The Read Around The World Book Club discussion
May 2017 Malaysia
>
Chapters 13 - END
date
newest »
newest »
message 1:
by
Melanie
(new)
Apr 26, 2017 08:49AM
Mod
reply
|
flag
Mod
Melanie wrote: "How do we feel about the ending? How do you feel about the book and its characters?"I didn't like it ending with Uma - implying that she was the one able to escape it all. I was rooting for Aasha the entire time and Uma was probably my least favorite character, with Amma up next. Mother and daughter shared similar traits and I tried to find a positive in each but never did. They seemed like cold, non-feeling women who were self absorbed and clung to only what they wanted in order to get somewhere, they thought.
The writing was different and hard to get flowing in the beginning but after a chapter or so, it was much better. I didn't understand why the same word was said twice or more but then maybe that was in their speak. I found it interesting for the author to put in slang phrases now and again almost to jolt the reader into a familiar when the wording or setting would be not the norm.
It surely felt like a sweeping family saga and a dysfunctional one at that - I liked how it started and ended in the same time frame.
Melanie wrote: "The revelation of what happened between Uma and her father was awful and I was beginning to understand at that point how the whole family completely disintegrated then. I think Uma until that point..."I felt a bit betrayed here with his behavior with Uma. At first it felt out of character for him and I was curious why the author put that in then. It was as if we were to feel Appa was the good guy in the beginning of the book ... a bit egocentric but loyal to family and had some good qualities. Entered the picture to 'rescue' Amma in a way from her horrid homelife.
Then we were made to see that even on the wedding night, he was coming apart or showing more colors. Then he was never home. He was working and those ladies from before were in his present ... I had a feeling he was out with them but the mistress and another family was a shock for me. It was a gradual showing of his character by the author which was sneaky!
It was good that Uma got to get out of that terrible situation but she herself was selfish and the way she treated Aasha was just heartbreaking. Even at the airport - to give the girl a smile at the very last minute. It didn't seem genuine to me.
Mod
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5oy9a...
Thx! I was telling my bookclub about it tonight and such a story that will stay with me a long while.
Mod
I had been wondering: Is that an element of magical realism? Or are those real ghosts? Or are the ghosts symbolic?
Melanie wrote: "I keep thinking about the ghosts. The longer I think about the ghosts, I think they are invisible friends for Aasha. She is so lonely, she has no one. I know that in a lot of Eastern storytelling t..."I thought the parts of the ghosts a weird addition - the imaginery friend idea could be it for sure! I'm not one to believe in ghosts so that was lost on me.
I was thinking the ghost maybe a cultural aspect possibly? (Deep breath)
This book, whoa, it did not end as I expected. I don't think you can blame just one person for the problems but I feel as if the adults and particularly Paati and Raju/Appa mainly created this catastrophe. Whereas the beginning of the book seemed is much about this untold action Chellam did, the end of the book swerves dramatically towards Appa and Uncle Ballrooms perspective. Ironic that both Paati and Appa have affairs that impact their families.
I think that the family drama so completely consumes the story that I could not keep up with the political/historical happenings which I wanted to learn more about.
I understand why Uma has "turned" but that is not really how I wanted the book to end with no resolution for the rest of the family. And ultimately that is wrapping up of the family story, but then one more horrific thing happens when their neighbor commits suicide by burning herself 😫Why do people think this was added in? I didn't catch the meaning of it. What happens when someone can't escape maybe?
I think Samarasan is a great writer. However, the story was just Ok for me because I didn't like the events, characters, ending or really the order of the chapters.
Ilka wrote: "I did not see that twist coming, that it was Appa's fault Uma changed so completely. The second family didn't surprise me, rather, I'd thought for a while that he was having an affair, but I would ..."Good points!!
Candace wrote: "I was thinking the ghost maybe a cultural aspect possibly? (Deep breath)
This book, whoa, it did not end as I expected. I don't think you can blame just one person for the problems but I feel as i..."
I found the neighbor's story and all that a diversion from the main story but maybe you connecting it to not feeling one can escape a situtaion ... don't know. It seemed thrown in and perhaps there was material edited that should have been kept in to make it unify better ...
