New Delhi, July 25 -- Acclaimed philosopher Sundar Sarukkai's first novel, Following a Prayer (2023), was a strikingly original meditation on language, gender dynamics, and the magical power of belief. Although it shone for its light-footed prose and limpid narrative voice, the story had a darkness at its core, and ended on a tragic, somewhat frustratingly open-ended, note.

In his new novel, Water Days, Sarukkai returns to the themes of language and gender, with an exploration of urban history thrown into the mix. His gift for storytelling remains sharp and agile, informed by gentle comedy and witty understatement. The plot has a happier ending, though it also veers into the troubled recesses of human mind and motivation.

Water Days tel...