Tahmima Anam
Encyclopedia
Tahmima Anam is a Bangladesh
i writer and novelist. Her first novel, A Golden Age
, was published by John Murray
in 2007 and was the Best First Book winner of the 2008 Commonwealth Writers' Prize
.
, Bangladesh
, and grew up in Paris
, New York City
, and Bangkok
, as a consequence of her father’s career with the Unicef. She completed her undergraduate education at Mount Holyoke College
in 1997. She trained as an anthropologist, earning a PhD from Harvard University
, USA. In 2005 she completed an MA in Creative Writing
at Royal Holloway, University of London
. Anam is the recipient of a Writing Fellowship from the Arts Council of England. She presently lives in Kilburn
, London.
. She picked the Bangladesh Liberation War
as her first subject to write the novel A Golden Age
. Anam was inspired by her parents who were freedom fighters during the war. Tahmima also researched the war which covered the central part of her post graduation. For the benefit of her research, she stayed in Bangladesh for two years and interviewed hundreds of war fighters. She also worked on the set of Tareque
and Catherine Masud
’s critically acclaimed film Matir Moina
(The Clay Bird) which reflects the happenings during that war.
As of 2008, Anam, a London
er, is author and contributing editor of New Statesman
of UK.
Her second novel The Good Muslim, a sequel to A Golden Age
, was published in 2011. It was nominated for the 2011 Man Asian Literary Prize
longlist.
is the editor and publisher of The Daily Star (Bangladesh)
, Bangladesh's most prominent English-language newspaper. Her grandfather Abul Mansur Ahmed
was a renowned satirist and politician whose works in Bengali remain popular to this day.
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
i writer and novelist. Her first novel, A Golden Age
A Golden Age
A Golden Age is the first novel of the Bangladesh born writer Tahmima Anam. It tells the story of the Bangladesh War of Independence through the eyes of one family. The novel was awarded the prize for Best First Book in the Commonwealth Writers' Prize 2008. It was also shortlisted for the 2007...
, was published by John Murray
John Murray (publisher)
John Murray is an English publisher, renowned for the authors it has published in its history, including Jane Austen, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Lord Byron, Charles Lyell, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Herman Melville, and Charles Darwin...
in 2007 and was the Best First Book winner of the 2008 Commonwealth Writers' Prize
Commonwealth Writers' Prize
Commonwealth Writers is an initiative by the Commonwealth Foundation to unearth, develop and promote the best new fiction from across the Commonwealth. It's flagship are two literary awards and a website...
.
Education
Tahmima Anam was born in DhakaDhaka
Dhaka is the capital of Bangladesh and the principal city of Dhaka Division. Dhaka is a megacity and one of the major cities of South Asia. Located on the banks of the Buriganga River, Dhaka, along with its metropolitan area, had a population of over 15 million in 2010, making it the largest city...
, Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
, and grew up in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, and Bangkok
Bangkok
Bangkok is the capital and largest urban area city in Thailand. It is known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon or simply Krung Thep , meaning "city of angels." The full name of Bangkok is Krung Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom...
, as a consequence of her father’s career with the Unicef. She completed her undergraduate education at Mount Holyoke College
Mount Holyoke College
Mount Holyoke College is a liberal arts college for women in South Hadley, Massachusetts. It was the first member of the Seven Sisters colleges, and served as a model for some of the others...
in 1997. She trained as an anthropologist, earning a PhD from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, USA. In 2005 she completed an MA in Creative Writing
Creative writing
Creative writing is considered to be any writing, fiction, poetry, or non-fiction, that goes outside the bounds of normal professional, journalistic, academic, and technical forms of literature. Works which fall into this category include novels, epics, short stories, and poems...
at Royal Holloway, University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
. Anam is the recipient of a Writing Fellowship from the Arts Council of England. She presently lives in Kilburn
Kilburn
Kilburn is an area of north west London, England, which is divided between three London Boroughs, Brent, Camden, and a small part in Westminster. The main thoroughfare running northwest-southeast is Kilburn High Road, part of the modern A5 road which forms the boundary between the boroughs of Brent...
, London.
Career
Tahmima Anam's first novel was published in March, 2007, by John MurrayJohn Murray
-Arts and literature:* John Murray , founder of John Murray * John Murray , second head of the publishing house* John Murray , American actor...
. She picked the Bangladesh Liberation War
Bangladesh Liberation War
The Bangladesh Liberation War was an armed conflict pitting East Pakistan and India against West Pakistan. The war resulted in the secession of East Pakistan, which became the independent nation of Bangladesh....
as her first subject to write the novel A Golden Age
A Golden Age
A Golden Age is the first novel of the Bangladesh born writer Tahmima Anam. It tells the story of the Bangladesh War of Independence through the eyes of one family. The novel was awarded the prize for Best First Book in the Commonwealth Writers' Prize 2008. It was also shortlisted for the 2007...
. Anam was inspired by her parents who were freedom fighters during the war. Tahmima also researched the war which covered the central part of her post graduation. For the benefit of her research, she stayed in Bangladesh for two years and interviewed hundreds of war fighters. She also worked on the set of Tareque
Tareque Masud
Tareque Masud was an award-winning Bangladeshi independent film director. He was known for directing the films Muktir Gaan and Matir Moina , for which he won a number of international awards, including the International Critics' Prize and FIPRESCI Prize for Directors' Fortnight at the 2002 Cannes...
and Catherine Masud
Catherine Masud
Catherine Masud , born Catherine Lucretia Shapere, is wife of the Bangladeshi cinema maker Tareque Masud.-Early life:She was born in Chicago in 1963. Catherine graduated from Brown University, in economics. In late 1980s, she met with Tareque Masud and they married in 1988...
’s critically acclaimed film Matir Moina
Matir Moina
Matir Moina is a Bangla film directed by Tareque Masud, a Bangladeshi film director. The film was released in 2002...
(The Clay Bird) which reflects the happenings during that war.
As of 2008, Anam, a London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
er, is author and contributing editor of New Statesman
New Statesman
New Statesman is a British centre-left political and cultural magazine published weekly in London. Founded in 1913, and connected with leading members of the Fabian Society, the magazine reached a circulation peak in the late 1960s....
of UK.
Her second novel The Good Muslim, a sequel to A Golden Age
A Golden Age
A Golden Age is the first novel of the Bangladesh born writer Tahmima Anam. It tells the story of the Bangladesh War of Independence through the eyes of one family. The novel was awarded the prize for Best First Book in the Commonwealth Writers' Prize 2008. It was also shortlisted for the 2007...
, was published in 2011. It was nominated for the 2011 Man Asian Literary Prize
Man Asian Literary Prize
The Man Asian Literary Prize, founded in 2007, is an annual literary award given to the best novel by an Asian writer, either written in English or translated into English, and published in the previous calendar year...
longlist.
Background
Anam comes from an illustrious literary family in Bangladesh. Her father Mahfuz AnamMahfuz Anam
Mahfuz Anam is an editor and publisher of Daily Star, one of Bangladesh's mainstream English language newspapers. He is also the publisher of "Weekly 2000", a prominent weekly newsletter from Bangladesh as well as "Anandadhara", a popular entertainment fortnightly of the country...
is the editor and publisher of The Daily Star (Bangladesh)
The Daily Star (Bangladesh)
The Daily Star is the largest circulating English daily newspaper in Bangladesh. Established by Syed Mohammed Ali in 14 January 1991, the newspaper is owned by Mediastar a venture of the Transcom Group, headed by Latifur Rahman...
, Bangladesh's most prominent English-language newspaper. Her grandfather Abul Mansur Ahmed
Abul Mansur Ahmed
Abul Mansur Ahmed was a Bangladeshi littérateur. Was also a politician and journalist. He was born in Mymensingh. Renowned journalist and editor of The Daily Star Mahfuz Anam is his son.-Student life:...
was a renowned satirist and politician whose works in Bengali remain popular to this day.
Articles and Short Stories
- BangladeshBangladeshBangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
at the crossroads. (18 March 2011) Financial TimesFinancial TimesThe Financial Times is an international business newspaper. It is a morning daily newspaper published in London and printed in 24 cities around the world. Its primary rival is the Wall Street Journal, published in New York City....
. - Happy 40th birthday, BangladeshBangladeshBangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
. (24 March 2011)The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
. - Rabindranath TagoreRabindranath TagoreRabindranath Tagore , sobriquet Gurudev, was a Bengali polymath who reshaped his region's literature and music. Author of Gitanjali and its "profoundly sensitive, fresh and beautiful verse", he became the first non-European Nobel laureate by earning the 1913 Prize in Literature...
's legacy lies in the freedom-seeking women of his fiction. (6 May 2011) The IndependentThe IndependentThe Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
. - An education: Inside BangladeshBangladeshBangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
's madrasas. (20 May 2011) The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
. - My hero Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain. (27 May 2011) The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
.
Books
- A Golden AgeA Golden AgeA Golden Age is the first novel of the Bangladesh born writer Tahmima Anam. It tells the story of the Bangladesh War of Independence through the eyes of one family. The novel was awarded the prize for Best First Book in the Commonwealth Writers' Prize 2008. It was also shortlisted for the 2007...
. (2007) John MurrayJohn Murray-Arts and literature:* John Murray , founder of John Murray * John Murray , second head of the publishing house* John Murray , American actor...
. - The Good Muslim. (2011) John Murray.
External links
- Tahmina's Official Website
- "Daughter of A Golden Age" Slate
- "The outsider" The Telegraph
- "New fiction star taps Bangladeshi roots" The Observer
- profile on authortrek