Shortlisted for the Derek Walcott Prize for Poetry A one-of-a-kind collection of work by one of India's best contemporary poets. Arvind Krishna Mehrotra is one of the most celebrated Indian poets writing in English and an important translator from Indian languages, but until now his work has rarely been available in the United States and Britain. Mehrotra’s poetry combines the commonplace and the strange, the autobiographical and the fabulous, and reflects an intense and original engagement with American poetry, especially the work of William Carlos Williams and the Beats. This book provides a comprehensive picture of Mehrotra’s achievements as a poet and translator and includes a striking new poetic sequence.

The Gathasaptasati is perhaps the oldest extant anthology of poetry from South Asia, containing our very earliest examples of secular verse. Reputed to have been compiled by the Satavahana king Hala in the second century CE, it is a celebrated collection of 700 verses in Maharashtri Prakrit, composed in the compact, distilled gatha form. The anthology has attracted several learned commentaries and now, through Arvind Krishna Mehrotra’s acclaimed translation of 207 verses from the anthology, readers of English at last have access to its poems. The speakers are mostly women and, whether young or old, married or single, they touch on the subject of sexuality with frankness, sensitivity and, every once in a while, humour, which never ceases to surprise. The Absent Traveler includes an elegant and stimulating translator’s note and an afterword by Martha Ann Selby that provides an admirable introduction to Prakrit literature in general and the Gathasaptasati in particular.

Annotation This volume surveys 200 years of Indian literature in English. Written by Indian scholars and critics, many of the 24 contributions examine the work of individual authors, such as Rabindranath Tagore, R.K. Narayan, and Salman Rushdie. Others consider a particular genre, such as post-independence poetry or drama. The volume is illustrated with b&w photographs of writers along with drawings and popular prints. Annotation (c)2003 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com).

"Complete with brief biographical and critical introductions to each poet, this is the definitive anthology of modern Indian poetry in English"--Publisher.