Tania James's debut novel, The Atlas of Unknowns, was named a Best Book of 2009 by both NPR and the San Francisco Chronicle. Her collection of short stories, titled Aerogrammes (2012), was called “deftly drawn” in a Washington Post review. Her second novel, The Tusk that Did the Damage (2015) dives into the studying, hunting, and killing of elephants in India from three different perspectives, including that of an elephant. The novel was longlisted for the Financial Times/Oppenheimer Award and was shortlisted for the International Dylan Thomas Prize. In addition to her writing, she is also an associate professor of writing at George Mason University. James started her career in documentary filmmaking and has been a fellow of Ragdale, Macdowell, the Sustainable Arts Foundation, and the Fulbright Program.
The Tusk that Did the Damage review by the New York Times