Readers Prejudice(s)

I just finished “The Oleander Girl” – Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni. She had become one of my favorite authors after I read “Palace of Illusions”. I followed it up with “Arranged Marriage” & “The lives of strangers”. While in Palace of Illusions the concept itself was so innovative / different that it gives you a different perspective of a tale which has been retold generations after generations. The other two books were more real life and beautifully depicted the up’s & down’s of a relationship & choices we make in our life. What stood out for me was how she could bring out a small & insignificant moment so graphically that I could visualize it, feel the hurt or joy in the deep recess of my heart. Both her books had the background of immigrants & the Bengali milieu – which I love, but after some time it does get repetitive & boring. So I gave her a break & moved on to some other books waiting in my shelf.

The Oleander Girl came recommended to me from a dear friend & I started reading it in earnest, but after a few chapters – everything became so predictable that I kept losing interest. Many elements like the Godhra riots & the Hindu Muslim divide looked force fit & the trappings of a spoilt girl were so clichéd that I was getting bugged as I read. But for my sheer respect & love for the author I finished it last evening.

Looking back, I remembered I had the similar feeling when I read Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri earlier this year & Amitav Ghosh’s 2nd part of the Ibis trilogy – River of Smoke last year. I have read all their books ever published & hero worship them as those rare authors who can spin such human tales so beautifully. Then why do I feel let down? Literally, hurt & angry when the books are not of my expectation. Is it too much of the same thing? Is it that I can peek into the writer’s mind & know what to expect in the next few pages? Have they become jaded in their story telling?

Honestly, I don’t know, but yes I will definitely hesitate before I spend a large amount of money in buying the 3^rd part of Ibis trilogy (for reason unknown – it’s comes in hard bound & is very expensive) or pre-book my copy. I would rather wait for it to come to my reading library or a friend to buy it or maybe I will just try the e-book if it’s cheaper – If I get used to reading books on my pad.

Is it just a reader’s prejudice or Is it simply a devoted reader’s love for his author….If I meet Amitavda’ in his Goa house I will probably ask him over a fenny. Cheers!!