Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni is an Indian-American author, poet, and the Betty and Gene McDavid Professor of Writing at the University of Houston Creative Writing Program. Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni is an award-winning author, poet, activist and teacher. She is the author of 20 books including Mistress of Spices, Sister of My Heart, Oleander Girl, Before We Visit the Goddess and Palace of Illusions. Her latest novels are The Forest of Enchantments, a feminist retelling of the epic The Ramayana in the voice of Sita, and The Last Queen, the story of Maharani Jindan, the indomitable queen regent of Punjab who fought the British in many ingenious ways. Divakaruni often writes about contemporary life in America and India, women’s experiences, immigration, history, magical realism and mythology. Her work has been published in over 100 magazines and anthologies, including the Atlantic Monthly, The New Yorker, Vogue, Verve, Elle, Oprah’s O magazine, Best American Short Stories, the Pushcart Prize Anthology, and O Henry Prize Stories. Her books have been translated into 29 languages, including Dutch, Hebrew, Bengali, Hungarian, Turkish, Hindi and Japanese, and have been bestsellers nationally and internationally. Her awards include, among others, an American Book Award, a PEN Josephine Miles award, a Premio Scanno (also known as the Italian Nobel) award, a Light of India award, a SALA award, 2 Pushcart prizes, an Allen Ginsberg poetry award, a Rona Jaffe Award, a Barbara Deming Memorial Award, and a Houston Literary Award. In 2022, The Last Queen received the Times of India B
Shadowland
Shadowland is a novel that begins with the readers being told that Anand, the protagonist of the story has just started getting used to life as an apprentice in the Silver Valley, which is located in the Himalayas. Anand also endeavors to master the
Shadowland
Shadowland is a novel that begins with the readers being told that Anand, the protagonist of the story has just started getting used to life as an apprentice in the Silver Valley, which is located in the Himalayas. Anand also endeavors to master the
Before We Visit the Goddess
Sweeping across the twentieth century, from the countryside of Bengal, India, to the streets of Houston, Texas, Before We Visit the Goddess takes readers on an extraordinary journey through the lives of three unforgettable women: Sabitri, Bela, and T
Before We Visit the Goddess
Sweeping across the twentieth century, from the countryside of Bengal, India, to the streets of Houston, Texas, Before We Visit the Goddess takes readers on an extraordinary journey through the lives of three unforgettable women: Sabitri, Bela, and T
Oleander Girl
In American Book Award winner Chitra Divakaruni’s new novel, Oleander Girl (Simon and Schuster), a young woman from a distinguished and orthodox Bengali heritage falls in love with a man from a nouveau-riche business family in Kolkata, a city buffete
Oleander Girl
In American Book Award winner Chitra Divakaruni’s new novel, Oleander Girl (Simon and Schuster), a young woman from a distinguished and orthodox Bengali heritage falls in love with a man from a nouveau-riche business family in Kolkata, a city buffete
The Conch Bearer
In a dingy shack in the less-than-desirable Indian neighbourhoods he calls home, twelve-year-old Anand is entrusted witth a conch shell that possesses mystical powers. His task is to return the shell to its rightful home mary hundreds of miles away i
The Conch Bearer
In a dingy shack in the less-than-desirable Indian neighbourhoods he calls home, twelve-year-old Anand is entrusted witth a conch shell that possesses mystical powers. His task is to return the shell to its rightful home mary hundreds of miles away i
Sister of My Heart
Anju is the daughter of an upper-caste Calcutta family of distinction. Sudha is the daughter of the black sheep of that same family. Sudha is startlingly beautiful; Anju is not. Despite these differences, since the day the two girls were born--the
Sister of My Heart
Anju is the daughter of an upper-caste Calcutta family of distinction. Sudha is the daughter of the black sheep of that same family. Sudha is startlingly beautiful; Anju is not. Despite these differences, since the day the two girls were born--the
The Palace of Illusions
‘An epic story ... poignantly told’ Hindustan Times ‘Radiant ... A charming and remarkable book’ Houston Chronicle ‘As bright a gem as the Hope Diamond’Los Angeles Times ‘A daring novel’ Vogue IndiaBe taken back to a time that is half history, half m
The Palace of Illusions
‘An epic story ... poignantly told’ Hindustan Times ‘Radiant ... A charming and remarkable book’ Houston Chronicle ‘As bright a gem as the Hope Diamond’Los Angeles Times ‘A daring novel’ Vogue IndiaBe taken back to a time that is half history, half m
The Last Queen
'I am Rani Jindan, Mother of the Khalsa. That is my identity. That is my fate.' While we have all heard tales of Rani Lakshmi Bai and Padmavati, not many of us are familiar with another Indian queen. Daughter of the royal kennel keeper, the bea
The Last Queen
'I am Rani Jindan, Mother of the Khalsa. That is my identity. That is my fate.' While we have all heard tales of Rani Lakshmi Bai and Padmavati, not many of us are familiar with another Indian queen. Daughter of the royal kennel keeper, the bea
The Forest of Enchantments
The Ramayana, one of the world's greatest epics, is also a tragic love story. In this brilliant retelling, Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni places Sita at the centre of the novel: this is Sita's version. The Forest of Enchantments is also a very human stor
The Forest of Enchantments
The Ramayana, one of the world's greatest epics, is also a tragic love story. In this brilliant retelling, Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni places Sita at the centre of the novel: this is Sita's version. The Forest of Enchantments is also a very human stor
The Mistress Of Spices
SHORTLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION 'A dazzling tale... woven with poetry and storyteller magic.' AMY TAN an immigrant from India, runs a spice shop in Oakland, California. While she supplies the ingredients for curries and kormas, sh
The Mistress Of Spices
SHORTLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION 'A dazzling tale... woven with poetry and storyteller magic.' AMY TAN an immigrant from India, runs a spice shop in Oakland, California. While she supplies the ingredients for curries and kormas, sh
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