''Tilled Earth: Stories'' is an anthology of short stories by
Manjushree Thapa
Manjushree Thapa (born 1968 in Kathmandu) is a Nepalese–born Canadian essayist, fiction writer, translator and editor. She is one of the first English writer of Nepali descent to be published internationally. '' Forget Kathmandu'' and '' The Tu ...
. It was published on 2007 by
Penguin India. It is her first short story collection and fourth book. The book was launched by poet Wayne Amtizis and filmmaker Kesang Tseten in the
British Council Nepal. The book consists of twenty-one short stories.
Synopsis
The stories in the book depicts the daily life of Nepalese people in the early 2000s. The main characters of the stories are Nepalese people who are either living in Nepal or abroad or expatriates travelling in Nepal. Some of the stories are a page long while some are novella-length.
The major themes that the stories explore are traditional Nepalese society, the caste system, the Nepalese politics and experiences of Nepalese women and Nepalese living in abroad.
Reception
The book received mostly positive responses from the critics. Geeta Doctor of ''
India Today
''India Today'' is a weekly Indian English-language news magazine published by Living Media India Limited. It is the most widely circulated magazine in India, with a readership of close to 8 million. In 2014, ''India Today'' launched a new onl ...
'' called the stories in the book "brilliantly balanced" with "sense of despair and celebration". Chandrahas Choudhury of
''Mint'' named "The Buddha in the Earth— Touching Posture" as his the best story in the collection. Navtej Sarna from ''
DNA India
''Zee Media Corporation Limited'' (abbreviated as ZMCL; formerly Zee News Limited) is the news broadcasting company of the Essel Group which is controlled by Subhash Chandra. The company is engaged mainly in the business of broadcasting of news ...
'' however was unimpressed with the stories in the collection.
Khademul Islam of ''
The Daily Star (Bangladesh)
''The Daily Star'' is a leading Bangladeshi English-language daily newspaper. It is the largest circulating daily English-language newspaper in the country. Founded by Syed Mohammed Ali on 14 January 1991, as Bangladesh transitioned and restore ...
'' praised the anthology as "a delightful and thoughtful read".
The book was reprinted by
Aleph Book Company
Aleph Book Company is an Indian publishing company. It was founded in May 2011 by David Davidar, a novelist, publisher and former president of Penguin Books Canada, in association with R. K. Mehra and Kapish Mehra of Rupa Publications. The he ...
who acquired the rights to Thapa's works.
See also
* ''
Arresting God in Kathmandu''
* ''
City of Dreams''
* ''
The Tutor of History''
References
{{Manjushree Thapa, state=collapsed
21st-century Nepalese books
2007 short story collections
Nepalese short story collections
English books by Nepalese writer
Nepalese literature in English