Book Description
A young Indian woman in London tries to reclaim her reputation after her image is circulated in a deepfake porno in this fierce novel of incels, influencers, and AK-47s—from Women’s Prize shortlisted icon Meena Kandasamy
Amrita contains multitudes: she’s an accidental reality TV star, a self-appointed champion of the oppressed, and a full-time daddy’s girl. In London, she goes by Amy and gallivants around Bloomsbury with the rest of Little India.
Until her world is upended, that is. A deepfake porno of her appears online and is shared over and over by thousands of WhatsApp aunties everywhere. The situation snowballs into a hate storm with millions of impressions, and within a day, she’s being digitally stoned by a militia of Hindu incels hell-bent on her annihilation. Together with her best friend, Amy takes a page out of the Kardashian workbook and attempts to flip the script, which backfires spectacularly. Amy’s selfhood must shatter into a billion pixels of public opinion for the point to finally click: she’s no different from the faceless horde of keyboard warriors—until the ultimate checkmate you won’t see coming.
In her fiercest novel yet, Meena Kandasamy boldly questions what we are prepared to risk for our beliefs and fearlessly explores online harassment, political corruption, and the creep of the manosphere.
Praise For This Book
The Boston Globe, A Fall Most Anticipated BookVogue India, A Most Anticipated Book of the Year
Literary Hub, A Most Anticipated Book of the Year
The Millions, A Most Anticipated Fall Book
"Savvy, fierce novel about racism, misogyny, and India’s caste system." —Cory Oldweiler, The Boston Globe
"Kandasamy’s sharp humour provides much-needed relief from the anger of the internet and I found myself laughing many times at her wicked, tart observations . . . Kandasamy is one of India’s most exciting writers precisely because she doesn’t pull any punches." —Fatima Bhutto, The Guardian
“Meena Kandasamy’s books burst with so much energy that you assume she needs a lie down for months after finishing each one. The new book by the the Tamil-born Indian poet and novelist shows that she isn’t slowing up . . . [T]he book brilliantly captures the hopelessness of being carried along on a wave of mob hatred . . . But it comes perfectly balanced between anger and comedy . . . [L]ike all Kandasamy’s novels, this is an intense book: the reader might need a lie down afterwards too.” —John Self, The Observer
"Meena Kandasamy's latest novel is a stunner. For the original format to the brilliant rendering, Fieldwork as a Sex Object reckons with misogyny, caste, tradition, family and the rise of the far right in a modern-day Indian diaspora . . . [T]his story is as hilarious as it is horrific. Kandasamy takes no prisoners in her explorations of power, colonialism, neoliberalism and surveillance culture. Wickedly funny and tragically honest, Fieldwork as a Sex Object is one of the year's best." —Karla Strand, Ms.
"Through her trademark razor-sharp writing, the Exquisite Cadavers author presents a nuanced narrative about race, politics, sex and sexuality, resulting in a novel that will simultaneously shock and reel in readers." —Asma Siddiqui, Vogue India
“A snappy and furious assault on incels, the caste system, internet echo chambers, modern romance, and so much more. It made me want to get off social media for good, it made me crack up multiple times, and it caught me by total surprise several times more. It might be one of the great depictions of this terrible time, a visceral reminder of how cruel this world can be to women simply because they’ve made men feel bad.” —Drew Broussard, Literary Hub
“Scathingly funny, deeply wise . . . The narrative voice is snappy and filled with furious, unfiltered wit; Kandasamy exhibits a clear understanding of how to package brutal truth into an arresting reading experience . . . This vibrant outcry of a novel will leave readers entertained and shaken.” —Jaclyn Fulwood, Shelf Awareness (starred review)
“Incisive . . . Kandasamy layers Amy’s maddening narrative with an excoriating critique of hypocrisy in India, where sex is taboo but ‘porn is everywhere’ and the country ‘operates like Ghislaine Maxwell is running the show.’ This one hits hard.” —Publishers Weekly
"The best book of the year. Fieldwork as a Sex Object is compulsive, confronting, wild and utterly original. A powerful read" —Nussaibah Younis, author of Fundamentally
