{"product_id":"9780007143931","title":"Great Eastern Hotel","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eby Joshi, Ruchir \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eModern \u0026amp; contemporary fiction (post c 1945)\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003ePublished 17\/07\/2025 by HarperCollins Publishers (Fourth Estate Ltd) in the United Kingdom. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHardback | 920 pages\u003c\/p\u003e164 x 242 x 62mm | 1312g\u003chr\u003e\u003cp\u003e'Beautifully written'\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eDAILY MAIL\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e  'Heady, sensually described, deeply felt'\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eGUARDIAN\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e  'A maximalist epic that grabs you by the collar'\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eTHE STATESMAN\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e  'Riotously audacious and entertaining – cinematic, jazzlike, a humdinger of a novel' KAMILA SHAMSIE\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e ‘A humane and atmospheric love letter to a vibrant and irrepressible city’\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eDAILY MAIL\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e  ‘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'\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e THE TELEGRAPH INDIA\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e  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.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e 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.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e 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.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e 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.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e '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'\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e GUARDIAN\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e  'A wild romp that ends with the scent of river water in your nose and the breath of a flute in your ears’\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eINDIA TODAY\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e  ‘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\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e ‘A film-maker’s novel, so vividly immersive … at once human and epic, a Joycean polyphony of overlapping lives’ JEET THAYIL\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e ‘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’\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e SCROLL.IN\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Tales on Market Street","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43491369386190,"sku":"9780007143931","price":18.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7727\/4318\/files\/9780007143931.jpg?v=1776347337","url":"https:\/\/top-hatandtales.co.uk\/products\/9780007143931","provider":"Top Hat \u0026 Tales","version":"1.0","type":"link"}