THE SERGEANT'S SON

In the late sixties, Sergeant Samar, a minor employee of the air force, his wifeBasanti and their four sons move from small-town Barrackpore to Bombay. The fourboys grow up in the rapidly changing, cosmopolitan city that is just beginning torecognize its aspirations. Kalu, the third son, dreams of being an artist.But dreams are easily obscured by circumstances. Kalu’s parents drift apart underthe pressure of mutual resentments and casual violence. In school, Kalu cannotkeep up with his rich English-speaking friends; only art gives him solace. But evenas Samar grudgingly accepts his son’s artistic aspirations, he is unwilling to supporthim. Faced with the possibility of joining the air force in his father’s footsteps,Kalu is forced to make an impossible choice.As much a story of a difficult childhood as a snapshot of India of the 1960s, TheSergeant’s Son is a must-read.