Slum Child - Bina Shah

Fiction

Read It

I can't quite remember if I read this book previously or not. Usually I do remember. It was vaguely familiar but not so much that I could say for certain. Even if I did, I'm glad I read this a second time because I gathered so much more than I would have the first time.

Bina Shah has brought together a plethora of interesting things in this book. So many so that I found myself  fascinated. The main character, Laila, is a young Christian girl (1) who lives with her mother, sister, step father (2), and 3 younger step brothers. The family lives in Karachi Pakistan in a slum. Her step father is a Muslim (3). The story follows Laila as she wanders through a seemingly happy childhood with her family. Things take a darker turn when her sister develops tuberculousis and the family doesn't have enough money to have her treated and she passes away. Laila develops an unlikely friend with a drug addict (4) who later goes to rehab and gets his life together. After her sister's death, her mother sinks into a childlike, confused state (5) and stays there. As her mother was the sole bread winner, Laila is dismayed when she hears her father concede to sell her for money. She runs away (6) and finds an unlikely alliance in her drug addict friend and his bus driving cousin (7). She goes to her mother's old employer and begs for work. She is taken in and works as an ayah/househelp for a while. She discovers that she has lost her faith (8) and that she just cannot leave her helpless mother behind. She becomes close to the spoiled, rich children who she cared for (9) and they end up helping her when she is attacked by her father's friend when she goes home to get her mother. They kill him (10) and put her mother in a home. (11)

As you can see, there's a LOT going on there. The story of Punjabi Christians in a Muslim dominated country is a startling one. The author does justice to make sure the reader understands the suspicion and hatred that pops up between communities. She also addresses losses of faith, the heartless demeaning condition of slums, and how resentments are sometimes raised between financial classes even though there is no animosity. It's not a difficult book to read in terms of comprehension, but you will chew over the concepts for a while. Shah's main character is accessible - she's a little girl. The fights and responsibilities she is forced to take on age her, but as heartbreaking as they are, they are the fight of millions of young impoverished women.  Take the time to read this. It's an interesting look at a minority community.

~Becky~

The Princess and the Political Agent - Binodini

 Fiction

Verdict: A difficult one, but Read it

As I mentioned, when one wanders through Indian novels and writers, each brings a specific flavor that can help the reader understand the culture that the novel stems from. Binodini's novel is no exception. While my daughter had a Manipuri boyfriend for a while and I have had some...acquaintances from Manipur and Assam as well, I have had very little exposure to Manipuri Culture and no exposure to literary works from there. To be quite frank, when i picked this up, I mistakenly thought that this was a Bengali novel. I was thrilled to find out otherwise. As with my previous post on Attia Hosain, the introduction to Binodini at the beginning was intimidating as hell. Related to the royal family of Manipur and quite the literary influence, Binodini has published just one novel, but many other poems and short works.

The novel follows one one of the Manipuri Princesses during the British Raj, when the Manipuri king was removed and sent into exile,  and through her life. The author has created a treasure trove of culture, court intrigue, and romance. As title suggests, the Princess ends up being a common law wife of an English Political agent. While he is portrayed as a compassionate and caring person, one cannot help but wonder why the princess would accept someone who is widely recognized as being a face of the enemy and not one of them. Binodini never really answers this question. While it is a fiction novel, she has based it on actual people and events. The princess actually was with the political agent.  

This was a difficult novel for me to follow. The author does her own thing and tells her story exactly as she wishes to - no apologies, very few explanations.  While the cultural value this novel has is quite something, it's not easily digestible. I found myself having to do additional research into words and such while I was reading. I don't fault the author for this, but those who do not invest in helping themselves understand will probably miss a great deal. I also found the characters very difficult to understand and identify with. As someone who loves Indian literature, this was frustrating for me. I also would have loved to have had further insight into interpersonal relationships between the characters. Many of the relationships were confusing at best, down right confounding at worst. True to form, Binodini has just presented the story, she does not explain. 

Manipuri literature is a new one for me, and I fully plan to see what else I can find to read from there. Hopefully I can develop my knowledge enough to fully appreciate the story Binodini has told. 

Read it, but unless you are Manipuri, plan on investing some time to investigate. If you don't, you'll miss the richness of this novel.

~Becky~