Anuradha Roy's The Earthspinner packs a lot between a few reams. Neither too tautly written that the language grates nor indulging in effervescent prose, the novel offers a soulful dip into a linkage of stories and a mode of reflection, leaving you with poignant ideas and themes to mull over. For instance, what lies at the intersection between love and art? What sort of lovers do artists make? How does one handle grief, especially when it comes laden with loneliness? Where do loss and longing find release?

Set in a town in the Deccan region in southern India, the novel is about Elango, a Hindu potter who falls in love with Zohra, a Muslim. There is also Sara, the young girl he teaches, who has a tangential presence in his life as a protégé but for whom Elango's impact is much larger. One day, he dreams about a flaming horse walking along the bed of the ocean. Convinced that ...