<p>Hailed as an important new voice in fiction， Sanjay Nigam's debut is the story of a luckless snake charmer in an India both real and utterly magical<br />

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Named &quot;The Year's Best Fiction&quot; by <em>A. Magazine</em>， <em>The Snake Charmer</em> tells the story of Sonalal， a middle-age snake charmer making a living with his been pipe and his beloved cobra， Raju. Despite his great skills， Sonalal's drinking and womanizing seem to have marked him for a life of insignificance. But that all changes one remarkable afternoon when he produces music so beautiful he is certain the gods must be listening. In a moment that will change his life forever， Raju bites Sonalal， and Sonalal bites back， destroying the one creature who loves him. <em>The Snake Charmer</em> traces Sonalal's bumpy journey through brief celebrity， profound remorse， and a quest for answers to unanswerable questions of love， life， and art. Sparely and beautifully written， this &quot;novel of enchantments&quot; (Oscar Hijuelos) is an unforgettable debut， confirming the <em>Washington Post</em>'s comparison of Nigam to Arundhati Roy and Vikram Chandra.<br />

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Penguin Readers Guide Bound into Every Book<br />

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&quot;An engaging， light as a feather tale . . . Sonalal is， in short， a marvelous creation.&quot; --Richard Bernstein， <em>The New York Times</em><br />

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&quot;The opening qualifies as the season's best.&quot; --<em>USA Today</em><br />

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&quot;An exceptional novel.&quot;--<em>The Washington Post</em><br />

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A selection of the Book-of-the-Month Club and the Quality Paperback Book Club<br />

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A Quality Paperback New Voices Fiction Award nominee<br />

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The <em>Utne Reader</em> recently honored Nigam as one of the ten important writers who comprise &quot;The New Face of Fiction&quot;</p>