The Women’s Courtyard

Khadija Mastur Translated by

Daisy Rockwell

The Urdu writer Khadija Mastur died in 1982, and is best known for her novel Aangan, set an unnamed town in United Provinces in the 1940s, with Partition imminent. The novel’s protagonist, Aliya, is confined to the inner courtyard of her home with her older sister and irritable mother, while the men of the family are involved in political movements. She is tormented by the petty squabbles in her household and hopes to one day educate herself and leave home.

Penguin Random House, 362 pages, Rs 499