My latest book is The One Who Swam With The Fishes.

"A mesmerizing account of the well-known story of Matsyagandha ... and her transformation from fisherman’s daughter to Satyavati, Santanu’s royal consort and the Mother/Progenitor of the Kuru clan." - Hindustan Times

"Themes of fate, morality and power overlay a subtle and essential feminism to make this lyrical book a must-read. If this is Madhavan’s first book in the Girls from the Mahabharata series, there is much to look forward to in the months to come." - Open Magazine

"A gleeful dollop of Blytonian magic ... Reddy Madhavan is also able to tackle some fairly sensitive subjects such as identity, the love of and karmic ties with parents, adoption, the first sexual encounter, loneliness, and my favourite, feminist rage." - Scroll



Sign up for my newsletter: The Internet Personified

22 March 2010

In which we are domestic (somewhat)

This week has been fairly uneventful, as you can see from lack of photos. The Indian food turned out to be recognisable, which is nice, but not exactly what I was craving. THEN, I went to Small's house in London, and she introduced me to instant sambhar mix (I know, I know, it existed beforehand, but I hadn't actually tried it before). A couple of days later, whilst grocery shopping at Tesco's, I found the same brand, along with rice and pickle and made myself a meal. And THAT was good. So, all in all, yay me.

Right. The  new book. Doing something for teenagers this time, with Scholastic, and I'm very excited about it. It should be out later this year and writing for the young adult segment is something I've always wanted to do, ever since my very first Judy Blume (Superfudge!) back in the day. I hope though, that I've done the life of a sixteen year old girl (in Delhi, yes, yes, it continues to be the only city I can write about with some authority) full justice and that readers will be able to identify with the narrator. The only sixteen year old I have ever known in close contact is, well, me, so I'm drawing a lot on my own experiences and the way I used to feel. Luckily, I still have all my old journals from way back then (I knew they would come in useful someday!) and so quite a mine of information. Plus italics and oh-the-drama-and-the-angst. Sixteen was an interesting year. I'm trying very hard to wrap it up ASAP, so that is also why I've had a quiet week.

Oh, and I bought a bright red trenchcoat from the Monsoon sale (as in the brand, not the season. English rain is very calm compared to the roaring storms of Bombay). So much for saving my money, eh? But it's SO awesome and I love it more than I have ever loved a coat before. Besides my black coat is nice and warm and dressy on occasion, but it's almost ten years old, and I think it's time I got a new one. Luckily, I still have more than a month of my English trip left, so I will have lots of opportunities to wear it.

And, either I've acclimatised, or it's gotten much warmer here. Recently, I have been wearing only one sweater to go out, sometimes, I don't even need a scarf. Okay, so I have a bit of a cold today, but that's just because I was JUST out in the garden smoking a cigarette and it's WINDY out there.

Also, the other day was discussing movies with JC's brother's fiancee (who really needs a name of her own on this blog, so how about, erm, Sylvia? That's a pretty name, and I've been wanting to use it for a while.) Anyhoo, so Sylvia and I besides both being about to get married (eeee!) to members of the same family, also have very similar taste in the cinema. I have a bunch of her chick flicks, that she loaned me (which sit like a devil on my shoulder each time I have work to do) and I was talking about how I really really wanted to see the BBC version of Pride and Prejudice  (made famous by Bridget Jones and Colin Firth in the fountain) and then, the next evening, when I came home from Small's, I found an Amazon package waiting for me. Inside which... the movie! Yay! I was both thrilled and touched. It's things like that that make my day. My week, even.

Soooo, that's what I've been up to. Slow-ish week, but sometimes the best part about a long trip is just the settling in and feeling comfortable, right?

9 comments:

  1. Hey! I read You Are Here and I'm an ardent follower of your column in DC about books ( Read Prep after you recommended it, didn't like it though
    ) Looking forward to reading your book! (Which I will be able to relate to more than You Are Here because I'm 17)

    P.S. Please price the book properly.. 300 burns a wayy big hole in my books budget! :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Quite a quiet week. Anyhow, it is getting warmer except for the spells of temp drop when the wind blows in a bit hard, but its alright. It promises to be a very warm summer this year.

    ReplyDelete
  3. good good... i have yet to read you are here..most of my friends are FANS..

    ReplyDelete
  4. Did you know the BBC is making a new version of Pride & Prejudice?!? It's hard to understand how the old one can be improved upon. If you haven't seen it, you should also check out the new BBC Emma that came out last year -- excellent. You can never have too much Jane Austen (especially when on vacation in the UK!).

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hey I would love to grab a copy of your new book. Waiting for long now...

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hi, I love reading your blog and I just wanted to say as a fellow transitting Londoner that it is getting warmer here! The weather has been super lately! Enjoy the rest of your stay.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Ok, just wanted to say this, Colin Firth was the best Darcy ever. Yeah, he's old and looks like a gramps now, but as Darcy in '95, wow. He never cracks a smile through the 6 hours, just so intense , but for the last scene, I know women who've melted into goo just in those 30 seconds :D

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hi eM... I've been reading your blog for a really long time and I liked your book.
    Looking forward to next one. Good to hear that England's helping the writing process. :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. thought you might like this contextual reference to your last book:
    http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/art/great-works/courbet-gustave-the-meeting-1854-795362.html

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for your feedback! It'll be published once I approve it. Inflammatory/abusive comments will not be posted. Please play nice.