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wrackcity's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Alcoholism, and Misogyny
dominicangirl's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
Graphic: Alcoholism, Bullying, Colonisation, Drug abuse, and Racism
Moderate: Rape
Minor: Kidnapping
abbycummings13's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, and Sexism
Moderate: Infidelity, Sexual assault, and Sexual content
ladymirtazapine's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Hate crime, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
emmagreenwood's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, and Xenophobia
bookswithchaipai's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
CHINA ROOM – Sanjeev Sahota
Genre – Historical Fiction, India
“That a wife was a wife, there to bear sons and otherwise live behind her veil, out of the way. Her face was barely worth considering”.
This was the mindset of rural India & still is in some parts. The “chador”/veil makes it hard for a woman to identify the husband among his siblings, sometimes going a whole lifetime without knowing who it is, having to perform the marital relations in darkness. “They grow up in a prison & then get married into one.” The sadness of this thought shook me, thinking of how repressed women are. But despite that, the strong character of 16-year-old Mehar, shone through as she went about village life.
Fast forward to 1999 - Mehar’s unnamed 19-year-old great-grandson, a Heroin addict, returns to the farm to go cold turkey. He bides his time in the China Room, where Mehar was sequestered, and he feels a connection flow through him from over the years.
The 1929 rural life fascinated me – the dung patties, candle making, foraging for vegetables, delivering food to the farmworkers. Sahota’s vivid visions of village life are authentic for someone who has been to India only a handful of times.
What I loved –
- Mehar’s story of love & lust is heartbreaking – falling prey to the desire of a man because she was blindfolded by traditions.
- The Indian's cry for Azaadi from colonization is beautifully portrayed through the form of Tejh Singh’s call for arms.
- Mehar’s great-grandson, went through a process of self-discovery, making connections with people and the land, which was an insightful journey.
- The flashbacks into the great-grandson’s childhood, where he was a victim of racism in London, led to his addiction. Apart from Mehar's story, this caused me a lot of heartbreak.
I would have loved to know more about Radhika and the teacher, but it was touched on lightly.
FACT - Sahota weaved this story taking instances from his own experience in London of racism and his great grandmother, who was one of 4 veiled daughters-in-law, who did not know who the husband was.
Graphic: Sexual content, Alcoholism, Xenophobia, and Racism