An Annotated Bibliography of Fiction in English from the Indian Subcontinent
Adiga, Aravind. The White Tiger: a Novel. (New York: Free Press, 2008)
F Adiga
Winner of the 2008 Booker prize, this novel is a penetrating piece of social commentary, attuned
to the inequalities that persist in India despite its newly found prosperity. The story is told by
Balram, who kills and steals, and finances his business to become successful in a corrupt world.
Ali, Ahmed. Twilight in Delhi: a Novel. (New York: New Directions, 1994)
F Ali
This novel chronicles the life of a Muslim family living in Delhi at the beginning of the twentieth
century, who see their fortunes fading as the British take over. Mir Nahal, a cultured Muslim who
loves pigeons and prayer talks about his life experiences.
Baldwin, Shauna S. What the Body Remembers: a Novel. (New York: Talese,1999) F Baldwin
The grim and brutal story of the partition of India in 1947 is told through the eyes of two Sikh
women who are sister wives of a wealthy landowner. The lives, turmoils, and tribulations of Roop
and Satya- the co-wives, are beautifully depicted with a great insight into human psychology.
Bhagat, Chetan. One Night at the Call Center. (New York: Ballantine Bks, 2007) F Bhagat
Bhagat, an emerging young writer gives an insight into modern India and a behind the scenes look
into the workings of an international call center. The personal lives of the six call center workers
and their boss is revealed and on Thanksgiving day a call comes in which changes everything.
Chatterjee, Upamanyu. English, August: An Indian story. (NY:NYR books,2006) F Chatterjee
In this novel, the protagonist Agatsya( known as August to his friends) is born in an elite family in
India and his friends attend Yale and Harvard. The novel deals with self discovery and captures
Augusts’ prized government job experiences at Madna, a town full of corruption and bureaucracy.
Daswani, Kavita. The Village Bride of Beverly Hills. (New York :G.P.Sons, 2004) F Daswani
This is an endearing romantic comedy about a married couple, Priya and Sanjay, who move to
California from India with their in-laws. Sanjay’s parents want Priya to cook and clean and have a
baby but she takes a job as a receptionist at the glossy magazine, Hollywood Insider.
Desai, Anita. Baumgartner’s Bombay. (New York: A.A. Knopf, 1989)
F Desai
Hugo Baumgartner, a German-Jewish refugee from the Holocaust ends up in Bombay where he is
no more accepted as a European in India than he was as a Jew in Germany.
Desai, Kiran. Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchard. (New York: A M Press, 1998)
F Desai
A misunderstood young man named Sampath escapes his family and failures by climbing a guava
tree in an orchard and refusing to come down. This action causes the villagers to worship him and
he is labelled as a saint and a holy man.
Deshpande, Shashi. A Matter of Time. (New York: Feminist Press, 1999)
F Deshpande
A woman and her children must cope with the unexpected departure of her husband; an act that
mirrors her father’s abandonment many years earlier.
Divakaruni, Chitra B. Arranged Marriage: Stories (New York: A. Books,1995) F Divakaruni
This collection of short stories examines the lives of women in India and America. Immigrant
Indian women who have been taught compromise and sacrifice can change. The stories are
touching, poignant, colorful and give an insight into the tradition of arranged marriages.
Ghosh, Amitav. The Calcutta Chromosome. (New York: Avon, 1997)
F Ghosh
This is a futuristic novel about the transmigration of souls through bites of certain mosquitoes,
bites that may provide eternal life.
Lahiri, Jhumpa. Interpreter of Maladies:Stories. (New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1999) F Lahiri
This book won the Pulitzer prize for fiction and the stories describe the cultural dislocation of
Indian immigrants to the United States. Indians are no longer at home in India, but they are not
quite a part of their new home in America. Her novel, The Namesake deals with the same theme.
Markandaya, Kamala. Nectar in a Sieve. (New York: Signet Classic, 2002)
F Markandaya
Named Notable Book of 1955 by the American Library Association, this is the very moving story of
Rukmini, a young girl married at 12 years old. The author also describes how the arrival of a
tannery in the village changes her life and the lives of her family.
Mehta, Gita. A River Sutra. (New York: N. A. Talese, 1993)
F Mehta
This novel deals with India’s deep rooted spirituality and devotion. A high ranking officer resigns
his powerful job to live in tranquility by the holy river. He discovers the truth of life through the tales
of the travellers he meets.
Mistry,Rohinton. A Fine Balance:a Novel. (New York: Vintage Books,1997)
F Mistry
The novel is set in 1975 in an imaginary city where a state of emergency is declared. There is
rampant chaos and corruption. The four main protagonists, a widow, a student and two lower
caste tailors are forced to stay in one apartment and after a while the beauty of the human spirit
conquers mistrust and friendships prevail. The novel was also selected for Oprah’s book club.
Mukherjee, Bharati. Miss New India. (Boston : Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2011) F Mukherjee
This novel is set in the new and modern India and the protagonist Anjali Bose, a smart 19 year old
rejects the arranged marriage fixed by her parents and runs off to Bangalore. Mukherjee’s earlier
novels, Desirable Daughters and The Tree Bride have strong Indian female characters too.
Naipaul, V. S. A House for Mr. Biswas. (New York: Vintage International, 2001)
F Naipaul
This novel, inspired by the writer’s father, is the story of Mr. Biswas’ struggles to find a house of
his own. He has moved constantly when young and after getting married into the Tulsi family he
feelsoverpowered and dominated by them. This book has been called by critics as one of the
finest novels of the twentieth century.
Narayan, R. K. The Painter of Signs. ( New York: Viking press, 1976)
F Narayan
Raman, a simple sign painter, falls in love with Daisy, who chooses to improve women’s lives by
teaching them birth control methods. This novel is as interesting today as when it was first
published. Narayan captures the hum and bustle of everyday life in the village of Malgudi.
Ondaatje, Michael. Anil’s Ghost. ( New York: Random House, 2000)
F Ondaatje
Anil Tissera, a forensic pathologist revisits her country after a fifteen-year absence as part of a
U.N. commission investigating human rights abuses. She is in Srilanka, amidst the political conflict
and confusion to examine the corpses of torture victims during the civil war.
Roy, Arundhati. The God of Small Things. ( New York: Random House, 1997)
F Roy
The novel is about the childhood experiences of a pair of fraternal twins who live in a small town in
Kerala with their mother, blind grandmother and a benevolent uncle. The book is a description of
how the small things affect people's behavior and their lives. The plot involves death, prejudices,
caste system in Kerala and communism. This novel won the Booker prize in 1997.
Rushdie, Salman. Midnight’s Children. (New York : Knopf, 1981)
F Rushdie
Winner of the Booker prize in 1981, this novel tells the story of Saleem Sinai, who was born on
August 15, 1947, at the exact time when India gained independence. He has telepathic powers
linking him with 1000 other kids who were born at the same time and have magical powers too.
Rushdie is the author of the highly controversial Satanic Verses .
Seth, Vikram. A Suitable Boy: a Novel. (New York : HPM classics, 2005)
F Seth
This sprawling novel involves four families--the Mehras, the Kapoors, the Chatterjis and the
Khans--whose domestic lives highlight the historical and social events of the era. A hindu family is
looking for a suitable groom for their youngest daughter Lata. Will she marry the muslim boy she
loves, the businessman chosen by her mother or the poet favored by her relatives?
Sidhwa , Bapsi. An American Brat. (Minneapolis : Milkweed Editions, 1993)
F Sidhwa
Feroza, a sixteen year old Parsi Girl, has been sent to America to escape the tumultuous political
upheaval in Pakistan. She decides to stay on and go to college and the depiction of American
culture from her perspective is both humorous and heartwarming. When she wants to marry an
American Jewish boy it does not sit well with her Parsi mom.
Sundaresan, Indu. In the Convent of Little Flowers.(New York: A. Books, 2008) FSundaresan
This collection of short stories about Indians ranges from the story of a couple who fall in love
despite having an arranged marriage to the story about the cruel practice of sati ( a widow is
supposed to die by burning with the body of her dead husband.)
Tharoor,Shashi. Show Business: a Novel. ( New York: Arcade Pub, 1992)
F Tharoor
This novel, as the title suggests, is a look at the glitz and glamour of the Indian film industry also
known as Bollywood. The hero gets injured on a movie set and his whole life flashes in front of
him right from when he started out to where he is now with his wife, his mistress and his life
threatening condition at the hospital.
Umrigar, Thrity. If Today be Sweet. (New York : William Morrow, c2007)
F Umrigar
Newly widowed Tehmina Sethna arrives in America to live with her son and his American wife.
She is lonely in a new country and feels guilty that her arrival and stay is causing stress to her
daughter in law who needs space and privacy. Things take an interesting turn when Tehmina
rescues two neighborhood children from domestic abuse.