Great Eastern Hotel

Ruchir Joshi

ISBN 10: 000714394X / ISBN 13: 9780007143948

Published by HarperCollins Publishers, GB, 2026

About this Item

'Beautifully written' DAILY MAIL 'Heady, sensually described, deeply felt' GUARDIAN 'A maximalist epic that grabs you by the collar' THE STATESMAN 'Riotously audacious and entertaining - cinematic, jazzlike, a humdinger of a novel' KAMILA SHAMSIE 'A humane and atmospheric love letter to a vibrant and irrepressible city' DAILY MAIL 'I can't remember the last time I read a book as grand as Ruchir Joshi's Great Eastern Hotel . the city in this novel is a living thing' THE TELEGRAPH INDIA August 1941. The world is at war. At the Great Eastern, Calcutta's most luxurious hotel, amidst the feasting, dancing and laughter, we witness the metropolis in the last moments before disaster strikes. On the day the revered poet Rabindranath Tagore dies, the city comes to a standstill. Thousands of people line the streets to pay their respects. Amongst them are: Nirupama, a history student and Communist Party volunteer; Imogen, the English daughter of a Raj official; Kedar, an aspiring painter; and Gopal, a young pickpocket who finds himself promoted into a dark, dangerous world. The lives of these four people intertwine with those at the hotel: an American soldier who plays jazz at the nightclub; a genius French chef; an heiress fleeing from the nightmare in Europe; and a group of military officers running a secret intelligence operation. Magisterial in scope, rich in detail and gloriously entertaining, Great Eastern Hotel brings to life India on the brink of independence. An epic tale of belonging, love, art and how individual lives can become swept up in the tides of history. 'Joshi's ability to render place and time is truly first-rate. I've not read a book by an author this year who so clearly loves what he's writing about' GUARDIAN 'A wild romp that ends with the scent of river water in your nose and the breath of a flute in your ears' INDIA TODAY 'If, like me, you have been waiting for a quarter of a century for what Ruchir would write after his dazzling The Last Jet-Engine Laugh, I have some Persian for you: Der aayad, durast aayad. Finally, an Indian epic for our times' MOHAMMED HANIF 'A film-maker's novel, so vividly immersive . at once human and epic, a Joycean polyphony of overlapping lives' JEET THAYIL 'Sprawling . exuberant .compelling . allow yourself to be immersed in this Great Calcutta Novel that captures both the sweep of history and the pulse of individual lives' SCROLL.IN.

Seller Inventory # LU-9780007143948

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Great Eastern Hotel
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers, GB
• Publication Date: 2026
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 000714394X
• ISBN 13: 9780007143948
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: New
• Dimensions: 12.9W x 6H x 19.8D centimeters 12.9 centimeters width by 6 centimeters height by 19.8 centimeters depth
• Weight: 620 grams

About this title

Synopsis

A rich, teeming, involving epic of war, famine, love and culture-clash in imperial Calcutta during World War Two Joshi is The brand new experience after a megashow, Russian in size, Indian in soul' (India Today)This is the second novel from Ruchir Joshi, author of The Last Jet-Engine Laugh which many stubbornly continue to believe is a twisted, flawed masterpiece of a debut novel. In India that book was greeted as the most significant Indian debut since Rushdie's Midnights Children.Joshi is the real thing, and here to stay and thrive as a writer. This new book is a brilliant prospect, promising a rich, teeming, involving tale with an unusual, fascinating setting the fading imperial city of Calcutta in the 1940s, with world war, famine, culture-clash, colonial retreat, exile, rebellion, idealism and religious strife all in the mix.It will be less formally daring than his first (i.e. less jump-cutting time-wise), which, commercially speaking, is probably good news. And it will have all the epic sweep, resilience of the human spirit and war-torn romance that make for blockbuster success!

About the Author

Ruchir Joshi is a trained and practising filmmaker in India. Born and raised in Calcutta, he now lives in Delhi.