The God of Small Things
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*SPOILER ALERT! DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE ENTIRE BOOK*
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I've had this book on my shelf for years and finally got around to reading it. I really struggled to get through the first chapter before sustained reading, as nothing makes sense and it jumps all over the place but eventually you understand the flow of the book. I felt really sad and disturbed by the book (no idea why the reviews on the cover say it's funny!!??) even though the writing and descriptives are incredible but searched for online reviews (perhaps in denial!?) because I couldn't quite believe if I was reading too much into the last twin scene and whether they did actually sleep together? Is there any chance that this can simply mean something deeper and we all just think it means they sleep together? or do I have to face facts? I finished this book a few days ago now and it is still affecting me! I've started a new funny book just to try and lighten my mind but the level of writing now is nothing compared with the complexity of the writing in The God of Small Things. I half wish I hadn't read it because it's just so sad and it's haunting me but on the other hand, I've never experienced such a level of story telling before! Help???
One of those books that is so carefully written it seems like the author must speak like that all the time. It took a while to get into, and at first I thought the language was opaque and pretentious. At times it did get on my nerves. But the story was extremely well developed and it gets better after the first third or so, which makes you appreciate the earlier parts.
Having finished it I found I cared very much about the characters. That's one of my biggest criteria in rating a book. At that point the plot becomes secondary -- but I thought the plot developments were inevitable and well-found by the author. Someone once said about this book that it "fulfills all its promises" which it certainly does.
Having finished it I found I cared very much about the characters. That's one of my biggest criteria in rating a book. At that point the plot becomes secondary -- but I thought the plot developments were inevitable and well-found by the author. Someone once said about this book that it "fulfills all its promises" which it certainly does.
Wait when did this happen? They did it? Can you tell me which lines conveyed this?
The incest moment challenges our suspension of disbelief, and for a purpose. Roy doubtless anticipates that we, the readers, mostly have liberal or progressive attitudes, and thus that we will see ourselves safely above the prejudice against Untouchables that destroys Velutha (and thus also Ammu). But especially non-Indian readers may not *get* the depth of the taboo against a Touchable and an Untouchable making love. So Roy sets up our own "ewwww" reaction in the parallel story line, but spliced in as the penultimate chapter to set up the final one formally. That puts us in the heads of Ammu and Velutha's contemporaries, if they were reading the *last* chapter. Of course someone might object that the incest taboo has an absolute justification, that it has a basis in genetics, and cannot logically stand for comparison with the Touchable/Untouchable taboo which just constitutes barbaric oppression. But the incest taboo must also count as primarily cultural; indeed avoiding every act of incest turns out neither necessary nor sufficient to avoid the ravages of inbreeding. So, by design, nearly everyone will finish Chapter 20 loving Rahel and Estha, if not the book as a whole, a little less. And that's why the reader has some skin of his or her own in the game reading Chapter 21. I wonder how many readers turn to the last chapter expecting the twins to face some natural or supernatural retribution for their terrible sin?
This book was overwhelming in the sense that the author introduced so many characters and gave so much detail on each of them explaining how they go to that point in life, that it was easy for me to get lost. Nonetheless, a tragic tail which I feel requires another read to fully comprehend the intricate details laid out by the author. Truly a awe inspiring experience
David wrote: "the readers, mostly have liberal or progressive attitudes, and thus that we will see ourselves safely above the prejudice against ."Huh... Fair enough.
I don't know what to think about the whole incest scene.It was delicately described, but I still thought "Geezus Xrist, these kids... STOPPIT"... but they didn't stoppited.
I do agree that the reaction (Touchable/Untouchable and incest) is the same and Roy wanted the reader to contrast it, but... yeah... "STOPPIT". :v
Surely the final conclusion is the real ‘Terror’ for the reader. But look it this way, the last chapter explains the actual reason which made a foundation for what happened in the lives of Ammu, Rahel and Estha later on and led to the death of a poor Velutha. The sexual relationship between Ammu and Velutha made a tempest around them, and that too when they broke the Love Laws. The book was given an ending that way, for we know what happened next; we foresaw everything that followed their love, in the previous chapters.Similarly, we see Estha and Rahel involving in some kind of a relationship which is taboo in every aspect of today’s society. We do not see anything forward from their life after that. Maybe, and that too when they Again Broke The Love Laws, that night could have changed everything again. Many terrors could have followed that night. Maybe Baby Kochamma could have found out the Unholy Acts. Maybe another cycle of broken lives as a result of Love-Law-Breaking could have started. We do not know. We may not. Or we may.
The ultimate chapter shows the love between Velutha and Ammu and the same happens in the penultimate one too, wherein both, we see the Laws of Love broken. For the last chapter, we know what followed and the other one, hmmm…
With all due respect, the author is describing a slice of India, not India itself. No one can describe India in a book or series of books. How can one? India has thousands of years history and culture. It has 23 official languages, 13 different scripts and varied culture from one end of India to another. Roy does weave a beautiful story.
Barbarac wrote: "Bookworm wrote: ""The book was very beautifully written"
Curious, why give it one star only then?"
Well, I love to read about different cultures, specially Asian. I thought the author did a great..."
I come from the same society as what forms the background of this book, and unfortunately am uppercaste too. This gives me a fair idea of what happened in upperclass(caste) houses of that age (and every other age in human memory). Maybe that's why nothing that happened in the book surprises me. Everything was obvious. Everything was too relatable that I ended up wondering how the Booker Prize committee found this complex enough to award the prize.
I badly wish I had seen this comment before I wasted a few days reading this stinker of a book.EDIT: I'm on two hours of sleep so it took me a couple of minutes to realize that "Do not read if you haven't read the entire book"...was NOT meant as advice to not bother to read the book AT ALL LOL.
This is definitely a controversial book with some disturbing scenes that many will find upsetting, including myself. The writing, however, is exquisite.
On a moral level I clearly despised this story line.But I think It was there to mirror how narrow our moral-minds are,
how they are shaped by certain influences.
In my world nothing can justify such incest, but what I found more
striking than the sex was the quote: 'they broke the Love laws'
and that was, what this scene suggested more than the break of ethics, it showed that beliefs of what is right or wrong are imposed and renewed sometimes by individuals or groups
and that there still shouldn't be a right or wrong without reflecting the whole thing first. So of course I had no subjective
good feeling about the scene in the book, but I could relate to the discussion it offered.
It somehow reminded me of Donna Tarrt's incest, where also a twin pair started a sexual relation that soon became toxic, they also questioned moral rules by juxtaposing ancient ideas with contemporary beliefs.
On the other hand one could see it as a metaphor, that
the oneness of twins never can be fully grasp by non-twins and sadly complete merging of two minds and bodies is still very often portrayed by sexual relations, this also is suggested.
Ahmed wrote: "I don't see why one need to get physical to get over some past injury of sort - unless she meant to imply they always shared some form of bond transcending the platonic level (though, from my memor..."You ver much missed the point, these children had suffered so much - had never really felt true love apart from their love for each other, The closeness between them led to the inevitable love making, nothing dirty or full of lust... it was a great ending to the book... their love just took the next step, Not nice, not digestible to us but it just happened - it was love only!
This should be a surprise to foreigners, because paper India which they hear about is casteless utopia.
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Yes, there were emptiness in both the twins' life, but they were twins afterall, not strangers!
Could Estha have sex with his mother? Or Rahel with his father? Would it have been justified then?
I have read books where the protagonists had to go through a lot of difficulties, a lot more than Rahel and Estha, but they didn't need sex from their relatives to lessen their pain!
Sorry but this book would have been my one of the best if the end part had been logical.:(