First Light (Ganguly novel)

The cover image of প্রথম আলো (First Light, part 1) published by Ananda Publishers
Author	Sunil Gangopadhyay
Original title	প্রথম আলো
Translator	Aruna Chakravarti
Country	India
Language	Bengali
Subject	History
Genre	Historical novel
Publisher	Ananda Publishers, Penguin Books
Published in English	2001
Awards	Saraswati Samman
ISBN	978-0-14-100430-3
OCLC	47225450
Preceded by	Those Days

First Light (Bengali: প্রথম আলো) is a novel by Sunil Gangopadhyay. It is not history, not fiction, but a gestalt of fiction and history where fiction leads. Chronologically it may encompasses the second half of nineteenth century of Indian history, specially then ongoing Bengal Renaissance, but what it does for its readers is create out of his/her own reading a massive canvas of historicized fiction. Gangopadhaya tells a story - one can call it "gossip" (see reference below), one may seek in it "the spirit of an age," but above all else it makes the reader the creator, of his or her own story, with collages of historical characters. The story of the novel centers on many historical figures including Rabindranath Tagore, Swami Vivekananda, Ramakrishna, Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, George Curzon, etc.^[1]MORE TO COME IF EDITORS THINK IT'S WORTH CONTINUING.

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