Red Earth and Pouring Rain

In Vikram Chandra'S Astonishing First Novel, The Gods Hanuman, Ganesha And Yama Descend On A House In An Indian City To Vie For The Soul Of A Wounded Monkey. A Bargain Is Struck: The Monkey Must Tell A Story, And If He Can Keep His Audience Entertained, He Shall Live. The Result Is Red Earth And Pouring Rain, A Tale Of Nineteenth Century India: Of Sanjay, A Poet, And Sikander, A Warrior; Of Hoofbeats Thundering Through The Streets Of Calcutta And The Birth Of A Luminous Child; Of Great Wars And Love Affairs And A City Gone 'Mad With Poetry'. And Woven Into This Tapestry Of Stories Is A Second, Totally Modern Narrative, The Adventures Of A Young Indian Criss-Crossing America In A Car With His Friends And His Eventual Return To His Homeland.