A Guardian and a Thief // A Novel

NATIONAL BESTSELLER WINNER OF THE ANDREW CARNEGIE MEDAL FOR EXCELLENCEMegha Majumdars electrifying new novel, following her acclaimedNew York TimesbestsellerA Burning, is set in a near-future Kolkata, India in which two families seeking to protect their children must battle each other. A piercing and propulsive tour de force.

Wondering if theres a novel out there that gives Cormac McCarthysThe Roada run for its money? Here you go. Stacy Schiff, author ofCleopatra: A Life

In a near-future Kolkata, Ma, her two-year-old daughter, and her elderly father are just days from leaving the collapsing city behind to join Mas husband in Ann Arbor, Michigan. After procuring long-awaited visas from the consulate, they pack their bags for the flight to America. But in the morning they awaken to discover that Mas purse, containing their treasured immigration documents, has been stolen.

Set over the course of one week,A Guardian and a Thieftells two stories: the story of Mas frantic search for the thief while keeping hunger at bay during a worsening food shortage; and the story of Boomba, the thief, whose desperation to care for his family drives him to commit a series of escalating crimes whose consequences he cannot fathom. With stunning control and command, Megha Majumdar paints a kaleidoscopic portrait of two families, each operating from a place of ferocious love and undefeated hope, each discovering how far they will go to secure their childrens future as they stave off encroaching catastrophe.

A masterful new work from one of the most exciting voices of her generation.

Megha Majumdars debut novel, theNew York TimesbestsellerA Burning, was nominated for the National Book Award, the National Book Critics Circle’s John Leonard Prize, and the American Library Association’s Andrew Carnegie Medal. It was aTodayshow Read With Jenna Book Club Pick and a Barnes & Noble Discover Pick. In India, it won a Sahitya Akademi Yuva Puraskar.A Burningwas named one of the best books of 2020 by media includingThe Washington Post, The New York Times,NPR,The Atlantic, Vogue,andTime.Majumdar is the recipient of a Whiting Award, as well as of fellowships from the Civitella Ranieri and Hawthornden foundations. Born and raised in Kolkata, India, and educated at Harvard and Johns Hopkins, she now lives in New York.

• Publisher: Vintage
• Publish Date: September 08, 2026
• Pages: 224
• Language: English
• Type: Paperback
• EAN/UPC: 9798217008025
• Dimensions: 8.0 X 5.2 X 0.6 inches | 0.51 pounds
• BISAC Categories: Literary Fiction, Popular Fiction