Saadat Hasan Manto

Baumgartner's Bombay
by Anita Desai

A story of profound emotional wounds of war and its exiles. The novel follows Hugo Baumgartner as he flees Nazi Germany -- and his Jewish heritage -- for India, only to be imprisoned as a hostile alien and then released to Bombay at war's end. In this tale of a man who, "like a figure in a Greek tragedy . . . seems to elude his destiny"...

A Golden Age
by Tahmima Anam

Rehana Haque awakes one March morning feeling happy. She is throwing a party for her son and daughter. In the garden of the house she has built, her roses are blooming; her children are almost grown up; and beyond their doorstep, the city is buzzing with excitement after the recent elections.

Change is in the air.

But none of the guests at Rehana's party can foresee what will happen in the days and months that follow. For this is East Pakistan, 1971, a country on the brink of war. And Rehana's life is about to change forever.

Set against the backdrop of the Bangladesh War of Independence, A Golden Age is a story of passion and revolution, of hope, faith, and unexpected heroism. In the chaos of this era, everyone-from student protesters to the country's leaders, from rickshaw-wallahs to the army's soldiers-must make choices. And as she struggles to keep her family safe, Rehana will find herself faced with a heartbreaking dilemma.

Chicken Soup for the Indian Mother's Soul
by Jack Canfield

There is something about being a mother that turns the most ordinary of women into the extraordinary. This book pays tribute to the phenomenon of motherhood - the universal calling that requires the skills of a master mediator, mentor, cook and counsellor. From stories about moms-next-door to celebrity contributions, this book relates shining examples of a mother's love that are cherished forever in the hearts and lives of the people they touched.