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LONGLISTED FOR THE DSC PRIZE FOR SOUTH ASIAN LITERATURE 2017In this tender, lyrical, and often funny novel, Anjali Joseph, author of Saraswati Park, shines a light on everyday life, illuminating its humour, beauty, and truth.There is a certain number of breaths each of us have to take, and no amount of care or carelessness can alter that.This is the story of two lives. Claire is a young single mother working in one of England’s last remaining shoe factories, her adult life formed by a teenage relationship. Is she ready to move on from memory and the routine of her days? Arun makes hand-sewn chappals at his home in Kolhapur. A recovered alcoholic, now a grandfather, he negotiates the newfound indignities of old age while returning in thought to the extramarital affair he had years earlier.These are lives woven through with the ongoing discipline of work and the responsibility and tedium of family life. Lives laced with the joys of friendship, the pleasure of sex, and the redemptive kindness of one’s own children. This is the story of the living.In this tender, lyrical and often funny novel, Anajli Joseph, author of Saraswati Park, shines a light on everyday life, illuminating its humour, beauty, and truth.
Two individuals separated by geography and circumstance navigate the quiet, persistent demands of their daily existence while grappling with the weight of their pasts. Claire, a young single mother in England, balances the monotony of factory labor with the lingering influence of a formative teenage relationship. Meanwhile, in Kolhapur, Arun, a grandfather and former alcoholic, finds himself reflecting on a past extramarital affair while adjusting to the physical limitations of aging. The narrative alternates between these two distinct lives, examining how both characters find meaning within the routine of work and the complexities of family responsibility.
This novel is characterized by its quiet, observational approach to the human condition, focusing on the small, often overlooked moments that define a life. The prose is noted for its gentle, lyrical quality, which elevates the everyday struggles of its protagonists into a broader meditation on existence. Readers often highlight the author's ability to bridge the gap between two vastly different cultural settings through the universal themes of work and family. The narrative avoids dramatic artifice, opting instead for a steady, reflective pace that invites the reader to sit with the characters in their moments of solitude and realization. Ultimately, the work serves as a testament to the endurance of the individual spirit amidst the predictable rhythms of time.
Page Count:
240
Publication Date:
2016-03-10
Publisher:
HarperCollins Publishers
ISBN-10:
0007462824
ISBN-13:
9780007462827
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