Gifted ebook by nikita lalwani 9780141917023 rakuten kobo. Now lalwani turns her gimlet eye on an extraordinary village in india, and explores the thin boundary between morality and evil, innocence and guilt. Read gifted a novel by nikita lalwani available from rakuten kobo. Early on in nikita lalwanis memorable debut, gifted, you hear a character emphasize the value of education. Rumi vasi is 10 years, 4 months, days, 2 hours, 42 minutes, and 6 seconds old. Nikita lalwani was born in rajasthan, india, and raised in cardiff, wales. A label that takes over her life, her thoughts and her family. Nikita lalwanis first novel gifted was longlisted for the man booker prize 2007, shortlisted for the costa first novel award and the sunday times young writer of the year. She is a fellow of the royal society of literature and a judge for the 2020 rathbones folio prize for literature. This is a beautifully written account of the very difficult youth and early adolescence of a hindu girl living in england with her parents and younger brother. If i were to hazard a guess at what its supposed to be then its a. Rumi vasi is 10 years, 2 months, days, 2 hours, 42 minutes, and 6 seconds old.
Deftly pondering the complexities and consequences that accompany the best intentions, gifted explores just how far one person will push another, and how much can be. Nikita lalwani the story of a young girl in wales, who is found to be gifted in mathematics and from an early age lives a disciplined life, tutored by her indian father, set apart from her peers as she grows. Lalwani was also shortlisted for the 2008 sunday times young writer of the year award. The overarching theme of this first novel by nikita lalwani, who was born in india but raised in wales, is about families and what they do to. But in the course of reading gifted, i began to question whether rumi was truly gifted or just pushed to extremes by her ambitious parents. Cardiff in the 1980s is a place where maths can get you noticed. At 14 rumi is firmly set on the path of a gifted child, speeding headlong towards oxford university. A quick reading of the synopsis of gifted doesnt make the reader think there is anything terribly exciting or unique to expect from it. Gifted, nikita lalwanis debut novel is an effortless read. She is a mathematical genius and the bullying and constant nagging her parents inflict are disgraceful.
Its roving 3rd person perspective leaves us only slightly closer to rumi than to her father and mother, a technique that lets the reader examine each characters motives, but which ultimately keeps the reader at a distance from all of them. Gifted isbn 9780812977943 pdf epub nikita lalwani ebook. Gifted, by nikita lalwani, is a tense, taut novel about a young maths prodigy, rumi, and her family. Gifted is the debut novel by author nikita lalwani longlisted for the man booker prize and shortlisted for the costa first novel award. Deftly pondering the complexities and consequences that accompany the best intentions, gifted explores just how far one person will push another, and how much can be endured, in the name of love. Read gifted by nikita lalwani available from rakuten kobo. She has written two novels previously, gifted and the village. Nikita lalwanis story of a maths prodigy, gifted, illuminates the plight of the children of immigrants, says sarfraz manzoor. But, as the old adage goes, one must not judge a book by its cover so it was between the pages of this, lalwanis debut novel, that i went. Her next novel, the village, will be published in 2009. Nikita lalwani is a novelist born in kota, rajasthan and raised in cardiff, wales.
Had it not made the longlist i have no doubts that i would never have picked it up. Lalwanis first book, gifted, was longlisted for the man booker prize and shortlisted for the costa first novel award. Her first novel gifted was longlisted for the man booker prize, shortlisted for the costa first novel award and won the desmond elliott prize. Nikita balances the strong immigrant theme and that of a childs angst at a time when the child is too young to even understand such emotions very naturally. Rumi vasi is 10 years, 2 months, days, 2 hours, 42 minutes, and 6 second. Here the driven father, mahesh, is a mathematician from punjab who came to england with dreams. Rumi, an asian teenager, lives her life in the suburbs of cardiff. In june 2008 she won the desmond elliot prize for fiction and donated more about nikita lalwani. Sneha mathan spent a peripatetic childhood in india, punctuated by a short spell in the seychelles. The novel is set in the 1980s cardiff where maths prodigy rumi vasi grows up with her hindu parents. Rumi is 5 when she is identified as a gifted mathematician.
A novel by nikita lalwani and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. Free shipping and pickup in store on eligible orders. Rumi, labeled gifted in kindergarten, becomes subject to the grim home teaching of her father, mahesh, a professor of mathematics at the university of swansea in wales. But as rumi grows older, lalwani strips the comedy away, and the sodden misery of the whole thing weighs on the novel more and laleani. Nikita lalwanis booker prize nominated debut novel gifted tells the tragic story of the slow nineyear implosion and disintegration of an immigrant family trying to raise their mathematically gifted daughter in cardiff, walesa culture that the parents poorly understand and privately loathe. Now fixedly based in seattle, she works as a voice actor and audiobook narrator.
Gifted by nikita lalwani book cover, description, publication history. The inmates stories evoke larger questions about justice and privacy, power and powerlessness guardian nikita lalwani was born in rajasthan and raised in cardiff. Giftedby nikita lalwani was the first of the thirteen that i picked up in my eagerness to find out what the chosen few were about. Like bee season, it tells the story of a father whose plans for his precocious. The girl shows a talent for maths at an early age, and.
Her father, mahesh, determined that she would be the youngest child ever at 15 to pass her a and o levels and enter university, schedules her every waking. Here is a growing child whose life experiences equal zero. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. In her stunningly eloquent debut novel, nikita lalwani pits a parents dream against a childs.
In june 2008 nikita lalwani won the desmond elliot prize for new fiction, which she donated to human rights organisation. Nikita lalwani is the author of two novels, the village and gifted, which was longlisted for the man booker prize in 2007 and shortlisted for the costa first novel award. Nikita lalwani was born in rajasthan and raised in cardiff. She directed documentaries at the bbc for several years before receiving her ma in creative writing at bath spa university. Nikita lalwani was born in kota, rajasthan in 1973 and raised in cardiff. Here the driven father, mahesh, is a mathematician. As her father sees it, discipline is everything if the family has. Shes figured that the likelihood of her walking home from school with the boy. Sufiahs story seems to have been the inspiration for nikita lalwanis first novel, gifted. It was first published in 2007 by viking plot introduction. A fter the announcement of the booker longlist, gifted by nikita lalwani was the first of the thirteen that i picked up in my eagerness to find out what the chosen few were about. Her first novel, gifted, was longlisted for the man booker prize, shortlisted for the costa first novel award, and won the desmond elliott prize for new fiction. A heartrending and contentious story which provokes an. The village by nikita lalwani goodreads share book.
Nikita lalwanis story of a maths prodigy, gifted, illuminates the plight of the children of immigrants, says sarfraz manzoor sarfaz manzoor sat 30 jun 2007 18. Gifted is a disappointing novel, even when you take in account that it is a first one. At just fourteen years of age, she is sent to oxford university a place she is obviously not ready for. Gifted ebook by nikita lalwani 9781588368096 rakuten kobo. For rumi is a gifted child and, as her father sees it, discipline is everything if the family is. Subjected to her fathers strict tutoring he is determined that she be accepted by oxford. Academic achievement is necessary to success, says mahesh vasi, it is the only quantifiable measure of a life of the mind. Gifted by nikita lalwani overdrive rakuten overdrive. After several years of directing factual television and documentaries at the bbc, she has returned to writing fiction. Gifted is the moving and compelling tale of a young girl named rumika vasi affectionately known to those around her as rumi.
The sentiment might have been aired by a character in fiction but it is one that is modeled solidly on real life. In a voice that is by turns very funny and fiercely tender, gifted by nikita lalwani brings us a captivating story of high aspirations and deep longing, and of the sometime loneliness of childhood. Rumika vasi is a bright child and seems especially gifted at mathher fathers academic specialty. She passes her olevel in the subject at 11, her alevel at 14, and is studying at oxford by the age of 15. Probably one of the best examples of the adage never judge a book by its cover in recent times, gifted follows rumi vasi as she is carefully molded by her father to become one of the. She was also nominated for the sunday times young writer of the year award. She passes her olevel in the subject at 11, her a level at 14, and is studying at oxford by the age of 15. In her awardwinning debut novel, gifted, nikita lalwani crafted a brilliant comingofage story that called to mind the work of such novelists as zadie smith and monica ali the washington post book world. At just 5 years old, rumi was recognised by her teachers as being mathematically gifted and her parents were advised to get in touch with mensa.
1365 184 885 1536 1127 341 300 616 1593 590 357 785 376 1399 1321 55 726 1153 355 1435 1541 1486 317 1082 1545 906 873 1034 366 6 268 794 582 729