The Parcel's astonishing heart, soul and unforgettable voice is Madhu - a eunuch who has spent most of her life in a close-knit clan of transgender sex workers in Kamathipura, the notorious red-light district of Bombay, India. Madhu identifies herself as a “hijra” - a person belonging to the third sex, neither man nor woman. Now, at forty, she has moved away from prostitution, her trade since her teens, and is forced to beg on the streets to support the charismatic head of her hijra clan, Gurumai. One day, Madhu receives a call from a woman named Padma Madam, the most feared brothel owner in the district: a “parcel” has arrived - code for a young girl who has been trafficked from the provinces - and Madhu must prepare it for its fate. Despite Madhu's reluctance, Gurumai forces her to take the job. As Madhu does her skilled work, her emotions spiral out of control and her past returns to haunt her, threatening to unravel a lifetime's carefully constructed identity. Here is a timely new novel that, like so much of Anosh Irani's extraordinary literary work, takes its inspiration from the world of Bombay, even as its characters enthrall and speak to us all. The Parcel's astonishing heart, soul and unforgettable voice is Madhu - who has spent most of her life in a close-knit clan of transgender sex workers in Kamathipura, the notorious red-light district of Bombay, India. Madhu identifies herself as a “hijra” - a person belonging to the third sex, neither man nor woman. Now, at forty, she has moved away from prostitution, her trade since her teens, and is forced to beg on the streets to support the charismatic head of her hijra clan, Gurumai. One day, Madhu receives a call from a woman named Padma Madam, the most feared brothel owner in the district: a “parcel” has arrived - code for a young girl who has been trafficked from the provinces - and Madhu must prepare it for its fate. Despite Madhu's reluctance, Gurumai forces her to take the job. As Madhu does her skilled work, her emotions spiral out of control and her past returns to haunt her, threatening to unravel a lifetime's carefully constructed identity. Here is a timely new novel that, like so much of Anosh Irani's extraordinary literary work, takes its inspiration from the world of Bombay, even as its characters enthral and speak to us all.
“Set amid the raucous swirl of Bombay's Kamathipura Red Light District, The Parcel is a searing indictment of the sex trafficking industry and a compassionate portrait of a troubled but resilient community. In Madhu, the transgender, retired prostitute at the heart of the novel, Anosh Irani has created a powerful yet flawed character to steward the reader through difficult, often disturbing material. Her struggles—with her past, with the legacy she might leave behind—are rendered with honesty and grace. Harrowing, enraging, unexpectedly humorous, and also profoundly sad, The Parcel is a haunting work of fiction that illuminates the ways in which history, both political and personal, pervades the present day.” - 2016 Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize Jury: Lauren B. Davis, Trevor Ferguson, and Pasha Malla
“Part of the way this excellent book heals such a sprawling, horrifying reality is with beauty….With the hijras, the parcels, the eyes, arms and power of a moody deity, one looks at the strange only to discover unity.” - Aparna Sanyal, The Globe and Mail
“As engrossing as any thriller, Anosh Irani's fourth novel offers readers so much more. An aggregate of storytelling accomplishments, The Parcel captivates with its vividly rendered characters and commands the reader's attention by way of unnerving—and at times profoundly disturbing—portraiture of an abject group at the bottom of an already denigrated community at the heart of India's booming financial hub, Mumbai. . . . Irani leads readers on a memorable walking tour through what is likely alien territory for them. . . . The various episodes in the novel are deeply affecting, giving the reader ample reason to agonize over the fact that such a place exists at all. Irani's compassion for these discarded souls, and the assertion of their essential dignity, renders them simultaneously touching and distressing.” - Quill & Quire (Starred Review)
“A grim and disturbing tale where the cruelties humans inflict on one another makes for uncomfortable reading…The Parcel, deeply etched in man's inhumanity to man, and his capacity for both depravity and redemption.” - Brisbane Courier Mail
“Irani generates plenty of black comic detail, evoking the vividness and moral ambiguity of the best Indian noir.” - Sydney Morning Herald (Pick of the Week)
“Dangerous and difficult. The harsh realities of India's sex trade are brought to life in a powerful new work. Despite its bleakness, there is some humour and even some hope and redemption in The Parcel. For those with the stomach for it, The Parcel is a powerful read.” - New Zealand Listener
“Irani's portrait of Madhu and her community is tender and heroic, comic and tragic, dignified and destitute all at once.” - The Skinny, UK
“Madhu is an ambiguous figure in many ways, and Irani delves deeply into her sad past among a world of outcasts. Pulling its readers' sympathies in conflicting directions, The Parcel is a challenging novel, sharp and uncompromisingly written.” - Sunday Herald, UK
“The insular world of the long-established 'hijra' or 'third sex' of India is examined in all its pain, depth and occasional beauty. . . . That the crime of child enslavement and sexual abuse continues worldwide, often with near impunity, makes the novel important but timely. . . . A difficult but satisfying read.” - Winnipeg Free Press
“Every third sentence or so I had to check my heart because the story kept stopping it. But the power of this work goes beyond its subject matter. There is an urgency behind each word driving the narrative that makes this book my favourite read of 2016. . . The lived experiences feel real and the emotional cadence of the book's rhythms hit with the power of a groundswell. I dare anyone to read The Parcel and remain unmoved. . . .[T]his book sure packs a punch.” - Yasuko Thanh, 49th Shelf
“Courageous.” - Madeleine Thien, The Millions
“Visceral, gritty and vivid. . . If you are looking for a compelling story, read The Parcel.” - Shelagh Rogers, CBC Books
“An important literary work that places the pain and suffering of transgenders in India in the mainstream discourse. With realty merchants prowling the lanes of Kamathipura to build skyscrapers over the foundation of human misery, the novel will be the only document left in the future to peep into the past. These days, volunteers take visitors to Mumbai on two-hour night walks in the sex workers' district every weekend, but they are sure to miss the heartbeats that Irani's insights help us hear.” - Financial Express
“The Parcel is a magnificent novel, with powerfully imagined characters who yanked me into their lives from the first page and would not let go of me until the last. It is bold, bawdy, tender, funny, sorrowful, all that life is made up of, and when I did reach the end I felt abandoned.” - Anita Rau Badami
“Growing up outside one of Mumbai's largest red light districts, Anosh Irani's dim childhood memories have evolved into a brilliant novel. In The Parcel, a powerful heroine spends her life searching for acceptance -- first, as a girl trapped in a boy's body, then as a sex worker on the streets of Kamathipura and finally, as a beggar desperate to shed her own skin.” - CBC BOOKS
“The Parcel takes on weighty, difficult content involving extensive research, and including fascinating, complicated characters.” - CBC Radio
“Irani takes readers into the depths of Mumbai's teeming Kamathipura district, whose economy depends on prostitution bordering on slavery. The story centres on eunuch and former sex worker Madhu—now a beggar and sometime aid to a powerful madam—who is called on to groom a pre-teen Nepalese girl for work in the brothel. Sounds grim, but Irani's ear is attuned to the raucous humour of the sex workers as they do what they can to maintain their dignity. A harsh dose of reality administered with wit and clarity.” - NOW
“The Parcel showcases the perceptive acid-streaked sensibility that distinguishes Irani's novels and plays. But though Irani makes the hell of slums visceral on his pages, he offers here the ways feral compassion can turn to grace.” - National Post
“Anosh Irani's The Parcel is a dark, intimate, and probing look at Kamathipura's hijra community…it isn't meant for the weak hearted…makes for riveting twists and turns. High on drama and emotion set in the seamier side of Mumbai, this novel is a page-turner.” - Mid-Day, Mumbai
“A searing story that tears into social attitudes, with a complex character and raw insights, this is a book you must read once you've developed the guts for it.” - Deccan Herald
“Mud, blood and other body fluids: this novel takes no prisoners in its portrayal of prostitution in today's Mumbai. Yet against this sometimes upsetting backdrop, author Anosh Irani presents a compelling tale of dignity and sacrifice. A little more acceptance and understanding, this novel demonstrates, would really make a difference.” - Asian Review of Books
“The plot is engaging and strikes a deep emotional chord and poses tough questions to society as a whole. This is a dark, devastating but ultimately redemptive novel.” - The Asian Age
“The book is rife with the trials and tribulations that the “hijra” community faces. [An] engaging read.” - The Hindu
“The book haunts and taunts. It doesn't get more real.” - The Tribune
“Immersive and devastating,The Parcel is a searing tale of personal transformation amid toxic patriarchy. Madhu is at once pathetic and honourable, despicable and mighty — and imbued with such complexity, Irani brings dignity to all the transgender sex-workers of India.” - RAJITH SAVANADASA, AUTHOR OF RUINS