The Secret Daughter in Summer Reads! One-Day-Only Discussion Group

Oct 19, 2010 DubaiReader rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: canadian-bk-grp, vine, 2010

An excellent read.

I really enjoyed this well balanced novel - set in both India and America, it is narrated by several of the characters but never becomes confusing or dull. Many complex issues are covered, including adoption from third world countries into affluent Western families and the extreme poverty that can force a family to dispose of female offspring. I found the issues sensitively handled throughout and admit to crying towards the end. (The sure sign of a good book!).

There are several ...more

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Oct 14, 2010 Jan rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: adult-books-with-reviews, adult-books, books-i-can-t-stop-thinking-about

In Dahanu, India, in 1984 Kavita Merchant is losing her second daughter. The first one was smothered at birth and this second baby girl,Usha Merchant, at 3 days of age,is being dropped off, in secret, at an orphanage in Mumbai so that Kavita's husband Jasu, will never know she survived the birth.

At the same time, in San Francisco, California, American Dr. Somer Thakkar and her Indian husband, Dr. Krishnan Thakkar are dealing with miscarriages and then the discovery that Somer can't have children In Dahanu, India, in 1984 Kavita Merchant is losing her second daughter. The first one was smothered at birth and this second baby girl,Usha Merchant, at 3 days of age,is being dropped off, in secret, at an orphanage in Mumbai so that Kavita's husband Jasu, will never know she survived the birth.

At the same time, in San Francisco, California, American Dr. Somer Thakkar and her Indian husband, Dr. Krishnan Thakkar are dealing with miscarriages and then the discovery that Somer can't have children of her own.

In 1985, as Kavita is giving birth to her third child, a son, that she can keep, and as her husband's family celebrates with traditional pomp and splender, Drs. Krishnan and Somer Thakkar arrive in Bombay to visit with Krishnan's family (he was born in India) and to adopt a 10 month old baby girl from an orphanage in Mumbai. After a short visit, they return to the States, taking baby Asha with them.

But when Asha turns 20, she wins a contest at college and is given the opportunity to write a research project on children growing up in the largest slum in Mumbai: Dharavi.So Asha returns to India, to do the story, but also, to learn about her Indian culture, her adopted father's family, and to find her birth parents.

The author takes us back and forth between these two families, who know nothing of each other, for 10 years. It is a poignant story that takes you on an emotional roller coaster ride. As both a mother and a daughter, this book touched me on so many levels. The story is told through the eyes of the mothers (Ba), daughters (Dhikri), grandmothers (Dadima) and mother-in-laws (Sassu).

Author Gowda leads her young heroine,Asha, and us, through the exotic, romantic, Eastern riches of India one day and then through the horrors of the slums the next. Author Gowda shows us in rich detail how "Mother India does not love all her children equally...there are two Indias for the rich and poor and two Indias for men and women".

I enjoyed this book, learned from it and recommend it highly.

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Jun 05, 2011 Sue rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Loved this book. Fascinating look at India today - well in the 1980s - and so surprising as we imagine that with the growth of India now, all old customs would have been modernized. But outside of Bombay female babies are still not wanted in the rural areas, disposed of quietly and finally. Also young brides are burned to death by in-laws who decide their dowries are not large enough. But the heart of this book is the story of an Indian mother who gives her baby girl the chance of life by taking ...more

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Mar 17, 2010 Leena rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

It's been a long time since I've read a book that has touched me so deeply. What an amazing, beautifully written book about the power of the mother-daughter relationship, and the discovery of what family means. "At some point the family you create is more important than the one you are born into." Every character in this story discovers this simple and powerful message. ...more

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Jun 23, 2011 Eric Wright rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction

Gowda writes a moving story of two families whose lives are separated by an almost infinite distance, one in a poverty striken village in North India, the other in a wealthy but childless home in California Kavita gives birth to a baby girl, who culture demands she kill it or give it away, only a boy can fulfill her destiny honour her husband. The first girl was taken away and killed. The secont Usha was taken to an orphanage, but Kavita for the rest of her life grieves this loss even when a boy ...more

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Apr 29, 2011 Shirley rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: bookclub-book-of-the-month

Shilpi Somaya Gowda weaves an extraordinary tale in Secret Daughter. From page one, the reader is captivated. Shilpi creates characters with incredible depth which allows the reader to develop a "relationship" and, totally immersed within the pages, the characters become real. Based on her heritage of India, the author introduces the reader to culture, society, and individuals who will remain with you long after you've read the book.

I enjoyed the peak into the life of India, the culture, the dif ...more

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Jul 04, 2011 Nharahan rated it really liked it · review of another edition

I liked this book a lot. The culture was interesting to me and I was attached to the characters. It really gave in insight into how an adopted child feels. I am glad I read this book!

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