The Shadow Lines by Amitav Ghosh - 3.5 stars (BWF)

[Joy D]

The Shadow Lines by Amitav Ghosh - 3.5* - My Review

Set in Calcutta (now Kolkata) and Dhaka in the 1950s and 1960s and in England, this novel explores boundaries, memories, and perceptions. The unnamed narrator spent his early life in Calcutta and attended university in England. He is deeply influenced by his cousin Tridib and his grandmother, and especially by the stories they tell. His grandmother grew up in Dhaka, which at the time was part of East Pakistan (now Bangladesh). One of the main themes is the aftereffects of partition, and how an arbitrary line drawn on a map can impact millions of lives. It also explores how memories differ among people who interpret the same events in diverse ways, largely influenced by their perceptions and worldviews. Memories are embellished or changed over time, and the mind incorporates the changes, forming the basis of belief of “what really happened.”

The narrative moves forward and backward through time. The writing is lyrical, and the characters are well-developed. There is only a slim plot, and it hinges on what happened during an incident involving the narrator’s grandmother and cousin during a time of civil unrest. I enjoyed the second half more than the first. I found it difficult to get into the flow of the story due to the amount of shifting among timelines. Ghosh is one of my favorite authors, and while I liked this one, I have enjoyed others more. If you are new to his writings, I would not start here. I have not read all his works, but I can highly recommend The Hungry Tide and Sea of Poppies. His non-fiction is also excellent.

3.5

PBT September BWF Extra S - fits letter not tag