I am so happy to be able to post that I completed The Inheritance of Loss!! I was delayed by all sorts of circumstances (i.e. sickness, husband visiting, demon-puppy), so I decided that I needed to start reading again from the beginning. I am not one of those people who can read a little, put the book down for a week, and then pick it back up again. I like to read pretty much straight through, so this one took longer than it should have. Sorry, folks!
I am also happy to report that....drumroll, please....I enjoyed this novel very much! It wouldn't go on the "Best Books I've Read-Would Go Back and Reread" list, but I did learn a great deal from it and I thought it was exquisitely written. Some of the language....ahhhh....made me go back and read over certain paragraphs because the description was so lovely. The plot is heartrending, so it is an interesting contrast to be able to revel in author Kiran Desai's beautiful diction while feeling anguish for individual characters and an embattled country.
Inheritance, a novel of heartache, hope, injustice, and loss, takes place in 1980s India, with several flashbacks to previous generations. Tensions are rising between native Indians, especially those with British accents, educations, and airs, and Nepali Indians, or Ghorkas. From tentative beginnings of peaceful protests and strikes to horrifying riots, murders, and starvation, Desai uses the lives of her characters to trace the evolution of a social movement that changed the face of an entire nation. And I must say, I did enjoy her characters :) If you read my review of Falling Man, you know that is a big deal for me. I sympathized with Sai, a young Indian girl coming of age and learning hard lessons of first love and heartbreak amidst a landscape of terror, mistrust, and confusion. My heart broke for Biju, a beloved son who fails to achieve success in America, but does not recognize the India he finds upon his return. And don't get me started about Mutt. Okay, I have to leave something for you to find out on your own, right?? :)
To sum up: This is a worthwhile read. I really learned a great deal about India's struggles and the various sides to her story. More importantly, I am inspired to learn more! The characters are appealing and the language will have you envisioning lush jungles and mists cloaking the peak of Kanchenjunga, as well as the heartache of a nation plunged into tumult. Go forth and read!!
Next up: Carry Me Down by M.J. Hyland.
Happy Reading!
--Kate
As a lifelong reader, I am always looking for the next tempting book, the next inspiring author, the next delicious morsel of a sentence. My new challenge is this: Read all of the books featured in the 2008 version of Peter Boxall's "1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die." I will provide my reviews and recommendations for each book. Follow my progress and, if you dare, join me!
3 comments:
Kate -- such a good review! It made me want to pick up the book. Then again, I'm reading The Lay of the Land right now, which has an ungodly number of words per page, so this may have to wait.
Really looking forward to the next post. Are you going to post mini-updates as work your way through each book, or just one review at the end of each?
Nic,
Thanks! I think you'd like it, too. I'm not sure yet about how I'm going to update everything. This one was crazy, but I'm almost through with Carry Me Down, so that one will come much quicker. I'll have to check out The Lay of the Land!
"Go forth and read!!"
Is that a KY-CO version of "Live well and prosper?"
Good review...
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