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3.57 AVERAGE
3.57 AVERAGE
Saw the reviews by other Goodreads members who were disappointed with Roy's latest fiction. I am not surprised with their reviews, as most of the reviews been done by people who might not have better understanding about the historical, current political, religious, and hermaphrodite's living atmospheres in subcontinent. Not to mention, Roy's unwillingness to replace local languages with English translated words throughout the entire book, might have made these readers uncomfortable. For me it's a beautiful second novel and hit more closer to my heart than "The God of Small Things". It's unfair to compare and I will not be that person who says I liked that one better, considering both books tackle different but equally important issues in the lives of marginalized communities in India.
At first I found this book to be very slow and hard to follow. However, as I kept reading, I realized the writing of it was so interesting and was really working on me. As I read, I picked up the rhythm of it and it felt at times like poetry, and at other times really rough guttural aggressively poignant language.
The last third of the book brought everyone together. However, not in the makes-sense kind of way we expect. Nothing made sense about it, but it worked. One of the themes was the maddening illogical violence of power, love, and humanity.
“They were outstanding performers. Their raw, haunting music opened up the city sky and shook the dust off the stars.”
“When the parents of the drowned children protested they were shot at. The luckier ones died.”
“And then, as though he had been waiting for the women to leave before making his entry, [he] appeared. In the following order:
Sound
Sight
Smell (stench).”
The last third of the book brought everyone together. However, not in the makes-sense kind of way we expect. Nothing made sense about it, but it worked. One of the themes was the maddening illogical violence of power, love, and humanity.
“They were outstanding performers. Their raw, haunting music opened up the city sky and shook the dust off the stars.”
“When the parents of the drowned children protested they were shot at. The luckier ones died.”
“And then, as though he had been waiting for the women to leave before making his entry, [he] appeared. In the following order:
Sound
Sight
Smell (stench).”
challenging
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Very good writing however I think it would have been more meaningful if I knew more Indian history.
adventurous
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
slow-paced
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
tw graphic depictions of torture, murder; graphic islamophobia; transmisogyny
“How to tell a shattered story?
By slowly becoming everybody.
No.
By slowly becoming everything.”
This was a difficult read, and I should note that I’m a non-Kashmiri Pakistani, so there are parts of the Kashmir struggle that I will never be able to relate to — but Arundhati Roy does an excellent job of painting the atrocities that Kashmiris face on a daily basis, on both sides of the border, as well as the way Muslims, Christians, Sikhs and other non-Hindu minorities are treated in India.
I absolutely love the portrayal of the Hijra community, and I’m in love with Anjum and the world she creates in the Jannat Guest House.
“How to tell a shattered story?
By slowly becoming everybody.
No.
By slowly becoming everything.”
This was a difficult read, and I should note that I’m a non-Kashmiri Pakistani, so there are parts of the Kashmir struggle that I will never be able to relate to — but Arundhati Roy does an excellent job of painting the atrocities that Kashmiris face on a daily basis, on both sides of the border, as well as the way Muslims, Christians, Sikhs and other non-Hindu minorities are treated in India.
I absolutely love the portrayal of the Hijra community, and I’m in love with Anjum and the world she creates in the Jannat Guest House.
It started out great but then got more and more boring until I lost interest completely.