{"product_id":"lakshmis-secret-diary-sheela-mahadevan-9780231212045","title":"Lakshmi's Secret Diary","description":"\u003cp\u003eSeeking to escape captivity, Lakshmi the temple elephant sets out on a stirring journey toward freedom. On her way, she briefly experiences life as a film star and encounters a colorful cast including a three-legged dog named Tripod Dog Baba, other elephants in the Bandipur Forest, a chameleon facing an existential crisis, a moon who dances with an elephant, and a flying fish called Alphonse. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eLakshmi's Secret Diary\u003c\/i\u003e is a remarkable Indian Francophone novel set in Pondicherry, the former capital of French India. Blending philosophical meditations, retellings of Sanskrit mythology, and social critique, Ari Gautier tells the story of Lakshmi's attempt to escape her fate. From the point of view of animals, the novel explores concepts of destiny, freedom, and identity. It illuminates the paradoxes of animal-human relations in India, where animals are both abused and worshiped, and provides an imaginative critique of the caste system. Gautier's vivid portrait of Pondicherry brings to life the religious, cultural, culinary, and visual diversity of the city's districts and sheds light on the little-known history of French colonialism in India. An afterword explores issues such as reincarnation and Indian translation traditions in relation to the novel. At once tragic and comic, satirical and surreal, \u003ci\u003eLakshmi's Secret Diary\u003c\/i\u003e is a surprising, compelling, and moving novel from a gifted storyteller.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Sheela Mahadevan, Ari Gautier\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0231212046\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780231212045\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Columbia University Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 09\/10\/2024\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 296\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.16lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.50h x 5.50w x 0.81d","brand":"Sheela Mahadevan","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":46140933767423,"sku":"9780231212045","price":100.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_00b5adc3-c282-4c40-b653-376cf83aba65.jpg?v=1726597453","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/lakshmis-secret-diary-sheela-mahadevan-9780231212045","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}