The Heart Asks Pleasure First
07 June 2022Synopsis
‘A luminous, hypnotic novel, as much about the beauty of language as it is about the struggles of life’ – ANN PATCHETT, author of The Dutch House and Bel Canto
An extraordinary tale of love in a world being torn asunder.
On a sunny day in 2001, Daya, a ballet student, is sitting in a park in Wales far away from her home in India. She is about to meet Aaftab, a young Muslim lawyer from Pakistan, and fall devastatingly in love.
Though Aaftab battles his heart, their relationship quickly transcends the divides of religion, nationality and language. But even as they forge profound bonds, the cataclysmic events of the year will have dangerous ramifications and push them to confront the most difficult complexities of their lives.
Set in a world of students but breathtaking in its expansiveness, The Heart Asks Pleasure First is a spellbinding first novel that speaks urgently to the frailties of our times. Karuna Ezara Parikh humanizes the big themes of friendship and family, migration and xenophobia, with the deftness of a poet and the magic of a born storyteller.
Details
07 June 2022
9789390742820Reviews
‘A remarkable debut, bravely tackling grand questions of history, love, loyalty and faith’ Ranjana Sengupta, Hindu
‘Poignant and riveting ... Parikh’s writing also contains an element of the fantastical, a revelling in the possibilities of fiction that gives us a dirge layered with pain and ecstasy, and a memorable reminder of how life is made of deep, enduring human connections, asking painfully pertinent questions of politics, identity and the nature of love’ Piya Srinivasan, India Today
‘Prose that melts the heart and a plotline that tugs at every string of it’ Shraddha Kamdar, Femina
‘Love, longing, grit and grief flavour this fable ... fascinating’ Priya Chadha, Tribune
‘A moving debut ... evocative’ Times of India
‘A luminous, hypnotic novel, as much about the beauty of language as it is about the struggles of life’ Ann Patchett, author of The Dutch House and Bel Canto
‘A tender, elegant exploration of what it means to love as the world devolves into division and chaos. A wonderful debut’ Prayaag Akbar, author of Leila
