Logo image
  • BookDragon
  • About
  • The Blogger
  • Review Policy
  • Smithsonian APAC
 
50194
post-template-default,single,single-post,postid-50194,single-format-standard,stardust-core-1.1,stardust-child-theme-ver-1.0.0,stardust-theme-ver-3.1,ajax_updown_fade,page_not_loaded,smooth_scroll

BookDragon Blog

06 Jan / Moth by Melody Raza [in Booklist]

In 1947, as Britain withdrew from India, it left in its wake a trail of vicious slaughter. British Iranian debut novelist Melody Razak introduces the (mostly) Brahmin residents of Delhi’s Pushp Vihar – “the House of Flowers” – whose lives become the tragic microcosm of the pivotal and grisly moment of partition, when Pakistan and India became separate nations.

Fourteen-year-old Alma is soon to be married, her betrothal a protective, albeit reluctant, decision by Ma and Bappu, both liberal educators. Younger sister Roop, already negotiating an impressive vocabulary, is growing into a determined killer of bugs and small animals. When their grandmother’s manipulations cause Alma’s engagement to be canceled with grave dishonor, the petulant teen demands to escape to Bombay to stay with independent Cookie Auntie. Alma never arrives.

Soneela Nankani showcases her empathic range, from spoiled, forced-to-mature Alma, precociously shrewd Roop, bitingly acerbic Daadee Ma, compassionate family cook Dilchain-ji, nurturing nanny Fatima Begum, a patient and untouchable gardener, and four (not-so-very) kind women. Unfaltering over 12-plus hours, Nankani ensures another impressive aural experience.

Review: “Media,” Booklist, November 1, 2022

Readers: Adult

Published: 2022

By Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Adult Readers, British Asian, Fiction, Indian, Repost, South Asian Tags > Betrayal, BookDragon, Booklist, Colonialism, Family, Grandparents, Haves vs. have-nots, Historical, Identity, Kidnapping, Love, Melody Razak, Moth, Parent/child relationship, Partition, Religious differences, Siblings, Soneela Nankani, War
No Comment

Post a Comment
Cancel Reply

Smithsonian Institution
Asian Pacific American Center

Capital Gallery, Suite 7065
600 Maryland Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20024

202.633.2691 | APAC@si.edu

Additional contact info

Mailing Address
Capital Gallery
Suite 7065, MRC: 516
P.O. Box 37012
Washington, DC 20013-7012

Fax: 202.633.2699

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram

SmithsonianAPA brings Asian Pacific American history, art, and culture to you through innovative museum experiences and digital initiatives.

About BookDragon

Welcome to BookDragon, filled with titles for the diverse reader. BookDragon is a new media initiative of the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center (APAC), and serves as a forum for those interested in learning more about the Asian Pacific American experience through literature. BookDragon is inhabited by Terry Hong.

Learn More

Contact BookDragon

Please email us at SIBookDragon@gmail.com

Follow BookDragon!
  • Twitter
  • Facebook

Looking for Something Else …?

or