Benyonne Schwortz, bschwortz@gmail.com
Bayside High School, http://www.baysidehighschool.org

Modern Writers of Nepal

namaste. नमस्त

Appendix A7d: Additional Modern Nepalese Writers

Mortal Attractions: A Simpleton's Odyssey
by Prakash Gurung
Simpleton, the hero of this novel, migrates from his village to Kathmandu in search of work and a better life. But he soon begins to feel the pressure of big-city life as he finds it difficult to find work and everyday survival becomes an uphill battle.

He falls in love with a girl from a higher caste family and experiences the heartbreak of being rejected as a poor country boy.

This novel shows the struggle, desperation and frustration that is the lot of millions of ordinary people in Third World countries who dream of better and more fulfilling lives.

Beyond the Illusions
by Sheeba Shivangini Shah
This gripping tale is an intriguing, intimate saga of love and betrayal, life and its puzzling dilemmas, blending erotic ecstasy and sexual slavery with rampant religious rituals and tainted Tantric temptations.
Bhairavi is puzzled when her husband, Jayant, suddenly begins to try some new, weird and wonderful tricks in the bedroom. Soon afterwards, he mysteriously disappears without saying a word. Distraught, she sets off with her friend Neha in search of him, across the plains of India to the foothills of the Himalaya and the banks of the holy river Ganges.
What follows is a story that will capture your imagination, stimulate your senses and mesmerise your mind with anticipation"for all is not what it seems.
As Bhairavi extricates herself from the charms of the material world around her, she slowly begins to slip deeper and deeper into the realms of Tantra, taking the reader along with her into the ethereal space of the black goddess, Kali. A spiritual quest for ultimate realisation unfolds throughout the pages.

Confession
by Kavita Ram Shrestha
Controversial and boldly written, this powerful translation is available for the first time in the English language. The Nepali characters of a sick woman, a dwarf and a prostitute portray frustrated people which society creates but then turns into objects of hatred. Although it is a story of opposition to society's values, it is, as the author says, "a story that exists in all places, times and personalities". Introduction by Krishnachandra Singh

Faulty Glasses and Other Stories
by B P Koirala. Translated by Keshar Lall.
In this book, Nepal's pre-eminent statesman, B P Koirala, recreates a world of emotion in all its varied manifestations: love, loathing, compassion, jealousy, fear, affection, anger and pity.
Written in the late 1940s, his short stories of human interaction take place at various locations throughout Nepal. They provide valuable insights into the everyday lives of the Nepalese people.
B P Koirala is considered to be the father of modern Nepal. As the country's popularly elected Prime Minister, he is eminently qualified to illuminate the customs, attitudes and activities of his people.
In this collection, Koirala has bequeathed to us a treasury of tales that look beyond the obvious and attempt to delve into the motivations and aspirations of his characters. One can find no better Nepali raconteur than B P Koirala and no finer vehicle than these short but meaningful stories.

Fever
by Sita Panday. Edited by Yuyutsu R D Sharma. Translated by Yuyutsu R D Sharma and others.
Fever is an explosive anthology of short stories from an author who has been at the centre of literary commotion in Nepal for the past two decades.

Mature and skillfully structured, these stories investigate the hidden recesses of a woman's mind. Bold, intense and honest, they narrate the life struggle of a young woman from the Nepalese countryside hankering for a fresh emotional plateau of faith in a callously modernised cityscape of the legendary Shangri-la kingdom. Thus as one reads Sita Panday page after page, one finds the personal fused with the public.

Having entered the valley of a woman's mind, Sita effortlessly transcends gender and geography. The rage and revolt expressed in her characters reveals a woman's urge to shatter the norms of a decaying value system and reach out to a "universal celebration" and a "private space".

Kathmandu, Treks and Hippies Too
by Dorothy Mierow
Based on her own experiences, Dorothy Mierow's absorbing and dramatic novel chronicles the adventures of Cindy Adams, a bright but confused college graduate who in the 1960s was among the first American Peace Corps Volunteers to be sent to Nepal, a small and remote Himalayan kingdom which, till then, was isolated from the rest of the world. Aside from the Peace Corps, Nepal was also becoming the new found "Shangri La" destination for the Asia-overland, vagabond hippie set. In those heady days, hash was legal, love was cheap and life was high. Struggling to make sense of an alien but exotic culture which she helps to bring from the middle ages into the 20th century, Cindy questions her own values and finds her way towards a fulfilling purpose in life.

Royals of the Crown
by Sheeba Shivangini Shah
Loyals of the Crown proves itself to be distinct both in terms of its approach, aptitude and presentation. It bubbles with the enthusiasm to probe deep into the conclaves of the most controversial. The author endeavors to fill in the vacuum created by the past generation of historians and literalist and have proven the fact that history is not merely an elucidation of single protagonist and events and activities surrounding them. History as she puts it is an episode, which has peripheral dimensions where a multitude of characters, events and activities needs to be taken into consideration.

This is what she has done describing the temperament and idiosyncrasies of His Majesty King Rajendra in a manner, which has been completely ignored by earlier writers. She depicts him, not as a senile, incompetent, irrational and schizophrenic personality , but speaks of his concealed attributes and describes him as a loving husband, an intriguing diplomat, and a true nationalist. It is also clear that his wives, his courtiers and 'Darbarias' exploited his weaknesses to the fullest extent and whilst pretending to be 'Loyal' betrayed him and usurped the royal governance. The Royals as she projects them were never able to make correct and sane judgments in selecting the 'Loyal' thus those who were truly loyal in due course of time would either be dumped or assassinated as was epitomized by the fates of both Mathbir Singh Thapa and Bhimsen Thapa.

Written as historical fiction with the underlying romantic activities of the Royal court providing the base for the story line; this novel provides us with a unique view of life as it was in the Nepali court in the pre-Rana era. It also provides us with insight into the scenario behind Jung Bahadur's usurping of the royal authority and the establishing of the Rana dynasty that ruled Nepal with an iron hand for one hundred and four years.

Khairini Ghat: Return to a Nepali Village
by Shanker Koirala. Translated by Larry Hartsell.
After having lost himself for ten years in Calcutta, a weary traveller returns to his native village in the hills of Nepal. He strives to cope with the political and social changes, while attempting to regain his former status, resist the temptations of village women and manage the affairs of village life. An evocative narrative providing a rare glimpse of rural Nepal of the recent past that is slowly disappearing.

Modern Literary Nepali: An Introductory Reader
by Michael Hutt
This book introduces a selection of published 20th century Nepali texts, in both prose and verse. It contains 5 short stories, 2 essays, an extract from an autobiography, and 20 complete poems, along with 7 extracts from a longer narrative poem and provides an introduction into modern Nepali literature.

Mortal Attraction: A Simpleton's Odyssey
by Prakash Gurung
Life in the Third World is a hard one, and Nepal is no exception. The story of Simpleton, the hero of the book, is but a reflection of the many privations and difficulties endured by the people on a daily basis, affecting every aspect of their insecure lives and loves in which money makes a very romantic gift indeed.
The aptly-named hero leaves his village for the bright lights of the big city to fall in love again. Love, murder, marriage, the grandeur of the Ranas, and unemployment form the skein of which the web of this story is woven right up to its surprise ending. It depicts middle class life in the Kathmandu of the 1940s and the economic and intellectual environment from which it sprang.

Palpasa Cafe
by Narayan Wagle
Best selling Nepali novel Palpasa Café is now available in English. Palpasa Café is a Nepali novel written by journalist Narayan Wagle which was released in 2005. Since its release the book has received many honours including the highly prestigious literary award in Nepal, the Madan Puraskar.
Palpasa Café has sold more than 16,000 copies in the Nepali language original and has been amongst the most talked about book in contemporary Nepali literature of recent times.

A Place Beneath the Pipal Tree
by Greta Rana
A Place Beneath the Pipal Tree describes three generations of Sherpa women, the men in their lives, the times they lived in, and the dilemmas they faced. While not over romanticising the past, when it was originally written it could almost have been prophetic in its misgivings about the future in an environment governed by status and taboo, in which women have to work hard to achieve the respect that should be their birthright.

Greta Rana was born in 1943 in Leeds. After studying sociology, literature and linguistics, she worked as a social worker in Canada and then later for the UNICEF in Nepal, where she met her future husband. Greta Rana has previously published four poem collections, 55 short stories and three novellas. A Place Beneath the Pipal Tree is her first novel. She was a founding member of the International PEN Centre, Nepal.

The Red Temple
by Mani Dixit
A tourist bus sets off to Pokhara, a small domestic resort in Nepal, but the passengers inside are not what they seem. Little do they all realise that within a week, four of them will be dead. Drug smugglers, Tibetan freedom fighters and undercover agents conspire to thwart each other's plans.
This thriller gives a fascinating insight into Nepal of the 70s, when Freak Street was in its heyday, hash smoke billowed from every cheap hotel and no one slept with the same partner twice. There are mountain hideaways that unsuspecting travellers enter, never again to see the light of day.

Rupamati
by Rudra Raj Pandey. Translated by Shanti Mishra.
Rupamati is considered to be the first modern novel in Nepal.
Translated into English for the first time, Rupamati deals with the duties of a daughter-in-law in a traditional Brahmin family. It depicts "the blows and counter blows within the circle of a family.... This book wholly embodies the ideal of reform in domestic life," writes leading Nepali poet, Lekhnath Poudyal. "Whoever begins to read this book will not want to put it down."
"This book is joyful, instructive and inspiring. Moreover, it should be considered as a new light and as a new milestone within the history of the Nepali prose." - Lakshmi Prasad Devkota

Sumnima
by B P Koirala
Sumnima ­ a famous Nepali novel by B P Koirala, a former Prime Minister of Nepal ­ is about the painful complications that arise in a man-woman relationship. The story is about the powerful attraction that exists between a Brahmin boy and an ordinary girl. It deals with the conflict within the boy who also wishes to pursue spiritual salvation but is torn between his desire for this woman and his urge for spiritual emancipation. To surmount carnal desires is not possible for an ordinary mortal and the pleasures of the flesh have a place in life. The Brahmin boy is serious about his spiritual goals but succumbs to the charms of a lovely girl.

Sumnima was viewed as highly controversial when it first appeared in Nepal. The author was accused of inciting communal feelings against certain sections of Nepali society. The book was also looked upon as an attempt to project Brahmins as superior beings.As a result, copies of the book were burnt by a particular community to express their anguish against its publication.

Beyond the Summit
by Linda LeBlanc
Beyond the Summit tells the story of two people with dreams: Beth, an American journalist who finally arrives in her Shangri-la to do a story on Nepal and Dorje, a young Sherpa who aspires to summit Everest like Tenzing Norgay, even if it means severing ties with his father's traditions.

As tourists flood into the remote Himalayan kingdom, Dorje yearns for what the modern world brings. He struggles not only aginst violent storms and the mountain that has seduced him since childhood but clashes with his father as old ways vanish. Immediately attracted to the blond-haired woman who comes to study his people, Dorje experiences a deeper love than he has ever known and learns the consequences of their affair.

An Other Voice: English Literature from Nepal
Deepak Thapa, Kesang Tseten, eds
Martin Chautari, Kathmandu, 2002
Short stories by Mani Dixit, Joel Isaacson, Sushma Joshi, Peter Karthak, Sunil Nepali, Greta Rana, Manjushree Thapa, Kesang Tseten and Samrat Upadhyay. Poetry by Wayne Amtzis, Hannah Chi, Padma Prasad Devkota, Tsering Wangmo, Dhompa, DB Gurung, E Ann Hunkins, Manju Kanchuli, Tek B Karki, Kesar Lall, Yuyutsu RD Sharma and Abhi Subedi.

From Secret Places: New Writing from Nepal

 “A Swarm of Bees Fluttering” by Alai
“The Yeren” by Alai
“The Weather Will Be Clearn Today and Tomorrow” byManu Brajaki
“Grandchild’s Father” by Sharon May Brown
“Pashupati Hotel” by Narayan Dhakal
“Chhinar” by Sanat Regmi
“The Scream” by Dhruba Sapkota
 “Trap” by Maya Thakuri
“RussianNames” by Kesang Tseten
“A Corpse, a Statue,and a Thousand Buddhas” by Ramesh Vikal

From Secret Places: New Writing from Nepal

Alai -- “A Swarm of Bees Fluttering”
Alai -- “The Yeren”
Brajaki, Manu -- “The Weather Will Be Clearn Today and Tomorrow”
Brown, Sharon May -- “Grandchild’s Father”
Dhakal, Narayan -- “Pashupati Hotel”
Regmi, Sanat -- “Chhinar”
Sapkota, Dhruba -- “The Scream”
Thakuni, Maya --  “Trap”
Tseten, Kesang -- “RussianNames”
Vikal, Ramesh -- “A Corpse, a Statue,and a Thousand Buddhas”

From Himalayan Voices

Bhikshu, Bhavani – “Will He Ever Return?” “Maujang Babusahed’s Coat”
Bikal, Ramesh – “A Splendid Buffalo”
Bishtha, Daular Bikram – “The Andhi Khola”
Brajaki, Manu – “A Small Fish Squats b the Dhobi Khola”
Gautam, Dhruba Chandra – “The Fire”
Koirala, Bishweshwar Prasad --  “The Solder,” “To the Lowlands”
Koirala, Tarini Prasad – “It Depends upon Your Point of View”
Lamichhane, Shankar – “The Half-closed Eyes of the Buddha
and the Slowly Setting Sun”
Mainali, Guruprasad -- “A Blaze in the Straw”
Malla, Bijay – “Sunglasses,” “The Prisoner and the Dove”
Pahadi, Kishor – “A Living Death”
Pande, Poshan – “A Sweater for Brother-in-law”
Pradhan, Parashu – “TheTelegram on theTable,” “A Relationship”
Rai, Indra Bahadur – “Maina’s Mother is Just Like Us”
Rai, Shivkumar – “The Murderer”
Shah, Prema – “A Husband”