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book_concierge 's review for:
The Inheritance of Loss
by Kiran Desai
This is Desai’s debut novel and she was awarded the Man Booker Prize for it. The story revolves around two sets of “parents” – The judge, an English-educated Indian, and his equally-educated granddaughter, Sai; the cook, a virtually illiterate servant of the judge and his son, Biju, who has gone to America to seek his fortune. The setting is northeastern India and the time is civil war and the ethnic cleansing among warring factions. There is so much “loss” passed from generation to generation … loss of culture, of ethnic identity, of opportunity, of love, of respect, of class, of illusion. Was Desai saying that we “cannot” go home again, or that we “should not” go home again?
A very thought provoking work, but I’m not sure to whom I’d recommend it. It’s not a fast or easy book to read. The plot doesn’t carry you along and it is bleak in places. Yet the writing is beautiful and, especially on giving it some thought, I really appreciate the book.
A very thought provoking work, but I’m not sure to whom I’d recommend it. It’s not a fast or easy book to read. The plot doesn’t carry you along and it is bleak in places. Yet the writing is beautiful and, especially on giving it some thought, I really appreciate the book.