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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
- 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
- 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