Review Date Feb 14th 2010
(from Wiki)
The God of Small Things (1997) is a novel by Indian author Arundhati Roy. It is a story about the childhood experiences of a pair of fraternal twins who become victims of circumstance. The book is a description of how the small things in life build up, translate into people's behavior and affect their lives. The book won the Booker Prize in 1997.
“The God of Small Things” is Arundhati Roy’s powerful account of a wildly dysfunctional Keralite family’s personal tragedy catapulted into hideous social injustice. The series of events leading to it, and its aftermath are seen through the eyes of Estha and Rahel, twinned in soul, and not just by accident of birth.
ReplyDeleteBesides its brilliant characterization, what lends power and force to this story is the author’s language – lyrical, passionate and sensuous. She excels at very luscious descriptions, and is really able to evoke the beauty of ‘small things’. She is equally good at evoking disgust and revulsion.
Explicit violence, graphic sex, a fixation with the male anatomy - and I felt that some of it at least, was just for effect. It seems intended to jolt the reader.
Its other drawbacks – her writing can also be jarringly idiosyncratic, riddled with metaphors that don’t always work, generously sprinkled with obscenities, and annoyingly precious. When she meanders into the morass of regional politics, her tone becomes oddly flat and unconvincing. Her social criticism oscillates between heartfelt pathos, and strident hectoring.
But her delicate irony, and wicked sense of humor illuminate an otherwise joyless story. She writes like an angel, whenever she’s talking about or through the children. If I ever read this book again, it would be solely for that reason. Though a lot of the book deals with ugly matters, what gives beauty to it is this – the tender humor and aching compassion. It’s like a rainbow in a gutter.
The plot itself, a love affair doomed by social divides and political conniving, will be nothing new to those who have had their fair share of Indian movie melodrama. Her depiction of 1960s Kerala as a hotbed of social oppression is questionable. But whatever its other weaknesses, the characterization more than makes up for this book’s shortcomings. Her characters, however seriously flawed, are never demonized. They err by being human.
The book itself is an intriguing juxtaposition of the ugly and the beautiful. In that vein, Roy’s linguistic eccentricities, her shrill social criticism, and dismal world-view, are finely counterbalanced by her poetic prose, deep compassion, and, exquisite sense of humor.
Admirers of Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird”, and Isabel Allende’s “The House of Spirits” may like this book.
I thought the similes while inventive and catchy were simply overkill by the end of the book. Her sense of humor though is top notch. The scene where Vellaya Paapen is shocked, incredulous at being touched by Mammachi cracked me up.
ReplyDeleteIt's a compelling read inspite of it's relentless gloom and doom vibe, cringe humor and controversial ending. In that regard the author scores big.
On the surface this story is a vivid recollection of circumstances that led to the separation of fraternal twins 23 years ago when they were seven.
ReplyDeleteHowever this seemingly “simple” memoir revolves around three generations from the elite Syrian Christian dysfunctional family, their unique human psychologies laced with bitter sweet love stories. The setting spans various social classes and diverse cultures, with the author traveling back and forth around the world through 1900s with her characters.
The elaborate characterizations and scene descriptions are laden generously with similes and metaphors, the unhurried pace is like children savoring every moment to its fullest. A feast for imagination! The author painstakingly dwells on beauty of “small things” which unfortunately leads to the ugliness of “the big things”.
The book overall is very sad and depressing yet it is not one I will forget easily. All the characters are portrayed as being victimized by society and this affects their lives completely. They are all bitter and vengeful towards each other and the world. They all seem to have been lost to the joys of life.
Philosophically it leads one to ponder on how everything in life is interconnected, how little choices could make life either a drag or celebration. The joy really is in the “small things”, but everyone is lost in the "big" things. I was very touched by the effect of various circumstances and behavior of adults on the children and how profoundly twins derive comfort from one another.
I finished the book and started it over right away, and lot of the small comments Arundhathi makes, fall into place the second time – Aha! Moments..
It's a distressing story but greately written by 'Roy'. She just takes us into the depths of kerala. Her use of the language is reasonable and outspoken. Roy authenticated herself a amazing screenplayer.
ReplyDeleteIt was like ....a loooooong time back........watching a regional movie(Malayalam) on a sunday afternoon.