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jainandsdiary 's review for:
Black Soil
by J. Priyadarshini, பொன்னீலன், Ponneelan
Book: Black Soil
Author: Ponneelan
Translator: J. Priyadarshini
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Publisher: Penguin Hamish Hamilton
Pages: 420
Agriculture, being the primary sector of the Indian economy, and the leading one after Independence for decades, plays a crucial role in not only the economy but social, political, and cultural practices as well. And getting to know more about the historical events makes us closer to them and the country. And "Black Soil" is one such book.
Black Soil was a debut book originally written in Tamil and was released in 1976 as "Karisal" by Ponneelan, a Sahitya Akademy Winning author for Tamil in 1994, and was based on "incidents similar to the Keezhvenmani massacre that happened in 1968" as written by J. Priyadarshini in Translator's note is a book that marks a deep impact.
When Kannappan is posted as a teacher in Perumalpuram, a village in Tamil Nadu, he was shocked initially. The region of black soil and the condition of the people there affected him deeply, especially the impact of Master- the landlord on everyone. And he wants to bring a change there. But at what conditions? Read the book to know more.
This is not only the story of the people of Karisal but of Karisal itself. The bonds between the people of the place, the adversities, and problems they face, how education plays a crucial role, the situation of women in the society at that time, now the farmer's unity can bring a change and as the book says on the first page, it is "The story of the black soil turning red", and no other words can describe it better than this.
The characters of Master, Kannappan, Veerayyan, Mookayi, and Ponni play a significant role, but who intrigued me the most was Veeramma and I would have loved to know more about her.
Although the story was a little dragged, making it difficult to be thoroughly attached to it. I would have appreciated it if a character list would have been given. Also, I wished to witness more of the relationship dynamics between the characters and more about them and their history as well.
This is a book with a strong theme, topic, and content and can be read for its significance. I’ll give it 3/5 stars.
I was provided a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
Author: Ponneelan
Translator: J. Priyadarshini
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Publisher: Penguin Hamish Hamilton
Pages: 420
Agriculture, being the primary sector of the Indian economy, and the leading one after Independence for decades, plays a crucial role in not only the economy but social, political, and cultural practices as well. And getting to know more about the historical events makes us closer to them and the country. And "Black Soil" is one such book.
Black Soil was a debut book originally written in Tamil and was released in 1976 as "Karisal" by Ponneelan, a Sahitya Akademy Winning author for Tamil in 1994, and was based on "incidents similar to the Keezhvenmani massacre that happened in 1968" as written by J. Priyadarshini in Translator's note is a book that marks a deep impact.
When Kannappan is posted as a teacher in Perumalpuram, a village in Tamil Nadu, he was shocked initially. The region of black soil and the condition of the people there affected him deeply, especially the impact of Master- the landlord on everyone. And he wants to bring a change there. But at what conditions? Read the book to know more.
This is not only the story of the people of Karisal but of Karisal itself. The bonds between the people of the place, the adversities, and problems they face, how education plays a crucial role, the situation of women in the society at that time, now the farmer's unity can bring a change and as the book says on the first page, it is "The story of the black soil turning red", and no other words can describe it better than this.
The characters of Master, Kannappan, Veerayyan, Mookayi, and Ponni play a significant role, but who intrigued me the most was Veeramma and I would have loved to know more about her.
Although the story was a little dragged, making it difficult to be thoroughly attached to it. I would have appreciated it if a character list would have been given. Also, I wished to witness more of the relationship dynamics between the characters and more about them and their history as well.
This is a book with a strong theme, topic, and content and can be read for its significance. I’ll give it 3/5 stars.
I was provided a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.