| A Suitable Boy: A Novel | |
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1st US edition |
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| Author(s) | Vikram Seth |
| Country | India |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Novel |
| Publisher | HarperCollins (USA) Phoenix House (UK) |
| Publication date | May 1993 |
| Media type | Print (Hardcover and Paperback) |
| Pages | 1349 |
| ISBN | 0060170123 |
| OCLC Number | 27013350 |
| Dewey Decimal | 823 20 |
| LC Classification | PR9499.3.S38 S83 1993 |
| Followed by | A Suitable Girl |
A Suitable Boy is a novel by Vikram Seth, released in 1993. At 1349 pages (1488 pages softcover) and 591,552 words, the book is one of the longest novels ever published in a single volume in the English language.[1][2][3][4] A sequel, to be called A Suitable Girl, is due for publication in 2013.[5][6]
Contents |
A Suitable Boy is set in post-independence, post-partition 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.
The 1349-page novel alternatively offers satirical and earnest examinations of national political issues in the period leading up to the first post-Independence national election of 1952, including inter-sectarian animosity, the status of lower caste peoples such as the jatav, land reform and the eclipse of the feudal princes and landlords, academic affairs, inter- and intra-family relations and a range of further issues of importance to the characters.
A suitable boy centres on Mrs. Rupa Mehra's efforts to arrange the marriage of her younger daughter, Lata, with a "suitable boy". At the heart of the novel it is a love story, set in a young, newly independent India. It begins in the fictional town of Brahmpur, located on the Ganges between Banares and Patna. Brahmpur, along with Calcutta, Delhi, Kanpur and other Indian cities, forms a colourful backdrop for the emerging stories.
Lata is a 19-year-old college girl, vulnerable, yet determined to have her own way and not be influenced by her strong mother and opinionated brother, Arun. Her story revolves around the choice she is forced to make between her suitors, Kabir, Haresh, and Amit.
The novel is not simply based on one story. This epic novel covers the various issues faced by post-independence India, including Hindu-Muslim strife, abolition of the Zamindari system, land reforms and empowerment of Muslim women.
The novel is divided into 19 parts, with each part focussing on a different story (and eventually coming back round again). For example part 1 is about Lata's story; part 2 is about a courtesan (the beginning of a major subplot featuring Maan Kapoor); part 3 is about Lata again; part 4 is about Haresh; part 5 is about the Brahmpur political scene etc. Each part is described by a rhyming couplet on the contents page.
The four main families mentioned in the novel are:
Kabir- is portrayed as a love interest of Lata, he attends college with her and his father is a maths teacher at the college. He also played cricket for the college cricket team, Lata and Kabir have a brief courtship if one may call it that.
Amit- is Justice Chatterji's eldest son and a self proclaimed poet. He expresses a deep affection for Lata.
Four family trees are provided in the beginning of the novel to help readers keep up with the complicated interwoven family networks.
Some of the characters, not mentioned above, include:
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