Hometown is a compelling and extraordinary story told with skill, sensitivity, subtlety and substance by Anjum Hasan. It straddles the shoulders of those figures who built the town – and India – as well as the vulnerable ones who battle addiction and stigma and the silent heroes who risk their lives in the fight against corruption and extraction. Among books, it is that rare gem – it is painfully honest, forcing you to stop and catch your breath. Bringing the piercing gaze of the relentless researcher and the finesse of a novelist to a people's history of Shillong, Hasan has woven a flowing, living narrative which draws on interviews, experience and archival work. This rich and evocative combination of conversations and personal histories, including that of her own family, is a courageous plunge into the lives, streets and history of this ever-growing, ever-changing, confusing, inspiring, exasperating and murky urban landscape. It is the definitive biography of Shillong, a space that some of us call home.

Sanjoy Hazarika

Characters, their lives and what they have accomplished individually and as part of a community are vividly narrated in what is a perfectly documented magnum opus – something that rarely happens. Most writers write of eventful episodes of history and overlook those that don't make it to the news. Anjum Hasan is a sensitive observer of the world around her and Hometown will warm the hearts of ordinary humans who are featured in it.

Patricia Mukhim