On Her Birthday, 5 Books By Arundhati Roy That Are A Must-Read

If you are a book-lover then there’s no chance that you haven’t heard Arundhati Roy’s name. Arundhati Roy is an internationally celebrated author and activist. She has won many awards, including The Booker Prize and became the first Indian to do so. The author was born on November 24, 1961 and today she is celebrating her 60th birthday. Her full name is Suzanna Arundhati Roy and spent most of her childhood in Kerala.

Arundhati Roy studied architecture at the School of Planning and Architecture which is in Delhi. The first books she published was The God of Small Things. For her commitment to the global cause of peace with justice, she won the Sydney Peace Prize in 2004. In the year 2006, she was awarded the Sahitya Akademi Award for her book The Algebra of Infinite Justice, but she declined the honour. She has also won the Lannan Cultural Freedom Prize in 2002. Apart from writing books, Arundhati Roy also wrote the screenplay for movies like Electric Moon and In Which Annie Gives It Those Ones. Indeed, a woman with many talents!

Here’s a list of 5 books by Arundhati Roy that you must read to understand the complexity and beauty of  her writing:

1. The Ministry Of Utmost Happiness

First of all, it is not about happiness at all. The Ministry of Utmost Happiness is the second novel by Arundhati Roy. Published in 2017, after almost two decades after her debut novel. Anjum, one of the protagonists is born intersex and raised as a male. Embracing her identity as a woman, she tries to find a place called home. Tilo, who is loved by many but loves only one person, is a character that no one forgets easily. Their fates intertwine and their journey of love and acceptance begins. The novel brings together the stories of people going through the most violent and dark times of Indian history and takes place in Kashmir and Delhi.

2. The End Of Imagination

The End of Imagination brings together five acclaimed essays by Arundhati Roy with new ones in which she talks about U.S invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, hollowing out of democratic institutions and the need to confront corporate power This book is quite repetitive if you have read her other essay books but it does inspire us to imagine a better future. So, give it a try I guess.

3. My Seditious Heart

My Seditious Heart is a collection of Arundhati Roy’s essays and speeches during the period of 2001-2003. It’s a must-read for people who want to understand the real socio-political environment of the contemporary world.

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4. The God Of Small Things

Any list of must-read books is incomplete without The God of Small Things. It’s a family drama about the childhood experiences of fraternal twins whose lives are destroyed by the “Love Laws” which decides who should be loved, how and how much. It explains how small things affect people’s behaviour and lives.

5. Power Politics

The book is an essay in which Arundhati Roy explores what she sees as the iniquity of globalization and the dangers of privatization, particularly in dam construction. In just three essays, Roy criticizes an American energy company and the Indian government for allowing big businesses to make money by privatizing electricity in a country where hundreds of millions lack any electricity.

Wishing the amazing author a very Happy Birthday, I recommend you all to read all her writings!

This Woman From Kerala Walks Kilometres Everyday To Distribute Books To The Women In Her Village