Mulk Raj Anand (1905-2004) was an Indian English writer of world repute. His first ten books were from London. He has over 22 books of fiction and a large number of publications on art, education and culture, and thousands of letters. Although considerable research on Anand has been done and numerous critiques have appeared, there is hardly any book that carries a careful selection from his writings. Only three volumes of his letters have been published. Some of his works have gone out of print. Mulk Raj Anand: A Reader is the first attempt of its kind to fill this gap and introduce the author to a large readership. It offers in one volume representative selections from his writings. Here is an earnest endeavour to give a “feel†of his immortal art and vision. Besides the Editor’s Introduction and Author’s (freshly written) Preface, and a self-obituary by Mulk Raj Anand, the Reader contains four sections. It opens with ‘The Lost Child’ and records, in all, 15 short stories. Then selections from 15 novels have been given. Two samples of his discursive prose are presented: one each from ‘Apology for Herosim’ and ‘Conversations in Bloomsbury’. The final part carries four letters of Anand, culled from three anthologies of letters. The Appendices comprises a telling examples of literaray comment on the novelist E.M. Forster’s perceptive Preface to Untouchable (1935) and a Select Bibliography. A brief note of the Editor follows each section. Mulk Raj Anand himself had kindly provided consistent guidance for the ambitious project while alive and h is valuable suggestions have been gratefully incorporated.
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