A Suitable Boy
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| Author | Vikram Seth |
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| Country | India |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Novel |
| Publisher | HarperCollins (USA), Phoenix House (UK) |
| Released | 1 March 1994 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback and Paperback) |
| Pages | 1349 |
| ISBN | ISBN 0-06-017012-3 |
A Suitable Boy is a novel by Vikram Seth, released in 1994. At 1349 pages (1488 pages softcover) and 591,552 words, the book is one of the longest novels ever published in the English language.[1][2].
Contents |
[edit] Plot introduction
A Suitable Boy is set in post-independent, post-partitioned India. The novel follows the story of four families over a period of 18 months as a mother searches for a suitable boy to marry her daughter.
[edit] Plot summary
The novel begins with Mrs. Rupa Mehra declaring "You too will marry a boy I choose" to her daughter Lata at the occasion of the wedding of Mrs. Mehra's elder daughter Savita in the city of Brahmpur, the capital of the fictitious state of Purva Pradesh. Rupa is determined to marry off her daughter whereas Lata decides that she does not want to have an arranged marriage. She falls in love with Kabir, a Muslim boy studying in her college. (The connotations of his name are significant.) This causes her to have a fight with her mother as inter-religion affairs were considered to be taboo. The incident causes Mrs. Mehra to take Lata to Calcutta to live with her eldest son Arun. There Lata befriends Amit Chatterji, her sister-in-law's brother, and a writer/poet. Ultimately, Lata decides to marry her mother's choice, Haresh - a self-made executive at a shoe company.
Though the main theme of the book revolves around Mrs. Mehra and Lata, the story also sees each of the characters in their own set of problems. As the story progresses we see various events of post-independence Indian history affecting the lives of the characters in the book. The novel deals with social issues like Hindu-Muslim strife, land reforms and the Zamindari system, and state and national politics.
[edit] Characters in A Suitable Boy
The four main families mentioned in the novel are:
The Mehras - Mrs. Rupa Mehra, a mother searching for a suitable boy for her daughter. Arun, Savita, Varun and Lata - Mrs. Mehra's four children. Arun is married to Meenakshi Chatterji, Savita to Pran Kapoor.
Lata - Mrs. Rupa Mehra's youngest child. A large portion of the novel as well as the title describes her mother's determination to marry Lata off to "a suitable boy."
The Kapoors - Mr. Mahesh Kapoor, Mrs. Mahesh Kapoor and their 3 children Veena, Pran and Maan.
The Khans - Nawab Sahib of Baitar and his 3 children Zainab, Imtiaz and Firoz.
The Chatterjis - Mr. Justice Chatterji and Mrs. Chatterji and their children Amit, Meenakshi, Dipankar, Kakoli and Tapan
[edit] Awards and nominations
- 1994 - Best book, Commonwealth Writers Prize
- 1994 - WH Smith Literary Award
[edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] External links
[edit] Further reading
- Agarwalla, Shyam S. (1995). Vikram Seth's A Suitable Boy : Search for an Indian Identity. Prestige. ISBN 81-85218-97-8.
