Arundhati Roy's new novel

Arundhati Roy's last (novel to date) was published 10 years ago. Few books have been loved or hated (or, more accurately, rubbished) as much as The God of Small Things. As a publisher I hear this often: I want to be write like Arundhati Roy - meaning I want to make a lot of money like she has. As a reader and bookseller I am often cornered; it has been either gush or rubbish. I won't talk about the former; it is not pretty dealing with a grown person gushing about anything. About rubbishing: did you actually enjoy that book, it was awful, how could you have enjoyed that book, she most definitely didn't deserve the Booker, do you think she deserved a Booker?

There are no halfway meeting points when it comes to Roy. Declare your views: do you love her or hate her?

Time to be honest here: Did I like the The God of Small Things? Yes. But I have to admit, I was uncomfortable with several parts (as was my friend J) about the way it overly pandered to the western reader with the 'Indian stereotype'. Several sections appeared to have been included at a later stage under someone else's 'advice' - to make it more 'exotic' perhaps? Is that why she said at that time that she was not going to write any more fiction?

Anyway in an interview with Reuters, she says that she is now working on a new novel after spending 10 years 'championing grassroots activism as a social and environmental activist' and penning four works of non-fiction including The Algebra of Infinite Justice, Power Politics, War Talk and An Ordinary Person's Guide to Empire.

She is quoted: "The argument has been made, the battle remains to be fought - and that requires a different set of skills."

I am not holding my breath, but I am curious.

http://books.guardian.co.uk/news/articles/0,,2012148,00.html