The year 2024 has been good for my reading goals. The goodreads challenge is completed and the streak goes on. Thankfully no slump yet. The major successes was in completing two heavy books, namely ‘Shantaram‘ and ‘The covenant of water‘.
Shantaram
Initially the huge book with so many pages intimidated me. I even left the book the first time since I couldn’t overcome the page barrier. The next time, I kept pursuing Lin and his journey in India. The writing was very fluid. There were many quotable lines at which I had to break and take breaths. They all looked simple but seemed like deep introspective quotes of intelligent man. Somewhere along the line I found out that its based on true events and that really spiked me up. More than the observed descriptions of the nature, physical attributes of Indian society, I admire how he could tap into the positive aspects of Indian culture, while being not brainwashed into it or admonishing how the culture could squeeze and acts as chains. A balanced approach as in seeing the positives though not ignoring the negatives and this is mainly in the form of emotions. There is no questioning of why Karla is aloof or blaming the corruption of India etc. It just describes the events and also his thoughts around them. The section on Afghanistan was the most boring but yet most horrific too. To get a view on how the minds have become corrupted to the idea of religion, for which you can kill and live the worst life is mind boggling. The ending of the book invites you to the continue onto the second book, but I needed a break. Its difficult to digest the truths regarding his deep philosophical thoughts and complexities of human minds, and the stories revolving around friendships and enemies that form in adverse situations and how they betray and for what reasons.
The covenant of water
‘The covenant of water‘ was much discussed in another book club nearby. Its blurb description of Kerala reminded me of ‘God of small things‘ by Arundhati Roy which I read much long ago, so long that I have even forgotten the story. There were parts of the book which resembled the House of Blue Mangoes by Davidar. Maybe its because of the same era. The book is heavy because of the number of deaths that happen across the seven decades and three generations. Some of them were shocking twists and pulls you into depression just like how the characters feel. Some of the quotes seem to be from Bible and famous books, which the author has given references to. The element of medicinal terms and surgical scenes description can creep the faint hearted ones like me with good imagination. Also the leprosy topic keeps coming back again and again and forces you to face that disease and the patients who were avoided both in real and in the book. In between, the book slowed me down with Naxalites and the slow pace. The twist in the end makes it worthwhile.
Both books send me on research journeys on google. Shantaram sent me on a search to figure out the real Lin, GDR, who is almost invisible on internet. The real locations and interviews available on Youtube were a revelation. For ‘The covenant of water‘ book, I had to find out more on the real Condition and the leprosy disease. I never knew that poking a brain could not induce pain!
