{"product_id":"9781035405923-happy","title":"Happy","description":"\u003cmeta content=\"text\/html; charset=utf-8\" http-equiv=\"Content-Type\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAn imaginative and innovative debut novel - 'An essential novel' Telegraph\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA whimsical and innovative debut novel, HAPPY is \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003ethe story of a starry-eyed cinephile who leaves his rural village in Punjab to pursue his dreams- set against the global migration crisis.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e'This novel is genius . strange and superb . radiant and exhilarating' \u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eTHE TELEGRAPH\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'A magnificent attempt to help us understand the mixture of optimism, self-defense, hope and delusion[needed] to make the monumental choice of whether or not to leave home'  \u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eNEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e'\u003c\/i\u003e A sobering reminder'\u003cb\u003e \u003ci\u003eWASHINGTON POST\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Leaping, chattering, dancing atop this conundrum [of global migration] comes the hero of Celina Baljeet Basra's debut novel, Happy Singh Soni, his head bursting with ideas, his heart set on gargantuan dreams' \u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eNEW YORK TIMES\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eA starry-eyed young cinephile leaves his rural village in India with big dreams, only to find himself trapped in menial jobs and forced to work off a debt he may never repay. \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e In a small farming village in Punjab, India, a boy crouches over his brother's phone in a rapeseed field watching clips of Godard's \u003ci\u003eBande à part\u003c\/i\u003e on YouTube. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e His name is Happy Singh Soni and when he's not sleeping among the cabbages and eating sugary rotis, Happy dreams of becoming an actor, one who plays the melancholy roles; the sad, pretty boys, rare in Indian cinema. He plans a clandestine journey to Europe, where he'll finally land a breakout role. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAfter a nightmarish passage to Italy, Happy still manages to find relief in food and fantasy, even as he is forced into ever-worsening work conditions on a radish farm by the syndicate involved in smuggling him to Europe to pay off the supposed debt they claim he has accrued. While disillusionment amongst the farm workers rise, Happy will find the love - and tragedy - that his favourite films always promised. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAt turns funny and heart-breaking, sunny and tragic, \u003ci\u003eHappy\u003c\/i\u003e is a formally ambitious novel about the psychic fissures produced by the splintering of nations, and the lovely, generative, artful coping mechanisms created by generations of diasporic people. With this ingenious, daringly cinematic debut, Celina Baljeet Basra argues for the things that are basic to human survival: food, water, shelter, but also pleasure, romance, art, and the right to a vivid inner life.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eMore praise for HAPPY:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'A MIRACULOUS NOVEL'\u003cb\u003e MEGHA MAJUMDAR\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cbr\u003e'PLAYFUL AND PROFOUND . USING WRY HUMOUR TO DELIVER A DEAD SERIOUS MESSAGE' \u003cb\u003eMELISSA FU\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'A BONKERS STORY THAT READS LIKE A FINE TEN-COURSE MEAL' \u003cb\u003eGARY SHTEYNGART\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'A FANTASTIC LITTLE GEM OF A BOOK'\u003cb\u003e CHIKODILI EMELUMADU\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Rarewaves","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41513891168353,"sku":"9781035405923","price":9.42,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0092\/7504\/8033\/files\/stand_29946515.jpg?v=1725875253","url":"https:\/\/www.rarewaves.com\/products\/9781035405923-happy","provider":"Rarewaves.com","version":"1.0","type":"link"}