not india..but close, and with a very indian feel to it is Brick Lane by Monica Ali.a wonderful story, delightfully told of a bengali family in london and a poigniant rendering of villiage life in bangladesh told through letters of the sister,
also Kushwant Singh ..sorry cant recall the title, may have train in the title..a serious and moving account of the horrors surrounding partition.of particular interest to me as my father was there and involved in it.

Looked on Amazon , and the Khushwant Singh book is- Train to Pakistan - I'll be looking out for it .
Thanks lassi

Has anyone been succesful in getting a copy of Goa Freaks- My Hippie days in India yet.

Does anyone know if any of the libraries in the UK have it ?

Nope, ive hunted high and low for that book. Tried libraries book shops etc. Book shops can order it at a price in excess of £80.00. You can also order it from Amazon but again its very expensive.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Goa-Freaks-Hippie-Years-India/dp/156201059X/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1207668787&sr=8-1

Yeah, I saw it on Amazon, the cheapest was about £36.

It's like anythng though, the harder it is to get, the more you want it !!!

http://www.echonyc.com/~cleo/gf.html

Do you think someone was having a laugh Betty, I've searched high and low in Goa, asked at many book shops, and no-one has it.
x lassi

It's like anythng though, the harder it is to get, the more you want it !!!

Then you usually find that once you get it it wasn't that interesting anyway

Wise & Otherwise - A Salute to life - Sudha Murty
This is a brilliant book capturing her real life experiences, as a teacher, and chairperson of a charitable organisation.
" A man dumps his sick father in an old -age home, declaring him to be a total stranger; a tribal chief in the hills teaches the author that there is humility in receiving too; and a sick woman remembers to thank her benefactor even as she is dying. These are just some of the poignant and thought provoking stories about people all over India, that Sudha Murty recounts in this book. From incredible examples of generosity, to the cruelest acts one can expect of men and women. She records everything with wry humour and a directness that touches the heart. "
Published by Penguin 150Rs , I don't know if it is available outside India, I bought my copy in Margao .

Ps - Many thanks to smartpatti for recommending this author x lassi

Hi lassi - good to hear that you liked Sudha Murthy - I certainly like her style. I have just finished a book I really liked - its the epic 'Mahabharatha' written from the main heroine's viewpoint, which in itself is unusual as this epic has always been written from the male view point. Author - Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni, name of book - The Palace of Illusions. The same author also wrote - Mistress of Spices. I really enjoyed the book.

Here are two more books Iv'e just read.
The first Animal's People by Indra Sinha, It starts - I used to be human once, so I'm told. I don't remember it myself, but people who knew me when I was small, say I walked on two feet, just life a human being.
Based on the Bhopal disaster in 1984, when a toxic gas leak killed thousands. I found the naration hard to follow, and parts very disturbing, but in the end worth the effort .
The second was recommended by smartpati, Ferry Crossing short stories from Goa, edited by Manohar Shetty, Penguin India. This is a collection of stories from Goa as it was, and still could be away from the beach resorts. A beautiful book that took me to the heart of Goa.

x lassi

As it's quiet on here just now, Ive been doing some more reading,
Although this book was written in 1935, IMO it is one of the best on this difficult and emotional subject.
Untouchable - by Mulk Raj Anand - Penguin twentieth century classics

The story is based on a single day in the life of Bakha, a latrine cleaner and sweeper boy. We follow him around his chores, cleaning up the shit of the upper classes, who despise him because of the strict rules governing ideas of purity and pollution. When he walks down the streets, he has to signal an alarm, so the pure are forewarned, to avoid even allowing his shadow to be cast upon them.
On one occasion he does " pollute " a caste Hindu, and is chased and abused all day for this defilement.

x lassi

I don't know if anyone else saw the author interview in Thursday's Metro but they interviewed Tony D'Souza who has just written a book entitled The Konkans. Tony is of Indian descent but lives in US. He decided to trace his roots and went back to India hence the book. It tells the history of the Portugese Inquisition in Goa which he was very surprised the locals seemed to know very little about. The most amusing experience I found he had was when he arrived in India he got into a taxi to go to his hotel. Hex explained to the taxi driver that he was visiting India for the first time to which the driver replied "Welcome home!". He then drove him around for 2 hours supposedley taking him to his hotel and he realised he could have walked to it was so near! He said he then realised he didn't belong in India. Nice to see it happens to the Indians as well, we are not the only ones they try to rip off. The book sounds interesting reading on the history of Goa.

I'll be looking out for that book BrenLiz, Thanks

Mr D'Souza made the classic mistake, of telling the taxi driver it was his first visit to India. and being a NRI would make him another wealthy tourist to target .

Iv'e just read an interesting little book that was recommended - Dollar Bahu - by Sudha Murty - Penguin India 150Rs
About two sons and their wives, one pair living in the USA, the other at home in Bangalore. An affecting tale of how money corrupts the way people look at one another, and how it almost tears a family apart.
x lassi

As it's quiet on here just now, Ive been doing some more reading,
Although this book was written in 1935, IMO it is one of the best on this difficult and emotional subject.
Untouchable - by Mulk Raj Anand - Penguin twentieth century classics

Lassi I love the sound of this book... right up my street, will try and pick it up
Chilly

Thanks chilly here's another

Caste ( At Home in Hindu India ) Sophie Baker

I found this book useful in trying to understand the caste system, it was piblished in 1990, and I found mine on ebay, but amazon could have it
In an attempt to unravel the mysteries of this subtle doctrine, Sophie baker went to live with the families of the four main castes, and also experienced at first hand the impoverishment of the Hrijan outcastes.
In this book she records largely in her own words, and with her photographs, how these people cope with the complexities of daily life, and she sketches an outline of the Hindu philosophy, in which caste is rooted.
It is a revealing and moving account of the effect of entrenched codes of conduct, that hold a population of more than 800 million souls in thrall.

Iv'e just read The Konkans, and really ejoyed it -
"That my mother was made of unusual things should be obvious, in her desire to go to India, and marry an Indian"
Francisco D'Sai observes near the beginning of this captivating family tale. An idealistic Peace Corps worker from Detroit, Denise Klein marries Lawrence D'Sai, an industrious young man from the small but proud community of Indian Catholics, known as The Konkans.
Lot's of reviews on Amazon

xx lassi

Thanks Lassi! Just ordered from Amazon. Sounds like my sort of book. Anything about India at the moment!

Just seen a book advertised on Amazon. "Clear light of Day" by Anita Desai. Has anyone read it? I have just ordered it! Hope the rain keeps up. I have a lot of reading to do!!

goangirl

IMO any book by Anita Desai is well worth reading, she was short listed for the Booker Prize 3 times , but it took her daughter , Kiran Desai to win it in 2006 with The Inheritance of Loss. But I prefer her mothers writing.
One of my favorites is Fasting Feasting

xx lassi