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The Cousins
Early twentieth century Madras. In a dark room in the corner of a house, Goutami’s mother dies in childbirth. Barely a year old, Goutami, or Goutu as everyone calls her, crawls into the birth-death room, seeing and smelling death, loss, fear — things she does not then understand but which will mark her for life.
A motherless child, a rebellious girl, a headstrong woman who will not deny her sexuality, a fighter for whom lying becomes a strategy for survival: Goutami’s search for love leads her to Krishnanand, cousin and ladies’ man, suave and practiced, who beds all young cousins before they marry. But life intervenes and Goutami marries Seshadri. Solid, steady, ambitious, a good husband and an adequate father, Seshadri is nonetheless unable to give her one thing she craves: love.
The ins and outs of family’s relationships. The search for love and a sense of belonging, form the subtext of this beautifully crafted novel by first time novelist Prema Raghunath. In the end for Goutu, as for her lovers, siblings and children, salvation comes from the very stuff of life itself.
A motherless child, a rebellious girl, a headstrong woman who will not deny her sexuality, a fighter for whom lying becomes a strategy for survival: Goutami’s search for love leads her to Krishnanand, cousin and ladies’ man, suave and practiced, who beds all young cousins before they marry. But life intervenes and Goutami marries Seshadri. Solid, steady, ambitious, a good husband and an adequate father, Seshadri is nonetheless unable to give her one thing she craves: love.
The ins and outs of family’s relationships. The search for love and a sense of belonging, form the subtext of this beautifully crafted novel by first time novelist Prema Raghunath. In the end for Goutu, as for her lovers, siblings and children, salvation comes from the very stuff of life itself.
352 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2011
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
April 9, 2012
A boring confused story about Goutami and Krishnanad. Was difficult to follow and just felt that there was no purpose in the plot.
October 15, 2012
The writing is scratchy at best and boring and listless at worst. The story is dull and no character stands out. Terrible really!
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews