The Year of the Runaways by Sunjeev Sahota

 I saw this book on my cousin's bookshelf in Brighton and read it during my time there. Although not particularly well-written, it was a wrenching read because of my proximity to the subject matter. It was about the struggles of three-working class immigrants from Punjab in the UK. Ok, I am not that close to the subjects of the book, given that I am not working-class or Punjabi. But, I reacted to it more strongly than I would have if I had a job. It also got me thinking about the difference between me and those fictional immigrants, apart from the fact that I was born in a much more well-to-do family. This is a difficult topic to write about, given my views on Indian society and Indian diaspora. I don't think I am comfortable sharing them on a public platform. It also painted a grim picture of the Sikh community, who are lauded for their ethos of public service, but are as riven by caste as any other South Asian community. My impression of Sikhs as cuddly teddy-bears, which I knew to be naive, took a bit of a beating there.