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alteredego's review
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
coinchantal's review against another edition
2.0
I wished I would have liked the story more, I really do. I think it is a good story about a goat only the problem is it isn't in my opinion written for the western world. This story would do well in India, but it lacks and also the structure is hard to read for when you are Western (it might be the translation??). There for it only gets 3 points.
This is a ARC from the publisher, which I got for a honest review.
This is a ARC from the publisher, which I got for a honest review.
byronic_reader's review against another edition
3.0
I liked this book. But that's about it. I was not impressed by the story at all.
I enjoyed anthropomorphism in the story but I don't feel anything special or wow factor. And I don't have much to say about it.
I enjoyed anthropomorphism in the story but I don't feel anything special or wow factor. And I don't have much to say about it.
cardonac07's review
4.0
CBC book 6: wow, this was an emotional roller coaster. Good story but not fitting for multidisciplinary college level use.
Focuses on religious and political ideas relevant to rural India ... from a goat’s point of view.
Easy read.
Focuses on religious and political ideas relevant to rural India ... from a goat’s point of view.
Easy read.
charvi_not_just_fiction's review against another edition
4.0
Poonachi is a book that will intrigue you from the very first page.
The story starts off as we get introduced to this man shrouded in mystery who brings out Poonachi into the light. Poonachi is a baby lamb so small and fragile that she could be mistaken for a mewling kitten. Left in the hands of a farmer we follow her journey as she struggles to live her life and survive against all odds. She faces various obstacles but persists despite them.
If you believe that this book is merely the story of the life of a goat then you are sorely wrong. This book talks about humanity and the ever so shifting nature of humans. We rejoice during happiness and praise everyone and everything but during times of despair and darkness we may turn against those very things. When humans are desperate they don't let anything stand in their way and throw emotions like love and kindness down the drain. This book talks of innocence and love- the love of a mother for her children, the love of a caretaker for his/her animals and romantic love. Throught Poonachi's riveting journey many aspects and core values of humans and animals are revealed but what stood out the most to me was that nothing is permanent.
No human or animal lives forever, no emotions whether love, pain or sorrow last forever and even nature is ever changing and to fight against it all is futile.
All in all this was a beautiful story. I only felt that the end was rather abrupt and sudden and failed to truly understand it's meaning. Nevertheless, a must read for all!
The story starts off as we get introduced to this man shrouded in mystery who brings out Poonachi into the light. Poonachi is a baby lamb so small and fragile that she could be mistaken for a mewling kitten. Left in the hands of a farmer we follow her journey as she struggles to live her life and survive against all odds. She faces various obstacles but persists despite them.
If you believe that this book is merely the story of the life of a goat then you are sorely wrong. This book talks about humanity and the ever so shifting nature of humans. We rejoice during happiness and praise everyone and everything but during times of despair and darkness we may turn against those very things. When humans are desperate they don't let anything stand in their way and throw emotions like love and kindness down the drain. This book talks of innocence and love- the love of a mother for her children, the love of a caretaker for his/her animals and romantic love. Throught Poonachi's riveting journey many aspects and core values of humans and animals are revealed but what stood out the most to me was that nothing is permanent.
No human or animal lives forever, no emotions whether love, pain or sorrow last forever and even nature is ever changing and to fight against it all is futile.
All in all this was a beautiful story. I only felt that the end was rather abrupt and sudden and failed to truly understand it's meaning. Nevertheless, a must read for all!
jdintr's review against another edition
4.0
Black goats aren't very common site in the village near Okkadan Hill. Neither are giants. So when an old man is given one such goat by such a giant, he takes it home, hoping for good luck. The old man and his wife, so poor they can barely afford feed for the goat, incorporate her into their small herd.
The bulk of the book is told from the goat's perspective, which is both clever and disorienting. Hunger, joy, sex, desire, hope and heartbreak--all are fully realized as Poonachi grows into a Ewe with tremendous powers of fertility.
The book reads like a fable, and I felt challenged the further it got along. At times it seemed like a meditation on vegetarian (Poonachi's friend, her love, and two of her kids are butchered and eaten over the course of the story. It's not violent or graphic, but it is hearbreaking.) At other times, Muragan seems to bring out elements of caste in society, showing the social arrangements that the goats and humans adhere to.
But in the books surprising, perfect last lines the reader learns that the book may not be about a little black goat at all, but about what is wrong with people and our stewardship of the living things we have been given by our gods.
The bulk of the book is told from the goat's perspective, which is both clever and disorienting. Hunger, joy, sex, desire, hope and heartbreak--all are fully realized as Poonachi grows into a Ewe with tremendous powers of fertility.
The book reads like a fable, and I felt challenged the further it got along. At times it seemed like a meditation on vegetarian (Poonachi's friend, her love, and two of her kids are butchered and eaten over the course of the story. It's not violent or graphic, but it is hearbreaking.) At other times, Muragan seems to bring out elements of caste in society, showing the social arrangements that the goats and humans adhere to.
But in the books surprising, perfect last lines the reader learns that the book may not be about a little black goat at all, but about what is wrong with people and our stewardship of the living things we have been given by our gods.
biblioash01's review against another edition
4.0
The rain is always insufficient in the land of Asuras. Even if it poured for half an hour, they rather curse it for drenching them. Murugan's world of landscapes, animals, birds, and Asuras resembles the human world where the old couple we walk with shows the duality of human nature. The drought grows as love and affection are replaced with selfishness.
This anthropomorphized world follows the life of Poonachi, an extraordinary black goat. "The birth of an ordinary life never leaves a trace, does it?"
This world has an authoritative political system. "There's an old saying that the regime is deaf. It's deaf only when we speak about our problems. When we talk about the regime, its ears are quite sharp."
There are visible inequality and racism in this world "....her puny shape would support that claim. Her black color was a problem, however. Most of the goats in the state were white...Since they could not be recognized in the dark when engaged in any criminal activity."
There's a hunger for belongingness and desire for freedom "Weren't the wild boars happy only because they lived together? Would a solitary boar enjoy itself so much?"
There's a glimpse of status quo "None of the sheep had their neck and forelegs bound together with a rope. That was only done to the proud goats, who were forced to look at the ground as they walked."
There's the existence of rare and immense pleasure that comes from a soulful communication. "They talk about the highs of toddy and liquor, but those are not highs at all. Real intoxication comes from talking."
And it also has endless greed hidden under immense affection. "No matter how much you give to this heart, it will never be enough."
What bird is named as freedom in this society, aye? To me, Poonachi is a metaphor for those unfortunate and free-spirited lives struggling to belong to this world. "Everyone was well versed in how they were expected to behave towards the regime. They had mouths only to keep shut, hands only to make obeisance, knees only to bend and kneel, backs only to bend, and bodies only to shrink before the authorities." "Goats have horns, don't they? Suppose they get a little angry and point them at the regime? Such goats have to be identified, right?"
While I was enchanted strolling in the world of Murugan constantly being aware of the resemblance, I craved for closure, a full circle. Death felt like a plain attempt. I cannot stop wondering how did the shadow find Ponnachi and why did the situation unfold as they did. My lack of mythological and societal knowledge has left me unsatisfied.
This anthropomorphized world follows the life of Poonachi, an extraordinary black goat. "The birth of an ordinary life never leaves a trace, does it?"
This world has an authoritative political system. "There's an old saying that the regime is deaf. It's deaf only when we speak about our problems. When we talk about the regime, its ears are quite sharp."
There are visible inequality and racism in this world "....her puny shape would support that claim. Her black color was a problem, however. Most of the goats in the state were white...Since they could not be recognized in the dark when engaged in any criminal activity."
There's a hunger for belongingness and desire for freedom "Weren't the wild boars happy only because they lived together? Would a solitary boar enjoy itself so much?"
There's a glimpse of status quo "None of the sheep had their neck and forelegs bound together with a rope. That was only done to the proud goats, who were forced to look at the ground as they walked."
There's the existence of rare and immense pleasure that comes from a soulful communication. "They talk about the highs of toddy and liquor, but those are not highs at all. Real intoxication comes from talking."
And it also has endless greed hidden under immense affection. "No matter how much you give to this heart, it will never be enough."
What bird is named as freedom in this society, aye? To me, Poonachi is a metaphor for those unfortunate and free-spirited lives struggling to belong to this world. "Everyone was well versed in how they were expected to behave towards the regime. They had mouths only to keep shut, hands only to make obeisance, knees only to bend and kneel, backs only to bend, and bodies only to shrink before the authorities." "Goats have horns, don't they? Suppose they get a little angry and point them at the regime? Such goats have to be identified, right?"
While I was enchanted strolling in the world of Murugan constantly being aware of the resemblance, I craved for closure, a full circle. Death felt like a plain attempt. I cannot stop wondering how did the shadow find Ponnachi and why did the situation unfold as they did. My lack of mythological and societal knowledge has left me unsatisfied.
neethuraghavan676's review against another edition
5.0
I havent read a book as sweet as this. I haven't laughed, smiled, wept and felt heartbroken reading any other book. The little goat poonachi was given by a giant man to an old couple telling that she will give birth to seven kids in a single delivery. How much this little thing wanted to fit in the group of goats owned by the old couple and how bad that they abandoned her. She felt in love with a goat but they were separated.She had compassion to other goats but nobody understood her.
"Kaduvayan lingered close to her the whole day. When her eyes fell on him by chance, Poonachi burst into tears. Without saying anything, he touched her face as if to say, ‘That’s how it is with everything.’"
"Kaduvayan lingered close to her the whole day. When her eyes fell on him by chance, Poonachi burst into tears. Without saying anything, he touched her face as if to say, ‘That’s how it is with everything.’"
sriyasbooks's review against another edition
4.0
What a strange, wonderful little fable. I started reading this on a whim but ended up enjoying it for what it is (3.5 stars, rounded up). It's a short and simple story of a little orphaned, runt-of-the-litter, black goat named Poonachi, but that doesn't mean it is sweet. Poonachi goes through a lot of trauma and pain in her brief life, and it was an interesting perspective to consider an animal only raised for continuous breeding and slaughter (definitely makes me want to go full vegetarian too). It's also surprisingly adult, with Poonachi's descriptions (not graphic, but they are there) of sex, what seems like sexual harassment, and seemingly rape. The book also swears, which was also interesting when pared with the simple tone of a fable.
The most interesting part to me is the casual cruelty Poonachi experiences from people that care for her and love her, from the couple that takes care of her, to playmates as a child, to the general public, and from everyone. The book also speaks out on the commercialization of (seemingly) human lives, and the casual and random brutality of life and the people that live it. I also enjoyed that only the goat characters are named, with the main two human caretakers just being called the old man and the old woman. It's a new perspective, that's for sure.
For a very short book, it's surprisingly dense with themes and characters, and I did enjoy it. Pacing is a bit slow, but it seems more like a character study than anything. I love that this took place in the villages of Tamil Nadu, and that the book was even translated from Tamil into English. Knowing some of their experiences from my own is a bit of a new experience from a book, not gonna lie. I did end up caring about Poonachi and all the other characters too. In general, I'm just glad I decided to pick this up I guess.
The most interesting part to me is the casual cruelty Poonachi experiences from people that care for her and love her, from the couple that takes care of her, to playmates as a child, to the general public, and from everyone. The book also speaks out on the commercialization of (seemingly) human lives, and the casual and random brutality of life and the people that live it. I also enjoyed that only the goat characters are named, with the main two human caretakers just being called the old man and the old woman. It's a new perspective, that's for sure.
For a very short book, it's surprisingly dense with themes and characters, and I did enjoy it. Pacing is a bit slow, but it seems more like a character study than anything. I love that this took place in the villages of Tamil Nadu, and that the book was even translated from Tamil into English. Knowing some of their experiences from my own is a bit of a new experience from a book, not gonna lie. I did end up caring about Poonachi and all the other characters too. In general, I'm just glad I decided to pick this up I guess.
annetjeberg's review against another edition
4.0
So, a book about a goat. Should you read it?
Yes, you definitely should. A completely different take on the usual animal narrators (it isn't a cat or a dog this time!) and I loved how her voice came through.
Not so sure about the ending, am sure that it makes more sense in Tamil for a Tamil audience, and I am sure things got lost in the translation. But again, a great short(er) novel by an interesting author!
Yes, you definitely should. A completely different take on the usual animal narrators (it isn't a cat or a dog this time!) and I loved how her voice came through.
Not so sure about the ending, am sure that it makes more sense in Tamil for a Tamil audience, and I am sure things got lost in the translation. But again, a great short(er) novel by an interesting author!