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srivalli 's review for:
The Space Between Us
by Thrity Umrigar
**Rant**
How to write a story set in India to please the colonial masters and give the illusion of being an intellectual and a realist?
• Start and end with heavy metaphoric prose
• Stereotype caste division
• Stereotype class division
• Insert as many instances of racism as possible
• Take a wafer-thin plot
• Add all possible social injustices (domestic violence, oppression, alcohol abuse, worker abuse, teen pregnancy, torture by MIL, AIDS through a partner... I hope I didn't forget any)
• Go back and forth to insert the above-mentioned tropes
• Sprinkle heavy prose at random
• All men are evil (except the refugee from another country)
• Women should be passive-aggressive (yeah, like my review) and continue to suffer
• Remove all chances of hope or positivity
• Mercurial main characters to tick off the checklist
• Present the worst version of India and win accolades for writing realistic hard-hitting fiction (where did all the kind people vanish!?)
*****
Don't need to be a genius to figure out how much I liked the book, right? I already had an inkling about how the book would be. Even then, I expected something less dramatic and more balanced. Makes me wonder why I even bothered.
The narration did start well but soon felt like a drive through a construction site. You never know when you'll need to step on the brake because there's a sudden diversion ahead.
It didn't help that I guessed the crux of the plot within the first 50 pages but had to wait until the last 50 pages for the reveal.
One of the reviewers called the book misery porn, and I'm inclined to agree. Why is it that there is hardly anyone good in the book, except for a young boy, Haider? Even Dinaz is a stereotyped social justice crusader from an affluent family (think of rich girls joining campaigns to take selfies for Instagram).
Not sure if others didn't find it odd, but I got annoyed by Bhima's obsession with Pathan (the Afghan balloon seller). Leave the poor man alone!
Maya plays such a vital role in the book and doesn't get a chance to share her POV. We see her through Bhima and Sera's eyes. It looked like she had it in her to be a strong character but the author didn't bother to develop her arc. She ended up more as a plot device.
I know the book has a sequel, but the metaphorical ending felt totally off. I'm not surprised by the events towards the end. That was the only way the book would go. Yet, I expected a much-rounded ending, something more grounded or even hopeful. Got neither. :/
How to write a story set in India to please the colonial masters and give the illusion of being an intellectual and a realist?
• Start and end with heavy metaphoric prose
• Stereotype caste division
• Stereotype class division
• Insert as many instances of racism as possible
• Take a wafer-thin plot
• Add all possible social injustices (domestic violence, oppression, alcohol abuse, worker abuse, teen pregnancy, torture by MIL, AIDS through a partner... I hope I didn't forget any)
• Go back and forth to insert the above-mentioned tropes
• Sprinkle heavy prose at random
• All men are evil (except the refugee from another country)
• Women should be passive-aggressive (yeah, like my review) and continue to suffer
• Remove all chances of hope or positivity
• Mercurial main characters to tick off the checklist
• Present the worst version of India and win accolades for writing realistic hard-hitting fiction (where did all the kind people vanish!?)
*****
Don't need to be a genius to figure out how much I liked the book, right? I already had an inkling about how the book would be. Even then, I expected something less dramatic and more balanced. Makes me wonder why I even bothered.
The narration did start well but soon felt like a drive through a construction site. You never know when you'll need to step on the brake because there's a sudden diversion ahead.
It didn't help that I guessed the crux of the plot within the first 50 pages but had to wait until the last 50 pages for the reveal.
One of the reviewers called the book misery porn, and I'm inclined to agree. Why is it that there is hardly anyone good in the book, except for a young boy, Haider? Even Dinaz is a stereotyped social justice crusader from an affluent family (think of rich girls joining campaigns to take selfies for Instagram).
Not sure if others didn't find it odd, but I got annoyed by Bhima's obsession with Pathan (the Afghan balloon seller). Leave the poor man alone!
Maya plays such a vital role in the book and doesn't get a chance to share her POV. We see her through Bhima and Sera's eyes. It looked like she had it in her to be a strong character but the author didn't bother to develop her arc. She ended up more as a plot device.
I know the book has a sequel, but the metaphorical ending felt totally off. I'm not surprised by the events towards the end. That was the only way the book would go. Yet, I expected a much-rounded ending, something more grounded or even hopeful. Got neither. :/