The Tamil Story: Through the Times, Through the Tides

Brand: Eka

Binding: paperback

Number Of Pages: 606

Release Date: 16-01-2024

Part Number: 13891

Details: About the Book

AN EXPANSIVE ANTHOLOGY OF TAMIL STORIES IN TRANSLATION, COVERING THE EVOLUTION OF THE TAMIL SHORT STORY
‘... By unearthing rich, nuanced tales depicting varied aspects of the human condition, the anthology throws light upon the vibrant realm of modern Tamil literature. An eye-opening treasure-trove, it reveals, and revels in, the rich possibilities of good fiction, while elevating the art of translation to a new level in Indian writing. Most enthusiastically recommended.’ —Shashi Tharoor
Spanning close to a century, this pioneering anthology deftly traces the evolution of the Tamil short story, a genre that the Tamils have subsumed effortlessly to create illuminating glimpses of life. Like all timeless masterpieces, these eighty-eight finely etched stories will both hold you spellbound and jolt you out of your complacency as they traverse through the changing landscapes of different times, highlighting at once the uniqueness and the universality of life. Culled from every available source—little-known magazines from the turn of the previous century and out-of-print editions from yesteryears to contemporary literary magazines and innumerable anthologies of both serious and popular short fiction—the writings include not only stalwarts such as Pudumaippittan, Mauni, Sundara Ramaswamy and Ashokamitran, to name just a few, but also unsung women writers and path-breaking modern voices.
Carefully and sensitively translated, these stories, from the world’s most ancient language, reflect nearly all the aesthetic and political perspectives that make up the Tamil short story. Rooted in realism and fantasy, framed on folklore and myth, steeped in irony and angst, underscored by humour and pathos, there is a story for every reader, a story which will surely leave an indelible imprint on the mind.

About the Author

Dilip Kumar is a well-known short-story writer and editor in Tamil with several awards to his credit. He has published three short-story collections and a critical work on the late writer Mouni, a pioneer of Tamil short stories. He has also translated poems, short stories and other texts from Hindi, Gujarati and English into Tamil. He edited Contemporary Tamil Short Fiction (Manas, EastWest Books), which was later reprinted as A Place to Live (Penguin). His stories have been translated into several Indian and European languages. Four of his short stories have also been made into short films and have won wide critical acclaim. Northwestern University (US) published his anthology Cat in the Agraharam and Other stories translated by Dr Martha Selby, which won the Tamil Literary Garden Translation Award in Toronto.

About the Translator

Subashree Krishnaswamy is a writer, translator, editor and teacher. She won the Sahitya Akademi (Translation Prize 2018) for her translation of the critically acclaimed The Tamil Story: Through the Times, Through the Tides (Tranquebar), edited by Dilip Kumar. She edited the Indian Review of Books, a monthly magazine devoted to book reviews, for a number of years. Her book The Babel Guide to South Indian Fiction in Translation was published by Babel Books, UK. She edited and translated an anthology of Tamil poetry, Rapids of a Great River (Penguin), along with Lakshmi Holmström and K. Srilata. She also collaborated with K. Srilata on the book Short Fiction from South India (OUP).

EAN: 9788196011819

Package Dimensions: 9.0 x 5.9 x 1.7 inches

Languages: English