A Suitable Boy

Vikram Seth · b. 1952 · India

Why it matters

A mother's search for the right husband for her daughter unfolds across newly independent India's politics, religion, and romance. One of the longest novels ever published in English, and a warm, Trollope-scaled panorama of a nation finding its feet.

At a glance

Plainly told and linear; its challenge is sheer length and a vast cast, not prose difficulty.