Jerry Pinto's pick
Smritichitre: The Memoirs of a Spirited Wife by Lakshmibai Tilak
My book of the decade is Smritichitre; The Memoirs of a Spirited Wife by Lakshmibai Tilak in the Shanta Gokhale translation (Speaking Tiger, 2017). I make no excuses for this being a book that came out in 1934. It is a timeless classic and speaks to us today in a voice that is clear and fresh and vital. This translation is not the first but it is the complete work, not edited according to patriarchal notions of what matters and what doesn't. But more than that, it keeps the piquancy and wit alive; we hear Lakshmibai speaking and we hear her speaking in English and it doesn't sound weird. This is what great translation does. It builds bridges across time and language.