Anjali Joseph

Anjali Joseph (born 1978) is an Indian novelist. Her first novel, Saraswati Park (2010), earned her several awards, including the Betty Trask Prize and Desmond Elliott Prize. Her second novel, Another Country, was released in 2012. In 2010, she was listed by The Telegraph as one of the 20 best writers under the age of 40.[1] Her third novel,[2] The Living (2016), was shortlisted for the DSC Prize and is a tender, lyrical and often funny novel which shines a light on everyday life. Her fourth novel, Keeping in Touch, was published in India in 2021 by Context and in the UK in 2022 by Scribe.

Anjali Joseph
Born1978 (age 44–45)
Mumbai, India
NationalityIndian
Alma materTrinity College, Cambridge
University of East Anglia
Occupation(s)Writer, journalist, teacher
AwardsDesmond Elliott Prize, Betty Trask Prize

Life and career

Anjali Joseph was born in Mumbai, India, in 1978.[3] Her father, a research scientist, is a Malayali and her mother is Bengali-Gujrati.[4] When she was seven years old, her family relocated to England.[3] Joseph lives in Oxford in Oxfordshire, and is married to the philosopher Simon Glendinning.

Joseph studied English at Trinity College, Cambridge, after which she taught French and English in London and Paris, respectively. She subsequently trained to be a chartered accountant, but did not complete her certification. She then worked as a journalist with The Times of India in Mumbai.[5] Joseph completed an MA in creative writing at the University of East Anglia, after which she published her first novel, Saraswati Park, in 2010.[6]

Saraswati Park told the story of Mohan Karekar, a pensive letter-writer, whose monotonous life undergoes several changes after his gay 19-year-old nephew moves in with him. Sameer Rahim of The Telegraph wrote in his review that Joseph's writing was "well crafted and the images, when they succeed, feel spot-on".[7] It was awarded the Betty Trask Prize in 2011.[8] The novel also won the Desmond Elliott Prize and Vodafone Crossword Book Award for Fiction,[9][10] and was shortlisted for The Hindu Literary Prize in 2010.[11]

Joseph's second book, Another Country, was released in 2012. The novel tells the story of Leela Ghosh, a middle-class Bengali girl dealing with friendship, love and betrayal as she travels through Paris, London and Mumbai. Reviewing the book for The Guardian, Joanna Kavenna wrote that the book was "readable and entertaining" and particularly praised the depiction of Indian urban middle-class youth.[12] The novel was longlisted for the 2012 Man Asian Literary Prize.[13]

The Living, Joseph's third book was released in 2016 and shortlisted for the DSC Prize for South Asian Literature.[14] The Living tells the story of two lives: Claire, a young single mother working in one of England's last remaining shoe factories, and Arun, a recovered alcoholic and now a grandfather, who makes hand-sewn Kolhapuri chappals. Amit Chaudhuri's review of the book in The Guardian described The Living as "an extraordinary portrait of two lives that moves between Norwich and smalltown India poses fundamental questions about existence."[15] Arifa Akbar reviewed the book for The Independent, saying that out of all Joseph's novels this is the "most satisfying and accomplished, speaking its wisdom in whispers".[16]

Joseph's fourth novel, Keeping in Touch, published first in India in 2021, is a story of dysfunctional love, and a lightbulb with unusual properties.

References
  1. Walia, Nona (13 April 2011). "Anjali Joseph: The Journalist Who Dared To Dream". iDiva. Retrieved 6 June 2014.
  2. The Living. Fourth Estate. 10 March 2016.
  3. "Anjali Joseph: 'Stop trying to label me!'". The Independent. 24 October 2010. Archived from the original on 7 May 2022. Retrieved 6 June 2014.
  4. "No good writer wants to wear a 'pan-Indian' label: Anjali Joseph". The Hindu. 9 December 2012. Retrieved 6 June 2014.
  5. "In familiar territory". The Hindu. 8 August 2010. Archived from the original on 13 January 2011. Retrieved 6 June 2014.
  6. "Anjali Joseph - Literature". literature.britishcouncil.org. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
  7. Rahim, Sameer (18 August 2010). "Saraswati Park by Anjali Joseph: review". The Telegraph. Retrieved 4 June 2014.
  8. "Indian writer wins Betty Trask award for debut novel". Daily News and Analysis. 23 June 2011. Retrieved 4 June 2014.
  9. "Author Anjali Joseph bags two global awards". CNN-IBN. 27 June 2011. Archived from the original on 7 June 2014. Retrieved 4 June 2014.
  10. "Vodafone Crossword book awards 2010 announced". CNN-IBN. 5 September 2011. Archived from the original on 17 October 2012. Retrieved 4 June 2014.
  11. "The Hindu Best Fiction Award 2010 Shortlist", The Hindu, 1 October 2010.
  12. Ghosh, Leela (6 July 2012). "Another Country by Anjali Joseph – review". The Guardian. Retrieved 6 June 2014.
  13. "Longlist for Man Asian Literary Prize for 2012 announced". CNN-IBN. 4 December 2012. Archived from the original on 7 December 2012. Retrieved 6 June 2014.
  14. Joseph, Anjali. "DSC Prize Shortlist: Anjali Joseph's 'The Living' celebrates everyday moments". Scroll.in. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
  15. "The Living by Anjali Joseph review – an exceptional, unexpected work". The Guardian. 16 March 2016. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
  16. "The Living by Anjali Joseph: The drama of our inner lives". The Independent. 17 March 2016. Archived from the original on 7 May 2022. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
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