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    Some People

    A Novel

    Author Parini Shroff
    Hardcover
    $31.00 US
    Ballantine Group | Ballantine Books
    On sale Jul 07, 2026 | 304 Pages | 9798217093670
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    A man on the brink of divorce is forced to care for his injured future-ex-mother-in-law in this wise, witty, and heartfelt novel from the bestselling author of The Bandit Queens.

    Malti Patel is absolutely fine. Concussed and bruised, maybe, but fine. Certainly fine enough to not need her daughter's soon-to-be-ex-husband, Nathan Whitlock, playing nurse in her home while she recuperates. And yet, that's exactly the quandary in which she finds herself. Her doctor insists on in-home supervision for seven days, and with her daughter, Kavya, abroad at grad school in India, Nathan proves too much of a do-gooder to let Malti rehabilitate alone. Seven days of Nathan, the man divorcing her daughter for all manner of reasons: cultural misunderstanding, emotional walls, simmering hostility...most of them having to do with Kavya's baggage from her childhood.

    They want nothing to do with one another. But over the course of the week, as Malti grapples with the shadows of her past and Nathan ponders the wreckage of his marriage, they learn that they are the two people who know Kavya best—and the ones who have hurt her so deeply that she's left them both.

    Rich with emotional depth, Some People paints a nuanced portrait of love, forgiveness, and our timeless quest for understanding and acceptance.
    © Devin Spratt
    Parini Shroff is the bestselling author of The Bandit Queens, which was a Good Morning America Buzz Pick, a PEN Open Book finalist, and longlisted for the Andrew Carnegie Medal and the Women's Prize for Fiction. She received her MFA from the University of Texas at Austin. She is a practicing attorney and currently lives in the Bay Area. View titles by Parini Shroff
    Praise for The Bandit Queens

    “A radically feel-good story.”—The New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice

    “[A] wild ride . . . very funny—like, laugh-out-loud funny.”—NPR

    “A rollicking ride rife with memorable characters . . . It also serves up commentary on class, power dynamics and the role of women in society.”—Good Housekeeping

    “[Parini] Shroff cleverly considers how women might achieve autonomy within rural India’s patriarchal society through shrewd, if complicated, female friendships.”—The Washington Post

    “With acuity, wit, and a certain kind of magic irreverence, Shroff captures the complexity of female friendship, turning on a dime from humor to horror, horror to heart, and then back again, exhilarating her reader until the very last line. Tender, unpredictable, and brimming with laugh-out-loud moments, The Bandit Queens heralds a prodigious and sophisticated literary talent.”—Téa Obreht, New York Times bestselling author of The Tiger’s Wife and Inland

    “At times deeply serious, then laugh-out-loud funny, Shroff has written a sobering but hopeful exploration of womanhood, social injustices, and second chances.”—Charmaine Wilkerson, New York Times bestselling author of Black Cake

    About

    A man on the brink of divorce is forced to care for his injured future-ex-mother-in-law in this wise, witty, and heartfelt novel from the bestselling author of The Bandit Queens.

    Malti Patel is absolutely fine. Concussed and bruised, maybe, but fine. Certainly fine enough to not need her daughter's soon-to-be-ex-husband, Nathan Whitlock, playing nurse in her home while she recuperates. And yet, that's exactly the quandary in which she finds herself. Her doctor insists on in-home supervision for seven days, and with her daughter, Kavya, abroad at grad school in India, Nathan proves too much of a do-gooder to let Malti rehabilitate alone. Seven days of Nathan, the man divorcing her daughter for all manner of reasons: cultural misunderstanding, emotional walls, simmering hostility...most of them having to do with Kavya's baggage from her childhood.

    They want nothing to do with one another. But over the course of the week, as Malti grapples with the shadows of her past and Nathan ponders the wreckage of his marriage, they learn that they are the two people who know Kavya best—and the ones who have hurt her so deeply that she's left them both.

    Rich with emotional depth, Some People paints a nuanced portrait of love, forgiveness, and our timeless quest for understanding and acceptance.

    Author

    © Devin Spratt
    Parini Shroff is the bestselling author of The Bandit Queens, which was a Good Morning America Buzz Pick, a PEN Open Book finalist, and longlisted for the Andrew Carnegie Medal and the Women's Prize for Fiction. She received her MFA from the University of Texas at Austin. She is a practicing attorney and currently lives in the Bay Area. View titles by Parini Shroff

    Praise

    Praise for The Bandit Queens

    “A radically feel-good story.”—The New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice

    “[A] wild ride . . . very funny—like, laugh-out-loud funny.”—NPR

    “A rollicking ride rife with memorable characters . . . It also serves up commentary on class, power dynamics and the role of women in society.”—Good Housekeeping

    “[Parini] Shroff cleverly considers how women might achieve autonomy within rural India’s patriarchal society through shrewd, if complicated, female friendships.”—The Washington Post

    “With acuity, wit, and a certain kind of magic irreverence, Shroff captures the complexity of female friendship, turning on a dime from humor to horror, horror to heart, and then back again, exhilarating her reader until the very last line. Tender, unpredictable, and brimming with laugh-out-loud moments, The Bandit Queens heralds a prodigious and sophisticated literary talent.”—Téa Obreht, New York Times bestselling author of The Tiger’s Wife and Inland

    “At times deeply serious, then laugh-out-loud funny, Shroff has written a sobering but hopeful exploration of womanhood, social injustices, and second chances.”—Charmaine Wilkerson, New York Times bestselling author of Black Cake

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