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A Suitable Boy
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Suitable Boy - summer chunky- with reading schedule
I am still reading, slowly. I am in the middle of part 7 which I am enjoying very much. The whole party scene is hilarious and colorful.
Mod
I finished Part 13 over the weekend. It puts me in mind of the Foresyte Saga with its daily details about these families and the way the lives of individual families illuminates an entire era in a particular culture.
Finally, the book arrived... after 45 days in transit. I already love the feeling of joining these families as it begins. I haven't read a family saga in a long time, I'm looking forward to this.
Wow, why did it take so long to arrive? But, now that you have it, you are going to enjoy this book.
Irene wrote: "Wow, why did it take so long to arrive? But, now that you have it, you are going to enjoy this book."Sent Media Mail from the Big Island of Hawaii... slow boat (which, the sender commented, must have gone around the Horn...)
It might have reached you more quickly had the sender swam it to you holding it in his/her mouth. LOL!
Mod
Part 11, with all the people getting caught in the crush in the pilgrimage was pretty scary/sad.
There is so much going on in this book that it is almost hard to have a discussion on it. It is almost like trying to discuss the encyclopedia! LOL
I am almost finished with Part 13. I didn't get any messages that people were posting sorry guys.
The pilgrimage crush was awful. I cannot even imagine what it was like to not know where loved ones were.
Mod
Good! Then I'm almost caught up to you. :o)
I am soooo far behind. I thought in the back of my mind this might happen when school started but I was trying to remain optimistic! I am still enjoying your discussion though. I don't have much hope of ever catching up, but I really do enjoy the book...have to agree with Meg...I am not sure why exactly he wrote so much/it has to be as long as it is though!
I finished Part 14. I have not said much specific about the text because I did not want to spoil because I thought I was a bit ahead for a while. I was very disturbed by the visit to the (O what was the family name) where it was very obvious that the father was raping his teen aged daughter. I wonder why that as included? This family was very close to RM, the two women were cousins and regarded each other as sisters. Was Seth trying to point out the ridiculousness of RM's pickiness about who is suitable for her daughter? At the same time she is rejecting people because they are too rich or too pooror come from the wrong ethnic or religious background or ..., her own family is engaged in incest?
We went quickly from that to the people crushed on the bridge. And we have been told about the crushing poverty of the leather workers and the way the land reform act is crushing people unwittingly. Are we supposed to realize how the public is personal and the personal is social? Are we supposed to realize how we are all struggling, all suffering in our own ways? Are we to contrast the social with the personal, the private with the public?
I have been quiet in posting as well because I wasn't sure where everyone was.The whole rape incident and in keeping it quiet was extremely disturbing. On one hand, Seth treats women very respectfully but this scene did not. I am wondering his reason in side stepping this way. Was he showing the conflicts of INdian society? How women are treated? Are they respected? Men rule the INdian world?
Another thing was how hard it was for Hamesh to leave his job and the control that his boss had over him and his life. I found that very disturbing too. The control in Indian society is something I really don't understand whether it be of women, working men, caste system, poverty etc.
The incest issue did not strike me as being lacking in respect for women. I thought that the way the family ignored the issue, was willfully blind to what was happening, was pretty typical of families dealing with incest in most countries/societies up to and maybe including the current era. I doubt that an American family in the 1950s would have handled it much differently. I was surprised at how well Lata handled herself. I wonder how many girls in the US would have done as well in 1950. I am trying to imagine my mother in that sort of situation. She would have been about the right age at that time.I was surprised that Harresh could not quit one job for another without the first employer releasing him. This is certainly a stratified society in which verticle movement is relatively new and so few channels are available.
Mod
I have to agree. If he cut out a few hundred pages, I think I would still care as much.
I also just finished Part 15. I am loving most of the detail. Some of the political conversations are dragging, but otherwise I am fascinated. I am surprised that he has not made me sick of the journey yet since it is so long. I am most interested in whoever is in front of me at a given time. I am taken with Harish's struggle to break through the ceiling keeping the native Indian population in their place. I love Pran and Savita and their quiet lives. I love Amit and his entire family. I really care about Pran's extended family, his so smart nephew, the financial struggles of his brother-in-law, the good-for-nothing brother with a kind heart. I want to see how the Muslim/Hindhu tension will be resolved, less on a national level since I already know some of that from non-fiction, but on the level of the characters in this book. I can't imagine how Seth will end this novel. And, I really don't want it to end. I want these people to become my real-life friends.
Mod
I was really interested in reading the parts about Nehru
I am feeling that the size of this book is detracting and a negative. Am I the only one?
The size is not bothering me. I am enjoying the detail. I think that the choice of what to tell is perfect. I feel as if I know these people intimately, but I do not feel bogged down. If I had any regret, it might be that I chose to read it slowly over such a long period of time. Everytime I go back to it after reading another book, I need to reorient myself. On the other hand, living with these characters for several months has made them feel so much a part of my life and I will miss them.
Well I think that is part of my problem as well, that is I keep reading other books along with this one. But my arms hurt from holding the book!!!
Mod
Yes, the size of this book is an issue. It is so heavy that I get tired holding it, so have been reading it at my table where I can lay it on the table.
You are awesome for sticking it out. :)
Mod
Sheila wrote: "Yes, the size of this book is an issue. It is so heavy that I get tired holding it, so have been reading it at my table where I can lay it on the table..."I do the same thing... A Suitable Boy has become my lunch book that I read propped up on the table. At this rate, it's going to take hundreds of meals and years of lunch to finish the book :)
But, like Irene, I am really enjoying the amount of detail and the pace of the story. Every character has life, and every place has color and texture. I will miss these people and places when I am done.
I was reading about the children playing under the Pipal tree in the square in front of Priya's house, and how the tree would get in the way of their game, and I wondered what sort of tree it was. Apparently, the Pipal tree is a sacred tree in many cultures and is also known as the Bodhi tree, where Gautauma achieved enlightenment. Here is some background on it --
http://www.buzzle.com/articles/pipal-...
Here's a picture of a Pipal tree --
http://medicscientist.com/wp-content/...
With us not having a November/December read, I might just get this one done
Very interesting information about the Pipal tree, thank you!
I finished Part 17 this week. I am now just 100 pages away from the end. I think I will finish before I start another book. I am very curious how Seth is going to wrap things up. He keeps introducing new twists, new tensions.
I'm behind, but really enjoying this book. I do wish that it was not so long! I'm reading several other books now too which is not helping. I find that when I sit down with this one, I really read quite a bit and for a long time. It's not one that I can just pick up and read a few pages of at a time - between meetings, etc. I enjoy immersing myself in the culture, the stories and the families. Thank you to Irene for reminding me of the time period of the 50's and what was happening in India at that time. That is an important point of reference for me as I work my way through this read.
I finished this yesterday. I was delighted and fully engaged up to the end. I was sad to close the back cover. I feel as if I moved away from my friends.
I am on my last 100 pages, and you are right, there is always a new twist. I am glad to hear that the last 100 pages will be just as engaging.
Mod
I climbed Mt Everest!!! That is how I feel, I am finished. I will wait till we are all done to discuss the book in total. I am particularly interested in how you felt about the last 100 pages and the ending.
Mod
I am also eager to hear what people thought of the ending and of the book over all. We have been very cautious in our discussion so as not to spoil anything.
Mod
OK so from now on ******SPOILERS******What did you think of the last 100 pages?
Mod
I wonder if the book was set in present day if Lata and Kabir would have ended up together?
I was also surprised after the stabbing incident that Firoz said in court that he fell on the knife, thereby letting Maan go free.
I was struck by the ways that relationships determined behaviors. I wanted Lata to marry Amit. But, when she explained her decision, I realized that I was reading the story from a Western perspective. Marriage is not governed by the same ideals of romantic love. And, maybe that is not all bad. There does not seem to be the same level of divorce in India because I suspect the expectation going into the marriage is different. I thought that Lata's concern about the jealousy she experienced when she thought Kabir was seeing someone else was quite mature and wise. If she experienced such all-consuming jealousy prior to any commitment, what would a lifelong marriage look like? How long can a person experience happiness if one can feel such passion? And, I also was impressed by her assessment of her relationship with Amit, too alike to enable balance and a happy marriage. Going into a marriage with Haresh was prudent. Both knew that they would need to compremise. Neither had unrealistic expectations of the other. Her brother made a marriage of attraction and look at that relationship. His wife was carrying on a guilt-free affair and was totally disrespectful of his mother. Pran and Savita are in an arranged marriage and have grown into what appears to me to be real love, not just lust or attraction. I was impressed by Firoz's willlingness to commit purgery for his friend, the very friend that nearly killed him. Again, lifelong friendship trumps all else. More impressive was the fact that his father forgave the young man that nearly killed his son. How many of us could do that?
I thought that this book showed a culture in which people live close enough together that they learn to make allowances early on. They don't expect perfection of one another. They realize that people are flawed and the institutions that people make up are also flawed. There were no law suits over the stampeed at the Pal Mal. There was a resignation and simple acceptance when the large holy stone carving broke its ropes and slid backward into the river after all that work. Heads would have rolled here. One thing I came away with is that I tend to judge other cultures from the value perspective of my background. But that is unfair and too limiting. Having 1,500 pages to travel only one year with these people, I was allowed to see life from their eyes. If I could walk in their shoes for a while,I could learn to be a better person by challenging other parts of myself. And, of course, the reverse would also be true. Haresh's experience with employment was a clear example of one area where their cultural background could be crippling to the larger society.
I was disappointed that Lata ended up with Haresh. I felt as thought she just gave up the fight. I am not saying that I wanted her with Kabir either, I don't think he was a good person in the end. I don't think Haresh would amount to much and I felt that Lata deserved someone that did. She was feisty and I liked that about her, I felt when she made her choice she was going to lose that unique quality. In the end, she followed what her mother advised her to do. However, I wonder if the choice for her would have been entirely different if her father were alive and helped to make the choice.the forgiveness part of Firoz, was also hard for me to understand. I am not sure I have that much forgiveness, or if I did, it would take a lot longer to get to that point, especially with my life in danger.
It is true; however, that I am looking at this with both Western eyes and a more modern past (the 1950's was before my time) Am I against arranged marriages? I can;t say that, I understand the cultures that do it. I guess, in the end, I just wanted more for Lata. She was my favorite character in the book.
Mod
It is interesting that this huge, long book only covered 1 year in the lives of these families. As Irene says, it was interesting to see their life through their eyes. If how the culture of India described was true for this time period, then I feel I have learned a lot. Even if some of the political talk was a bit boring for me at times. (smile)
Meg did you like this one more than Far Pavillions?
I liked it much more than Far Pavilions. I thought the writing was of a much higher quality.
Over Thanksgiving break it's a choice between a few for me.A Suitable Boy
Infinite Jest
Game of Thrones
Fall of Giants
Rebecca if you want to read this one I can send you my copy as a giftie. If you pick Infinite Jest you can read it with us as a group. So many choices!!!I really liked both books for different reasons. My mother is reading Far Pavilions and can't put it down.
Meg you are so kind. I have a copy of Suitable Boy. I think Infinate Jest would be good because I can get a head start and I always fall behind and give up. This way I could probably keep up.
Mod
Chicks On Lit
Books mentioned in this topic
The Little Engine That Could (other topics)The Arabian Nights (other topics)
A Suitable Boy (other topics)
Remember, this book is set in 1950. They had just ended a war for independence with Brittan. England had just emerged from WWII and a tough economic depression. They were not sinking money into developing colonies. As is true with many colonized nations, much of their natural resources were being diverted to the mother land. The native population was caught between cultures. I think this book shows that cultural displacement. You are not sure if the middle class wants to be Indian or British. They are shipping the best and richest off to England for university educations. They are just achieving the possibility of running their own universities which still have not fully come into their own. Look at the literature debate by the syllabus committee, none of the authors or masterpieces being debated are native; they are still looking to the European contenant. Their legal system, down to the black robes, is all Brittish. There is still not universal education. There is a huge landless class. Gandhi had just managed to overturn laws based on cast and outlawing the discrimination against "untouchables". Think how long it took America to move from the emancipation of slaves to laws against discrimination and from the Civil Rights Movement to..., well we still don't have parity in salaries or education. I am amazed at how well things are running in India of 1950. Considering that you have over 40 distinct languages spoken throughout India and that prior to Brittish rule, these were numerous independant principalities, I think their modernization is remarkable.