East of the Sun

I'm not sure where I first heard of Julia Gregson's East of the Sun: A Novel, but it was well before it was published in the states. It was this review by Harriet Devine that made me decide for once and for all that I needed to give this book a try. I was lucky enough to mooch a copy with that gorgeous cover you see above. The US edition is nice looking, but I think this aquamarine cover is just sublime.

East of the Sun takes place in 1928 and is the story of three women. Viva is an orphaned young woman trying to get her fare paid to India where her parents died and where she is searching for a piece of her past. Viva becomes the chaperone for Rose and Victoria (Tor). Rose is traveling to India to marry a military man whom she has only known a short time. She is sad to leave her family and nervous about her new life. In contrast, Tor, Rose's bridesmaid, is thrilled to finally have some freedom and cannot wait to get out from under her mother's watch and experience life. Also traveling under Viva's care is Guy, a troubled teen who has been educated in England (until he was expelled) while his parents lived in India. Guy becomes rather a troublesome influence in Viva's life; he is somewhat mentally disturbed.

The first part of the book is about the actual trip to India. Later on we follow Viva as she tries to eek out a living, Rose, as she becomes accustomed to married life, and Tor as she seeks romance, for she does not want to be sent home, unmarried and ashamed. I think Viva was my favorite character to read about. Her struggles were the most interesting as well as her life living and working amongst the native people of India. I found Rose's story fascinating as well, the idea that a beautiful young woman would leave her family, possibly forever, to marry a man she barely knows. I'm reading another book right now, a nonfiction book about the lack of men to marry after WW1. Perhaps that is why Rose took a risk.

I found East of the Sun to be the perfect sort of comfort reading for me. I read it on vacation and it was the perfect book to fall into and escape with at the end of the day. I don't know that it would survive harsh literary criticism, but I have to say I sort of loved it. Loved the girls and their relationships, loved the romance, loved the setting in India where the Indian people are beginning to chafe under British rule.

It was a compelling read for me, so much so, that I have Gregson's other published novel, The Water Horse, winging its way to me from England as I write.

In the Mood for India

I went to see Slumdog Millionare a couple weeks ago, and that put me in the mood for reading something set in India. Last year around this time, I had a personal 'read India' thing going on, so I had quite a few things to choose from, but I decided I wanted some Rohinton Mistry, author of A Fine Balance, one of my favorite books of 2008, and actually one of my favorite books ever. I decided to go with Family Matters, Mistry's most recent novel.

The novel opens with elderly Nariman, a retired professor, who lives with his stepchildren Coomy and Jal in a fairly roomy apartment and still enjoys his daily walks despite his advancing age and Parkinson's Disease. Nariman has in many ways become the child in his household as Coomy and Jal try to dicate what he does. Perhaps they should have gone walking with Nariman, because eventually he falls and breaks his ankle. The break is particularly bad and when he comes home to the apartment all his physical needs fall on Coomy and Jal, who are quite disgusted by it all. They decide that Nariman would be better off with his daughter Roxana, their half-sister who lives in a very small apartment with her husband and two children. They show up unannounced with Nariman and leave him at the apartment. Roxana is a dutiful daughter with helpful and kind sons and despite the lack of space Nariman thrives in the more positive atmosphere. The story shifts at this point to be told more from the perspective of Roxana's husband Yezad. Yezad was a very complex character. I went from thinking he was a nice fellow, to being annoyed with him but understanding why, to thinking he was an idiot with his business dealings, to thinking he really had a good heart, to finally thinking that he turned into the exact person he didn't want to be. There are a lot of different storylines in this novel, but the heart of the book is domesticity and family, as the title suggests. I actually thought for a moment that Mistry was going to give me a happy ending, but then I read the epilogue where everything you thought was going to happen with these people turned upside down.

I really enjoyed reading this book. Mistry is so very good at understanding the inner workings of people and creates such real and flawed characters that I can imagine going to visit them in India. I think Mistry is one of those writers whose work is very, very good, whose novels are going to be, for me, better than most other things I read. My expectations for his writing are so high, after reading A Fine Balance, that I don't know if anything could live up to it. Can you think of any books/authors that you feel that way about?

News, reviews, menus

First off, some good news. A representative from Hachette Book Group has agreed to do a giveaway of The Heretic's Daughter here on my blog - and there will be more than one copy! I will be posting the giveaway in early September, so be sure to come back then. (See below for my review.)


Next, a review, only one, though writing 'reviews' in the title sounded better, I think.

Asha Miro was born in India and adopted by a Spanish couple when she was around seven years old. This made Asha fortunate in many fairly obvious ways - her health improved, she was educated and given every opportunity to discover what it was she wanted out of life. The only thing that was missing for Asha was finding out where she had come from and how she came to be in an Indian orphanage.

Her book, Daughter of the Ganges, is really made up of two books she wrote about her experiences traveling to India in 1995 and again in 2003. In the first part of the book Asha travels with a volunteer agency, which gave her a reason to be in India, the opportunity to get to know India better, and some time to research her past. Asha finds herself at the orphanage she lived in while in Bombay and is able to visit with nuns that cared for her at that time. In the second part of the book, Asha returns to India to film a documentary. She has found that some of the people who cared for her as a child do not agree with her interpretation of events as set forth in her book. Asha wants to know the truth, so she visits both orphanages she lived in again. Through a series of events, Asha discovers a gift - that she has an older sister who is alive.

Daughter of the Ganges is written very simply, but is still very powerful. Asha writes that she wants people to be able to be more open about adoption, part of her reason for writing this book . Asha's prose is beautifully complimented in the first section of the book by pages out of her mother's diary, written during the adoption process, and after Asha joined the family. The second part of the book is quite joyful, with Asha meeting people related to her by blood for the first time. She is moved by how difficult their lives are, and is remarkably honest about her feelings, remarking that she cannot imagine living this way, knowing what she does about the world and its opportunities. While Asha is Indian by birth, she knows she is truly European in her behavior and attitudes toward life.

I came across this title when I was in my India phase earlier this year. It is certainly an interesting perspective of India, but also meaningful in its portrayal of adoption, from an adoptee's and her parent's point of view.

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And finally, for the menu. My husband has invited some people over for dinner tomorrow and as is his way, is not very clear about how many people there are or when they are coming. Hmmmmm. Here is what I am planning on serving:

Veggies with homemade hummus
Assorted grilled sausages
The potato/green bean/tomato dish I made last week (see below)
A salad (hopefully someone brings this)
Strawberry shortcake

What do you think?

Catching Up

I'm still trying to catch up on book reviews for books I've read in the past few weeks. When I was sick and planning on traveling a few weeks ago, I wanted to bring along books that would be comfortable - not too difficult, but not mindless either. I choose The Space Between Us by Thrity Umrigar and The Chimney Sweeper's Boy by Barbara Vine. Though these selections seemed very different I did find a common theme between them - that of women unhappily married due to physical or emotional abuse.


Set in Bombay/Mumbai, The Space Between Us is the story of two women, Sera the mistress, and Bhima, her maid for many years. Despite their very different lives, these women know each other better than probably anyone else due to their close proximity and long relationship, but because of their different social status, Bhima may not sit on the furniture or eat off of the dishes in Sera's home. The book details the many obstacles the women have dealt with over the years, the support they have received from the other and particularly the times Sera and her husband helped the illiterate Bhima with legal and personal issues. The supporting cast includes Bhima's granddaughter Maya, a promising young women who Sera is helping to educate. The climax of the book is a situation that arises which tests the women's loyalties to one another. I really, really enjoyed reading this book. I loved the setting and learning about modern life in India. I enjoyed the fact that many of the situations wouldn't happen in our modern society and becoming aware of how they would be dealt with, positively and negatively. The only issue I have with the book is the ending. There was a long build up leading to the inevitable climax which happened very abruptly. This left only the final chapter of the book which I found a bit unsatisfying.


Barbara Vine's The Chimney Sweeper's Boy was a nice contrast to the above in both setting and tone. Set in modern England, this is the story of writer Gerald Candless and his family including two adoring daughters. When one of his daughters begins researching a book about his life she discovers a terrible truth that no one in the family has ever suspected. I found this book quite different from the other Vine novels I have read. It does not have the same suspenseful pacing I have become accustomed to. I found this book to be much more a literary novel that happened to have suspense within it, rather that a true mystery/suspense novel. I suspect that is why I came across some negative reviews for this book - readers simply didn't get what they were expecting. I did enjoy the book and think Vine an excellent writer. I have found her books perfect reading material for traveling or when I am sick. I really find them to be absorbing.

More Mistry

I enjoyed reading A Fine Balance so much that I wanted to read more of Rohinton Mistry's work right away. In an interview I read online, it was mentioned that Mistry's book of short stories Swimming Lessons and Other Stories from Firozsha Baag was his most autobiographical work so I decided to start with that. The only problem I had with this book is the same problem I always have with short story collections - they make me anxious. I can't just pick it up and start reading. I have to make sure I have enough time (usually before bed) to read the story. I experience those general feelings of starting a new book - am I going to like it? Who are the characters? What is important here? So, this was a bit of a challenge for me and I'm happy to say I finished this.

The stories are all set in Firozsha Baag, an apartment complex in Bombay inhabited by Parsi Indians (correct my nomenclature if necessary). They are very domestic stories, about men and women, middle class and poor, old and young. One thing that makes this book different than other short story collections is that these stories are related. Not only are they set within the same apartment complex, the characters appear again and again. For this reason, this book is best read front to back. Each story certainly can stand on its own, but the relationships between the stories are particularly interesting. For example, we see a man befriend a young boy and learn of their passion for stamp collecting. Later on, we see this same boy as a young man and learn not only about his current life, but what he remembers of those days. One story that stood out in particular was called Exercisers, the story of a 19 year old young man whose mother is not thrilled with his choice of female friend. There was certainly a different parent/child relationship than I have been accustomed to (as there was in many of these stories) and different expectations for one's offspring. Can you imagine having an 8pm curfew at age 19? Exactly. The final story in this collection, Swimming Lessons, is the most autobiographical of all and I think we get a real sense of where Rohinton Mistry has come from. I enjoyed these stories and plan to read Mistry's other novels.

I've also finished She's Come Undone By Wally Lamb. This was a reread for me and will be discussed with my bookclub next week. I first read this novel around 10 years ago when Oprah recommended it through her book club. I didn't have much recollection of the story, only that I thought it was a good read.

This is the story of Dolores Price, beginning at age 4 until she is grown, around age 40. This story is full of dysfunction. Dolores suffers though one thing after another, until finally she is an obese and angry and sick young woman. Almost every character in the book share some level of this dysfunction. Only in the last 100 or so pages does Dolores really find her way and some healthy relationships develop in her life. While this is a very readable book, and Lamb has done an outstanding job of giving this female character a voice, I found that this time around there was just too much dysfunction. I still would consider it a good read, but there was something that was not there for me this time around. I don't know if it's because of all the other things I've been reading and watching lately, of real suffering and devastation that this just felt like overindulgence on the part of Dolores.

What books have you reread and found that they just don't live up to either your memory or your current expectations?

I couldn't help myself.......

I finally had to read Coraline. After reading 3 blog reviews of it in the past couple of weeks and seeing the trailer, I knew I had to just do it. I don't know what I was waiting for! Coraline was a fantastic, frightening, escapist read and I think it took me less that 2 hours to finish it. Coraline is a young girl who moves into a flat with her parents and discovers a parallel but creepy world on the other side of a mysterious door. There are parents that look like hers, but have buttons for eyes. They want to keep Coraline with them and when she doesn't want to stay they try everything in their power to make her. Coraline is amazingly brave. Naturally she is terrified, but she is able to keep her mind clear and focus on the task at hand - saving her family and some other unfortunate souls. This is obviously a very dark book, but there is plenty of humor, too. Musical mice, theater-loving dogs, and a very special talking cat . This book is meant for children, obviously older ones as this would be much too frightening for the younger set.


I watched a pretty amazing film last week called Water. Water is set in India in 1938 and tells the story of a young girl who has been married off, widowed, and sent to live out the rest of her life in a widow's ashram at age 8. She becomes close to another widow, a young woman forced into prostitution and the film shows what happens when this woman attempts to escape from her fate. The film is beautifully shot and though the subject matter is grim, the music and the setting are a joy. It took the writer of Water many years to have this film made because there was so much protest in India. She persevered and we have her to thank for providing us a chance to see this other way of life. Unfortunately, these practices go on, there are still widow's ashrams and child brides. As a mother, watching this film brought up many emotions in me about my own child. I am reminded of the scenes in Snow Flower and the Secret Fan when the young girl's feet are bound. I am reminded of the interview of an African woman planning to have her daughter circumcised because that is simply what is done. She knew it was against the law, but was ambivalent about the medical complications that could occur and stated that she believed it didn't hurt much. I come back to this story, when a mother and father send their child away to a life of sorrow. It all makes me want to give my daughter the education, knowledge and drive to fly away and succeed in this life on her own terms, to be everything she can be. I cannot imagine living in a culture that would force me to mutilate her body or send her to a hopeless life far away. I thank God I don't have to.

The book gods have been good to me lately. Very, very good.

This isn't even all of them. I'm frankly too lazy to go hunt down the rest.


I didn't purchase all these. Six of them came from paperbackswap. A few are gifts. A few are prizes - thanks Iliana and LibraryThing!


I did not arrange them into any sort of order here. Let's see...we have 13 fiction books, 6 nonfiction, 2 Viragos, 4 about India, many that would not be there if it were not for all of your recommendations.


I promised myself I wouldn't write about this publisher again after what Elaine has so aptly named Yammergate. I figured I'd still buy from them but not advertise anymore. But I have to show you this book. It's available from US Amazon. It only cost around $10. And it's really, really lovely. The same size as the others, it is beautifully published with a gorgeous cover and luxurious paper inside. It does look a little more bookstore-friendly than their other editions. I hope there will be more to come. That I don't already own.


Here is the inside cover. I love the flap.

A Fine Balance

A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry is simply one of the best books I've ever read. It is that rare book that consumes me, is in my thoughts when I'm away from it, that pushes me to learn more about its subject matter, that quite simply moves me.

A Fine Balance begins when four people come together at a small apartment in a large city in India by the sea in 1975, a time of tremendous upheaval in India. We get to know each character at length, their family, their background, what motivates them and what ultimates brings them to this apartment. As these four people come to know one another and appreciate each other and ultimately love one another we witness their journey. It is a journey of misery and sadness, fear and destruction, but also of hope and humanity and the very basic will to survive. Make no mistake - this is not a happy book. After thinking about the characters all day at work, I settled down to read the last 50 pages and I found myself hesitating, because as much as I was wanted to know what became of them all, I was afraid of what horrors they might have yet to face. It seemed they had suffered enough. Yet through it all, these people retained their sense of humor, positive outlook, and their hearts full of kindness. And for those who have read this book, the last two pages did me in. How can I feel so much for these characters who aren't even real, yet are, because they are a representation of a reality that is so difficult to fathom.

It's difficult to come away from a book such as this, since right now nothing else can live up to its standards, or could be as satisfying. I certainly plan to read more by this author in the future. I had already been planning on reading this book, but I thank all who suggested it to me when I was looking for books about India. You game me that little extra push I needed.