'How does a story of India begin? Does it begin with the three great rivers - the Ganges, the Yamuna, the unseen Sarasvati pouring her dreaming waters down from the snowy mountains to the hot, dry plain?' With all the mystery and magic that has made India the setting of some of literature's most beloved novels, this bewitching book follows the journey of a young thief named Farhad who must retrieve a famous jewel in order to save a kidnapped princess from a demon king.

His unforgettable companion on the journey is a wisecracking white tiger with an unnatural fear of moving water.

It is their unusual and funny friendship and the final sacrifice that they must make, that is the heart of this grand, beautiful novel.