Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, August 8, 1993 TAG: 9403190008
SECTION: HORIZON PAGE: D4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Reviewed by LINDA GAVEL WEBB
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Many summers ago, in ambitious and carefree youth, I took it upon myself to read ``War and Peace.'' It ate up the entire summer, but what a joy (and accomplishment) it was to complete.
Since then, more time-pressed and with perhaps a shorter attention span, I've had to be satisfied with thinner tomes; that is, until ``A Suitable Boy'' appeared. Calling it the Indian ``War and Peace'' gives you a basic idea of the glorious detail- and character-packed nature of this 1,349 page novel, but I hesitate to do so for this is a breathtakingly original tour de force from a brilliant and deeply humanist voice.
Vikram Seth adroitly whisks us into early 1950s India, when this country, comprising a sixth of the world's population, is trying to gather itself together after independence from British domination, partition from what is now Pakistan and the death of Gandhi, whose guidance is sorely missed. Seth explains it to us through the lives of four intertwined families, three Hindus of varying piety and one Muslim.
The Khans are landed Muslim aristocracy, deeply religious (their women in purdah), who have remained loyal to India despite the existence of Pakistan, and loyal as well to their Hindu friends, despite the pain this sometimes causes. The Kapoors are politicians and scholars (and one black-sheep playboy), at ease in the privileged world of the Khans, but nevertheless the authors of a more democratic plan for India.
The Chatterjis, related by marriage to the Kapoors, are overeducated, anglicized and somewhat snobbish but they are still a very moving example of family love and devotion, and they have produced one famous poet. The Mehras, related by marriage to both the Kapoors and Chatterjis, are impoverished gentility, upper caste but without the funds to live up to their good taste. They're a matriarchal clan with old-fashioned ideas who are adjusting as well and quickly as they can to modern times.
Lata Mehra is a 19-year-old English literature student. Her struggles - in a society of extreme sexual double standards and rigid boundaries of class and religion - to discover herself and to satisfy her mother's quest to marry her off to ``a suitable boy'' that are the soul of the story.
Apparently by magic, into her sheltered life come three very eligible bachelors: Kabir, dashing, young and heroic, perfect in every way except for his religion - and his immaturity; Amit, a sort of relative, the poet revered by Lata and her fellow students; and Harresh, her mother's choice, surprisingly flashy and a little rough around the edges, but ambitious, practical and generous.
Through cross-country train rides, family squabbles, religious rioting, political mayhem, marriages-births-deaths and her cherished literature, Lata finishes growing up and suddenly knows which of her suitors is the unequivocal choice.
Swirling around Lata and her seemingly small, personal journey are the chaos and rough attempts at order of a country giving new birth to itself. Many, many beautifully and carefully drawn characters show us little pieces of what's going on at this exact moment in history, and each of their stories is tied up neatly but believably by the end. Throughout, we are treated to an education in the music, language, clothing, food and landscape of this fascinating part of the planet.
It is a large part of the novel's triumph that when you are done with it, despite the great amount of bloodshed and horror you have witnessed, you will yearn to go to India and to see its beauty, its people for yourself.
About finishing all 1,349 pages: you will.
``A Suitable Boy'' requires a commitment, both of time and arm muscle strength. However, it is laid out in easily managed mini-chapters, complete vignettes in themselves, and larger sections that bring the vignettes together. You may think you can nibble at it over several months, but I promise you will be devouring it in great gulps before you know it.
Very specifically about India at a precise moment, Vikram Seth's masterpiece is also about all people who have battled themselves, their families, and the constraints of their time to find their path in life.
Linda Gavel Webb is a Roanoke writer and reader.
by CNB