by Preti Taneja
Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published Aug 2018
496 pages
Genre: Literary Fiction
Publication Information
A stunning debut novel, a modern-day King Lear set in contemporary India: the tale of a battle for power within a turbulent family, for status within a nation in a constant state of transformation, and for the love and respect of a father disappearing into dementia.
Jivan Singh, the bastard scion of the Devraj family returns to his New Delhi childhood home at the age of twenty-three after fifteen years in the United States. His arrival coincides with the unexpected resignation of the founder and aging patriarch of the Company - its simple name belying its vast holdings across industry and entertainment, and the family's national renown. On the same day, Sita, Devraj's youngest daughter, disappears - refusing to marry the man her father wants for her. Now, Radha and Gargi, Sita's older sisters, are given the Company - and a brutal struggle for power begins.
Set against the backdrop of the anti-corruption protests that spread across India in 2011 and 2012, We That Are Young is brilliant in its fierce, incandescent storytelling and the energy of its prose. It tells a deeply insightful tale of India today, the pace of life in one of the world's fastest growing economies, the clash of youth and age, and the ever-present specter of death. But more than that, it is a novel about the human heart - and its inevitable breaking point.
"Starred Review. A long, challenging, but inspired modernization of a classic—engaging, relevant, and very dark." - Kirkus
"Starred Review. Taneja's intricate, literary prose is heavy in both detail and reflection. This is a work of epic scope and depth that's bracingly of the current moment." - Publishers Weekjly
"Starred Review. Taneja writes with a passion and verve that reflects her human rights reporter and filmmaker background. Highly recommended for socially conscious readers." - Library Journal
This information about We That Are Young was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Preti Taneja was born in the England to Indian parents and spent most of her childhood holidays in New Delhi. She has worked as a human rights reporter and filmmaker in Iraq, Jordan, Rwanda, and Kosovo, and her work has been published in The Guardian and openDemocracy. A fellow at Warwick University, Preti's 2014 novella, Kumkum Malhotra, won the Gatehouse Press New Fictions Prize. She is also the editor of Visual Verse and was selected as an AHRC/BBC Radio 3 New Generation Thinker for 2014.
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