Lakshmi Murdeshwar-Puri’s debut novel, ‘Swallowing the Sun’, will be released in the Midwest region by Pippa Rann Books.
‘Swallowing the Sun’ is Lakshmi Murdeshwar-Puri’s debut novel. Puri is a distinguished Indian diplomat and Ambassador. She has served in New York as Assistant Secretary-General at the United Nations and has held leadership role at UN Women, the global organization which promotes women’s empowerment.
The title of the book ‘Swallowing the Sun’, Puri has explained, is part of the lines of a poem by the Marathi poet Muktabai. Sant Muktabai was a 13th century Marathi poet of Vakari Bhakti poetic tradition. The poem begins with “Mungi udali aakashi” (मुंगी उडाली आकाशीं). The lush poetics of English, Marathi, and Sanskrit are interwoven throughout the novel.
True to the title, the novel is a celebration of the personal empowerment and achievements of the book’s central character Malati, a young woman from Maharashtra. Malati fights for her education and her future, ultimately becoming the person she chose to be.
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There are personal sagas within the book along with precious source material like the century-old love letters of Puri’s parents. In some of her earlier interviews, Puri has discussed how these letters add a profound depth to the historical narrative that sweeps from the coastal landscapes of Ratnagiri and Bombay to the historic environs of Indore, Gwalior, Benaras, Shimla, and Delhi.
The novel is situated around the time of India’s freedom struggle. Its journey through varied landscapes mirrors the life experiences of many immigrants, encapsulating themes of resilience and the quest for identity in a modern and accessible manner.
Puri herself has described her novel as a story about people of all ages, keeping faith, daring to do the impossible but not improbable, and persevering till they succeed, not caring if it ends in triumph or tragedy.
The book was released in 2024 on the East Coast by UK based publishers Pippa Rann Books and Media. The launch was celebrated in a special event in the presence of hundreds of dignitaries from the Indian American community, including scholars, doctors, lawyers, diplomats and cultural experts.
‘Swallowing the Sun’ has been described by Amazon “as a novel that not only tells a story but also serves as a bridge connecting the past and present, inspiring the community through its powerful depiction of cultural endurance and the transformative power of understanding one’s roots.”
The novel has received much critical acclaim and readers have spoken of its importance in promoting universally applicable Indian civilizational and cultural values, including freedom, self realization, justice, indomitable human spirit, and respect of women as Shakti.
The novel has also been described as a narrative that captures the essence of Indian heritage and its Diasporic journey.
“And the Indian community here has shown that audacity and that courage and ability to dream big and to make the dreams come true,” Puri had said at the US launch of the book in New Jersey.