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A review by theeditorreads
A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth
5.0
A Suitable Boy is a panoramic family saga that will take your breath away with its expansive details about India that was.
Synopsis:
Mrs Rupa Mehra, the wife of late Mr Raghubir Mehra, is on the lookout for a good lad to get her youngest of four children married. With her elder of two daughters finally getting married, she's more worried about her younger one. Lata, her nineteen-year-old, has quite the thoughts about life. And it is not going to be easy for this chronic worrier of a mother as she navigates the groom "market" in search of a suitable boy for her daughter when the said daughter doesn't even want to marry in the first place.
Review:
Sounds like a very ordinary olden-age story, right? It is anything but. The synopsis I wrote is the basic plot of this magnum opus. I was supposed to read this book as part of a readalong in August 2020 with Deepak but I couldn't keep up then. Only after my exams could I pick it up again and breezed through it. And with that, my big book reading ability is restored. Ha!
The epigraph has two lines by Voltaire, among them:
"The secret of being a bore is to say everything."
A Suitable Boy feels like it says everything, but then it doesn't. Because it is primarily Lata's story, it does revolve mostly around her. And even if you want to know what exactly transpires in the lives of the other characters, you can't. Yep, the story is such that you feel invested in each and every character you come across. And it miffed me, the open endings and the unresolved plot points in quite a few instances. The Sunday Times described the book as:
"Puts a subcontinent between hardcovers…hundreds of people stream into view and are illuminated by the brilliant, warm lucidity of Vikram Seth's regard…Conceived on the grand scale of the great 19th century novels—War and Peace, Middlemarch—A Suitable Boy grows to match them in breadth and depth…[A] massive and magnificent book."
Which it indeed is, massive and magnificent. It took me a solid two months to read this book, it took me about that much time to finally put my thoughts about it on paper. After all, how do you review a tome of more than a thousand plus pages? You just try to keep your review coherent, without neglecting one aspect for the other!
The book starts with the most unique word of thanks written in verse form, humorously thanking everyone and warning the readers. The last line being:
"You'll strain your purse and sprain your wrists."
Thankfully I was spared the former as I was fortunate enough to get a copy issued from the local library. And I can't really say much about the latter, can I? Heh!
And not only the word of thanks, but A Suitable Boy promises a distinctive story, right from its quirky list of contents. It sums up the entire saga in a single poem, two lines for each of the nineteen parts that the story consists of. Every time you read this poem, the story just flashes before your eyes like a yesteryear cinema playing out in black and white.
Rupa Mehra is the quintessential Indian Maa, emotionally blackmailing her own kids in her attempt to get them "properly" settled in life. She is also a hypochondriac which seldom got on my nerves. It is at Mrs Rupa Mehra's elder daughter Savita's wedding that the story opens in the groom's palatial house, Prem Nivas. And with that beginning, all the things that define a big fat Indian wedding are introduced. The complexion and height comparisons, the disreputable daughter-in-law's, the search for a suitable boy for the yet unmarried girls, the snide comments, disapproval over something which can't even be called flirting, the caste and class differences, etc.
The author's voice seemed to creep in whenever something needed explaining. But overall this epic family saga is a wonderful experience in India that was, that still is in some parts of the country. Set three years after India's independence, it is a vast book on family dynamics, religion, a time when inland letters were in existence. As I read, I realised what a wealth of information is hidden in almost every sentence of the book. Nothing is said just because.
The olden days were golden days, in terms of the 4711 eau-de-Cologne (I really want to smell it) or reading the Statesman (my late grandfather worked there!).
The book covers everything, almost everything, from politics, elections, to caste and class, to religious tension, to the painful memories of partition, to Hindustani classical music and ghazals, to the confluence of languages (English, Hindi, Urdu, Bengali, even if the book is entirely in English), to the leather trade and shoe business, to beautiful and funny couplets (which reminded me of the 1980 Bollywood comedy-drama Khoobsurat), to literary references, to clash of cultures, to courtroom drama, to Shakespeare, to cricket…
ye ishq nahīñ āsāñ itnā hī samajh liije, ik aag kā dariyā hai aur duub ke jaanā hai
It has all kinds of characters too, from the condescending older brother who is always on a power trip to the younger one who can't seem to take a stand for himself.
Many readers don't prefer discussions that are too long-winded or descriptions that seem to deviate from the topic. Similar to what happens in the classics. But writing is an art and Seth has nailed it to a T, as I found a detailed meeting of the English department of a university lively and intellectually stimulating. Ha! Maybe because of the joy that a fight between Joyce and Eliot provided, and remember that this is the year 1951, in India. Seth has aptly described, in detail, every little thing that makes up the story, and how India was in that era.
I loved the way Kabir and Lata's romance was built up, especially through the hilarious poetry reading sessions.
In the end, there was a mention of Toru Dutt. AND I COULDN'T HAVE BEEN HAPPIER!!! I also liked, what felt like Seth, taking pot-shots at himself. Through the character of Amit Chatterji and his more than a thousand pages long book set in Bengal, which couldn't seem to finish!
But, Lata's character sometimes confused me, she went from being this demure and submissive daughter to a not outrightly, but still, bold and a spitfire who rebelled against the society's and her mother's shackles. She has quite the philosophical thoughts about life. From what I could glean about Lata's character from the last two of this nineteen part book was that even after being an adventurous person, she ultimately settled for the safe choice in life. But she is still a favourite, even if only because of her love for books and music.
My favourite family, though, was the quirky Chatterjis. And I'm definitely biased because I am a Bengali myself. Plus, they are such a hilarious family. They put most of the humour in the book.
However cynical or jaded we are, or however much we think as millennials about romance and love are more important or hopeful than arranged marriages, finding 'a suitable boy' feels like an adventure. The good parts of it, at least. In the end, the story comes a full circle.
Books the characters read:
[b:Ideal Marriage, Its Physiology and Technique|1200322|Ideal Marriage, Its Physiology and Technique|Theodoor Hendrik Van de Velde|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1181830260l/1200322._SY75_.jpg|1188454] by Theodoor Hendrik van de Velde
[b:Scenes from Provincial Life, including Scenes from Married Life|1775730|Scenes from Provincial Life, including Scenes from Married Life|William Cooper|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1341076776l/1775730._SY75_.jpg|1774074] by William Cooper
Music:
Winterreise by Franz Schubert
P.S. I loved the cover of this particular edition. The woman featured is Ms Prem Lata of Delhi, clicked in 1948, and is courtesy of The Estate of Swaranjit Singh/Fotomedia.
I wonder who the "[b:A Suitable Girl|34522384|A Suitable Girl (A Bridge of Leaves, #2)|Vikram Seth|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1571375271l/34522384._SX50_.jpg|24586732]" will be for? Maan or Lata's brother?
I borrowed a copy of A Suitable Boy from the Delhi Public Library.
Originally posted on:
Shaina's Musings
Synopsis:
Mrs Rupa Mehra, the wife of late Mr Raghubir Mehra, is on the lookout for a good lad to get her youngest of four children married. With her elder of two daughters finally getting married, she's more worried about her younger one. Lata, her nineteen-year-old, has quite the thoughts about life. And it is not going to be easy for this chronic worrier of a mother as she navigates the groom "market" in search of a suitable boy for her daughter when the said daughter doesn't even want to marry in the first place.
Review:
Sounds like a very ordinary olden-age story, right? It is anything but. The synopsis I wrote is the basic plot of this magnum opus. I was supposed to read this book as part of a readalong in August 2020 with Deepak but I couldn't keep up then. Only after my exams could I pick it up again and breezed through it. And with that, my big book reading ability is restored. Ha!
The epigraph has two lines by Voltaire, among them:
"The secret of being a bore is to say everything."
A Suitable Boy feels like it says everything, but then it doesn't. Because it is primarily Lata's story, it does revolve mostly around her. And even if you want to know what exactly transpires in the lives of the other characters, you can't. Yep, the story is such that you feel invested in each and every character you come across. And it miffed me, the open endings and the unresolved plot points in quite a few instances. The Sunday Times described the book as:
"Puts a subcontinent between hardcovers…hundreds of people stream into view and are illuminated by the brilliant, warm lucidity of Vikram Seth's regard…Conceived on the grand scale of the great 19th century novels—War and Peace, Middlemarch—A Suitable Boy grows to match them in breadth and depth…[A] massive and magnificent book."
Which it indeed is, massive and magnificent. It took me a solid two months to read this book, it took me about that much time to finally put my thoughts about it on paper. After all, how do you review a tome of more than a thousand plus pages? You just try to keep your review coherent, without neglecting one aspect for the other!
The book starts with the most unique word of thanks written in verse form, humorously thanking everyone and warning the readers. The last line being:
"You'll strain your purse and sprain your wrists."
Thankfully I was spared the former as I was fortunate enough to get a copy issued from the local library. And I can't really say much about the latter, can I? Heh!
And not only the word of thanks, but A Suitable Boy promises a distinctive story, right from its quirky list of contents. It sums up the entire saga in a single poem, two lines for each of the nineteen parts that the story consists of. Every time you read this poem, the story just flashes before your eyes like a yesteryear cinema playing out in black and white.
A suitable boy must be found for Lata.
Rupa Mehra is the quintessential Indian Maa, emotionally blackmailing her own kids in her attempt to get them "properly" settled in life. She is also a hypochondriac which seldom got on my nerves. It is at Mrs Rupa Mehra's elder daughter Savita's wedding that the story opens in the groom's palatial house, Prem Nivas. And with that beginning, all the things that define a big fat Indian wedding are introduced. The complexion and height comparisons, the disreputable daughter-in-law's, the search for a suitable boy for the yet unmarried girls, the snide comments, disapproval over something which can't even be called flirting, the caste and class differences, etc.
The author's voice seemed to creep in whenever something needed explaining. But overall this epic family saga is a wonderful experience in India that was, that still is in some parts of the country. Set three years after India's independence, it is a vast book on family dynamics, religion, a time when inland letters were in existence. As I read, I realised what a wealth of information is hidden in almost every sentence of the book. Nothing is said just because.
The olden days were golden days, in terms of the 4711 eau-de-Cologne (I really want to smell it) or reading the Statesman (my late grandfather worked there!).
The book covers everything, almost everything, from politics, elections, to caste and class, to religious tension, to the painful memories of partition, to Hindustani classical music and ghazals, to the confluence of languages (English, Hindi, Urdu, Bengali, even if the book is entirely in English), to the leather trade and shoe business, to beautiful and funny couplets (which reminded me of the 1980 Bollywood comedy-drama Khoobsurat), to literary references, to clash of cultures, to courtroom drama, to Shakespeare, to cricket…
She told herself again and again that the path of true love never did run smooth.
ye ishq nahīñ āsāñ itnā hī samajh liije, ik aag kā dariyā hai aur duub ke jaanā hai
It has all kinds of characters too, from the condescending older brother who is always on a power trip to the younger one who can't seem to take a stand for himself.
Many readers don't prefer discussions that are too long-winded or descriptions that seem to deviate from the topic. Similar to what happens in the classics. But writing is an art and Seth has nailed it to a T, as I found a detailed meeting of the English department of a university lively and intellectually stimulating. Ha! Maybe because of the joy that a fight between Joyce and Eliot provided, and remember that this is the year 1951, in India. Seth has aptly described, in detail, every little thing that makes up the story, and how India was in that era.
I loved the way Kabir and Lata's romance was built up, especially through the hilarious poetry reading sessions.
In the end, there was a mention of Toru Dutt. AND I COULDN'T HAVE BEEN HAPPIER!!! I also liked, what felt like Seth, taking pot-shots at himself. Through the character of Amit Chatterji and his more than a thousand pages long book set in Bengal, which couldn't seem to finish!
But, Lata's character sometimes confused me, she went from being this demure and submissive daughter to a not outrightly, but still, bold and a spitfire who rebelled against the society's and her mother's shackles. She has quite the philosophical thoughts about life. From what I could glean about Lata's character from the last two of this nineteen part book was that even after being an adventurous person, she ultimately settled for the safe choice in life. But she is still a favourite, even if only because of her love for books and music.
But … music really does do that to me. Simply strumming the tanpura, even if I don't sing a single note, puts me into a trance.
My favourite family, though, was the quirky Chatterjis. And I'm definitely biased because I am a Bengali myself. Plus, they are such a hilarious family. They put most of the humour in the book.
However cynical or jaded we are, or however much we think as millennials about romance and love are more important or hopeful than arranged marriages, finding 'a suitable boy' feels like an adventure. The good parts of it, at least. In the end, the story comes a full circle.
Books the characters read:
[b:Ideal Marriage, Its Physiology and Technique|1200322|Ideal Marriage, Its Physiology and Technique|Theodoor Hendrik Van de Velde|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1181830260l/1200322._SY75_.jpg|1188454] by Theodoor Hendrik van de Velde
[b:Scenes from Provincial Life, including Scenes from Married Life|1775730|Scenes from Provincial Life, including Scenes from Married Life|William Cooper|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1341076776l/1775730._SY75_.jpg|1774074] by William Cooper
Music:
Winterreise by Franz Schubert
P.S. I loved the cover of this particular edition. The woman featured is Ms Prem Lata of Delhi, clicked in 1948, and is courtesy of The Estate of Swaranjit Singh/Fotomedia.
I wonder who the "[b:A Suitable Girl|34522384|A Suitable Girl (A Bridge of Leaves, #2)|Vikram Seth|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1571375271l/34522384._SX50_.jpg|24586732]" will be for? Maan or Lata's brother?
I borrowed a copy of A Suitable Boy from the Delhi Public Library.
Originally posted on:
Shaina's Musings