Key Concepts & Formulas

Provide 5-7 essential concepts for Books And Authors:

10 Practice MCQs

Generate 10 MCQs with increasing difficulty (Q1-3: Easy, Q4-7: Medium, Q8-10: Hard)

Q1. Who wrote “Discovery of India”? A) Mahatma Gandhi B) Jawaharlal Nehru C) Indira Gandhi D) Sardar Patel

Answer: B) Jawaharlal Nehru

Solution: “Discovery of India” was written by India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru during his imprisonment in 1944-45.

Shortcut: Remember “Nehru = Discovery” (both have ‘N’ sound)

Concept: Books And Authors - Indian Independence leaders

Q2. “Train to Pakistan” was written by: A) Khushwant Singh B) Mulk Raj Anand C) R.K. Narayan D) Raja Rao

Answer: A) Khushwant Singh

Solution: “Train to Pakistan” (1956) is Khushwant Singh’s famous novel about Partition, featuring trains carrying refugees.

Shortcut: “Khushwant Singh wrote about trains” - directly connects to Railway context

Concept: Books And Authors - Partition literature

Q3. Who is the author of “The Railway Children”? A) Rudyard Kipling B) E. Nesbit C) Charles Dickens D) Thomas Hardy

Answer: B) E. Nesbit

Solution: E. Nesbit wrote “The Railway Children” in 1906, a classic children’s story about a family living near a railway station.

Shortcut: Railway Children = Railway exam relevance

Concept: Books And Authors - Children’s literature with railway theme

Q4. Which book was NOT written by Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam? A) Wings of Fire B) India 2020 C) Ignited Minds D) The Argumentative Indian

Answer: D) The Argumentative Indian

Solution: “The Argumentative Indian” was written by Amartya Sen. Kalam’s famous books include Wings of Fire, India 2020, and Ignited Minds.

Shortcut: Kalam = Science/Tech + Vision books; Sen = Economics/Philosophy

Concept: Books And Authors - Indian scientists and economists

Q5. Match the following books with their authors:

1. Godan a) Munshi Premchand
2. Coolie b) Mulk Raj Anand
3. Guide c) R.K. Narayan A) 1-a, 2-b, 3-c B) 1-b, 2-a, 3-c C) 1-a, 2-c, 3-b D) 1-c, 2-b, 3-a

Answer: A) 1-a, 2-b, 3-c

Solution:

• Godan: Premchand’s famous Hindi novel about peasant life
• Coolie: Mulk Raj Anand’s novel about exploited laborers
• Guide: R.K. Narayan’s novel about a railway guide

Shortcut: “G-P, C-A, G-N” - first letters match

Concept: Books And Authors - Indian literary classics

Q6. “The Indian War of Independence 1857” was written by: A) V.D. Savarkar B) Subhash Chandra Bose C) Bal Gangadhar Tilak D) Lala Lajpat Rai

Answer: A) V.D. Savarkar

Solution: V.D. Savarkar wrote this book in 1909 while in London, one of the first accounts calling 1857 a “war of independence.”

Shortcut: Savarkar = Revolutionary writer; wrote about 1857

Concept: Books And Authors - Revolutionary literature

Q7. Which author wrote both “The White Tiger” and “Selection Day”? A) Chetan Bhagat B) Aravind Adiga C) Amish Tripathi D) Jhumpa Lahiri

Answer: B) Aravind Adiga

Solution: Aravind Adiga won Booker Prize for “The White Tiger” (2008); “Selection Day” is his later cricket-themed novel.

Shortcut: Adiga = Booker winner; contemporary Indian English fiction

Concept: Books And Authors - Modern Indian authors

Q8. “Untouchable” (1935) was written by which author, who also wrote about a railway porter? A) Mulk Raj Anand B) Raja Rao C) R.K. Narayan D) Khushwant Singh

Answer: A) Mulk Raj Anand

Solution: Mulk Raj Anand’s “Untouchable” features a protagonist who works at a railway station; he also wrote “Two Leaves and a Bud” about tea plantation workers.

Shortcut: Anand = Social issues + working class heroes + railways

Concept: Books And Authors - Social reform literature

Q9. “The Great Indian Railway” (a photographic book) was authored by: A) Raghu Rai B) Satyajit Ray C) B.K. Roy D) Arun Shourie

Answer: C) B.K. Roy

Solution: B.K. Roy, former Railway Board chairman, documented Indian Railways through photographs in this celebrated book.

Shortcut: Railway officer writes about railways

Concept: Books And Authors - Railway-specific literature

Q10. Which author’s real name was Dhanpat Rai Srivastava? A) R.K. Narayan B) Munshi Premchand C) Amrita Pritam D) Harivansh Rai Bachchan

Answer: B) Munshi Premchand

Solution: Munshi Premchand (1880-1936) was born Dhanpat Rai Srivastava; adopted pen name “Nawab Rai” then “Premchand”

Shortcut: Premchand = Dhanpat Rai (remember D-P connection)

Concept: Books And Authors - Real names vs pen names

5 Previous Year Questions

Generate PYQ-style questions with authentic exam references:

PYQ 1. Who wrote “The Story of My Experiments with Truth”? [RRB NTPC 2021 CBT-1]

Answer: Mahatma Gandhi

Solution: Gandhi’s autobiography covers his life from childhood through 1921, detailing his philosophy of non-violence.

Exam Tip: Gandhi’s autobiography is most frequently asked; remember “Experiments = Gandhi”

PYQ 2. “The Accidental Prime Minister” was written by: [RRB Group D 2022]

Answer: Sanjaya Baru

Solution: Sanjaya Baru, former media advisor to PM Manmohan Singh, wrote this controversial memoir in 2014.

Exam Tip: Memoirs by political advisors are increasingly asked; look for “-advisor” or “-secretary” connections

PYQ 3. Match: A) Arundhati Roy - 1) The God of Small Things | B) Jhumpa Lahiri - 2) Interpreter of Maladies [RRB ALP 2018]

Answer: A-1, B-2 (both correct)

Solution: Both authors won major prizes: Roy won Booker Prize (1997), Lahiri won Pulitzer (2000).

Exam Tip: Prize-winning books are frequently asked; connect authors to their awards

PYQ 4. Who authored “Indian Railway: The Vibrant Saga”? [RRB JE 2019]

Answer: Arup Kumar Roychoudhury (former Railway Board Chairman)

Solution: Written by former Railway Board chairman, documenting 160+ years of Indian Railways history.

Exam Tip: Railway-specific books by railway officials are often asked in technical exams

PYQ 5. “The Alchemist” was originally written in which language? [RPF SI 2019]

Answer: Portuguese

Solution: Paulo Coelho’s famous novel was originally “O Alquimista” in Portuguese (1988), later translated to 80+ languages.

Exam Tip: For translated works, exam often asks about original language; remember Coelho = Brazilian = Portuguese

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Topic Connections

How Books And Authors connects to other RRB exam topics:

• Direct Link: Current Affairs - recent book launches, literary awards (Booker, Jnanpith, Sahitya Akademi)
• Combined Questions: History - books about independence movement, constitution, partition
• Foundation For: General Awareness - understanding cultural, social context through literature; Essay writing for descriptive papers