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What are books that you've read about Nepal or South Asia that have touched you?
I wanted to start a thread to talk about books/literature that I have been reading lately. I would also be open to hearing about fiction or non-fiction books or literature that you guys might be reading.
Palpasa Cafe
By Narayan Wagle
http://www.mandalabookpoint.com/main_details.php?cat=&sid=262
I recently finished Narayan Wagle's 'Palpasa Cafe' (English version. I've got to say that I was very impressed with this work. This is the best fiction prose that I have read from a Nepali writer. I have personally met Narayan Wagle and have talked to him. But since he's a journalist, our talk was more 'serious.' I never realized that he had such a artistic, philosophical, literary bent to him. Especially considering that he is an editor at Kantipur, I thought his mind must be flushed with the sewage of Nepali politics to the point that anything beautiful and organic must not grow there. I couldn't have been more wrong.
Royal Ghosts
By Samrat Upadhyaya
http://www.amazon.com/Royal-Ghosts-Stories-Samrat-Upadhyay/dp/0618517499
This is a collection of short stories. Writers who like Samrat say that they like his minimalistic style. For me, apart from the fact that the stories are from Nepal and are written by a Nepali writer (the first published in America, I believe), there is little else appealing about Samrat's writing. I heard that his 'Arresting Kathmandu' is not bad. I'll have to read it. But so far I have not been impressed with Samrat.
Forget Kathmandu
By Manjushree Thapa
http://www.amazon.com/Forget-Kathmandu-Elegy-Democracy-Nepal/dp/0143103040/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1302886064&sr=1-1
Now in the world of non-fiction, this book is phenomenal. I found my rolemodel as far as a writer in Manjushree Thapa. She is someone that I aspire to be able to write like. Her vocabulary is excellent. She sent me flipping the dictionary quite a few times. What makes this book great is that it is written from the heart and the intellect. She writes and talks about Nepali history as if it is a personal matter that concerns her. Most people talk about Nepali history as a far off thing. In 'Forget Kathmandu,' Manjushree brings Nepali history and it's impact here and now. She writes like she has a relationship with the players in Nepal's history.
What I love about how she writes this book is that she writes as a upper-middle class Nepali who loves Nepal, who cares about it's future, who is concerned. But she writes honestly about who she is and where she is coming from. It's funny, flippant, irreverant, and yet serious all at the same time. It shows that Manjushree has a personality and knows what she's talking about.
I haven't read any of her fiction work but would like to.
What are books that you've read about Nepal or South Asia that have touched you?