4 Must-Read Fiction Books About Indian Food

3. “Mistress of Spices” by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

This is the story of the immortal Tilo, a young woman who has special powers of knowing and using the curative properties of spices. Tilo finds herself the owner of a spice shop in which she uses her powers to administer cures for others. An unexpected romance, however, forces Tilo to have to choose between her otherwise straightforward, albeit supernatural life, and the life of a common mortal life.

Tilo must come to terms with her own limitations, perhaps realizing that the magical properties of spices cannot cure a woman’s desires.

4. “The Abundance” by Amit Majmudar

Mala and Ronak learn that their mother has only a few months to live and so they return to the Midwest. It is here that they go through a process of rediscovery as they bob and weave their way through a diaspora group that goes back and forth between the old and new world.

Mala takes it upon herself to learn her mother’s art of Indian cooking, knowing that her window of time to learn is increasingly smaller with the deterioration of her mother’s health. Ronak suggests that they sell their experiences of learning, cooking, and grieving as a book and a TV documentary. Conflict erupts as siblings and generations weigh in on assimilation, exploitation, and what it means to be American, Indian, and/or a bit of both.