Joydeep Roy-Bhattacharya

Classical ideas of human dignity and honour are juxtaposed with the squalor of modern war in this important novel... A beautiful and heartfelt lamentation

His lyrical prose captures superbly the brutal realities of combat

Scorching, tightly wired... It's a reminder that blood fueds are as old as humanity itself

The first great novel of the war in Afghanistan

We watch as the resistance of an isolated American garrison in Afghanistan is ground down, not by force of arms but by the will of a single unarmed woman, holding inflexibly to an idea of what is just and right.

An important book for our times, in which one woman's determination and refusal to consent set an example of courage and honesty.

The Watch is a powerful tale, courageous both in concept and creation: an ancient tale made modern, passed through different narrators in extraordinary shape-shifting prose that makes this not just an important novel, but a remarkable read.

A poignant and important book about one of the defining events of the start of the 21st century; it is devastatingly eloquent and unequivocal about the fact that there is no glory or beauty in war.

Joydeep Roy-Bhattacharya is my hero among my fellow writers. In a world in which an 'identity kit' is something like a toothbrush - that is, something one cannot do without - he has chosen the most difficult way. He has jettisoned his 'identity kit' in the name of freedom of literary choice, in the name of the freedom of literature.

Joydeep Roy-Bhattacharya's lyrical and poignant evocation of war is a potent reminder of the murderous futility of our imperial adventures in the Middle East. He captures the raw brutality of industrial warfare, along with its trauma, senselessness, random death and stupidity. His characters, including the soldiers who prosecute the war and the innocents whose lives are maimed and destroyed by it, are consumed alike in the vast orgy of death that sweeps across war zones to extinguish all that is human -- tenderness, compassion,understanding and finally love. He forces us to face the evil we do to others and to ourselves.

Chris Hedges, author of NY Times Bestseller War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning

Ours is a time of enduring conflict ... As a soldier and veteran, I want my countrymen and women to understand what they continue to ask their military to endure ... As a person, I want us to remember our common humanity. The Watch confronts all of these without apology ... I applaud it.

'The first great novel of the war in Afghanistan' Wall Street Journal 
 
You’ve had no sleep since the firefight last night. 
 
The morning fog beyond the walls of your base lifts to reveal a lone woman approaching the gate. 
 
She says she has come to claim the body of her brother killed in last night’s attack. 
 
Is she a terrorist? A spy? A lunatic? 
 
Or what she says she is – a grieving sister? 
 
What should you do? 
 
What do you do? 
 
 
 
Shortlisted for the Criticos Prize and the Boeke Prize and longlisted for the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award and the DSC Asian Literature Prize. One of Publishers Weekly's Ten best contemporary war novels.

The Watch

About us

About Us (Header 4)

Best-Jane-Austen-quotes_Online-Desktop_Penguin

James-Baldwin

Marian-Keyes

haruki-murakami-320×320-1

Richard-Osman

Malorie Blackman

Lisa-Jewell

Charlie-Mackesy

Authors (Header 3)

Children&#039;s

Company

Discover

Fiction

Non-fiction

Penguin Classics

Penguin Shop (Header 5)

Useful links

Work with us

sectionTitle

isEnabled

anchor

anchorLabel

prhuk/featured-book

prhuk/praise-section

maxBooks

showViewMore

prhuk/books-section

hideAuthorAlert

formName

iterableDivision

iterableBrand

buttonText

description

heading

legalText

successHeading

successText

image

alignment

variation

prhuk/email-section

prhuk/series-section

prhuk/biography-section

prhuk/articles-section

prhuk-authors

Frankenstein

Wings

Flesh

Joydeep Roy-Bhattacharya

Praise for The Watch

Classical ideas of human dignity and honour are juxtaposed with the squalor of modern war in this important novel... A beautiful and heartfelt lamentation

His lyrical prose captures superbly the brutal realities of combat

Scorching, tightly wired... It's a reminder that blood fueds are as old as humanity itself

Classical ideas of human dignity and honour are juxtaposed with the squalor of modern war in this important novel... A beautiful and heartfelt lamentation

His lyrical prose captures superbly the brutal realities of combat

Scorching, tightly wired... It's a reminder that blood fueds are as old as humanity itself

Classical ideas of human dignity and honour are juxtaposed with the squalor of modern war in this important novel... A beautiful and heartfelt lamentation

His lyrical prose captures superbly the brutal realities of combat

Scorching, tightly wired... It's a reminder that blood fueds are as old as humanity itself

Follow penguin

Follow ladybird

Follow puffin

Sign up to the Penguin newsletter