Cover of Lajja: Shame

Lajja: Shame

The Duttas - Sudhamoy, Kironmoyee, and their two children, Suranjan and Maya - have lived in Bangladesh all their lives. Despite being part of the country's small Hindu community, that is terrorized at every opportunity by Muslim fundamentalists, they refuse to leave their country, as most of their friends and relatives have done. Sudhamoy, an atheist, believes with a naive mix of optimism and idealism that his motherland will not let him down...

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And then, on 6 December 1992, the Babri Masjid at Ayodhya in India is demolished by a mob of Hindu fundamentalists. The world condemns the incident but its fallout is felt most acutely in Bangladesh, where Muslim mobs begin to seek out and attack the Hindus... The nightmare inevitably arrives at the Duttas' doorstep - and their world begins to fall apart.

Audience
adult
Length
medium · 328 pages

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Liked Lajja: Shame? Here’s where I’d start.

These suit anyone who liked Lajja: Shame. Sign in and mark a few books for picks shaped around your own taste.

  1. A Golden Age Shares Bangladesh, fiction, historical fiction
  2. The Good Muslim Shares Bangladesh, fiction, historical fiction
  3. A History of Bangladesh Shares Bangladesh, India, nonfiction
  4. Pather panchali: Song of the road Shares bengali, India, bangla

“People who read Lajja: Shame tend to reach for these next.”

  1. Singing from the Well
  2. India's War: World War II and the Making of Modern South Asia
  3. Water
  4. An Area of Darkness

“If you want more of the same (historical fiction about religion), start with these.”

  1. Sultana's Dream: And Selections from The Secluded Ones
  2. Fireflies in the Mist
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  4. Twenty-Two Cents: Muhammad Yunus and the Village Bank

“If it was the Bangladesh that hooked you, try one of these.”

  1. The Bones of Grace
  2. The Black Coat
  3. Bangladesh: A Legacy of Blood
  4. Scenes from Early Life

“These start from a similar idea, even if they go somewhere else with it.”

  1. Baby Mine
  2. Because They Hate
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  4. Demonic: How the Liberal Mob is Endangering America