Book Passage Presents

Tues., July 13, 2021 • 2:00pm PT • Live • Online

In conversation with Julie Carlucci • Signed bookplates available!

Jivan is a Muslim girl from the slums, determined to move up in life, who is accused of executing a terrorist attack on a train because of a careless comment on Facebook. PT Sir is an opportunistic gym teacher who hitches his aspirations to a right-wing political party and finds that his own ascent becomes linked to Jivan's fall. Lovely—an irresistible outcast whose exuberant voice and dreams of glory fill the novel with warmth and hope and humor—has the alibi that can set Jivan free, but it will cost her everything she holds dear.

Taut, symphonic, propulsive, and riveting from its opening lines, A Burning is an electrifying debut novel about three unforgettable characters who seek to rise—to the middle class, to political power, to fame in the movies—and find their lives entangled in the wake of a catastrophe in contemporary India.

Megha Majumdar was born and raised in Kolkata, India. She moved to the United States to attend college at Harvard University, followed by graduate school in social anthropology at Johns Hopkins University. She works as an editor at Catapult and lives in New York City. A Burning is her first book.

Julie Carlucci is the lead of Book Passage's Signed First Editions Club. In addition to curating and researching unknown and debut authors throughout the year, Julie also designs personalized book lists for over 250 Book Passage clients across the U.S., delighting avid readers each month with a perfectly picked book aimed to captivate, enchant, entertain, and provoke thought. Julie leads multiple book group discussions in the Marin community and reviews nearly 100 newly published books a year.

Megha Majumdar photo by Elena Seibert