Mama Tandoori

'It wasn't uncommon in my childhood for roti to be off the menu, because the rolling pin was broken again.'Ernest van der Kwast's childhood is peopled by an array of colourful characters: from his strait-laced Dutch father, to Bollywood star Uncle Sharma, and talented heptathlete Aunt Jasleen. But it is his overbearing yet loving Indian mother who is at the centre of this big-hearted, hilarious family saga. Veena van der Kwast is a woman with an iron will, hilarious directness, and a talent for haggling. Armed with her trusty rolling pin, every man she meets is eventually beaten to submission - especially her husband and three sons. Intriguing, surprising, and moving in equal measure, this novel inspired by a very unusual family will make you smile from beginning to end.

Ernest van der Kwast is a Dutch author born in Mumbai, India, in 1981. He made his debut in 2005 with the novel Sometimes Things Are Better When People Applaud. His breakthrough book is Mama Tandoori, which became a bestseller in the Netherlands and Italy upon publication, and has to date sold more than 100,000 copies. Giovanna's Navel is the third of his books to be published in English. He lives in Rotterdam.