Amitava Kumar is a writer and journalist born in Ara, Bihar, who grew up in the nearby town of Patna, famous for its corruption, crushing poverty, and delicious mangoes. Kumar is the author of A Foreigner Carrying in the Crook of His Arm a Tiny Bomb (2010), Home Products: A Novel (2007), Husband of a Fanatic (2004), Bombay-London-New York (2002), and Passport Photos (2000). He is also the author of a book of poems and the scriptwriter for two documentary films, Pure Chutney (1997) and Dirty Laundry (2005). Currently, he is Professor of English at Vassar College. He lives in upstate New York with his wife and two children.