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3.48 AVERAGE
3.48 AVERAGE
A very sweet earthly story of a coastal Indian family. Really loved how the story arched from difficult to hopeful times. At times the country description is little too much but overall left me with a happy feeling.
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I did not enjoy this book at all. I get that the author wanted to show the reality of poverty in India, which I found very interesting to read about, but I still didn’t like how the story of the siblings was developed. I don’t think the story fitted the message that the author wanted to give at all.
The ending felt like reading the bible because of its longevity. If I hadn’t had to read it for college, I would had left it around the page number 100. Besides, there’re so many unnecessary descriptions of EVERYTHING — I bet the book would have had 50 pages less if those were cut out, tbh.
The ending felt like reading the bible because of its longevity. If I hadn’t had to read it for college, I would had left it around the page number 100. Besides, there’re so many unnecessary descriptions of EVERYTHING — I bet the book would have had 50 pages less if those were cut out, tbh.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death
The Village by The Sea is the (true) story of siblings Hari and Lila, along with their younger sisters Kamal and Bella, as they struggle in a quickly changing India. Living in a small village by the sea, the children have to adapt to difficult circumstances that include a drunken father, a terribly ill mother, and extreme poverty. It's not a story of overcoming adversity but one of resilience.
Desai's writing is simple and fitting for the book, but not remarkable. Her descriptions of natural locations and of the busy city Bombay are the best aspects of the book, and do her credit. The plot, however, was not well developed. There were many subplots that proved to be irrelevant to the story, and they were presented with details that only served in adding the total number of pages.
Given, however, that this book was written for young adults, I can honestly say that it serves its purpose well, and that today its message is deeply needed to help us remember what it's like to survive under truly harsh conditions.
Desai's writing is simple and fitting for the book, but not remarkable. Her descriptions of natural locations and of the busy city Bombay are the best aspects of the book, and do her credit. The plot, however, was not well developed. There were many subplots that proved to be irrelevant to the story, and they were presented with details that only served in adding the total number of pages.
Given, however, that this book was written for young adults, I can honestly say that it serves its purpose well, and that today its message is deeply needed to help us remember what it's like to survive under truly harsh conditions.
“The village by the Sea” by Anita Desai was my introduction to the much debated - Indian Writing in English [IWE]. Since then, each time I have picked up this book [Yes, I am one of those people who likes to read & re-read the same book over and over again] I have found something new to admire about it and over the last few years I have accumulated quite a few ‘points’ that I like about this book.
First, as a work of fiction it is not short of exquisite. The setting, the characters and the plot -- all fall together and fit beautifully. Be it Hari, a twelve year old or Jaggu, the food stall owner, everybody has a role to play and a lesson to teach. Be it the village of Thul or the big city of Mumbai, the vivid description of the places helps the reader to transport from one place to the other along with the characters in play. Personally, I found that there was something delicate in the author’s style of storytelling that grabbed my attention from the very beginning. She is skillful in depicting the world as it is; the characters are very true to life and she has managed to weave in the many facets of the society, politics and religion into a single work.
This book also imparts quite a few ‘messages’, the most prominent one being that of ‘change’. Change is inevitable in life and in society. All one can do to prosper is to adapt to it. When the government decided to set up a factory, the villagers resisted the change fearing the repercussions of it. But a twelve year old Hari learnt to adapt. His plans of a small poultry plan and a watch repair shop displayed his awareness of the changes that would soon take place in his small village and his willingness to adapt. Also, a thirteen year old Lila adapts to life throughout – whether be it taking up the responsibilities of her family or accepting the DeSilvas’ or finally agreeing with Hari’s plan – adapting according to the situation has always been Lila’s way of life.
Then there is that ever present message of ‘Hope’. You would think that kids like that - growing up in extreme poverty, with an alcoholic father and practically non-existing mother, with no supervision or guidance - would end up as a bad lot. But no, even in such a situation, it is possible for a ‘Hari’ to emerge and a ‘Lila’ to thrive. Even at the worst situations the young ones never lost hope. May be it was their innocence or maybe it’s just who they were. Help is always there for those who really need it – be it in form of a Jaggu or a Panwallah or the DeSilva family.
The reflection of the society, painted through the book is not a pretty one. Yet it stands true till date. The author has managed to capture the very essence of a village life in India. Extreme poverty, poor health care system and below average education rate is not really encouraging, rather it was pretty depressing. Child labour, represented through Hari while he worked at the restaurant in Mumbai alongside other boys, is another harsh truth of our country. The difference between Urban India and Rural India and between the rich and the poor is accentuated at various points. Also the attitude of the city people and the villagers, towards each other, felt so completely appalling even though somewhere in my heart I knew it was true.
Also, I have to admit that a huge amount of credit should go to the author for venturing towards a path few had trodden upon. This book was published in 1982 when ‘Indian Writing in English’ was not such a common thing. Sure, there had been the likes of R.K.Narayan who had already published a few of his works, and Salman Rushdie’s ‘Midnight’s Children’ had already been out, but it was not as common as it is now. Very few people were actually aware and even those aware would criticize the authors for not writing in their native language. It was in the 80’s that few prominent authors gave the push that Indian English Literature needed – Anita Desai being one of them.
I feel that this book never got the recognition it deserves.
First, as a work of fiction it is not short of exquisite. The setting, the characters and the plot -- all fall together and fit beautifully. Be it Hari, a twelve year old or Jaggu, the food stall owner, everybody has a role to play and a lesson to teach. Be it the village of Thul or the big city of Mumbai, the vivid description of the places helps the reader to transport from one place to the other along with the characters in play. Personally, I found that there was something delicate in the author’s style of storytelling that grabbed my attention from the very beginning. She is skillful in depicting the world as it is; the characters are very true to life and she has managed to weave in the many facets of the society, politics and religion into a single work.
This book also imparts quite a few ‘messages’, the most prominent one being that of ‘change’. Change is inevitable in life and in society. All one can do to prosper is to adapt to it. When the government decided to set up a factory, the villagers resisted the change fearing the repercussions of it. But a twelve year old Hari learnt to adapt. His plans of a small poultry plan and a watch repair shop displayed his awareness of the changes that would soon take place in his small village and his willingness to adapt. Also, a thirteen year old Lila adapts to life throughout – whether be it taking up the responsibilities of her family or accepting the DeSilvas’ or finally agreeing with Hari’s plan – adapting according to the situation has always been Lila’s way of life.
Then there is that ever present message of ‘Hope’. You would think that kids like that - growing up in extreme poverty, with an alcoholic father and practically non-existing mother, with no supervision or guidance - would end up as a bad lot. But no, even in such a situation, it is possible for a ‘Hari’ to emerge and a ‘Lila’ to thrive. Even at the worst situations the young ones never lost hope. May be it was their innocence or maybe it’s just who they were. Help is always there for those who really need it – be it in form of a Jaggu or a Panwallah or the DeSilva family.
The reflection of the society, painted through the book is not a pretty one. Yet it stands true till date. The author has managed to capture the very essence of a village life in India. Extreme poverty, poor health care system and below average education rate is not really encouraging, rather it was pretty depressing. Child labour, represented through Hari while he worked at the restaurant in Mumbai alongside other boys, is another harsh truth of our country. The difference between Urban India and Rural India and between the rich and the poor is accentuated at various points. Also the attitude of the city people and the villagers, towards each other, felt so completely appalling even though somewhere in my heart I knew it was true.
Also, I have to admit that a huge amount of credit should go to the author for venturing towards a path few had trodden upon. This book was published in 1982 when ‘Indian Writing in English’ was not such a common thing. Sure, there had been the likes of R.K.Narayan who had already published a few of his works, and Salman Rushdie’s ‘Midnight’s Children’ had already been out, but it was not as common as it is now. Very few people were actually aware and even those aware would criticize the authors for not writing in their native language. It was in the 80’s that few prominent authors gave the push that Indian English Literature needed – Anita Desai being one of them.
I feel that this book never got the recognition it deserves.
adventurous
challenging
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
challenging
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal death, Chronic illness, Domestic abuse
inspiring
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
No
it was a story of simple villagers, mostly fishermen and their family living in a small village in coastal Maharashtra, maybe in the eighties or nineties. It revolves around Leela, Hari, their 2 other siblings, a frail mother and drunkard of a father. The burden of maintaining the family falls on the shoulder of two elder children. Leela tries to cope up the best she could, whereas Hari runs off to Mumbai. The story culminates with their triumph over nature and circumstances.
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced