Partition Novels: Books about the Division of India and Pakistan
20th century literature, contemporary novels, works in translation, diaspora reads, and classics
From the moment we chose our Season 4 theme, Neha and I knew that we wanted to discuss a Partition novel — a book that revolved around the India-Pakistan border and its history. For us, this was the ultimate border; a part of our legacy.
Though both our families are from the south of India, and were relatively removed from much of the violence, the events of Partition shaped an entire generation of South Asians, and its effects still ripple through to the present day.
The book we ended up reading, The Inheritance of Loss, is not itself a Partition novel, though it does deal with political violence that descended from colonial rule. This was not the original plan.
We had spent weeks — maybe months — researching Partition novels and soliciting recommendations from friends and online sources. The book we first picked was The Shadow Lines by Amitav Ghosh.
But when we started reading, we couldn’t find a meaningful thread to Partition (at least, not in the first 80 pages), and, more generally, we struggled to connect to the story. We made the decision (for the first time in the history of our podcast!) to ditch the book midway, and switch to The Inheritance of Loss.
And we’re so glad we did. The Inheritance of Loss, while not set during the events of Partition, is a striking meditation on living in multiple worlds, and trying to migrate within and between them. The effect of time and the region’s history is a crucial component of the story, and so we found ourselves discussing a border of a different kind — not one directly drawn by an ill-equipped colonizer, but one that emerged years later as a result of regional tensions, class differences, and the effects of imperialism.
You can listen to the full discussion here:
But this question of Partition novels still remained. We couldn’t cover this topic fully on the podcast, so we wanted to share a list of Partition novels with you here. (Note: this collection is not exhaustive, but it is still quite long, so it might get cut off in your inbox — if it does, just click ‘read full message’ or read it in your browser)
This list has books by authors native to the Indian subcontinent, as well as South Asian diaspora writers. We think the author’s background provides crucial context for this topic, so we’ve included information about them. We’re also sharing the first line of each book, in case something sparkles out at you.
We hope you find something in this list that you’re excited to pick up.
20th Century Literature
The Shadow Lines by Amitav Ghosh
First, the novel we abandoned. Amitav Ghosh is probably best known for his Sea of Poppies series, which is set during the opium wars. The Shadow Lines, written almost twenty years earlier, opens in Calcutta in the 1960s and follows two families, one English and one Bengali, as their lives intertwine. The narrator traces events back and forth in time from the early 20th century to the 1960s and beyond, attempting to chronicle the ways in which political events can impact personal lives.
Though we didn’t finish the book for the podcast, we are looking forward to revisiting it.
In 1939, thirteen years before I was born, my father’s aunt, Mayadebi, went to England with her husband and her son, Tridib.
It startles me now to discover how readily the name comes off my pen as ‘Mayadebi’ for I have never spoken of her thus; not aloud, at any rate: as my grandmother’s only sister, she was always Mayathakuma to me.
About the author: Amitav Ghosh was born in Calcutta and grew up in India, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka. He is famous for his Ibis trilogy (which starts with Sea of Poppies) that chronicles the opium wars, but has also written other works of historical fiction, and non-fiction on topics including colonialism and climate change. In 2007, he was awarded the Padma Shri by the Indian government, and in 2009, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.
Midnight’s Children by Salman Rushdie
Saleem Sinai is born at the stroke of midnight on August 15, 1947, the moment of India’s independence. As he grows up, he learns that all his actions are magnified in events that affect the course of national affairs; his life becomes inseparable from the well-being of the nation. We learn that there are 1,000 other “midnight’s children” all born in the initial hour of independence, who are endowed with magical gifts.
I was born in the city of Bombay… once upon a time. No, that won’t do, there’s no getting away from the date: I was born in Doctor Narlikar’s Nursing Home on August 15th, 1947. And the time? The time matters, too.
About the author: Salman Rushdie, born in India but now an American citizen, is a controversial figure. His novel The Satanic Verses sparked controversy for its critique and depiction of religion, resulting in protests in the United States and India. It was subsequently banned in India, and has since been banned in many other countries.
Cracking India by Bapsi Sidhwa
This novel (also known as Ice Candy Man in a previous edition) is narrated by Lenny Sethi, a young child with polio, who spends her day with her nanny, learning about class differences, religious intolerance, and the building violence during the time of Partition. Though she herself lives a comfortable life in Lahore, when her Ayah is kidnapped, her world changes.
My world is compressed. Warris Road, lined with rain gutters, lies between Queens Road and Jail Road: both wide, clean, orderly streets at the affluent fringes of Lahore.
About the author: Sidhwa is a Pakistani novelist of Gujarati Parsi descent. When Sidhwa was just two years old, she contracted polio. She was nine years old at the time of Partition — both of these events have influenced her writing. In addition to writing novels, she has also collaborated with the filmmaker Deepa Mehta — the novel Cracking India was the basis for Mehta’s 1998 film Earth, and then Mehta’s 2005 film Water was adapted into a novel by Sidhwa in 2006.
Contemporary Novels
Independence by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
While this novel doesn’t have the complexity of some of the other books on this list, its focus on three young women and their different desires provides a unique perspective. Priya wants to follow in her father’s footsteps and become a doctor, unheard of for a woman at the time. Deepa falls deeply in love with an unsuitable match, and is torn between her heart and her family. Jamini is quiet and devoted to the home. As partition events begin to unfold, the three sisters become separated and find themselves on very different paths.
We discussed this book briefly on our episode on The Palace of Illusions with Brown Girl Bookshelf — if you do pick up Independence, I highly recommend the audiobook, which is skillfully narrated by Sneha Mathan.
Priya captures Somnath’s bishop with her knight and waves it about in delight. “You did not see that coming, Kaku, did you?”
About the author: Divakaruni was born in Calcutta, where she received her BA, before getting a PhD in English from the University of California, Berkeley. She put herself through graduate school by working odd jobs including: babysitting, store clerk, bread slicer in a baker, and a laboratory assistant. She has written many novels and short stories — my personal favorite is The Forest of Enchantments, a retelling of the Ramayana from Sita’s perspective.
The Book of Everlasting Things by Aanchal Malhotra
The Book of Everlasting Things begins with a perfumer’s apprentice and a calligrapher’s apprentice who fall in love and begin to dream of the life they will one day share. But the struggle for Indian independence grows larger and larger, until their city is nearly destroyed by Partition, and the two find themselves on opposite sides. This story of two lovers and two nations, split apart by forces beyond their control, is filled with descriptions of calligraphy and perfume, spans continents and generations, and explores love and memory.
His nose woke up first.
It shook Samir from his slumber, and he sat upright in bed, sniffing out the storm before it began.
About the author: Aanchal Malhotra is a writer and oral historian from New Delhi who comes from a family of booksellers. She has written two non-fiction books, Remnants of a Separation and In the Language of Remembering, that explore the history and impact of Partition.
Works in Translation
Fireflies in the Mist by Qurratulain Hyder
Fireflies in the Mist, translated from the Urdu by the author, follows the creation of modern day Bangladesh, from provincial times, to Partition, to official statehood. It is told through the perspective of Deepali Sarkar, a young woman from Dhaka who becomes a socialist rebel and then transforms into a cosmopolitan Bengali.
The Ganges is young and sparkling when it comes out of the snow-covered Himalayas.
About the author: Hyder (1927-2007) was an Indian Urdu novelist, short story writer, academic, and journalist. She is best known for her novel Aag Ka Darya (English translation: River of Fire), published in 1959, which traces the history of the Indian subcontinent from the fourth century BC, through to partition. In 1967 she won the Sahitya Akademi Award for her Urdu short stories, and in 2005 she received the Padma Bhushan from the Indian Government.
Tomb of Sand by Geetanjali Shree
The newest novel on this list, Tomb of Sand was published in Hindi in 2018, and then translated to English by Daisy Rockwell in 2021. Tomb of Sand follows 80-year-old Ma, who falls into a depression after the death of her husband. She becomes inspired to travel back to Pakistan, confronting the trauma of her experience of Partition, and re-learning what it means to be a mother, daughter, woman, and feminist. Though the topic is heavy, Shree uses a playful tone and writes in a funny, engaging, urgent voice.
A tale tells itself. It can be complete, but also incomplete, the way all tales are. This particular tale has a border and women who come and go as they please.
About the author: Shree is an Indian novelist and short story writer based in New Delhi. Though she has been a prolific writer, much of her work did not reach audiences outside India — until Tomb of Sand was translated into English and won the 2022 International Booker Prize, the first translation from a South Asian language to win.1
Diaspora Reads
House of Caravans by Shilpi Suneja
This book moves back and forth from the years of Partition, when Chhote Nanu is imprisoned for planting a bomb, to 2002, in the post-9/11 era when Karan Khati, a young student, has to travel back home when he finds out his grandfather has died. When he arrives, he finds his estranged mother in conflict with his granduncle, Chhote Nanu. As familial and religious prejudices resurface, the family must grapple with years of strife, loss, and heartache.
Two days after the birth of the nation, Chhote Nanu races toward the Lahore-Amritsar-Lahore Express. But before he can shove his way inside, the cargo staring back from the benches stops him dead in his tracks.
About the author: Suneja was born in Kanpur, India, and at the age of fifteen, moved with her parents to a small village in North Carolina. She holds an MA in English from NYU, and an MFA in Creative Writing from Boston University. Her novel House of Caravans is loosely based on her grandfather’s story of migration from Lahore to Kanpur.
The Parted Earth by Anjali Enjeti
This debut novel begins in August of 1947, as violence unfolds in New Delhi, and 16-year-old Deepa navigates the changing politics of her home. The story also picks up sixty years later in Atlanta: Deepa’s granddaughter Shan, grieving a pregnancy loss and the unraveling of her marriage, begins the search for her estranged grandmother.
The afternoon air hung heavy and thick. In the classroom, it dwelled in the aisles between desks like phantoms.
About the author: Anjali Enjeti is a former attorney, organizer, and award-winning journalist based in Atlanta. She is the author of Southbound: Essays on Identity, Inheritance, and Social Change, which received a gold medal for Best Regional Nonfiction from the Independent Publisher Book Awards.
Partitions by Amit Majmudar
As thousands of refugees attempt to flee the violence of Partition, two Hindu boys, Shankar and Kenshav, lose sight of their mother at a crowded train station. We follow them as they go in search of her, and we also meet a young Sikh girl who has run away from her cruel father and an elderly Muslim doctor who must redefine his role as a healer. Through the horrors of Partition, this quartet comes together to pursue a hopeful future.
I know only three people in this infinitude. Two boys: one in a dark blue kurta with tiny golden beads embroidered around the collar, the other in a bright green one with silver beads, matching.
About the author: Amit Majmudar is the son of Indian immigrants and grew up near Cleveland, Ohio. He is a diagnostic radiologist who practices medicine full-time, while he writes poems and novels on the side. In 2015, he was named the first Poet Laureate of Ohio.
Classics
Train to Pakistan by Khushwant Singh
A classic of Indian fiction, Train to Pakistan recounts the Partition through events that occur in a fictional village, Mano Majra. In this village, Sikhs and Muslims have lived together peacefully for centuries — until one day, at the end of summer, a “ghost train” arrives, a silent train loaded with dead bodies of thousands of refugees. This short but impactful novel chronicles religious hatred while simultaneously demonstrating the power of love.
The summer of 1947 was not like other Indian summers. Even the weather had a different feel in India that year.
About the author: Khushwant Singh (1915-2014) was an Indian author, lawyer, journalist, and politician. He was born in Punjab, and later studied law at King’s College London. After working as a lawyer for the Lahore High Court for eight years, he joined the Indian Foreign Service after Indian Independence. Singh was a self-proclaimed agnostic, but when the violence of partition reached his home, he and his family had to flee Lahore and join thousands of other Hindus and Sikhs in a journey to India.
Regret by Mohammed Ikramullah
This combination of two novellas, Regret and Out of Sight, translated from Urdu, explores how childhood and youth were impacted by Partition. In Regret, the author writes a first-person account of a boyhood friendship with direct, concise language. He describes the small and subtle ways that class, social differences, and political ideologies manifest in everyday lives.
Someone called me and gave me Ehsan’s message. He said Ehsan wanted me, no matter what, to go see him.
About the author: Mohammed Ikramullah was a member of the Pakistan administration at the time of independence at 1947. He was also a member of Muslim League partition committee, and a close colleague of Muhammad Ali Jinnah.
Tamas by Bhisham Sahni
Originally written in Hindi and translated by Daisy Rockwell, Tamas is a classic of Indian literature based on Sahni’s own experience of the riots in Rawalpindi. The story has no central character; instead, chapters follow various characters in different points. Winner of the Sahitya Akademi Award, Tamas tells the tale of an unfolding riot through the eyes of many.
The clay lamp in the alcove flickered. Close to it, where the wall joined the ceiling, two bricks had been removed from the wall, leaving behind a gaping hole.
About the author: Bhisham Sahni (1915-2003) was an Indian writer, playwright, and actor. He was born in Rawalpindi, in undivided Punjab, and earned a master’s degree in English literature in Lahore. At the time of Partition, he was an member of Indian National Congress and organized relief efforts for refugees when riots began to break out. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan for literature in 1998.
Further Lists & Recommendations:
Books about the 1947 Partition by
[Instagram]Mystery, Mayhem, and Trauma: A Reading List for India’s 1947 Partition [Lithub]
When Silence is Heard: Telling the Stories of Women During the Partition of India [Lithub]
Partition, 70 years on: Salman Rushdie, Kamila Shamsie and other writers reflect [The Guardian]
The Booker Prize guide to… the partition of India [The Booker Prizes]
— Shruti
What are your favorite Partition novels? Let us know in the comments or reply to this email!
What Makes a Book a 'Classic'?
....While I have read a good amount of fiction by Indian authors and diaspora writers, and could name some classics, I realized that I have been so deeply entrenched in the English language that I haven’t taken enough time to look into India’s own literary traditions, which are rich and varied.
Books from Around the World, Disability, and Trauma Narratives
...it seems that POC authors in the West are afforded none of the freedom that white authors get with regards to subject matter. A brief look at recent award nominees and winners demonstrates this point - white authors get to tell stories like The Overstory, an intricate portrait of humanity’s relationship with nature, or Gilead, an introspective narrative about faith and forgiveness.
For some interesting reading on the literary traditions in India and how Shree’s novel could pave the way for more native languages and translated works: An Elegy to a Pluralistic, Polyglot India Wins Readers and Critics in the West [NYT]
What an interesting list! Thanks!
Also, The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani is a very good middle grade epistolary book about Partition.
Have you read Under the Tamarind Tree by Nigar Alum? A beautiful book!