Excerpt – The climax of this book is not the end but the beginning of many stories.
Main characters – Rachel, Estha, Ammu, Velutha, Baby Kochamma, Chacko, Sophie, Mammachi, Margaret.
One of my first novels, this book was one of a kind. The most intriguing part was the unique style of writing. I was new to that kind of patchwork writing that darted between time periods, thoughts and events in an almost random pattern.
The beauty of the book lies in exactly that. There was a moment as I turned the last page when something clicked into place and that is what everyone who intends to read the book should be prepared for. It will make complete sense in the end.
The book set in 1969-1993, is essentially about Rachel and Estha, fraternal twins, who are affected by the events that happen at their maternal home in Aymenam, Kottayam in Kerala, India. The plot touches upon the political scene in Kerala as well as the caste system and discrimination prevalent then. The ‘untouchability’ practice that was accepted as the norm at the time becomes a pivotal part of the story.
The turning point of the plot is before, during and after the much anticipated occasion of the twins’ cousin Sophie’s arrival.
Ammu is a divorcee and mother to the twins. She has forever felt suppressed by the rules that her family and the society set on her. Ammu, with her act of love not approved by society, eventually unravels their delicately strung family. Rachel and Estha are moulded by these events and finally find peace in each other as they reunite after 24 years. The peace that they find is twisted and somewhat unnatural, but that is all they get.
The author’s brilliance lies in the narrative. Sometimes we see the events from Rachel’s perspective, a seven-year old at the time. In the more serious situations of the plot, this seems almost bizarre and at the same time, it brings clarity to the trauma and the lack of peace that the twins went through later in life.
What touched me the most, was the use of a Malayalam word ‘Naaley’, which means tomorrow. That was all Ammu had asked for, one more day of love and the simplicity of the request is scary. The answer to her request is complete mayhem, sorrow and in the end, death. Without giving out any more spoilers, this book is one that will keep you thinking and questioning. My favourite kind.
