I don’t read all that much, but of what I’ve read recently, I can say that Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts is stellar. For someone who’s lived in Bombay all his life, this book is moving, exciting, nostalgic and inspiring all at once. I am in awe of the author for what he has experienced in a single lifetime. The book is a thousand-page monster, but once I got started, I just couldn’t put it down. I even read while slightly tipsy in the early-AM on the 505 bus from Bandra to Vashi. I finished it yesterday, and was very sad to let go.
And I just found out that the author had a book reading at the Kala Ghoda festival yesterday. DAMN! I can’t recommend this book enough, especially if you’ve grown up in Bombay and remember life before cable.