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The Far Pavilions - next chunky /Reading Sched
message 51:
by
Meg
(new)
Feb 17, 2011 06:58PM
Great Stacy!
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Hi, I would like to join you. Just started reading it today.
Got it! It is huge and was apparently written the year I was born. This is unnerving a bit since when I walked in the house my husband took a look at it and said "that book is way too big and way too old!" What does that say about me??? :)
Ha! Women are like wine, the more they age they better they are...........
OK I am on page 1, here is the quote:and listening to her son's(Isobel) lusty cries had said weakly: "he doesn't sound like a premature baby, does he? I suppose I-I must have miscalculated..."
She had: and it was a miscalculation that was to cost her dear. There are few of us, after all, who are called upon to pay for such errors....
Predictions?
Wow. Seems pretty harsh...I am guessing she is going to encounter some serious hardships...though I can't really say I understand why. I must get reading!!!
awe...I can't predict because I know how it cost her. Read a little furhter :)
I did finish Chapter One but I guess is there is a whole lot more!
Didn't have to read on too far to find the answer...yikes!
I love when you are hooked on the first page!
Meg wrote: "I love when you are hooked on the first page!"Yeah...I was afraid I would have a breaking in period with this book but luckily this was not the case!
Great Stacy, looking forward to having you join us.
So far I am hoping the political strife makes more sense as the book goes on because I feel really lost as to exactly what the unrest stems from.
Perhaps this will help as to the political scene at the time:From the British Raj to independence (1858-1947)
Britain ruled about 60% of Indian directly and the other 40% indirectly through native princes who followed British policies. See below for the map. During their time in India, the British developed tea and cotton agriculture and coal and iron industries. In fact, by 1940, the Tata Iron Works was the world's largest Iron factory. Likewise, the British continued developing India's infrastructure with more railroads and telegraph lines, so that by 1900 India had the longest railroad in Asia. British administration and bureaucracy were efficient, as was the British style education system Britain established.
However, even these developments contained the seeds of problems for British rule. As before, the new industries, railroads, and telegraphs, however progressive they may have seemed to the British, disrupted the traditional culture and economy of India. By the same token, however efficient the bureaucracy was, there were large gaps between the higher ranking British and lower ranking Indians that carried over to society in general. Increasingly, Indians were getting tired of their second-class status and worked increasingly for independence.
The Indian National Congress, founded in 1885, led the independence movement. At first, its goal was to gain more rights for Indians and more say in the British administration. However, as its power grew in the twentieth century, it agitated increasingly for complete independence. This led to a parallel, but somewhat separate independence movement of Muslims in India who feared being a minority in a Hindu-dominated state. Therefore, they wanted a separate independent Muslim state in the northwest.
World War I (1914-18) and World War II (1939-45) further catalyzed India’s push for independence, since Britain had to rely heavily on Indian recruits to fill its ranks. In return, Britain promised more political concessions, thus weakening its hold on India, encouraging more demand by Indians, and so on.
In 1920, a new leader, Mohandas Gandhi emerged as the voice of the Indian National Congress. Educated in both traditional Indian culture and British schools, Gandhi developed very effective non-violent tactics of resistance while protesting British policies. The British, not wanting to risk the bad publicity a violent reaction could generate, had to give in to Gandhi time after time. Therefore, at the end of World War II, Britain promised independence for India.
Unfortunately, this revived the issue of whether there would be one large Hindu-dominated state or a separate Muslim state in the North, leading to violent clashes between Hindus and Muslims broke out. Finally, in 1947 Britain the region between Hindu India in the South and Muslim Pakistan in the Northwest that also controlled a separate territory, Bangla Desh, in the Northeast. Despite heroic efforts to keep the peace by Gandhi (who was killed by one of his Hindu followers in 1947), tensions between Hindus and Muslims have continued to the present day and still threaten the peace and stability of South Asia.
This website seems like a really good one to reference as we read:http://www.purrlions.net/ash/india_un...
Also list of characters so far in Book One:Principal Characters:
Ashton Hilary Akbar Pelham-Martyn - Main character whose life we follow (Also: Ash, Ashok)
Isobel Ashton - Orphaned, arrived in India with the intent of living with her brother:
William Ashton - A bachelor in the Corps of the Guides
Professor Hilary Pelham-Martyn - lingist, enthologist, botanist, and 'Burra Sahib' (great man) to Ash, a Christian
Sirdari Bahadur Akbar Kahn - grizzled, ex-officer friend of Hilary, wounded at theBattle of Mianee, a Muslum
Sita - Wife of Hilary's head syce Daya Ram, a hill woman and a Hindu
Duni Chad - Rich landowner who owned horses
Raja of Gulkote - Ruler descended from a Rajput Chieftan
- His first wife bore sons, but only one, Lalji, lived
- - Lalji - (the beloved) title of Yuveraj
- His 2nd wife 'Feringhi Ran' (foreign queen) bore only one daughter, Princess Anjuli, and died in the process
- - Princess Anjuli-Bai - called 'Kari-Bai' by Janoo-Bai
- His 3rd wife Janoo-Bai, the 'Nautch girl' (dancing girl) bore a son and daughter
- - Princess Shushila-Bai - beautiful, high strung
Biju Ram - servant of Lalji
Hira Lal - Equerry to the Yuveraj
Dunmaya - nursemaid to Lalji and Anjuli
Koda Dad Kahn - 'Mir Akhor' (master of horse) had three sons
- Eldest son - Officer in the Corps of the Guides
- 2nd Eldest Awal Shah - daffador in the Corps of the Guides
- Youngest Zarin - 6 years older than Ash
My copy should be here any day now... You guys are making me so excited to get started! Can't wait!
I hope you get it soon, it really is a good read so far.
I agree...I am really enjoying it. I just taught about the sepoy rebellion in passing and it is pretty neat to be reading along and thinking "I know what's going on here!"
I read Book 1 and loved it just as much as I did the first time I read this book. I know we are all in for a treat.
Exciting. Stacy is there anything you want to say about the sepoy rebellion that we should know about?
Thank you Meg. I had searched and not found anything that was that consise in an explanation. I found the info to be very helpful for me as I read along.
I am glad Rebecca. I hope you are enjoying the read as much as I am.
I don't know too much about it...from what I have read the book seems to be pretty accurate. Indian soldiers (Sepoys) under the control of the British rebelled due to practices of the British East India Company in 1857. The final straw was the use of pig/cow fat on gun cartridges that had to be bitten off which was offensive to both Muslims and Hindus respectively. Though quite successful at first, the rebellion was ultimately squashed, but not until many British and Indian soldiers and civilians brutally lost their lives. From then on relations between the British and Indians were not too surprisingly strained. Meg, thanks for the list of characters! I refer to it often...I tend to have a hard time keeping everyone straight.
Meg wrote: "This website seems like a really good one to reference as we read:http://www.purrlions.net/ash/india_un..."
Meg I liked this site for maps. Did yours come with maps? Mine didnt unless they are in the back.
http://www.purrlions.net/ash/maps.htm
Thanks Meg and Rebecca for the site informtion. It will be very helpful!
@Meg and Rebecca. I second Megan-- Thank you both for the resource info. Very interesting and most helpful.
I am almost 50 pages in, and I am really enjoying it. Every time I am reading I feel transported to India. The reading is slower for me with this book, I think because the British rule (occupation?), East India Company, and the Sepoys, etc. are all new topics, and they are all puzzle pieces I am trying to figure out how they fit together, which is where the info Meg and Rebecca provided is very very useful.
I am glad you are all enjoying the book, the history lessons are certainly different for me as well. Maybe we should all go to India for a field trip!
My copy came today. :) It's all in one book, and hardback, so it's massive! I'm hoping to get started tonight, so I'll definitely be on schedule for the 27th. Yay!
I just finished the chunk for the 27th last night. Without giving anything away I have to say that it is really interesting how the author spends a great deal of time on certain parts of the main character's life and flies through others. I could barely keep my eyes open in bed last night but I was so into the story I was able to get through it!
I'm almost done with the first section. Enjoying it greatly!
I'm wishing for the weekend so that I can read more than a couple pages at a time. Work is getting crazy; it's standardized testing season!
Me too..but we are on vacation this week...I might try to get a little ahead so I don't fall behind later!
How cool!! Our spring break is a little over a week away, and I am really looking forward to a lot of reading!!
I have never heard of this book before. I ordered it, and it is really a brick! I don't plan to read it right away, but hopefully will join at some point.
I am reading chapter 5. Ash and Lalji become acquainted. Who is Biju Ram?
Biju Ram - servant of LaljiI listed the characters, there are a lot in the beginning so keep referring to the list if you get confused (we all did). The multitude of characters has been cited in many of the reviews of this book.
Ladies, I want to join this chunky read. I have not been able to crack open the book yet. Thought I would get a bit of time this week, but everytime it looks as if a bit of open time is just around the corner, I find a brick wall of demands in my face instead. But, I am still hopeful.
I hope you can join us. It is not difficult reading so I am confident you will catch up with us. We'd love to hae you.
So far the book is going great. Meg, thank you for the website...it's awesome.
Great I am glad it is helping with the enjoyment!
