Indian Food, Indian Fiction

Join us for good food and conversation. It helps if you read the book but is not required. Expect to pay up to $5 in person (depending on # of attendees) to cover the meetup fee. Find us with the book on the table.

THE BOOK
"Out of India" is a collection of stories and essays that provide a rich and evocative portrayal of Indian society and the complexities of its cultural and social tapestry. The author, born in Germany and having spent a significant part of her life in India, uses her unique perspective to explore themes of identity, displacement, and the nuances of East-West encounters. Through vivid characterizations and keen observations, the book captures the essence of India, from its bustling cities to its rural landscapes, offering insights into both the beauty and the contradictions of the country. The work is a reflection on the author's experiences and observations during her time in India, making it both a personal and deeply insightful read.

THE AUTHOR
Ruth Prawer Jhabvala was a British and American novelist and screenwriter. She is best known for her collaboration with Merchant Ivory Productions, made up of film director James Ivory and producer Ismail Merchant.
In 1951, she married Indian architect Cyrus Jhabvala and moved to New Delhi. She began then to elaborate her experiences in India and wrote novels and tales on Indian subjects. She wrote a dozen novels, 23 screenplays, and eight collections of short stories and was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the Diplomatic Service and Overseas List of the 1998 New Years Honours and granted a joint fellowship by BAFTA in 2002 with Ivory and Merchant. She is the only person to have won both a Booker Prize and an Oscar.

THE BOOK
While their parents went to parties at Delhi’s Roshanara Club, the children of the Das family brought themselves up, reading Byron, listening to the gramophone, and watching over sad, alcoholic Mira masi. Many years later, the youngest, Tara—now a mother of two—has returned from America to the scene of her unusual, lonesome childhood. Here, as always, is her sister Bim, doggedly single college-lecturer and caretaker of all. In her presence, Tara sinks into the blissful torpor of home, at once her dreamy old self but careful as ever around her older sister. For at the heart of this reunion are numerous tensions: Tara feels the persistent guilt of having, like the others, abandoned Bim; their autistic brother Baba is increasingly unquiet; and Bim has not spoken to their other brother, Raja, for years and refuses to go to his daughter’s wedding.Clear Light of Day is vintage Anita Desai, a novel as wonderfully contemplative as a cup of afternoon tea.

THE AUTHOR
Anita Desai was born in 1937. Her published works include adult novels, children's books and short stories. She is a member of the Advisory Board for English of the National Academy of Letters in Delhi and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in London. Anita Mazumdar Desai is an Indian novelist and Emeritus John E. Burchard Professor of Humanities at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She has been shortlisted for the Booker prize three times. Her daughter, the author Kiran Desai, is the winner of the 2006 Booker prize.

THE BOOK
A romantic coming-of-age story about one woman’s inspiring journey to find self love, reconnect with family, and forge a new path for her future, from the author of the Good Morning America book club pick Dirty Laundry.

THE AUTHOR
Disha Bose was born and raised in India, and now lives in Ireland. She worked in Tech before quitting to return to writing. Dirty Laundry is her first novel.

THE BOOK
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THE AUTHOR
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