Tahmima Anam

Tahmima Anam ( _bn. তাহমিমা আনাম) is a Bangladeshi 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.

Personal life

Tahmima Anam was born in Dhaka, Bangladesh in 1975, and grew up in Paris, New York City, and Bangkok, as a consequence of her father’s career with the Unicef. [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/fashion/main.jhtml?xml=/fashion/2007/02/25/stanam125.xml The outsider] , The Daily Telegraph.] 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, London. Anam is the recipient of a Writing Fellowship from the Arts Council of England. She presently lives in New Hampsted, London.

Anam comes from an illustrious literary family in Bangladesh. Her father Mahfuz Anam is the editor and publisher of The Daily Star (Bangladesh), Bangladesh's most prominent English newspaper.Bergquist, Karin, [http://www.culturebase.net/artist.php?1271 Outspoken editor from Bangladesh] , Culturebase.net.] Her grandfather Abul Mansur Ahmed was a renowned satirist and politician whose works in Bengali remain popular to this day. [http://www.banglapedia.org/HT/A_0107.HTM Biography of Abul Mansur Ahmed] , Banglapedia] .

Career

Anam's first novel was published in March, 2007, by John Murray. Tahmima picked the Bangladesh Liberation War as her first subject to write the novel "A Golden Age". She was inspired by her parents who were freedom fighters during the war. [ [http://www.thebookseller.com/?pid=2&did=21510 Bookseller report on Tahmima Anam] ] 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. [Prothom Alo, January 13, 2007. In these days she got some fans from North America; including San Francisco for her book] . The famous Londoner presently works for the The New Statesman UK.

Literary works

* A Golden Age

References

External links

* [http://www.tahmima.com/ Tahmina's Official Website]
* [http://www.newagebd.com/slate/2007/feb/03.html "Daughter of A Golden Age"] "Slate"
* [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/fashion/main.jhtml?xml=/fashion/2007/02/25/stanam125.xml "The outsider"] "The Telegraph"
* [http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,1957367,00.html "New fiction star taps Bangladeshi roots"] "The Observer"
* [http://www.authortrek.com/tahmima_anam_page.html profile on authortrek]