Three strangers meet in Bhopal, India: Francoise, an Australian photographer; Naga, a Tibetan refugee, and Arkay, a Scottish alcoholic drawn to Buddhism. Their stories are prompted by the photographs which Francoise assembles into an album - the "Red Book" - as testament to their time together. The photographs are witness to the traces they have left, the people they have been and the surprising connections between them - in Delhi, Rajasthan, Varanasi, and above all, in Bhopal. Twenty years earlier, a gas leak at Bhopal's Union Carbide factory killed thousands and the city's trauma reverberates through each of their lives. Francoise struggles to successfully bear witness to the event which shaped her life's path; Arkay is brought up against 'the old story' of his discarded alcoholic life; Naga fights his anger at his family's death.Through their meeting in Bhopal and the relationships that develop between them, each is led to an unexpected resolution of their restless personal search. Meaghan Delahunt's "The Red Book" beautifully realises the voices of its three narrators, showing how lives entwine and split apart, and the coincidences, connections and disruptions between people, places and lives. It captures the irresistible lure of India for outsiders; the promise of its spirituality and its layered history. It is a meditation on the relations between East and West; on spiritual and political perspectives; on personal and collective responsibility; written in vivid, imaginative and resonant language.
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Review
'With ambition and talent enough to realise it, The Red Book is a model of what globalised imagination can do.'
-- Sunday Herald, Colin Waters
`A tender, well-researched piece' -- Scotland on Sunday
`Fascinating'
-- Morning Star
`Haunted throughout by a legacy of death, the novel's taut, spare style keeps the pages turning'
-- Big Issue
`The narrative moves with efficiency and its tone is compassionate'
-- Times Literary Supplement
`There is much rich material here'
-- Guardian
-- Sunday Herald, Colin Waters
`A tender, well-researched piece' -- Scotland on Sunday
`Fascinating'
-- Morning Star
`Haunted throughout by a legacy of death, the novel's taut, spare style keeps the pages turning'
-- Big Issue
`The narrative moves with efficiency and its tone is compassionate'
-- Times Literary Supplement
`There is much rich material here'
-- Guardian
About the Author
Meaghan Delahunt's first novel, In The Blue House was nominated for the Orange Prize, won the Saltire First Book Prize, a Scottish Arts Council Book of the Year prize and a regional Commonwealth Prize. She is an award-winning short story writer and her stories have been widely anthologised and broadcast on BBC Radio 4. She lectures in Creative Writing at the University of St Andrews. Born in Melbourne, Meaghan Delahunt now lives in Edinburgh.
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First Sentence
It began with a photograph. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
It began with a photograph. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
By D. Bradley
Format:Paperback
I enjoyed this book immensely. The work is rich in imagery and the writing is of such quality that I could see India and smell India and feel India. I was delighted by being transported from Australia's Victoria coast to India and to the Scottish borders and the central theme of the book, the Bhopal gas disaster, offers a powerful and challenging narrative. This book would be an excellent choice for the top of anyone's summer reading list.
0 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I might have misunderstood the description of this book, but I was expecting the pictures which were referred to, to be included in the book. The book is about someone taking photographs of particular people and situations in India, but these pictures are not shown in the book, which seems a bit silly to me.
The subject matter is interesting and serious and I do intend to read the book and expect to learn from it, however the lack of illustration is a disappointment.
The subject matter is interesting and serious and I do intend to read the book and expect to learn from it, however the lack of illustration is a disappointment.
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