Disappointed Mr. Ghosh, will be the one line response after living the book for the last few weeks. I remember excitedly picking up this book, craving to read it, but 500-odd pages later, I am less than thrilled.The plot has a lot of potential to offer, which is seen in the richness of the beginnings of the book, where each of the characters are introduced and their lives painted against the East Indian canvas of the days of the Raj. Deeti's caste-based village & circumstances that forces her to walk down the forbidden path. Neel's stately but bankrupt zemindary, that is both better and worse for having dealt with the British. Paulette's mem-sahib to maid life change. The ruthless-but-clever English business-men, the spiritual & eccentric accountant, the nigger-to-sailor second-mate of the ship. And all of their fates linked to each other around the addiction & business of opium.
But, the book quickly unravels into a series of incidents that seem to prolong a story that could have been told in half the pages. Some of the details seem unnecessary and indeed just distasteful. For instance, the sexual fetish of Mr. Burnham as a reason for Paulette to escape, seemed utterly distracting and irrelevant. Her desire to escape would have been just as strong because of who she was. The exaggeration of the corrupt English-men (all or most Brits in the story) seemed a bit too uni-dimensional and un-real. Again, some of the details of the journey on the ship, Baboo Nob Kissin's obsession with the prophecy, and various bits of gloom, doom and oppression felt completely unnecessary and at times annoying.
There are still lots of things that connect and remind you of the reasons you pick up an Amitav Ghosh book. Raja Neel Ratan's transformation from the erudite Indian landlord to a convict on the Ibis is a touching journey, with loads of rich emotions; Deeti & Kalua's un-sophisticated yet the most progressive relationship and Paulette's more-Indian-than-foreign identity. The fabulous insight into the British Raj of them using the multiplicity of castes, cultures, languages & religions to their advantage, by playing "divide & rule". All of these work and evoke a connection with what these characters are going through. You can feel what they feel. You can see life through their eyes. You can see them as real people.
And it is these few and far-between glimpses in the book, along with the simple curiosity of what happens next, that will make me still want to read the second part of this trilogy. But, I will be praying for the magic of Shadow Lines & Hungry Tide in them. You're allowed to make one mistake Mr. Ghosh, but not another one...
