
To earn money for her education, she held many odd jobs, including babysitting, selling merchandise in an Indian boutique, slicing bread in a bakery, and washing instruments in a science lab. from the University of California, Berkeley.

She continued her education in the field of English by receiving a Master’s degree from Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, and a Ph.D. She was born in India and lived there until 1976, at which point she left Calcutta and came to the United States. Her newest novel is Before We Visit the Goddess (about 3 generations of women- grandmother, mother and daughter- who each examine the question "what does it mean to be a successful woman.") Simon & Schuster. Divakaruni also writes for children and young adults.Her novels One Amazing Thing, Oleander Girl, Sister of My Heart and Palace of Illusions are currently in the process of being made into movies. Her works have been translated into 29 languages, including Dutch, Hebrew, Hindi and Japanese.

Her work is widely known, as she has been published in over 50 magazines, including the Atlantic Monthly and The New Yorker, and her writing has been included in over 50 anthologies. Her themes include the Indian experience, contemporary America, women, immigration, history, myth, and the joys and challenges of living in a multicultural world. Panchaali is a fiery female redefining for us a world of warriors, gods, and the ever-manipulating hands of fate.Ĭhitra Banerjee Divakaruni is an award-winning author and poet. Meanwhile, we never lose sight of her strategic duels with her mother-in-law, her complicated friendship with the enigmatic Krishna, or her secret attraction to the mysterious man who is her husbands' most dangerous enemy.

Panchaali is swept into their quest to reclaim their birthright, remaining at their side through years of exile and a terrible civil war involving all the important kings of India.

The Palace of Illusions traces the princess Panchaali's life, beginning with her birth in fire and following her spirited balancing act as a woman with five husbands who have been cheated out of their father’s kingdom. Narrated by Panchaali, the wife of the legendary Pandavas brothers in the Mahabharat, the novel gives us a new interpretation of this ancient tale. Relevant to today’s war-torn world, The Palace of Illusions takes us back to a time that is half history, half myth, and wholly magical. A REIMAGINING OF THE WORLD-FAMOUS iNDIAN EPIC, THE MAHABHARAT-TOLD FROM THE POINT OF VIEW OF AN AMAZING WOMAN.
