Can't Help Faking in Love

Finished May 18

Can't Help Faking in Love by Swati Hegde

This contemporary romance novel takes us to India. Harsha Godbole is the child of wealthy parents and niece to a major Bollywood producer, but she never felt close emotionally with her parents. After getting her degree in the United States, Harsha decided to settle in Bangalore rather than her parents' city of Mumbai, and make a living as a photographer. She also decided to leave her trust account untouched and only live off what she made. She goes to Sunstag Café every day for a special drink and to do some work. Her apartment is small and not a place she wants to spend more time in than necessary. She did have a boyfriend from a similar wealthy background, but he has recently dumped her to marry someone his parents chose. There are a couple of family events coming up that she will attend: her aunt and uncle's 25th anniversary party and her cousin Nela's wedding. When she meets Nela and her fiancé by chance one night, she spontaneously introduces Veer Kannan as her boyfriend. Veer is actually a barista as Sunstag who she has a friendly relationship with.

Veer has helped support his family all his life after his father walked out when he was a child. He did go to acting school and worked in Mumbai for a while, even getting a job on a pilot show, but it wasn't picked up. Now he is working to help his mom and his younger brother Arjun. Arjun was accepted into a good business school, but they have cancelled his scholarship without warning and Veer is trying to figure out a way to come up with the tuition money in just a few days. 

So when Harsha asks him to pose as her boyfriend through the next few weeks, offering to pay him, the amount he asks for matches the tuition need. Harsha must use her trust money to pay him, but thinks it is worth it. They agree on a plan of payments and begins spending time together to get to know each other and feel comfortable interacting with each other.

As they grow closer and get to know each other, they also begin to learn more about each other's lives and feelings and the chemistry between them has time to work on them. They learn each other's vulnerabilities and find themselves becoming champions for each other in ways that feel real.

I liked the way the culture was shown without being focused on in a purposeful way. We learn about food, about social worlds, and about their family dynamics. 

Tomb of Sand

Finished March 26

Tomb of Sand by Geetanjali Shree, translated by Daisy Rockwell

This book is about character, history, family and memory. It was the winner of the 2022 International Booker Prize, and the winner of the 2022 Warwick Prize for Women in Translation, as well as awards for translations into other languages. It was the first novel translated from Hindi to win the International Booker Award. 

This is an extraordinary novel, that is rooted in the life of an eighty-year-old woman in India. Ma, as she is referred to, has lived with her eldest son Bade since before the death of her husband. Since that loss, she has shrunk into herself, spending much of the day in bed. When her son retires, he must leave his government house and move into an apartment, which he is renovating. 

After Ma goes missing on an unexplained nighttime outing, it is decided that she will live with her daughter, Beti, who lives an unconventional life as a writer. Never married, she's had lovers, and lives on her own in an apartment. Soon after Ma moves in, she starts to receive visits from an old friend, Rosie Bua, a person who is gender fluid, and who involves her in crafts and planning a trip to Pakistan. 

I just loved this book. It is so interesting, and the writing is beautifully done, with the story seemingly wandering off at times, but really giving us information that is important to the story, background information and information about relationships and important objects, such as canes and small statues. 

We also learn about birds that become part of the story, crows that live outside Beti's apartment window in the nearby trees. Trees that have their place in the plot. 

The novel describes Ma as a woman growing smaller, and Beti as a woman growing bigger, in an interesting way that the story evolves. The first chapter grabs you, gives you hints about what is coming, and doesn't let go.

A tale tells itself. It can be complete, but also incomplete, the way all tales are. This particular tale has a border and women who come and go as they please. Once you've got women and a border, a story can write itself. Even women on their own are enough. Women are stories in themselves, full of stirrings and whisperings that float on the wind, that bend with each blade of grass. The setting sun gathers fragments of tales and fashions them into glowing lanterns that hang suspended from clouds. These too will join our story. The story's path unfurls, not knowing where it will stop, tacking to the right and left, twisting and turning, allowing anything and everything to join in the narration. It will emerge from within a volcano, swelling silently as the past boils forth into the present, bringing steam, embers, and smoke. 

There are two women in this story. Besides these women, there are others who came and went, those who kept coming and going, those who always stayed but weren't as important, and those yet to be mentioned, who weren't women at all. For now, let's just say that two women were important, and of these, one was growing smaller, and the other bigger.

There were two women and one death.

Two women, one death. How nicely we'll get on, us and them, once we all sit down together!

Two women: one mother, one daughter, one growing downwards, the other growing upwards. One laughs and says, I'm growing smaller by the day! The other is saddened, but says noting when she sees herself growing bigger. The mother has stopped wearing saris now that she must stuff more than half the fabric into her waist and raise the hems of her petticoats a little higher each day. Does gradually growing smaller make you catlike, so you may slip through tiny cracks and escape? Puncture a border and slip right through? Develop a knack for near-invisibility?

This must be the reason that the mother was able to slip through to the other side of the border while the daughter was still fretting over how stuck they were. It's also possible that the smaller woman truly was innocent when she refused to confess to any crime of her part, be it regarding legal permissions, debates over names, or accusations of theft. 

Those who didn't understand her arguments considered her crazy, maybe even vicious. They suspected her of purposefully misleading.

She pointed out that men always get the high-quality dal and women just get leftover mash, don't they? Hmm? She spoke fearlessly. So? So does that make it right?

But if you stare at them fearlessly, will the border guards understand? You have crossed the border, they reprimand.

She chuckles. Anything worth doing transcends borders. Should I do nothing at all?

No, they retort, and no one is foolish enough not to know this. Even goats and cows know where not to stray. And your eyesight isn't so bad you can't see, so how can you be forgiven?

Who's asking for forgiveness? She roars with laughter and the growing-bigger daughter weeps. And is this all there is to see? Perhaps I too have seen a thing or two. Try seeing with my eyes for once. 

If she were to fall, she did not with for it to be facedown. Wherever the bullet came from, whenever it his, she would fall straight back and lie supine on the ground. Regally. Her eyes filled with sky.

Let me practise, she'd tell her daughter

The mother had started hiccupping all the time. She hiccupped and hiccupped and hiccupped. If the daughter had not been in such a state, she'd have grown suspicious as to whether these hiccups were real or fake. They won't stop with water; give me a slap on the back! the mother would command. If the slap isn't hard enough, then try a running kick, boom! Try it on my back or in my stomach or on my sides, and make sure I fall down, but on my back, eyes open, forehead facing up; then the hiccups will surely stop. It was a strange remedy, but the daughter did as the mother asked. She kicked and kicked, boom boom boom, and with this new game her mother kept falling over bam bam bam. After a bit of hullabaloo, observers would also burst out laughing--Can you beat it? This old lady's too much! But the mother told the daughter that she needed to be prepared.            

Anyway, long story short, what happened was this: a bullet did come flying towards her, but by then the mother had become an expert at falling backwards. A bullet came, punctured her body, shot through and out the other side. Anyone else would have sprawled facedown in the mud, but Ma flipped backwards like she was doing a somersault. She lay back on the ground in an attitude of victory, elegantly, faceup, as though she was reclining on a soft bed, the sky her coverlet. 

Those who consider death to be an ending took this to be hers. But those in the know knew that this was no ending; knew she'd simply crossed yet another border. 

So there's no harm in starting the story right here, that is, the way we're doing it right now.

You can see the way the story engages, draws you in, and makes you want to know the story for yourself.

The tone is light and a little amused, as if it is playing with us. She plays with many things here, and many borders, Highly recommended. 

A Strange and Sublime Address

Finished June 4

A Strange and Sublime Address by Amit Chaudhuri

This novel is narrated by ten-year-old Sandeep, an only child who lives in Bombay (Mumbai) in an apartment with his parents. They go on regular visits to extended family in Calcutta. The novel covers two visits, one in summer and one in winter. His family usually stays in the house of a family on his mother's side, where he has two cousins of a similar age Abhi and Babla. 

Sandeep is a child who observes closely what is happening and his view is an innocent one that lets us see what is actually happening. He observes his cousins, his aunt and uncles, the servants, and even the neighbours closely, catching small actions and looks. The language here is full of description and evokes a sense of happiness and comfort, surrounded by those he loves. It also uses the natural terms used by a real family, with endearments and nicknames, and words that evoke the place and time of the setting. 

This was the author's first novel, originally published in 1991, and, in the foreword, is compared to other novels narrated by youthful observant characters.

I loved immersing myself in this world, of food, comfort, and family, feeling life slow down and appreciated in the small things that happen, from bathing to eating to resting. The excursions, both to other family members and for just a thing to do on a weekend afternoon are also slow and relaxing. This novel depicts those small moments in life that we often don't take the time to appreciate. 

Definitely one of my favourites of this year's reading. A lovely novel. 

Caste

Finished November 30

Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson

I bought this book more than a year ago and have been slowly reading it for the past couple of weeks. It is a book that looks at the origins of the American caste system, and how it relates to two other caste systems, the centuries-old caste system of India, and the one that arose under the Nazis. I was aware that Nazi's had studied how America treated its non-white citizens, particularly those who descended from earlier slaves, but this book made the connections more clear about how they tried to implement some of the same concepts and how the American situation went beyond in what it dared to define for castes and for how it had evolved to be ingrained in the American culture.

In India, the lowest caste is that of the Dalit, often called Untouchables. Wilkerson, on her first visit to India and meeting Dalits was introduced as one of America's Untouchables, and after the initial surprise, she had to see the similarities. 

She often gives examples of her own and others experiences to illustrate the various norms in America that arose from the caste system there, and how it is still having its effect, despite the laws and regulations that purport to eliminate it. 

Released in the last year of Trump's presidency, it is a book that is very pertinent to what the country is going through now, a test of its democracy, an awakening of those in the lower castes to the inbededness of the beliefs that have tried to keep them in their place, below the dominant caste of white European-origin males, and how the actions we are seeing today are part of a struggle to keep the system from changing. . 

This book should be required reading in every American history and culture course, as it looks at the history of the culture in a way that has seldom been explained in such straightforward terms. Wilkerson gives homage to those researchers who came before her in this area, and talks about their work and how she discovered it and built upon it. 

There is so much I could say about this eye-opening book, but the best is for you to read it yourself.

Hunted by the Sky

Finished September 27 

Hunted by the Sky by Tanaz Bhathena

This is the first book in a fantasy series that is inspired by medieval India. Written for teens and with teen characters at the center of it, this book begins with a teen girl, Gul, hiding as government-sponsored warriors looking for her kill her parents. Gul has known all her life that her life is in danger due to a birthmark on her arm. It was foretold that a girl with such a birthmark would kill the king and so girls have been hunted down and disappeared for years. 

Now that she is on her own, she must figure out how to survive and how to kill the king and the Sky Warrior Shayla who killed her parents. 

Gul lives in the kingdom of Ambar, a kingdom that belonged to a loose coalition of neighbouring kingdoms but that has since become more independent, and one that has become more authoritarian and less tolerant. It used to be that all people lived in harmony, but with the current king and his predecessor those who don't have magical skills have been moved to their own neighbourhoods called tenements, had their rights taken away, and become near slaves. There are those who remember times of more harmony where all the people lived together and worked together and went to school together, but in the current world life is difficult for those without magic. 

One of those who has grown up in the tenements is Cavas, a boy who works in the royal stables as his father did before him. Cavas lost his mother when he was very young and as his father grew more ill, he has taken on the role of breadwinner for the pair of them, but also has recently been introduced to a mysterious man he summons with a special coin, one he gives information to in exchange for money. Cavas uses the money to buy medicine for his father, and hopes to find a way to leave the tenements so that his father can get well again, as it is the air of the tenements that has brought the disease he suffers from. 

Gul found her path crossing the path of a group of women, women who took her with them and have been training her to become a warrior, who have a similar aim to change the leadership of their kingdom and bring a more just and equitable rule back. Gul has only had glimpses of the magic she has been given, when it appears in times of stress or threat. Now she must learn how to understand it and control it.

As Gul and Cavas have their paths cross, it becomes clear that something ties their fates, and the magic together, and they must overcome their differences to work together. 

I found this a fascinating world, with very interesting types of magic skills in the different characters, and creatures different from the ones in this world. Gul's affinity for animals is an unusual and useful one, and when Cavas learns his own truths about what he is able to do, he must put aside resentments from the past. They are both strong-willed and smart and both believe in social change for the greater good.

There is a glossary at the back of the book to explain some of the terminology of this world, although I found that the context helped anyway and the book's flow wasn't lost due to the new words. 

Your Truth or Mine?

Finished August 14 

Your Truth or Mine? by Trisha Sakhlecha

This book is set mostly in England, near London, but the main action in India. Roy Kapoor is there filming a travel documentary and his wife Mia is arriving imminently to host his sister-in-law's wedding. The book begins with a brief scene in London at Roy and Mia's house, where police arrive to question Roy about the disappearance of a young woman Emily, who he has worked with. It quickly jumps back in time three months to Jaisalmer, India where the wedding of Mia's sister Addi and her soon-to-be-husband James. Mia's father died when she was a child, and the family moved back to India from London, renting out their home in London. Roy and Mia have been married for a few years, but they've been on rockier ground lately as Mia wants to start a family, but Roy wants to invest more time and money in his career. Mia has planned Addi's wedding in the traditional Indian style, making it the wedding that Mia herself didn't have as Roy's family didn't approve of her. 

Through the wedding and its aftermath, the story of Roy and Mia is gradually revealed. Also revealed is the story of Roy's relationship with Emily. Are they more than coworkers? Were they having an affair? Mia is an ambitious young woman in the fashion industry, taking risks and trying to move up in her company. She travels a lot for business, sourcing material and meeting with both vendors and buyers. Roy also travels a lot, but he is still freelancing and trying to create his own shows rather than working for others. 

As their history is revealed, so are the fault lines in their relationship and each of their weaknesses. I was definitely more sympathetic towards Mia, even though she made some bad choices. Roy seemed to me like he never really grew up and took responsibility for his life. He just did what he wanted when he wanted and expected others to support him either before or after the fact. This is a story of families, of lies, and of how the truth will eventually be revealed. 

Victory Colony, 1950

Finished January 3

Victory Colony, 1950 by Bhaswati Ghosh

This historical novel is set in Calcutta, India shortly after Partition. It follows two young people whose lives interact. One of them is Amala, who arrived in the city with her younger brother Kartik as a refugee from East Bengal. They have few possessions and no money, and when Amala looks for food on their arrival, Kartik goes missing. Faced with the threat of police, Amala agrees to join a group of refugees being taken to the Gariahata Refugee Relief Centre. The group of young men that volunteers at the Centre and helps organize the supplies needed includes the second main character, Manas Dutta. Manas is from a good family and near the end of his studies. His father raised him to be considerate of others and encouraged his participation in the larger world. Although his father has passed away, his influence is still strongly felt by Manas. 

Manas lives with his mother and his grandfather in a large, stately home, with a small number of servants who come in for their daily work. But it is a far cry from the situation at the refugee centre, where the housing is temporary, food supplies are limited, as are other amenities. 

As we see Amala grow in confidence, moving through her grief to help others around her, organizing the women in ways to make themselves not only useful but to find ways to bring in some much-needed money, we see her inner strength and goodness. She is a smart woman, who learns quickly and wants to help those around her get ahead as well.

Manas too grows here from a schoolboy doing good deeds, to a man who becomes self-sufficient and starts his life independent of his elders. He is smart as well, and a good organizer and planner, who thinks of trying to make life better for everyone in his world.

I enjoyed see both of these characters grow, both in themselves and in their regard for each other and those that shared their world. I enjoyed Manas' grandfather as well as he came out of his shell of privilege and took the time to learn more about his grandson's friends.

I also learned a lot of Indian phrases and terminology that were conveyed seamlessly here, without the need for a glossary. The author reaches back into her own heritage to create a world I would be interested in following further. A very enjoyable read.

Fire and Ice

Finished December 14

Fire and Ice: Soot, Solidarity, and Survival on the Roof of the World by Jonathan Mingle

This book uses a small village in the Himalayas as a focal point for environmental concerns in a way that makes it even more relevant and personal. Mingle first met the people of the village of Kumik in the Zanskar valley of the Himalayan mountains of north west India in 2012 when he was asked for advice on how to build homes to take advantage of passive solar energy, something he has experience in. The village of Kumik is one of the oldest villages in this part of the world, and depends on water from the glacier above for both its daily life and its sustaining agriculture. But the water has been providing less and less over the years, with the glacier shrinking and most of the remaining meltoff going down the other side of the mountain to other villages. 

The village people have been looking at their options as the fields they plant each year decrease and men work at other jobs, away from the village more and more. They have decided to move the village to a new location, where they can arrange irrigation from a nearby river. They will be building a new village from scratch, and want to do it in a way that takes advantage of things like solar energy as much as they can.

Through Mingle, we see the intricacies of village life, how they depend on each other, and the long history of the social contract "chu len me len chaden" which has neighbours supporting each other with fire and water. Violators of the social system are cut off from both these necessities, putting them in the position of not being able to survive. 

We see his work and his interactions with the villages over a couple of years as they gradually build their new village, have many meetings and make many decisions, and work together for their future.

Mingle looks at why glaciers are shrinking and the role not only of carbon dioxide, but also of black carbon. Black carbon, often appearing as soot has many effects. Not only does it pollute existing glaciers and cause them to heat more and thus shrink more quickly, it also has huge effects on human health (and indeed the health of all living things). Thousands of people die every year due to its effects, all around the world. Black carbon's health effects are seen locally, while its environmental effects are global. Many of the world's poorer countries use cooking and heating fuel that contributes to the production of black carbon, not only through the type of fuel, but also through the way that it is burned, leaving unburned particulates in the nearby atmosphere, both in homes and in the air around communities. It is also an output from the use of diesel fuel, often used for generators in  remote communities, but also transportation around the world. Even in the more developed world, the use of wood burning stoves and heaters contributes to this pollutant. 

I learned that the colour of the flame is a strong indicator of the presence of black carbon as an output.The bluer the flame, the cleaner burning it is. That orange glow we admire is not a healthy sign. 

In many instances this is something that can be tackled even more easily than the issue of carbon dioxide (although that can't be ignored). Development and distribution of cleaner burning stoves and heaters needs investment and government support worldwide. The infrastructure and training to support maintenance of these new units is key as well. The use of local solar generators can be another tool for reducing black carbon. In the developed world, replacing wood stoves with pellet stoves can help this effort. 

I learned a lot from this book, and it gave me hope that we can work together to improve the lot of people, from this small village of hardworking people in the Himalayas to our own communities in cities and suburbs. This recent case of the role of this kind of pollution in the death of a young girl in London spoke to its impact in cities. 

Highly recommended.

Blue Sky Kingdom

Finished October 16

Blue Sky Kingdom: An Epic Family Journey to the Heart of the Himalaya by Bruce Kirkby

This memoir tells of a family journey that was partially documented in film. Bruce, his wife Christine, and their sons Bodi, seven years old, and Taj, three years old, left their home in Kimberly, British Columbia and traveled for several months, fulfilling a dream to take their children and experience a time of reflection and cultural learning. For the trip to their destination in remote India, they were accompanied by a documentary film crew who documented their experiences in a film called Big Crazy Family Adventure. 

They traveled in adventurous ways, driving to the Columbia River, and then going down the river via a canoe-based catamaran, reaching the town of Golden after five days. From there they took a train to Vancouver, and a taxi to the wharf where the container ship Hanjin Ottawa awaited them. 

They'd had to do some research to find a boat that would take kids as young as theirs as passengers. It is during this section that the author discusses his older son and the journey that his family went through to discover that he is on the autism spectrum. This explained some issues that had arisen with his interactions and reactions to some situations, and made them able to plan and prepare for situations with Bodi in a way that would be less stressful for everyone. It was toward the end of this journey that they discussed this with Bodi himself as they knew it would come out when he viewed the documentary and they wanted to do it in a way that he wouldn't feel judged. 

From South Korea, they took a ferry to China, spending a few days in Beijing before travelling by train the Lhasa. After visiting their first monastery on the trip, they travelled by road on to Nepal. They spent a few days in Kathmandu and then moved on to India, entering near Lumbini, and traveling by car to Prayagraj where they boarded a riverboat and went down the Ganges toward Varanasi. It was here that they began to encounter some of the hottest weather they would experience, making it difficult to sleep and quick to get angry at circumstances. But they overcame that stress, continuing their journey by train, stopping briefly at Agra to see the Taj Mahal, and then enjoying a week in more luxurious rooms in Delhi, while they waited for filming permits to come through. Then more trains and a long bus ride brought them to Manali. At this point only a small film crew stayed with them for their overland trek to Zanskar. They began this trek at the village of Keylong, traveling by foot, and horse (for Boti for part of the trip). 

This is where the major part of the memoir takes place, at the monastery Karsha  Gompa. The family stays there for three months, living in the home of one of the former head lamas. They get christened with new local names and learn new cultural habits. They participate in the rituals and activities of the monastery and teach English and math to the young boys who live there. At this point it is sad to see that these monasteries are no longer the places where young boys can be educated and prepared for a variety of opportunities as the schooling is lacking in resources and good teachers. Bruce and Christine work hard at it, but they aren't trained for this and they often feel inadequate to the need that exists. When they leave, it is with heavy hearts for these young boys who they've grown close to. I enjoyed seeing the experiences here, how they integrated into the life of the nearby villages, helping their lama's family with harvest and learning about the culture that they can see modernizing even in the short time they stay there. More and more, the young people are leaving, and the technology that arrives brings change to the villages by introducing class division between those who can afford these things and those who cannot. 

When they left to return home, their trip took them the other way out of the valley, on another overland walking and horseback trek, this time without a film crew, ending up in Leh, and then flying on to Delhi. There, they hoped to travel home with the lama that hosted them, giving him a taste of Canada. 

Included in the book are photographs as well as drawing that Bodi did of various scenes and objects. 

Throughout the book, Kirkby gives lots of information on the places they visit, history and geography, culture and religion. I liked the way he integrated this information in natural ways into the journey and experiences, adding to the story in a very meaningful way. Bodi, in particular, took naturally to things like meditation and came out of his shell more in many of this culturally different environments, gaining confidence that would show when they returned home as well. 

I really enjoyed this memoir and the ways the family took to heart their experiences throughout their journey.

The Sari Shop

Finished September 9
The Sari Shop by Rupa Bajwa

Reading this book came about because of a reading challenge that I am participating in that had a requirement to read a book that had won the Sahitya Akademi Award for English, an Indian book award. I looked through the list and chose this one, which was the winner for 2006.
I really enjoyed the story, but I was challenged by some of the terms I wasn't familiar with.
The main character is Ramchand, a young man working as a clerk in a sari shop, the Sevak Sari House, in Amritsar. We gradually learn of his past, growing up as an only child of parents who had their own small shop and lived in a room behind it. His father had ambitions for him, intending to send him to an "English medium" school so he could become more than a shop owner. Sadly, tragedy struck his family, and thus Ramchand did not attend the school his father hoped for, and is now a clerk rather than a shop owner. There are five other clerks in the store, and Ramchand is the second from the bottom in terms of hierarchy.
When one of Amritsar's elite plans her wedding, Ramchand is tasked with taking saris and other garments to her home for consideration. This experience opens him up to new ideas and new possibilities. While he has occasionally spent money on books, he now makes considered purchases, and begins to study English with dedication. He also starts thinking about things beyond his day-to-day existence. But an experience with a co-worker's family brings him back to the cold hard reality of the world he lives in and the place he is expected to take within it.
I was hopeful for his future as he started to study and open his mind to new ideas, but discouraged by how easily he lost hope.
This book definitely showed me a world that I wasn't familiar with and expanded my knowledge of India.

The Sandalwood Tree

Finished April 7
The Sandalwood Tree by Elle Newmark

This novel takes place in two different times. In 1947, Evie Mitchell is moving to India with her husband Martin and young son Billy. Martin returned from World War II changed, and Evie hopes that this time in India will help bring him back. Martin is an anthropologist and is coming to India on a Fulbright scholarship to research the end of the Raj and Partition. The two met while at University, where Evie was an aspiring astronomer. They come from different background. Martin's parents are Jewish academics and Evie's father is a blue collar Catholic.
In the small bungalow the two rent near Simla, Evie finds a cache of letters hidden behind a brick in the kitchen. They are dated from the 1850s, and Evie becomes fascinated by the two women who wrote the letters, searching for their story.
Felicity Chadwick and Adela Winfield are the two women, and we learn of their friendship, which began when Felicity was sent to England for her education while her parents continued to live in India. The letters date from when Felicity returned to England as a young woman.
Both time periods are ones of unrest. In the 1850s, there was the Sepoy Rebellion also known as India's First War of Independence, and upcoming Partition causes great unrest within India.
Evie is feeling lonely and isolated, without even her husband as a real companion. The local British have their own outlook that Evie finds colonial. Her ayah Rashmi, takes it upon herself to offer puja and advice to resolve what she sees are Evie's problems, much to Evie's embarrassment. She explores the local area, despite her husband's concerns, as part of her search for Felicity and Adela's story.
Felicity and Adela are both rebels in their time as well, dreaming of independence and a life without subjugation to a husband. Living on her own in India, Felicity is outside the world of her fellow Britons in many ways.
In both time periods, it is a crisis situation that changes how the women interact with those around them, bringing them closer and changing their relationships with those around them. I liked the independent spirit and curiosity displayed by the characters and their growth over time.

Heat and Dust

Finished January 30
Heat and Dust by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala

This novel won the Booker Prize in 1975. It has two story lines. One occurs in 1923 in colonial India in the town of Satipur and the nearby Khatm. The other occurs in the present (1970s) also in Satipur.
In 1923, Olivia has come to join her new husband Douglas who works as an assistant commissioner. During one social event Olivia meets the Nawab of Khatm and becomes fascinated with him, and the Nawab begins to visit her regularly and send his car for her to come and visit him. Staying with the Nawab is Harry, a young Englishman who doesn't seem to know whether he wants to stay or return to England. Olivia is bored with the other English wives and flattered by the attentions of the Nawab, but her actions soon lead he to a choice that will change her life forever.
In the 1970s, Douglas' granddaughter has gotten hold of Olivia's story, through her letters home to her sister and the reminiscences of her grandmother and great aunt and others. She has brought the letters with her to India to see India for herself and tell Olivia's story. But she falls into actions reminiscent of those of Olivia and must make her own choices and follow her own story.

Teatime for the Firefly

Finished January 5
Teatime for the Firefly by Shona Patel

This novel is set in Assam, India in the 1940s. Layla is a young woman of seventeen who has been brought up by her grandfather, an educated man who believes in the importance of educating women so they have choices. Layla birth time and the death of her parents have led many traditional Indians to believe her to be bad luck and she has resigned herself to never marrying. She aims to continue her grandfather's legacy of education for girls and has started training to be a teacher. Her grandfather often hosts guests and the Russian author Boris Ivanov is a frequent visitor. One day when he is expected to come and make a speech for the opening of the new school her grandfather has started for girls, Layla encounters a young man, Manik, recently back from being educated overseas. His unusual attention to her and his outlook on the future draw her to him, but she soon finds out that he is engaged to a young woman down the street, an arranged marriage. When Manik gives up his civil service job to go work as an assistant manager on a tea plantation, everything becomes less certain, and the two young people begin a correspondence.
The historical events of India and partition come alive, but what is really brought to life here is Assam itself. The geography, scenery, and climate are well described, and life on the tea plantations comes alive for the reader. Their remote location, and how that draws misfits and thus unusual friendships is a big part of this story, as is the paternal relationship between the plantation managers and the workers.
Layla and Malik both grow through the challenges and circumstances that their lives bring them. This provides a glimpse of a life in a certain place at a certain time in an engaging read.

The Lowland

Finished October 17
The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri

This novel tells the story of Subhash and Udayan Mitra, brothers born 15 months apart who were almost inseparable until the started university. The Mitra family lived in the Tollygunge neighbourhood in the outskirts of Calcutta, and the boys observed the activity of the local golf club in an interested way, as outsiders that couldn't hope to participate in the club's activities. Udayan took the feeling of being an outsider to heart and wanted to help those whe he felt were oppressed free themselves. At university they attended different schools, Subhash studying chemical engineering and Udayan studying physics. Udayan became involved in the Naxalite movement in the late 1960s and engaged in activities that acted against the government. . Subhash worried about this but tried to distance himself from this activity and went on to graduate studies in Rhode Island. Udayan's choices affect both brothers' lives in massive ways, and Subhash feels the need to take on his brother's responsibilities when Udayan is unable to fulfill them. Subhash's marriage is one he takes on in good faith, and he proves to be an excellent father to Bela. But his wife is not as committed to the marriage and makes her own choices and sets different priorities that lead to an estrangement and different paths.
This is a story of family, of responsibilities, of regrets, but also of unexpected love. This is a book I couldn't put down and thoroughly enjoyed.

The Village

Finished June 29
The Village by Nikita Lalwani

This novel is set in southern India, in a unique prison, an open village. All the prisoners have been found guilty of murder and have exhibited good behaviour in traditional prisons, allowing them the opportunity to come here for the remainder of their sentence. Their families live here with them (a requirement), and they learn skills that are transferable to their future life. They may work outside the Village, even start their own businesses. The local governor is behind the project, having come up with the idea. Ray is the main character here, and she is a BBC journalist who has come here to direct a documentary about the prison. She and two others from the BBC, Serena and Nathan will live in the village for several weeks, getting to know the people who live there and tell their story. But the three have different ideas about how to go about this, and different motivations. For Ray, it is the first project that she has brought forward the idea for, and despite her experience on other projects, she lacks confidence. Ray is also of Indian heritage herself, and the only one of the three who can speak the language. Because of the cultural knowledge and language ability, she is able to get to know people there in a different way than the others. Serena is a few years older than Ray, with more experience, a woman who just wants to get a good story and get on with things. She can be very focussed, but tends to treat the inmates as characters rather than real people. Nathan has his own experience with prison, for a lesser crime, and is a bit of a handsome rafe. As Ray begins to make connections with the people and finds out their stories, she also finds herself torn between compassion and getting a good story. She finds herself pressured to press upon those in the village to take actions that aren't necessarily in their best interests. It is an interesting story that shows the common theme of westerners coming in and taking advantage of people of another culture. It also shows the mixed emotions of the prisoners themselves, who feel compelled to participate in this life for the benefits it gives them despite the true wishes of their families. It shows the ego of both the journalists and the governor in their sense of knowing what is best without asking those involved. Some of the stories too show the conflicted nature of the crimes, many of which were committed in self-defense. An interesting look at a difficult issue.

Original Letters from India

Finished March 23
Original Letters from India by Eliza Fay

This collection of letters dates from the late 1700s, and describes two visits to India by Eliza Fay, her return to England from the first visit, and her trip to America from the second visit. She later returned to India and died there in 1816.
The first voyage took more than a year and involved many trials. Her husband, a Barrister, was going out to India to practice, and she accompanied him. They left England in the spring of 1779 and went over to France by ship and overland across France to Italy. This despite the fact that England and France were at war at the time. From Italy they travelled by ship to Alexandria and then on to Cairo. The situation in Egypt was not a good one, and they lost some of their belongings due to the unrest.
From here they sailed to Calicut, where the local Governor, Hyder Ali, took them and other Europeans prisoner. They were imprisoned there for three months, and with assistance from others managed to get off to Cochin, but had lost all their belongings save those they had concealed on their persons. From there, they went first to Madras, and then on to Calcutta.
In Calcutta Mr. Fay was admitted to the Bar and began to do business with the courts while Eliza made friends in society. Mr. Fay, however proved a bad judge of things and made some bad choices professionally and personally and by 1782 the couple formally separated. Eliza stayed with a friend until she made her way back to England later that year.
She returned to India in 1794, and set up a millinery business, but had setbacks and ended up leaving again, by 1795. The book ends with her arrival in New York City, with no record of her subsequent experiences there, her trip back to England, or her final return to Calcutta.
As a record of the times it is very interesting, to see the dangers of travel, the interactions of society, and the politics of the times. Included in this edition, is the original preface from 1817, the introductory notes from the 1925 edition by E.M Forster, which give historical context and commentary, and the new introduction by Simon Winchester which added positively to the reading experience.

Thirst

Finished July 15
Thirst by Shree Ghatage

This novel begin with a young East Indian man in Wales in 1942, who appears to have lost his memory. He is taken in by a kindly older man, Mr Owens who lives with his troubled daughter Catherine. They call him Hari. Hari stays with them awhile hoping his memory will return, troubled by Catherine's illness. He decides to go to London, hoping to find assistance there.
When he goes to London, something there triggers his memory and he remembers who he is, Vijay Chafékar, a young man in London to study law. We now get the story of his past life in India. We see how he entered an arranged marriage shortly before coming to India, and see the story of his young bride Vasanti, mourning the recent loss of her father and very innocent, trusting, and intelligent. We see the story of their marriage, and how they gradually get to know each other, trust each other and grow into their new roles. Vijay's reasons for travelling to London are more complex they he lets on, and have to do with his relationship with his father. But his experiences in London educate him in life, and how people are the way they are.
An insightful book of the gaining of knowledge, and of how simple acts can change the course of a life in big ways.

Behind the Beautiful Fovevers

Finished April 12
Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo, read by Sunil Malhotra.
This nonfiction book is a tale of the lives of the residents of a Mumbai slum, Annawadi, located near the Mumbai airport and near luxury hotels. Boo was inspired to tell about life in the slums after marrying a man from India. She picked Annawadi because of its size, one small enough to go around and talk to all the residents. Her research took three years and the lives of many of the residents change significantly during that time. We see the struggle to survive, the daily living conditions, the jealousies and rivalries, the corruption both between residents and at police and government levels. Money equals prosperity and everyone is trying to get ahead, and get a better life. Some use substances that help them escape from their lives, and some take it out on their families. Boo spends a lot of time here describing two families. 
One is a Muslim family, where the father has health issues that force the oldest boy, Abdul into the role of family provider. The situation also forces the mother into a less subservient role that is typical of Muslim women. The family recycles garbage, paying other garbage collectors by weight for their gatherings. When a fight with a neighbour women results in drastic actions by the women, the family's creep upward is stalled and reversed. 
The other Hindi family also has a strong women at the head, Asha. Asha sets her sights on politics, with the first step gaining the status of slumlord for Annawadi. She curries favors, accepts and pays bribes, settles disputes and makes enough to send her daughter to college. 
An ongoing story that brings the existence of the lowest class in India to light and shows how the system doesn't work for them, and how they are viewed by those above. 
Fascinating and heartrending.

Dahanu Road

Finished March 28
Dahanu Road by Anosh Irani
This is a very sensual novel, appealing to the senses. Zairos Irani is a young man, close to his grandfather Shapur. As he spends time with the old man, he is told stories of the past. He is also the one to find a worker's body in the orchard, and he finds himself drawn to the man's daughter. Kusum also finds herself drawn to Zairos and at the basis of this is a memory from her childhood. Zairos has lived a life of idleness and his first moves are hesitant. As the both find themselves defying taboos with their relationship, it is Kusum who has the strength. Their story also leads back to the story of Shapur and Banu, Zairos' grandparents.
We see the age-old conflict between the landowning Iranis, and the local tribal Warlis who work for them. Zairos discovers this history is part of his family story as well. This book has humour and sadness, but it is the evocative nature of the writing that makes it come alive.
This book is one of the ten finalists for the 2011 OLA Evergreen Award.

Domestic Fiction

Finished October 30
Secret Daughter by Shilpi Somaya Gowda
This novel is written by a Canadian who now lives in the United States. It is set partly in California and partly in India. The novel is told from alternating points of view.
In India, Kavita gives birth to a daughter, for the second time. She is determined that this time her husband will not take the baby away, however he convinces her that they cannot afford to keep it. They need a son. She goes with her sister to the city, Bombay, and leaves the baby girl at an orphanage. At first she harbours resentment for her husband, but eventually she is able to move on with her life, but never forgetting the baby girl, Usha, that she left at the orphanage.
In California, Somer met a young med student from India, and the two fell in love and got married. Now that she is finished her residency, she hopes to have a baby, but the odds are against her. After much inner turmoil, she agrees with her husband, Krishnan, to adopt a baby from India, from the orphanage where his mother is a patron. The name they call her is Asha.
The point of view moves back and forth, mostly from the points of view of Somer and Kavita, but eventually from Asha's point of view as well. We also have smaller segments from the other characters.
This book is about culture, about adjusting to other cultures, about being open to those cultures, and about what motherhood really means. It is an interesting story, and I found the characters engaging.