Khushwant Singh digs into the Partition of India with a deep local focus, providing a human dimension which brings to the event a sense of reality, horror, and believability. Summer of 1947: Partition does not mean much to the Sikhs and Muslims of Mano Majra, a village on the border of India and Pakistan. Then, a local money-lender is murdered, and suspicion falls upon Juggut Singh, the village gangster who is in love with a Muslim girl. When a train arrives, carrying the bodies of dead Sikhs, the village is transformed into a battlefield, and neither the magistrate nor the police are able to stem the rising tide of violence. Amidst conflicting loyalties, it is left to Juggut Singh to redeem himself and reclaim peace for his village. In a relatively short book, the reader gets to know a lot of characters in detail. Examination of the varied groups of people increases cultural and social understanding of that time and place & shows that the blame couldn't be placed on any one group.

Nominated by: Arun

Presenter: Arun
Commenter: Anindita

Date: 21 November 2012
Time: 19:15 sharp

Format:
1. Members introduction (5 minutes)
2. Club statistics (2 minutes)
3. Introducing interesting books (5 minutes)
4. Brief introduction of next book (2 minutes)
5. Book presentation (20-30 minutes)
– A brief history of author’s life
– A short summary of the book
– Main/new ideas that the book brought to the society at the time that it was written
– What were the major implications/reactions at the time that it was written?
– What are the major implications on our daily lives (if any)?
6. Group discussion led by the commentator (45-60 minutes), member’s personal view about the book, opposing ideas.

At the end of the meeting, a group of us goes to a bar nearby for a drink, everyone is welcome to join.

Venue: Librairie-café Les Recyclables: 53, rue de Carouge, Genève
Tram 12/13 arrêt Pont d'Arve ou Augustin,
Bus 1/4/44 arrêt Pont d'Arve ou Plainpalais,
Parking vélo devant l'arcade,
Parking voiture sous le centre commercial Plainpalais-centre

Note: reading the book is not a "must" to attend the meeting!

Look forward to see you all!

To purchase the hard copy, you can send an email to Grégory in Librairie-café Les Recyclables: [email protected]

To participate in the on-going book selection process:www.mostinfluentialbooks.com

To join the club: http://www.glocals.com/#/groups/geneva/geneva-book-club-group.htm
To see the upcoming events:https://sites.google.com/site/genevabookclubgbc/event/2012