sorrel29's review
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Child death, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Rape, Police brutality, and Classism
jocedun's review
5.0
I basically bought this book on the black market (jk it’s a used copy from the UK on Amazon) because Meena Kandasamy’s backlist is hard to find in the US. Totally worth it the hunt, though! “The Gypsy Goddess” is amazingly creative and sad. Kandasamy breaks down the 4th wall and lets you inside the mind of the writer so well. If you are looking for something tragic, based on real history of a major agricultural state in Southern India, and pro-proletariat, read this!
abigailwantstoread_01's review
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
seventhbookworm's review against another edition
dark
informative
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Strong character development? No
4.0
tejaswininaik's review against another edition
4.0
A random interview I read recently of Meena Kandasamy’s led to Watsapp conversations and I got introduced to her poems by Ashok Unny. They were so bold, raw, and fierce that I dug up all her poems available and picked her novels when I couldn’t get enough of her bitter honesty that she writes with.
As I was parallely reading both The Gypsy Goddess and When I Hit You I realized, she has a very unconventional way of beginning her novel. In the latter, she starts off the first chapter saying that she will describe her abusive marriage story herself and not allow her mother to steal the limelight. The former is so erratically unstructured that I had to recheck if I was reading the right novel. The first chapter is only about storytelling art and the second chapter is about why she chose the title to be The Gypsy Goddess. In the process you are introduced to the premise and a fair bit about the characters.
The Gypsy Goddess is a fictionalized version of Kilvenmani Massacre that occurred in Tanjore District in 1968 where 44 Dalits were burnt alive by the landlords for rebelling against them under the influence of Communist ideologies for want of higher wages and rights. The government officers and the police were said to have been involved with the landlords. The whole account of the massacre is written quite beautifully with such amazing prose and effects. Sometimes it runs like a Tamil movie where you are introduced to the villainous landlord in typical South Indian cinematic style. Each chapter reads differently. The writing style is unique and doesn’t follow any protocol. You hear of the power wielding landlords through his speech, Communist movement through party pamphlets, gloom after the massacre through a widow’s lament, heinous death details through a sub inspector’s report, and so on..
The book was quite enlightening and well researched. The language and prose is brilliant. A 4/5 from my side.
Some quotes:
“Of all the things we could have said to the people of other planets, we chose to fire into space a capsule containing the model for the double helix structure, the composition of DNA and the formation of nucleotides. Not a message that declared: it is sunny here it also rains a lot we love colours and dope we sign and we dance we cook up a storm with anything we can find we are fucked up in too many ways but we are a funny bunch so may we request the pleasure of your company”
“Just because this is a novel set in rural India, do not expect a herd of buffalo to walk across every page for the sake of authenticity.”
“The problem with thinking up a new and original idea within a novel is that you have to make sure that Kurt Vonnegut did not already think of it.”
As I was parallely reading both The Gypsy Goddess and When I Hit You I realized, she has a very unconventional way of beginning her novel. In the latter, she starts off the first chapter saying that she will describe her abusive marriage story herself and not allow her mother to steal the limelight. The former is so erratically unstructured that I had to recheck if I was reading the right novel. The first chapter is only about storytelling art and the second chapter is about why she chose the title to be The Gypsy Goddess. In the process you are introduced to the premise and a fair bit about the characters.
The Gypsy Goddess is a fictionalized version of Kilvenmani Massacre that occurred in Tanjore District in 1968 where 44 Dalits were burnt alive by the landlords for rebelling against them under the influence of Communist ideologies for want of higher wages and rights. The government officers and the police were said to have been involved with the landlords. The whole account of the massacre is written quite beautifully with such amazing prose and effects. Sometimes it runs like a Tamil movie where you are introduced to the villainous landlord in typical South Indian cinematic style. Each chapter reads differently. The writing style is unique and doesn’t follow any protocol. You hear of the power wielding landlords through his speech, Communist movement through party pamphlets, gloom after the massacre through a widow’s lament, heinous death details through a sub inspector’s report, and so on..
The book was quite enlightening and well researched. The language and prose is brilliant. A 4/5 from my side.
Some quotes:
“Of all the things we could have said to the people of other planets, we chose to fire into space a capsule containing the model for the double helix structure, the composition of DNA and the formation of nucleotides. Not a message that declared: it is sunny here it also rains a lot we love colours and dope we sign and we dance we cook up a storm with anything we can find we are fucked up in too many ways but we are a funny bunch so may we request the pleasure of your company”
“Just because this is a novel set in rural India, do not expect a herd of buffalo to walk across every page for the sake of authenticity.”
“The problem with thinking up a new and original idea within a novel is that you have to make sure that Kurt Vonnegut did not already think of it.”
manugummi's review against another edition
3.0
“We were used to it; the silence and the shouting. The songs and the tears. Wet from all our weeping, we saw the world in a blur. Death had been there, but life went on deliriously, as if it had been set on fire.”
ridaakhtar_'s review against another edition
3.0
Easily one of the most heart wrenching narratives ever, ah. Ah.
qomareads's review
5.0
A tough and challenging read, but worth tackling. It is based on a massacre that took place in Kilvenmani where 44 people were brutally massacred, burnt to death, which makes this book difficult to read.
The unconventional writing, an unreliable narrator, and repetition can be frustrating and confusing for most readers. But give it time, and just let the author play with your mind. A lot of phrases and untranslated words from Tamil, but it was fun this way, I guess. I’ve read a few books regarding castes in India, especially in the rural parts, and it did help a lot in my understanding regarding the issue the author wanted to raise.
I’ll come back with a proper review.
The unconventional writing, an unreliable narrator, and repetition can be frustrating and confusing for most readers. But give it time, and just let the author play with your mind. A lot of phrases and untranslated words from Tamil, but it was fun this way, I guess. I’ve read a few books regarding castes in India, especially in the rural parts, and it did help a lot in my understanding regarding the issue the author wanted to raise.
I’ll come back with a proper review.
anoopasranna's review against another edition
2.0
The writing is arresting in the first few pages, but she throws it away in the end.. This book suffers heavily from the author's ideological predilections..None of the characters stay with you, what stays is the endless ranting about the virtues of communism..A big letdown..