‘Bad sex’ award for Bunker 13 author

A steamy bit of writing featuring engine oil, Bugattis and Volkswagens won the dubious honour of the Literary Review’s ‘‘Bad ...

A steamy bit of writing featuring engine oil, Bugattis and Volkswagens won the dubious honour of the Literary Review’s ‘‘Bad Sex in Fiction’’ award.

Judges yesterday said Aniruddha Bahal’s novel, Bunker 13, merged the styles of Andy McNab, a British writer who specialises in special forces yarns, and Jilly Cooper, mistress of the horse and horseplay novel. Bunker 13 was described as a thriller about a reporter going undercover to expose evil-doing in Jammu and Kashmir.

	Monica Ali’s novel insults us: Bangladeshis

			LONDON: An association of Bangladeshis in Britain has accused author Monica Ali of distorting life in the community in London in her best-selling novel Brick Lane, which has been shortlisted for a literary award to be announced on Thursday. The Greater Sylhet Welfare and Development Council said it represents thousands of Bangladeshis who demanded cuts in the novel through a letter to The Guardian. (PTI)

The award-winning sex scene involved a woman dropping her trousers to expose a strategically placed swastika, and the judge saluted the ‘‘exuberance and energy’’ of the writing. A sample:

‘‘Your RPM is hitting a new high. To wait any longer would be to lose prime time…She picks up a Bugatti’s momentum. You want her more at a Volkswagen’s steady trot. Squeeze the maximum mileage out of your gallon of gas. But she’s eating up the road, with all cylinders blazing. You lift her out.

You want to try different kinds of fusion.’’

The fire quickly engulfed the vehicle, and according to eyewitnesses, passengers jumped from the moving bus to escape.

20 feared dead after moving bus catches fire in Jaisalmer

India2 hr ago

A moving AC sleeper bus caught fire on the Jaisalmer-Jodhpur Highway, leaving around 20 people dead and many others with severe burns. The bus, carrying 57 passengers, caught fire due to a short circuit and quickly engulfed in flames. The Jaisalmer District Collector has requested family members to identify the deceased.

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