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The To-Let House
The tale unfolds in the city of Shillong, in the north east – one of India’s most troubled areas. As the four children emerge into adolescence, framed by the region’s violent search for identity, their inner and outer worlds hold uncanny mirrors to each other. Daisy Hasan conjures up a world that is darkly unsettling, yet curiously effervescent.
227 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2010
About the author
Daisy Hasan
4 books2 followersDaisy Hasan was born in India in 1974, and grew up in the politically restive environment of Shillong in the 1980s. She holds a PhD from Swansea University, UK. Daisy has been awarded many prestigious fellowships which have allowed her to research and write about the cultures of North-East India. She is currently engaged in a study of South Asian Women's art in conflict situations at the University of Leeds, UK and working on her second novel that is set in Britain.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
May 24, 2017
The To-Let House, Daisy Hasan
“What happiness to die for my country!”
What exactly is this country that Kulay desires to die for? In this novel, Daisy Hasan strategically never defines the land which inspires the patriotic fervour in Kulay and many others who are rebelling against the immigrants. The country here is embodied through the characterization of May. She reads alike the witches of Shakespearean tragedy, comfortably placed in their skin. She complicates the definition of fair and foul. She is never really happy. The characters in her vicinity fail to find happiness too. In the narration of struggle and loss, happiness is as eluding as the character of Phoebe. Happiness is drunk in midnight chaos in the depiction of Governor. Redcoat’s refusal to utter a single sentence in the entire novel is suggestive of the lack of happiness. Di’s adolescent affair with Kulay, that distances her from Addy and Ma, is bereft of happiness. Clemmie’s untimely affair with Benji does not land in happiness. The roots of Addy, planted deep inside the soil of Shillong, do not find happiness. Moreover, it not just happiness that unsettles the formation of the collective case-histories; comfort or consolation are buried along with happiness in the deep dark recess of the dark blue sea.
Identity formation is one of the themes of the novel. No one in particular has any sense of one’s identity. It is only Kulay who tries in vain to carve out an identity for himself. He desperately needs to make sense of his identity. Thereafter, as his identity disconsolately falls apart, he embraces his death with philosophical ease. Perhaps once he is dead, his identity is conjured in the melancholic musings of Clemmie, Di and, most importantly, May. May is not unaware of the fact that Kulay is not her son; it does not restrict her from bailing him out of jail; it does not restrict her from returning to the mansion after Kulay’s death. Her flirtatious nature which helped her make way for herself in her life, eventually disintegrates in the face of Kulay’s death. Her hatred for Kulay subsides and her closure at the end of the novel symbolizes that the country belongs to those who can feel an oneness with the land.
Did Addy feel an oneness with the land? Perhaps she did feel one with Ma. Her struggle, her suffering and her sad death acts as a premonition for Addy who realizes that it is better to reside in solitude than die in the clamour of another city. If May embodies the fragmentariness of the country, Addy represents the burden of a country that shelters the people. In her books and in her own world, Addy never ditches anyone who is acquainted with her. In the novel, she gradually becomes a peripheral character. She is stuck together like the pages in a book which has not been opened for long. She cracks open only on encountering the demise of Ma.
Di and Clemmie move on. Theirs is a country with no boundaries.
“What happiness to die for my country!”
What exactly is this country that Kulay desires to die for? In this novel, Daisy Hasan strategically never defines the land which inspires the patriotic fervour in Kulay and many others who are rebelling against the immigrants. The country here is embodied through the characterization of May. She reads alike the witches of Shakespearean tragedy, comfortably placed in their skin. She complicates the definition of fair and foul. She is never really happy. The characters in her vicinity fail to find happiness too. In the narration of struggle and loss, happiness is as eluding as the character of Phoebe. Happiness is drunk in midnight chaos in the depiction of Governor. Redcoat’s refusal to utter a single sentence in the entire novel is suggestive of the lack of happiness. Di’s adolescent affair with Kulay, that distances her from Addy and Ma, is bereft of happiness. Clemmie’s untimely affair with Benji does not land in happiness. The roots of Addy, planted deep inside the soil of Shillong, do not find happiness. Moreover, it not just happiness that unsettles the formation of the collective case-histories; comfort or consolation are buried along with happiness in the deep dark recess of the dark blue sea.
Identity formation is one of the themes of the novel. No one in particular has any sense of one’s identity. It is only Kulay who tries in vain to carve out an identity for himself. He desperately needs to make sense of his identity. Thereafter, as his identity disconsolately falls apart, he embraces his death with philosophical ease. Perhaps once he is dead, his identity is conjured in the melancholic musings of Clemmie, Di and, most importantly, May. May is not unaware of the fact that Kulay is not her son; it does not restrict her from bailing him out of jail; it does not restrict her from returning to the mansion after Kulay’s death. Her flirtatious nature which helped her make way for herself in her life, eventually disintegrates in the face of Kulay’s death. Her hatred for Kulay subsides and her closure at the end of the novel symbolizes that the country belongs to those who can feel an oneness with the land.
Did Addy feel an oneness with the land? Perhaps she did feel one with Ma. Her struggle, her suffering and her sad death acts as a premonition for Addy who realizes that it is better to reside in solitude than die in the clamour of another city. If May embodies the fragmentariness of the country, Addy represents the burden of a country that shelters the people. In her books and in her own world, Addy never ditches anyone who is acquainted with her. In the novel, she gradually becomes a peripheral character. She is stuck together like the pages in a book which has not been opened for long. She cracks open only on encountering the demise of Ma.
Di and Clemmie move on. Theirs is a country with no boundaries.
April 4, 2016
"To start at the start is to start with cross-purposes and contradictions,"- The To-Let House
The To-Let House by Daisy Hasan is a very unique book, for me at least. It's different, dark and soothing at the same time. And when you finish reading it, there's an eerie silence and you realize you have read a masterpiece!
The To-Let House starts with the childhood of Di, Addy, Kulay and Clemmie set in Shillong and follow them into their adulthood, with the background of thematic To Let House set in the grounds, an unsettling presence over the story.
Kulay and Clemmie reside with their drunk mother May in the colonial era house, along with the Governor. On the other hand, Di and Addy reside in the To-Let House with their Ma. Till now, the story might sound a plain one, following four kids into their adolescense. But that's the point when Daisy Hasan's amazing story telling skill hit you like a Jackhammer!
Di, Addy, Kulay and Clemmie witness their own families breaking up, cracks visible to even outsiders. Di and Addy's Ma leaves her husband to come live in the To-let House, Kulay and Clemmie see violence in their parents marriage, May and her husband are branded traitors in the community for harboring dhkars (“outsiders”) on their property; and misfit as a child, Kulay joins forces with anti-dhkars outfit. At the end, the novel doesn't give a satisfying conclusion, but a simple lull takes over you, pushing a question in your thoughts that what does belonging mean to an outsider? Yes, the book might still sound very simple to you, but it is something which can push a lot of thoughts around in your mind.
The To-Let House is a book which introduces you to a very unique concept of writing, something which i have never come across. Daisy Hasan flawlessly introduces stylistic sentences which might look good and to some readers, but can easily unplug reader from the book as well. Domestic violence, family complications and on the spot made nursery rhymes that attracts a reader but is also risky as the reader might feel like skipping a few pages. I personally loved the areas where childhood of Di, Addy, Kulay and Clemmie is described flawlessly.
The only thing that puts a limit on the To-Let House story is that it's not everybody's cup of tea. Though it is a very unique book that everyone should divulge into, but the not-so-regular readers might not devour into this one. For serious readers like me, To-Let House is a paradise.
The To-Let House by Daisy Hasan is a very unique book, for me at least. It's different, dark and soothing at the same time. And when you finish reading it, there's an eerie silence and you realize you have read a masterpiece!
The To-Let House starts with the childhood of Di, Addy, Kulay and Clemmie set in Shillong and follow them into their adulthood, with the background of thematic To Let House set in the grounds, an unsettling presence over the story.
Kulay and Clemmie reside with their drunk mother May in the colonial era house, along with the Governor. On the other hand, Di and Addy reside in the To-Let House with their Ma. Till now, the story might sound a plain one, following four kids into their adolescense. But that's the point when Daisy Hasan's amazing story telling skill hit you like a Jackhammer!
Di, Addy, Kulay and Clemmie witness their own families breaking up, cracks visible to even outsiders. Di and Addy's Ma leaves her husband to come live in the To-let House, Kulay and Clemmie see violence in their parents marriage, May and her husband are branded traitors in the community for harboring dhkars (“outsiders”) on their property; and misfit as a child, Kulay joins forces with anti-dhkars outfit. At the end, the novel doesn't give a satisfying conclusion, but a simple lull takes over you, pushing a question in your thoughts that what does belonging mean to an outsider? Yes, the book might still sound very simple to you, but it is something which can push a lot of thoughts around in your mind.
The To-Let House is a book which introduces you to a very unique concept of writing, something which i have never come across. Daisy Hasan flawlessly introduces stylistic sentences which might look good and to some readers, but can easily unplug reader from the book as well. Domestic violence, family complications and on the spot made nursery rhymes that attracts a reader but is also risky as the reader might feel like skipping a few pages. I personally loved the areas where childhood of Di, Addy, Kulay and Clemmie is described flawlessly.
The only thing that puts a limit on the To-Let House story is that it's not everybody's cup of tea. Though it is a very unique book that everyone should divulge into, but the not-so-regular readers might not devour into this one. For serious readers like me, To-Let House is a paradise.
December 6, 2010
I bought this book after reading the Hindu Best Fiction 2010 Shortlist. I think the 'Serious Men' by I-forgot-his-name won that title. Anyway, 'The To-Let House' sounded extraordinarily appealing on two counts: Firstly, I'm a big sucker for book titles. The book might be rated as crap but if it has a good title I couldn't care less. Or maybe I would but that's only after reading the book. Ok, and secondly, it was set in the 'politically resistive' environment of Shillong in the 1980s. Did I mention I like it when history and politics and fiction mix? It's one of the most amazing concoctions the literary world has seen. There's 'A Thousand Splendid Suns', 'Such a Long Journey', 'Difficult Daughters', etc etc.
Back to 'The To-Let House', after much searching I found this book in Landamark at Citi Centre (?), Chennai. When I started reading the book, I expected two things: A search-the-middle-of-the-book reason for the title and a thorough examination of the repercussions of the politically (and socially) unstable Shillong. Much to my disappointment, the book didn't address the political scenario factually, rather it tried to piece the political scenario through the character's eyes, so you don't get a real idea of what ACTUALLY is happening. Plus, the title of the book is probably one of the first things she elaborates on: The 'three versions of dkhars' were the new tenants of the 'To-Let House'. I thought it killed the title because she keeps referring to the primary character as the tenant of the To-Let House. Seriously, less the mention, more effective.
Either way, the book overall was interesting. Personally, it seemed to have this sing-song tone, as if someone was reciting the lines in the book. And it does all 'show' and no 'tell': Governor molesting Di, Kulay being beaten, Ma's Man not coming after her. In retrospect, I think I enjoyed reading the book: It wasn't particularly delightful but as mention above, it was definitely interesting.
Back to 'The To-Let House', after much searching I found this book in Landamark at Citi Centre (?), Chennai. When I started reading the book, I expected two things: A search-the-middle-of-the-book reason for the title and a thorough examination of the repercussions of the politically (and socially) unstable Shillong. Much to my disappointment, the book didn't address the political scenario factually, rather it tried to piece the political scenario through the character's eyes, so you don't get a real idea of what ACTUALLY is happening. Plus, the title of the book is probably one of the first things she elaborates on: The 'three versions of dkhars' were the new tenants of the 'To-Let House'. I thought it killed the title because she keeps referring to the primary character as the tenant of the To-Let House. Seriously, less the mention, more effective.
Either way, the book overall was interesting. Personally, it seemed to have this sing-song tone, as if someone was reciting the lines in the book. And it does all 'show' and no 'tell': Governor molesting Di, Kulay being beaten, Ma's Man not coming after her. In retrospect, I think I enjoyed reading the book: It wasn't particularly delightful but as mention above, it was definitely interesting.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews