It is back to school week, so I delved into this extremely dark debut novel by an ex-pat Indian now living in Texas, to learn a bit about the Indian caste system and its nasty consequences. The reality may be a bit less frightening than portrayed here but is nevertheless awful. In a remote Indian village, in the 1980s, the local economy seems to depend on a pedophile ring of upper caste men forcing all the low caste girls into temple prostitution, under the guise of satisfying the needs of the Goddess Yellamma. According to the Author’s Note, this widespread practice persists, and is tolerated by authorities in many remote parts of India. One such child is rescued from this life by an apparently altruistic wealthy upper caste gentleman aided by her mother and one grandmother, both retired temple prostitutes, but appearances are deceptive and none of the characters are really altruistic. The two girls that bond in the upper caste home over five years, then become separated with multiple tragic deaths in the Mumbai bombings of 1993 that impact both, only to be reunited in the last few pages. Family secrets, disputed paternity, deceptions, loneliness, and abandonment add to the complex, realistic plot. Longing for affection and parental approval that never develops is a recurring theme. The deep emotions expressed by the characters, and those that will be elicited from the readers, do not seem somehow to be extreme, given the pathos of the circumstances.
The writing is not at all lyrical in spite of some poems, and there are a few grammatical errors as well as abundant terms that will not be familiar to most English readers, but their meaning can usually be inferred from the context. Extensive use of the time shift literary device (between 1984 and 2007) seems hardly necessary and the chapters could be enjoyably read in chronological order, with some minor editorial changes.
This is not a fun read, but it is very engaging, well-written, and educational. But do not read this if you are at all prone to depression.
The Passionate Reader 