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A review by chandanakuruganty
Six Acres and a Third: The Classic Nineteenth-Century Novel about Colonial India by Fakir Mohan Senapati
5.0
"If a bowl of wine and a bowl of water are placed in front of a drunkard, he will certainly prefer the former; only when he is desperately thirsty does he realize that though wine is intoxicating, water gives life."
There was not one dull or boring moment in reading this absolutely well written satirical work and kudos to translator for keeping in place Sanskrit Shlokas and providing a very literal meanings to some of them (pun intended)! Author's writing style is refereshing, new and nuanced showing deep understanding of society, beliefs, history of Odisha and emotions of people. Story presentation, character development and moral takeaway are simple and subtly hard-hitting, making it one of my favorite reads of the year.
On a concluding note, the tragic/ not so tragic ending in the book subsumes to the background when the author makes a note of Kalidasa's line "God is averse to creating a human being who is blessed with all joys of life."
There was not one dull or boring moment in reading this absolutely well written satirical work and kudos to translator for keeping in place Sanskrit Shlokas and providing a very literal meanings to some of them (pun intended)! Author's writing style is refereshing, new and nuanced showing deep understanding of society, beliefs, history of Odisha and emotions of people. Story presentation, character development and moral takeaway are simple and subtly hard-hitting, making it one of my favorite reads of the year.
On a concluding note, the tragic/ not so tragic ending in the book subsumes to the background when the author makes a note of Kalidasa's line "God is averse to creating a human being who is blessed with all joys of life."