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shubham_maurya 's review for:
The God of Small Things
by Arundhati Roy
Arundhati Roy’s The God of Small Things is about fine lines between love, pain, joy, madness, jealousy, hierarchy, human intent and nature. It shows the intricacies of familial love, set against the lush, politically charged landscape of Kerala, India. This novel, Roy’s debut, 1997 Booker Prize winner is a blend of emotional depth and innovative narration.
The story is set in Ayemenem, Kerala, with a disjointed narrative shifting between 1969 and 1993. Estha and Rahel are fraternal twins whose lives are irrevocably altered by a hostile political climate, love laws, a family tragedy, and a series of ‘small things’ that collide to alter the course of their lives.
In this novel, Roy criticises the rigid social hierarchies and moral codes that govern Indian society, and the destructive power of these structures through the tragic love affair between Ammu, the twins' mother, and Velutha, an Untouchable. Their doomed relationship highlights the brutality of the caste system and how it perpetuates inequality and suffering.
The portrayal of lush Kerala landscape, monsoon, and communism, mirror complexities of human emotions with lyrical prose, jumps between periods, rich with imagery and symbolism advocates Roy as a powerful voice in contemporary literature. Though, in some places, the book was criticised especially for its unrestrained description of sexuality and obscenity.
The story is tragic, but it never promises to be anything else. Sadness and loss weave through the story right from the start. It’s not for everyone. If you are a literary enthusiast, or you enjoy dense flowery writing, or you like to experience different cultures through books, this will be worth your while.
The story is set in Ayemenem, Kerala, with a disjointed narrative shifting between 1969 and 1993. Estha and Rahel are fraternal twins whose lives are irrevocably altered by a hostile political climate, love laws, a family tragedy, and a series of ‘small things’ that collide to alter the course of their lives.
In this novel, Roy criticises the rigid social hierarchies and moral codes that govern Indian society, and the destructive power of these structures through the tragic love affair between Ammu, the twins' mother, and Velutha, an Untouchable. Their doomed relationship highlights the brutality of the caste system and how it perpetuates inequality and suffering.
The portrayal of lush Kerala landscape, monsoon, and communism, mirror complexities of human emotions with lyrical prose, jumps between periods, rich with imagery and symbolism advocates Roy as a powerful voice in contemporary literature. Though, in some places, the book was criticised especially for its unrestrained description of sexuality and obscenity.
The story is tragic, but it never promises to be anything else. Sadness and loss weave through the story right from the start. It’s not for everyone. If you are a literary enthusiast, or you enjoy dense flowery writing, or you like to experience different cultures through books, this will be worth your while.