"English, August" is the story of Agastya Sen, a young civil servant who is posted to Madna, a small town in rural Deccan. His experiences of Madna bring into sharp focus the vast social, cultural and economic differences in India.

Agastya's urban upbringing makes his start in Madna very uncomfortable. Here is a very different India from the one he was brought up in - but is it the "real India"?

At times, "English, August" is a very funny book, as Agastya meets the locals and becomes acquainted with their habits and peculiarities. In many ways, it's a kind of colonial story - are Agastya and his colleagues much different from their British counterparts under the Raj?

Enjoyable.

G Rodgers

The best book read lately by an indian author.The kind of life the main protagonist,Agastya Sen leads in Madna,is perhaps what most of the people of my generation go through when they are put in situations similar to what he finds himself in.The author has used satire and wit extremely well to disguise the catastrophes ensued by the cultures and traditions in this country.The sheer variety of languages within a few blocks of a town,makes it very difficult to communicate,leave alone trying to administer a whole state. Upamanyu Chatterjee shows great promise as this being his debut work.I would not have believed this to be anybody's first novel if I had not known otherwise.The characters written by him are so real and detailed,that while I was reading the book,I could recall meeting the Srivastav's and Sathe's and Shankar's at some point of time in my life.The absurdity of imagination through out the novel totally had me bowled over.Never before have I seen any hard tragedy,so concealed in humour.As you turn the pages,you really find yourself in Madna,breathing amongst the cows and rickshawallahs and all those government officials. I believe any Indian who has been brought up in the cities of this country faces the problem of blending in with smaller districts due to factors like language,convinience,prejudice and even because he has no knowledge of the place he is in.Has happened to me many times. I really recommend this book to any person intrested in knowing thr intricacies of Indian Administration and the literal meaning of the term "Unity in Diversity". It is tough to get it out of your mind. Brilliant book by a brilliant author.

The erudite dude that I am, i read the book before the movie was a glimmer in Benegal's eye. Probably the best ever contemporary novel from the Indian subcontinent ( and that includes Ms A Roy) Unpretentious, cynical, funny, tragic, Mr Chatterjee tells the tale of a young Indian beureaucrat from an urban Indian milieu posted to an obscure Indian village. A foreigner in his own country although still part of it. Stoned to his back teeth he finds that sometimes in India, keeping up appearences IS the job done. Existentialist questions are as important as ' when should I have my next joint?.' Holden Caulfield seems downright normal compared to Agastya Sen................ Read it.

'The Last Burden' is about the bonds of love & hate that bind a family together. It is a morbid, but realistic account of a 2 brothers &their ageing parents. The atmosphere is bitter, full of strife, & yet they need each other. It is v.well written.The characters of all the characters are sharply etched.

I liked "The Last burden" better than English August and I liked English August very much. I discussed the book with one of my friends who had read it and remarked to him "This book should get a booker." He said "It will be a million years before they give bookers to books like these". He was absolutely right. It's not the material that bookers are made up of. It transcends that. For one its shockingly vulgar. Even more than The Liar(Stephen Fry) and English August. However I think Chatterjee loves to show off. Every other page there was a word that I had seen for the first time. I can't recommend this book to you or otherwise because I don't know what sort of books you like. I can only speak for myself and I liked the book very much.

When it comes to imagination and relativity,Upamanyu Chatterjee takes the cake along with the bakery.The grip that he maintains over the readers is really fascinating and I have to admit,at times,disturbing.The characters written by him are so real,that you could easily bump into them on your way to work or to the shop around the corner.They start living inside you as you turn the pages. English,August was excellent,this one tops that. His characters really make me think and look around myself as like me,most of the Indians grow up in similar family environments.It really becomes hard to understand,where you draw the line.The book makes you think,it makes you reconsider the way in which most of us take life for granted,and it does that with wit and satire,Chatterjee's most powerful weapons which he is aware of and knows perfectly where and how to use them. India is a country where family is given top priority,not that it is a bad thing,but most of the people do not get the right meaning of the word family and the responsibilities that come with it.If you look closely enough,you will find one 'Burfi'in almost every house,making similar choices and decisions,with a 'Jamun'by his side.Chatterjee makes it a point that his readers should be at ease with characters and also tries to makes them sympathise with the situations he puts them in.Which works just fine.It is really hard for me to say which is my favourite character in the whole book as all of them manage to touch you deep down,in some way or the other.This book is the stuff Bookers are made for.But it would be eons before any Indian author gets something he really deserves.Upamanyu Chatterjee displays genius beyond the recognition of an award or a prize.His characters are the best award any author could dream of. The Last Burden,definitely worth reading,is a classic novel by a great author of our time.Upamanyu Chatterjee has got my expectations raised to the peak towards his third novel,but with talent like his,rest assured.