The Bleak Midwinter

By tom on February 19, 2009 | Add a Comment

This is a good time of year to pick up a book about a far away land.  Or, a nice big think novel that you can really get lost in (and use for kindling if the electricity goes out again).  One of my favorites from last year that fits in both  categories is called Sacred Games by Vikram Chandra.  It's about 900 pages, and is all about modern day India.  Almost all of the Indian novels I'd read to date were set sometime in the past, often around 1947 when the country became independent (Midnight's Children is a phenomenal example of this).  Sacred Games takes place now, and it is a crazy swirl of religion, crime, pop music, history, terrorism, and romance.  The plots are meandering and only twine together far into the novel, but that's half the fun.

 In short, an honest police detective becomes involved in the case of a notorious gangster, and the novel takes us deep into both of their lives, while also moving forward the story of a potential bomb threat in the middle of the city.  Entire chapters veer off in strange directions that could be novels unto themselves, but I never felt distracted or bored while reading them.

It's really a great read.  I'd be interested to know some of your favorite winter books.  Email us a review and we will post it in our Staff Picks section.

Stay warm, and keep dreaming of Spring. 

Tom