Author Description

Product Description First published in Tamil in 1992, Karukku broke barriers of tradition in ways more than one. The first autobiography of a Dalit woman writer, the book is a classic of subaltern writing, and a bold and poignant tale of life outside mainstream Indian thought and function. Revolving around themain theme of caste oppression within the Catholic Church, Karukku portrays the tension between the self and the community, and presents Bama's life as a process of self-reflection and recovery from social and institutional betrayal.Marking ten years of the first English translation of Karukku, this edition includes a Postscript, where Bama relives the dramatic moment of her leave-taking from her chosen vocation that she had not described in the first edition and a special note 'Ten Years Later'. This volume also carries theeditor's note, the author's preface, the author's afterword to the first edition and an updated Introduction by the translator Lakshmi Holmstrom. About the Author Bama is the most celebrated contemporary Dalit woman writer. She has been in the forefront of caste literature activism and has given Dalit aesthetics a visibility it had previously lacked in the literary campus of India. Her other works include Sangati (1994), Kisumbukkaran (1996), Vanmam (2002),Oru Thaathavum, Oru Yerumayum (2003), and Kondattam (2009). Her works have been translated into English, German, French, Telugu, and Malayalam.Lakshmi Holmstrom is one of the most successful Indian translators from Tamil into English. She has received the Crossword Award for translation twice (2001 and 2007). She received the Iyal Award from the Tamil Literary Garden, Canada (2008) and is one of the Founder Trustees of the South AsianDiaspora Literature and Arts Archive.