Debjani Chatterjee

Debjani Chatterjee was born in Delhi and attended schools in Japan, Bangladesh, India and Hong Kong. At fifteen she enrolled at the American University in Cairo, Egypt. She has an MA in English and American Literature from the University of Kent at Canterbury, a PhD from Lancaster University and a PGCE and honorary doctorate from Sheffield Hallam University. After working in the steel, education and community relations industries, she is now a full-time writer. She lives in Sheffield.

She has her own website.

Bibliography

Books edited by Debjani Chatterjee



A Slice of Sheffield
Sahitya Press, UK. 2005

This bilingual book of stories, memories, poetry and artwork inspired by cutlery, brings together the voices of 50 South Asian women and girls from in and around the 'steel city' of Sheffield. It celebrates Sheffield's famous cutlery heritage with its 'Made in Sheffield' stamp, and also the fascinating cutlery items from South Asian countries.

The Redbeck Anthology of British South Asian poetry
Redbeck, London, 2000.



Barbed Lines
Sahitya Press, UK. 1990

This bilingual anthology about the bitter-sweet experience of Bengali women in Britain won the first Raymond Williams Community Publishing Prize in 1990. 32 women and girls write about their sense of home and identity, friendships, family, work and education.

Sweet and Sour
Sahitya Press, UK. 1993

This bilingual book explores the subject of food. Through stories, poems, letters, recipes and dialogue 30 Bengali women and girls comment on the very important part that food plays in their lives.

Daughters of a Riverine Land
Sahitya Press, UK. 2003.

Bengalis from Bangladesh & India hail from a riverine land, and in this bilingual book of stories, poems, letters and artwork, 33 women and girls write with passion of the age-old bond with rivers.

Children's Books



The Elephant-Headed God
Lutterworth Press, Cambridge, 1989, and Rupa & Co., Calcutta, 1993.

illustrated by Margaret Jones. 12 stories for ages 9-12. A collection of Hindu myths.

The Monkey God and other Hindu Tales
Rupa & Co., Delhi, 1993

Twelve stories for children 9-12, illustrated in black and white.

Nyamia and the Bag of Gold
Longman Education, UK. 1994

illustrated by Pampa Panwar. Four folk tales from Africa, India, Bangladesh & Poland for primary school children.

Sufi Stories from Around the World
Harper Collins, India. 1994.

with black and white illustrations. Nineteen Muslim stories for children 9 - 12.

Animal Antics
Pennine Pens, 2000

Chuckle at the crazy antics of the animals in Debjani Chatterjees amazing menagerie: the astro-turtle hurtling through space, the hippo who bellowed, the elephant under the bed, the snake who came to school, the adder who learnt yoga, the rabbit-magician, the bridge-building monkeys, the sloth who loved hanging around, and many more. Poetry.

The Most Beautiful Child
Cambridge University Press, 1996

A picture book about the Goddess Lakshmi and her owl. Lakshmi asks her owl to decide who is the most beautiful child in the world.

The Song of the Scythe
SIMT & Sahitya Press, UK

This picture storybook tells the charming ghost story of Rashi's visit to Abbeydale Industrial Museum in Sheffield. It is available in 5 dual language editions: English with Bengali (trans. by Rashida Islam), English with Urdu (trans. by Basir Sultan Kazmi), English with Arabic (trans. by Abdul Razak Said), English with Cantonese (trans. by Cheung Lee) & English with Somali (trans. by Mohamed M Noor). Illustrated by David Lumley.

Rainbow World
Hodder Wayland, UK. 2003

Race, culture and identity, family and friends, and nature and the environment are just some of the diverse themes explored by contemporary and traditional poets from many cultures. This book was an EMMA Best Book Award 2003 Runner-up.

Masala
Macmillan Children's Books, UK. 2005

A rich collection of poems from and about countries in South Asia. It captures the heat, spices, colours and identity of the Indian subcontinent.

The Message of Thunder & Other Plays
Orient Longman, India, 1999

Short plays based on stories from world religions

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South Asian Women authors
Sawnet Bookshelf
Sawnet