'Home—neither a place you live in, nor a place you arrive at. It’s where you belong, and ultimately return—a return to the beginning, a return within.'
(From Goodreads book description)
The Indigo Sun by Rupa Bhullar (Rupa Publications) has many positives --- it has got fabulous reviews. The cover is gorgeous! It has a catchy title, and above all, good writing.
The Indigo Sun tells the story of Maya, an NRI, who visits her home-town after a long time. Set in Rajasthan, it tells about Maya's loss, self-discovery as she meets different people in this new journey of her life. There's a little boy, Ananda, a mystic gypsy woman, Leela, and a reputed entrepreneur, Veer. They all together embark on an inspiring journey, helping each other to evolve.
The book is rich, in terms of descriptions --- descriptions of beautiful surroundings, the heritage, the culture, the gist of life. They create nice imagery. Also, the messages/lessons (about life) that Maya receives are insightful.
Sharing some quotes ---
'You plan too much and live too little.'
'The greatest comfort is found in hearts filled with love, not rooms filled with luxuries.'
'The deepest realizations and true awakenings emerge from our darkest moments and greatest challenges.'
But, there's a thing. Despite all these positives, the book didn't really work for me. I'd tell you why.
Mainly for two reasons ---
1. The book is very slow. No, don't get me wrong. I like descriptions, they are important but they must take the story forward. And here, at times, I felt that story was not going anywhere.
2. And then, dialogues. They are preachy, sometimes, 1.5 page long without any breather. Ananda's dialogues are too mature for a little boy. It was tiring and it disturbed the flow of reading.
Because of these two reasons, this book turned out to be an okay read for me, like an insightful account of self-realization and transformation.
But, we have different reading preferences, right? If you like descriptive writing, if you like reading inspirational stories with thoughtful quotes, pick this book. You will like it.
I received this book from the publisher for an unbiased review.
Loved the way you have reviewed this. I am not overly fond of lengthy descriptions, even if they are very tastefully done (but atleast during those times, they are more tolerable, sometimes even likable), so I can completely relate with your feelings on this book.
ReplyDeleteGlad you liked the review, Shantala!
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