SSC
Who is the author of 'Such a Long Journey'?
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Answer: Option B — Rohinton Mistry
Detailed Solution
"Such a Long Journey" is the first novel of the Indian-born Canadian writer Rohinton Mistry, published in 1991. It was shortlisted for the Booker Prize and won the Commonwealth Writers' Prize for Best Book.
About the novel:
- It is set in Bombay (Mumbai) in 1971, around the time of the India-Pakistan war that led to the creation of Bangladesh.
- The main character is Gustad Noble, a hard-working Parsi bank clerk, who struggles to support his family.
- He gets drawn into a dangerous situation when an old friend, Major Jimmy Bilimoria, asks him to help with a secret money transfer linked to the government.
- The novel describes the life of the Parsi community, family relationships, friendship and political corruption.
- It was made into a film in 1998.
- In 2010, the University of Mumbai withdrew the book from its syllabus after protests by a political group, which led to a debate on freedom of expression.
About Rohinton Mistry:
He was born in 1952 in Bombay and moved to Canada in 1975, where he lives in Toronto.
His other works include:
- "Tales from Firozsha Baag" (1987), a collection of short stories about residents of a Parsi apartment block in Bombay.
- "A Fine Balance" (1995), set during the Emergency; it was shortlisted for the Booker Prize and won the Giller Prize.
- "Family Matters" (2002), also shortlisted for the Booker Prize.
- He has been shortlisted for the Booker Prize three times.
Other Parsi writers:
- Firdaus Kanga: "Trying to Grow".
- Cyrus Mistry (Rohinton's brother): "Chronicle of a Corpse Bearer" (DSC Prize, 2014).
- Bapsi Sidhwa (Pakistan): "Ice-Candy-Man" and "The Crow Eaters".
Why not the other options?
- ✗Firdaus Kanga wrote "Trying to Grow".
- ✗Cyrus Mistry wrote "Chronicle of a Corpse Bearer".
- ✗Bapsi Sidhwa wrote "Ice-Candy-Man".
Quick tip
Remember: Rohinton Mistry = "Such a Long Journey" (1991, Gustad Noble), "A Fine Balance" (1995), "Family Matters" (2002), "Tales from Firozsha Baag"; three Booker shortlists.
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Books & Authors — Preparation
This question tests your understanding of Books & Authors, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers famous books and their authors, including ancient Indian texts, works of the freedom struggle, classic and modern literature, autobiographies of famous people, and recently published books by well-known personalities. Questions usually name a book and ask for its author, or the other way round. Ancient and historical books, such as Arthashastra (Kautilya), Indica (Megasthenes) and Gitanjali (Rabindranath Tagore), are tested most often. Autobiographies are another favourite, so learn titles such as 'My Experiments with Truth' (Mahatma Gandhi) and 'Wings of Fire' (A. P. J. Abdul Kalam). Practise the books and authors questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.