You'll love this one...!! A book club & more discussion
Buddy Reads
>
A Suitable Boy - Week Two Discussion
date
newest »
newest »
message 1:
by
Ann
(new)
Sep 22, 2013 12:04PM
I enjoyed the first week's reading. I'm getting to know the characters and feel a little more familiar with the setting of the story. I'm looking forward to this week's reading.
reply
|
flag
I finished chapter two ( about 40% of this week's section), Saeeda Bai is a very interesting character !I am more into the story now and it is easier to turn the pages .
Judy wrote: "I'd be interested in knowing what your thoughts of Maan, Lata and Saeeda Bai are as you read the next section. Have they changed from the first section?"
Can't tell if my opinion has changed about these characters or not , Marta was away in chapter two while it was more about Maan so I could see him more but I feel I am still exploring all of them .
Not quite, about 3-4 pages left. I've learned more about the characters but I still feel that there is quite a bit more to be discovered about all of them.
sorry. I had a busy weekend but I will catch up next weeekend at the latest.
I've finished the section now and am moving on to week 3 by starting section 4. It is definitely is getting more interesting! I'm wondering what Lata will be getting herself into. And its apparent that not only the main characters have stuff going on but also the extended families of theirs! I'm learning about hand made shoes right now!
I finished and I have a list of things to check online ...places and monuments ! barsaat mahal (couldn't reach that) ,alamgir mosque
One of the temples "Grameswara Temple"
http://www.tripadvisor.com/LocationPh...
And it seems there is so much to know about Ganges river , I feel ignorant but I didn't know that we are so close to the borders in this part (I need to have more data about Brahpur! ) .
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ganges
As for the characters and events :
From Maan and Saeeda Bai to Lata and Kabir , two different faces to Hindus/Muslim refused/denied relationships . I know Muslim woman is not allowed religiously to get involved with a non -Muslim man , but for Hindus , it is only a shame or forbidden ? historically , did Khans marry Hindu women ?
I do not understand why can't be Ramcharitmanas recitation allowed at homes ?
Wow Judy , you are 300+ pages , you are stick to the time table :) , I am a section behind that I am reading anther heavy book beside it .Thanks for the link Judy , I am a Muslim , a Muslim man marriage to a non-Muslim woman (other than Christian or Jew) is blur to me . I read a lot that it is not authorized , yet it happens .
I asked because I remember reading some few lines about Mariam uz-Zamani before. there is a lot to read about India any way !
You are welcome Judy and thank you too :)My other book is small ,yet philosophy makes it difficult to digest for me .
I hope we can hear from Pragya more , I am Muslim but not Indian , so I am learning about this too :)
Judy wrote: "Thanks for the link to Mariam uz-Zamani, that is an interesting piece of history with her being an Hindu and Akbar being a Muslim. Can you imagine what it must have been like to house all the wives..."
Not sure how many Hindu wives Akbar had , according to Islam a man can marry maximum four women . so I do not know how many were living in that palace , but I guess he also had Concubines (slave women) .
Akbar was a very prominent historical figure ,I like history so I would like to read more about Mughal Empire , I read a novel by Salman Rushdie about him but I do not believe that was the right start . it is funny that once I talked about Akbar I found the novel mentioning his grandson Aurangzeb ( in chapter 4)... I love the way Seth Spins fiction with politics , history and Urban , i think by reading more I will be living with the characters ! :)
just an update. I am currently in week 2. I added a few days of to thanksgiving weekend so I should catch up in bewtween toppler reads.
In this week's section Saeeda Bai intrigues me. She strikes me as a survivor, alone and taking care of her young sister Tasneem and eking out a livelihood as an entertainer, in more ways than one. And I'm rather surprised that Kabir would say to Lata "...but why is this so important to you?"
Judy wrote: "Do you find yourself almost admiring Saeeda Bai, Lilisa? In spite of her "occupation", she is so responsible, and she succeeds in making a living in a culture that barely accepts women providers."Judy - Yes I do and it will be interesting to learn more about her. She's pretty strategic besides being smart, talented and beautiful.
Strategic is indeed a good way to qualify her. And well grounded in reality. Rereading I remember that, the first time around, at that point I was not sure what to think of Maan. And i thought that Kabir was a bit too "perfect".
Judy wrote: "Esther your point about "Kabir" is a good one. I'm interested to see if he comes back into the story or if he just remains as Lata's "first love"."I find it hard to comment on some situations or characters of this book as I know the resolution. It changes my look on things. I will start taking notes and do more lenghty comments later, when I get to the right scene. :)
I finished this section just now. I cannot fathom what it must be like to be caught in between what your heart says is right and what your family says is right in the name of religion. I feel terrible for Lata right now. I am totally drawn into the story and am finding it a quick read despite its length. I am looking forward to the next section unfolding more of the story.
