- fiction]
5. The God of Small Things [Arundhathi Roy- fiction]
Jun 13th, 2006, 02:46 AM
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Personally, I LOVE Forster's The Passage to India. Written 80 years ago, much has changed and much stays the same. I think it captures the essence of why we foreigners are drawn to cultures like India, sometimes mystified, sometimes repelled, sometimes enchanted but always fascinated.
Jun 13th, 2006, 05:24 AM
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Concerning the list adduced by ayakkadan, I would like to sound a word of caution - all these writers are urbanised, English-speaking elites, their writing often pandering to Western audiences. Not a single one in the list has the qualifications or the ability to dicuss Indian languages, Art, Philosophy, History or Music with any degree of authority (but that won't prevent them from masquerading as authorities, mind you) . Read them by all means, but don't forget this.
Jun 13th, 2006, 05:45 AM
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Bombay Ice- for murder mystery/thriller
Holy Cow!- funny book about an Australian woman living in India and the country's many relgions
A Fine Balance- by Rohinton Mistry
Interpreter of Maladies: short stories by Jhumpa Lahiri
Here is a link to a past post with suggestions for movies about/flimed/taking place in India:
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34748908
Holy Cow!- funny book about an Australian woman living in India and the country's many relgions
A Fine Balance- by Rohinton Mistry
Interpreter of Maladies: short stories by Jhumpa Lahiri
Here is a link to a past post with suggestions for movies about/flimed/taking place in India:
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34748908
Jun 13th, 2006, 05:49 AM
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many thanks for the replies!
I should mention I read A Suitable Boy a few years ago. (I know there are fans and detractors of the book/author).
thank you for the list, I have my work cut out for me! (and not even started).
I should mention I read A Suitable Boy a few years ago. (I know there are fans and detractors of the book/author).
thank you for the list, I have my work cut out for me! (and not even started).
Jun 13th, 2006, 08:35 AM
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SHAMELESS SELF-PROMOTION COMING...
You could also start with
The Hazle Journal 2002 - The Crucible: 12 Days in India
It is at: http://www.waynehazle.com/india/
You could also start with
The Hazle Journal 2002 - The Crucible: 12 Days in India
It is at: http://www.waynehazle.com/india/
Jun 14th, 2006, 02:14 AM
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The India that flygirl is going to encounter will have little similarity to R.K.Narayan's books. I am a big fan of his writing by the way.....but maybe more indicative of rural life than what will be encountered while visiting the golden triangle.
Jun 14th, 2006, 04:30 AM
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Ayakkadan,
By the same token, not much of what Rushdie, Arundhati Roy and Tharoor writes is relevant to the Golden Triangle insofar as the lives of the vast number of people who live in the villages and small towns there are concerned. I would argue that R.K.'s books will, in fact, provide a hint of the ways of the rural Indian that could be more useful than what is written by the cityslickers like Tharoor & Roy.
By the same token, not much of what Rushdie, Arundhati Roy and Tharoor writes is relevant to the Golden Triangle insofar as the lives of the vast number of people who live in the villages and small towns there are concerned. I would argue that R.K.'s books will, in fact, provide a hint of the ways of the rural Indian that could be more useful than what is written by the cityslickers like Tharoor & Roy.
Jun 14th, 2006, 02:14 PM
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I like a number of the suggestions above I also liked another of Rohinton Mistry's books Family Matter which really gives you a sense of post-colonial Parsi life in Mumbai.
I also found the Raj Quarter by Paul Scott was a fascinating picture of the British in India.
The fact is that literature is often a reflection of the urban middle class and this is true no just in India.
I also found the Raj Quarter by Paul Scott was a fascinating picture of the British in India.
The fact is that literature is often a reflection of the urban middle class and this is true no just in India.
Jun 14th, 2006, 03:42 PM
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welltraveledbrit,
At least in the case of India your remark is not true. There is a large body of Indian literature in the local languages that is a reflection of the simple or the rural life. That the typical urban English-educated Indians (and hence the foreigners who largely get their information from them) are not fully conversant with this corpus of homegrown literature is another topic for another day (and another forum).
At least in the case of India your remark is not true. There is a large body of Indian literature in the local languages that is a reflection of the simple or the rural life. That the typical urban English-educated Indians (and hence the foreigners who largely get their information from them) are not fully conversant with this corpus of homegrown literature is another topic for another day (and another forum).
Jun 14th, 2006, 06:46 PM
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Jun 15th, 2006, 08:17 AM
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When I was in Delhi, I visited a wonderful bookstore called "The Book Shop". It is located at 13/7 Jor Bagh Market, New Delhi.
They made some wonderful suggestions, but I particularly enjoyed two books by a Delhi writer, Manju Kapur. They are "Difficult Daughters" and "Home". These books provide indepth insight into the dynamics and everyday experiences of Indian "joint" family life. I believe you can get these books through Amazon.
Vanny
They made some wonderful suggestions, but I particularly enjoyed two books by a Delhi writer, Manju Kapur. They are "Difficult Daughters" and "Home". These books provide indepth insight into the dynamics and everyday experiences of Indian "joint" family life. I believe you can get these books through Amazon.
Vanny
