The Lives of Others by Neel Mukherjee lands on the shelves of my shop, where it will be found in my Fiction Author: M section.
London: Chatto & Windus, 2014, Hardback in dust wrapper.
Contains: Maps [1]; Genealogical tables;
>From the cover: Calcutta, 1907, unnoticed by his family, Supratik has become dangerously involved in extremist political activism. Compelled by an idealistic desire to change his life and the world around him, all he leaves behind before disappearing is a note.
The ageing patriarch and matriarch of his family, the Ghoshes, preside over their large household, unaware that beneath the barely ruffled surface of their lives the sands are shifting. More than poisonous rivalries among sisters-in-law, destructive secrets, and the implosion of the family business, this is a family unravelling as the society around it fractures. For this is a moment of turbulence, of inevitable and unstoppable change: the chasm between the generations, and between those who have and those who have not, has never been wider.
Ambitious, rich and compassionate, The Lives of Others anatomises the soul of a nation as it unfolds a family history. A novel about many things, including the limits of empathy and the nature of political action, it asks: how do we imagine our place amongst others in the world? Can that be reimagined? And at what cost? This is a novel of unflinching power and emotional force.
Very Good in Very Good Dust Wrapper. Gently bruised at the head of the spine and the top corners of the boards with commensurate wear to the dust wrapper which is slightly pulled at the head of the upper panel. Text complete, clean and tight.
Burgundy boards with Gilt titling to the Spine. 514 pages. 9½” x 6¼”.
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