September GeoCAT - Southern Asia

Southern Asia



From Wikipedia: "South Asia or Southern Asia is a term used to represent the southern region of the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan SAARC countries and, for some authorities, adjoining countries to the west and east. Topographically, it is dominated by the Indian Plate, which rises above sea level as Nepal and northern parts of India situated south of the Himalayas and the Hindu Kush. South Asia is bounded on the south by the Indian Ocean and on land (clockwise, from west) by West Asia, Central Asia, East Asia, and Southeast Asia. The terms "Indian subcontinent" and "South Asia" are sometimes used interchangeably."

Popular authors considered to represent Southern Asia include: Jumpa Lahiri, Vikram Seth, Thrity Umrigar, Arundhati Roy, Rohinton Mistry, Khaled Hosseini, Salaman Rushdie and Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni.

Remember to post the books you read on the GeoCAT wiki: http://www.librarything.com/wiki/index.php/2016CC_GeoCAT#September

Bangladesh: Officially known as the People's Republic of Bangladesh, the country is bordered by India and Myanmar and is separated from Nepal and Bhutan by the narrow Siliguri Corridor. With a population of 166.2 million, it is the world's eighth-most populous country, the fifth-most populous in Asia and the third-most populous Muslim-majority country. The official Bengali language is the seventh-most spoken language in the world. Some popular books set in Bangladesh:

A Golden Age by Tahmima Anam
Brick Lane by Monica Ali
The Hungry Tide by Amitav Ghosh
The Good Muslim by Tahimima Anam
Memories of Rain by Sunetra Gupta

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Bhutan: Officially the Kingdom of Bhutan, Bhutan borders the People's Republic of China to the north and India to the south, east and west. To the west, it is separated from Nepal by the Indian state of Sikkim; and further south it is separated from Bangladesh by the Indian states of Assam and West Bengal. Bhutan enjoyed strong cultural links with Tibet and was located on the Silk Road between China and the Indian subcontinent. Some popular books set in Bhutan:

Radio Shangri-la: What I Learned in Bhutan, the Happiest Kingdom on Earth by Lisa Napoli
Beyond the Sky and the Earth: A Journey into Bhutan by Jamie Zeppa
Buttertea at Sunrise by Britta Das
Dreams of a Peaceful Dragon by Katie Hickman
Married to Bhutan by Linda Leaming

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India: Offically the Republic of India, India is bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the south-west, and the Bay of Bengal on the south-east, it shares land borders with Pakistan to the west; China, Nepal, and Bhutan to the north-east; and Myanmar (Burma) and Bangladesh to the east. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country (with over 1.2 billion people), and the most populous democracy in the world. Some popular books set in India:

The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy
Life of Pi by Yann Martel
The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga
Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie
A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry
A Passage to India by E.M. Forster
A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth

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Maldives: Officially the Republic of Maldives, the Maldives is a chain of 26 atolls southwest of India and Sri Lanka. Comprising a territory spanning roughly 90,000 square kilometres (35,000 sq mi), the Maldives is one of the world's most geographically dispersed countries, as well as the smallest Asian country by both land area and population. Some popular books set in the Maldives:

On the Island by Tracey Garvis-Graves
The Maldive Mystery by Thor Heyerdahl

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Myanmar: Officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar (and also known as Burma), Myanmar is bordered by Bangladesh, India, China, Laos and Thailand. One-third of Myanmar's total perimeter of 1,930 km (1,200 miles) forms an uninterrupted coastline along the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea. Some popular books set in Myanmar:

The Glass Palace by Amitav Ghosh
Finding George Orwell in Burma by Emma Larkin
The Piano Tuner by Daniel Mason
Burmese Days by George Orwell

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Nepal: Officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, Nepal is bordered by China to the north and India to the south, east, and west. It is separated from Bangladesh by a narrow Indian corridor and from Bhutan by the Indian state of Sikkim. Nepal is located in the Himalayas and is home to eight of the world's ten tallest mountains, including Mount Everest, the highest point on Earth. Some popular books set in Nepal:

Sold by Patricia McCormick
Little Princes by Conor Grennan
The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai
Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer

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Pakistan: Officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, Pakistan has a 1,046-kilometre (650 mi) coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by India to the east, Afghanistan to the west, Iran to the southwest and China in the far northeast. It is the sixth-most populous country and the 36th largest country in the world in terms of area. Some popular books set in Pakistan:

Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson
I am Malala by Malala Yousafzai
The Reluctant Fundamentalist by Mohsin Hamid
A Case of the Exploding Mangoes by Mohammed Hanif
In Other Rooms, Other Wonders by Daniyal Mueenuddin

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Sri Lanka: Officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka (formerly known as Ceylon), is an island country with maritime borders with India to the northwest and the Maldives to the southwest. Some popular books set in Sri Lanka:

Anil's Ghost by Michael Ondaatje
Cinnamon Gardens by Shyam Selvadurai
Funny Boy by Shyam Selvadurai
A Disobedient Girl by Ru Freeman
The Hungry Ghosts by Shyam Selvadurai

I'm planning to read The Strode Venturer, which is at least partially set in the Maldives.

Excellent; I just picked up a copy of In Other Rooms, Other Wonders by Daniyal Mueenuddin, which are short stories set in Pakistan.

I will be choosing one (or more) of these from the tbr shelf:

Running in the family by Michael Ondaatje (Sri Lanka)
Anil’s Ghost by Michael Ondaatje (Sri Lanka)
Into the silence by Wade Davis (Nepal)
Brixton Beach by Roma Tearne (Sri Lanka)
Everything is broken by Emma Larkin (Burma)

I have a few books that I have set aside for this month, they are:

Train to Pakistan by Khushwant Singh - set in Pakistan
To A Native Shore by Valerie Anand - set in India
The Kashmir Shawl by Rosie Thomas - set in India

Plenty of options here:

- The Hero's Walk / Anita Rau Badami
- Rebel Queen / Michelle Moran
- The Tusk That Did the Damage / Tania James
- No Way Down: Life and Death on K2 / Graham Bowley
- Dark Summit / Nick Heil

From the suggestions above, I know I have The God of Small Things, The White Tiger and The Reluctant Fundamentalist on my shelves. When I get back from vacation I will look to see if I have anything else that might also grab my interest.

I've got tons of choices, so I hope to get to at least two. Like LisaMorr, I've got both The Reluctant Fundamentalist and The White Tiger, and I've also got Anil's Ghost, as well as a number of so far unread books by Salman Rushdie and Khaled Hosseini. I've been sort of absent from the challenge all summer, though, things have been so busy, so I really want to use September to jump back in!

I am planning on reading some poetry by Rabindranath Tagore, probably Gitanjali. And I have the audiobook of Sold (the book by Patricia McCormick, NOT a Harry Potter book as Touchstones seems to think) so this is a good time to listen to it.

My bookclub's choice for September is Around India in 80 Trains by Monisha Rajesh

I finished The Caretaker by Indian-American author A. X. Ahmad. Although mostly set in Massachusetts, the main character is a Sikh who served in the Indian Army, and a lot of the plot is about Indian culture and history. A recommended thriller.

I read Anil's Ghost by Michael Ondaatje for this category but today I received Bourbon Island 1730, a graphic novel, in the mailbox so I'll be adding that one. I've not had much success with graphic novels because the habit of a lifetime means I zip through the text and forget to look at the art. I hope to do better.

I'm also reading Anil's Ghost, and so glad to have picked it up.

Reading Around India in 80 Trains by Monisha Rajesh

I read The Glass Palace as a Myanmar/Burma read. Good historical read, bit of a multi-generational family saga read that was good read, but not a great read for me. I am probably going through a bit of historical fiction burn out at the moment.

Just finished Anil's Ghost, and it was wonderful. Full review written.

>16 lkernagh: Sounds pretty good -- I picked it up at the library today :)

Dark Summit: The True Story of Everest's Most Controversial Season / Nick Heil
4 stars

In 2006, Mount Everest saw it's deadliest season since 1996 (the year Jon Krakauer wrote about in Into Thin Air). But this time around, weather was not the cause. One man died after being passed by numerous climbers while he was still alive; another was left behind when they thought he was a lost cause (he was “left for dead”, similar to Beck Weathers in 1996); miraculously, he lived.

Another really good mountaineering book. The beginning, while looking back at history and – at the same time – introducing us to the “players” in 2006, I had a bit of hard time following, with so many people, years, stories. But, once we got going and focused on 2006, the story was riveting. I don't remember crying while reading Into Thin Air (but I'd be surprised if I didn't; I likely just don't remember), but I cried at a couple of places reading this one.

COMPLETED Around India in 80 Trains by Monisha Rajesh

My review:
Basically, what it says on the tin. Monisha Rajesh catches 80 trains visiting various parts of India.

It didn't really grab me apart from the penultimate chapter when she talks about her experiences of meditation. She has an irritating habit of starting each chapter with a would-be dramatic incident and then backs up to where she left off at the end of the previous chapter, which gives a confusing timeline.

I finished Gitanjali, the prose poems of Indian author Rabindranath Tagore… Not really my cup of tea.

I just finished The Kashmir Shawl by Rosie Thomas which I enjoyed more than I thought I would.

I finished A Fine Balance by R Mistry. Great story.

I finished Indian Fairy Tales - I was surprised by how similar these are to European fairy tales in many regards! Just shows that people like the same sort of stories the world over, I guess.

I just started The Association of Small Bombs by Karan Mahajan and how to finish before end of month (also in India).

I have finished The Glass Palace -- still mulling over what I think about it but it definitely checks off Burma (Myanmar) for me :)

>27 lkernagh: - Looking forward to your thoughts, considering I struggled with it!

>27 lkernagh: I'll be sure to post here within a few days -- you were the one that inspired me to get it from the library so it will be only fair to share me thoughts!

Regarding The Glass Palace -- I ended up giving it 3½ stars. I found the family saga aspect disappointing; after a strong start, it devolved into more of a series of sketches about the family upon which the historical happenings and growing nationalism could be discussed. There were huge leaps in time from one chapter to the next which I found disconcerting. However, the look at Burma/Myanmar and Malaya was fascinating with the rise and fall of teak lumber and rubber plantations.

And did I miss WW1?? I don't recall anything about it at all but it certainly occurred during the time frame of the book!

I finished listening to Life of Pi and really enjoyed it. Especially the ending!

I have just finished Train To Pakistan by Khushwant Singh, a short but powerful book about the 1947 Partition of India and Pakistan.

Just finished The Association of Small Bombs by Karan Mahajan. I got the audible version when it was the daily deal. Was well done and I liked the story. This one is set in India, Delhi, 1996 to the early 2000.

>29 leslie.98: - Glad to see I wasn't the only reader to have a bit of an issue with The Glass Palace as a family saga read! Like you, I also failed to notice any WWI mention in the story. Must have been a small reference, easy to gloss over.

I started The White Tiger on Friday and finished it on Saturday, 1 October, but I'm still counting it!

>34 LisaMorr: - I would also count it as read for then Sept GeoCAT! ;-)