If there’s one thing bibliophiles love as much as reading books, it’s arranging them, photographing them, and showing them off to the world. Enter Library Shelfie Day, celebrated every fourth Wednesday of January (which falls on January 22 this year). The day is dedicated to appreciating the beauty of bookshelves and their stories.
What is a Shelfie?
A “shelfie” is a lot like a selfie, but clicked solo or with your friends in front of a bookshelf.
Library Shelfie Day encourages readers to snap “shelfies.” We’ve scoured the digital universe to uncover “shelfies” from some of India’s most iconic contemporary authors. Let’s take a tour of their shelves and their brilliant minds. While their “shelfies” may showcase rows of neatly lined spines, their lives and works are often far more colourful.
Amitav Ghosh
Amitav Ghosh builds intricate worlds that span centuries and continents. Whether it’s the opium trade in Sea of Poppies or climate change in The Great Derangement, his books are as much history lessons as they are compelling stories. Ghosh has a knack for weaving environmental issues into his narratives, making him a favourite among eco-conscious readers. He goes on extensive research trips that often lead him to the farthest corners of the world.
Fun fact: Ghosh is a trained anthropologist, and his curiosity about human cultures reflects brilliantly in his work.
Salman Rushdie
Few authors command as much global attention (and controversy) as Salman Rushdie. Known for his groundbreaking novel Midnight’s Children, which redefined Indian literature, Rushdie’s sharp wit and fearless commentary have earned him a loyal following. He’s no stranger to mixing the fantastical with the political, creating stories that are as provocative as they are imaginative. Rushdie has an affinity for the surreal and once admitted he prefers writing in longhand because it feels more organic.
Arundhati Roy
Arundhati Roy is a force of nature. She burst onto the literary scene with her Booker Prize-winning debut novel, The God of Small Things (a lush, tragic tale set in Kerala). But Roy didn’t stop at fiction. She’s also a fierce activist and essayist, using her platform to tackle issues like environmental justice and human rights. Roy is known for her meticulous editing process, often rewriting sections until every word feels just right.
Jhumpa Lahiri
Jhumpa Lahiri’s stories are like delicate looms, weaving themes of identity, migration, and loneliness. Her debut, Interpreter of Maladies, won the Pulitzer Prize, making her one of the youngest recipients of the honour. But Lahiri doesn’t just write in English; she has embraced Italian as her creative muse, even penning novels like In Other Words in her adopted language. Her obsession with linguistic precision has turned her into a polyglot perfectionist.
Amish Tripathi
Amish Tripathi has singlehandedly made mythology cool again. With his Shiva Trilogy and Ram Chandra Series, he’s reimagined ancient Indian epics for a modern audience, blending action, philosophy, and history. But Amish isn’t just about the big stories; he’s also a marketing genius, often comparing his book launches to Bollywood premieres. His knack for storytelling comes from his love for mythology as a child, and he credits his background in finance for helping him craft disciplined, well-structured narratives.
Kiran Desai
Kiran Desai’s writing is like a melancholic melody: haunting, beautiful, and introspective. Her Booker Prize-winning novel, The Inheritance of Loss, captures themes of migration and displacement with a poignant touch. Though often described as shy, Desai’s words speak volumes. She’s known to retreat into solitude during her writing phases, emerging only with a manuscript that is carefully crafted.
Vikram Chandra
If you’ve binge-watched Netflix’s Sacred Games, you have Vikram Chandra to thank. His novel of the same name dives into the gritty underbelly of Mumbai. Chandra’s writing style is as layered as his characters, mixing high-octane drama with intricate storytelling. An avid technology enthusiast, he’s even explored coding, making him a true polymath in the literary world. In his inimitable style, he preferred posing in front of the Mumbai street bookstalls he frequented in his college days.
Library Shelfie Day may be about showcasing bookshelves, but it’s also a reminder of the brilliant minds that fill those shelves. These authors and their quirks inspire us as much as their stories do.
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