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Suswatibasu (1703 KP) rated The Inheritance of Loss in Books

Jul 29, 2017

The Inheritance of Loss

Kiran Desai | 2006 | Fiction & Poetry

9.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

The tragic consequences of colonialism and class

Kiran Desai's vivid writing of the northern mountainous regions of Kalimpong was well captured in this desperate novel of the aftermath of British colonialism and the caste system in India.

The events are quite accurate as my own family who resided there during this time can substantiate. The violence that ensued the nation following independence was one of many tragic consequences of a country attempting to repair itself after massive divisions were sown.

At the same time, the experiences of an immigrant abroad is a good reflection of how imperialism allowed people to make the journey while still being treated as a second class citizen.

The story itself surrounding a small community of elites in the northern regions is interesting as many of them attempt to face their own demons and find an identity. Poignant, quite long, and well written.

Kudos

Aasiyah Sidat (34 KP) rated If you look for me, I am not here in Books

Jul 6, 2018

micro-presses are small publishing houses with usually with a very small number of people. They don't have all the bells and whistles of the giant publishing houses but, these smaller publishing houses have an eye for finding the diamonds in the rough.

This book was more of a cubic zirconia than a diamond but still very shiny.

Let me explain.

This book tells the story of Siva, a small boy growing up in southern India who craves for the love and attention of his mother. Alas, she is unable to because she is mourning the loss of Siva's twin, Tara who dies at birth. Throughout the book, Siva struggles with his identity, to try and find a place where he fits in but also who he can be so that his mum loves him.

Continue reading my review at: https://www.readsandrecipes.co.uk/2017/09/read-harder-micropress.html

Kudos

MissCagey (2652 KP) rated Victoria and Abdul (2017) in Movies

Jan 25, 2019

Victoria and Abdul (2017)

2017 | Biography, Drama, History

7.8

(9 Ratings)

Movie Rating

Judi Dench is of course faultless as the acerbic Queen Victoria. This (mainly) true story is about the Queen's friendship with Abdul, an Indian muslim. I was taken aback at what would have been considered open mindedness at the time and this was refreshing to see, this redeemed her in my eyes as she appears to have been generally quite rude otherwise (I'm guessing you're allowed to be when you're queen!). This was compared to the out and out racism and disgust shown by her staff. These parts were difficult and upsetting to watch.
Their friendship was very sweet although when Abdul was found to have lied about a mutiny in India the film does not explain whether he deliberately lied or was mistaken.
This film prompted me to research the relationship further and it is general consensus that Abdul was an opportunistic and rather dislikable man!

Kudos

Awix (3310 KP) rated Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) in Movies

Apr 11, 2020

Action-adventure sequel from Lucas and Spielberg. Indiana Jones and his friends find themselves in India where they discover an ancient cult with plans on world domination.

Not quite the perfect, gleaming classic that the first film is, nor as much fun as the third, but if you want a knockabout adventure film that goes boom-boom-boom from one classic set-piece to the next virtually non-stop, then you could do very much worse than this. Watching closely you can tell there's a chunk in the middle where a subplot has been cut to keep up the pace and shorten the film, but apart from this it's a virtually perfect thrill-ride: not as subtle, thoughtful, or textured as Raiders, but then I'm not sure it was ever supposed to be. Still very reliable comfort viewing for those of us who grew up in the 80s.