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calicos's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
That being said, I enjoyed reading about the village life and Indian culture mentioned throughout the book.
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Murder, and Classism
Moderate: Fatphobia and Suicide
archiebb's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
My main criticism come from some harmful tropes/bigotry: fatphobia is throughout and ableism
Spoilers ahead
I loved seeing the friendship between Geeta and Saloni reunited and made more of a main focus. That and the ever surprising Farah.
Interesting comments about how the micro loans don’t mean that the women are not still beholden to patriarchy.
When Saloni comes back to warn Geeta and she finds that Geeta is back under her ex’s spell. Oof did i feel that as a guttural punch. It is SO HARD to watch someone you care about be drawn in by their abuser.
Graphic: Sexism, Sexual assault, and Violence
Moderate: Ableism, Fatphobia, and Toxic relationship
radhikag's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
And it was satisfying to see the women take agency & come together in that way. I appreciate this as a story of friendship & feminism and maybe it’s just because of what came up for and what all of these stories meant to me but I loved this. I want to read more of the authors work :’) and im so happy for Geeta & Saloni and Geeta’s new fridge! <3
Also the revelations with Geeta & Saloni about Geeta’s parents + her marriage? my tender heart! :-( ❤️🩹❤️🩹❤️🩹
Loved this book so very much! I think I have some questions around some of the themes (eg. Fatphobia) and their purpose? Some of the casteist or misogynistic language, even the anti SWer/whorephobia (halkat randi over n over again lol) felt more clearly like it was known to be bad + used to show the bigotry and evil of the characters in question. The fat phobia was …not this, or not as clearly. There’s just a lot of questions there & for someone who seems to be aware of other systemic harm, it is strange to not understand fatphobia a) as harmful but b) as intertwined with the other harms she notes (eg. sexism, GBV, casteism & colourism, etc.) ….much to think about.
but yeah the “she decided” part really really did something for me! almost made this 5 stars for me for that alone lol
Moderate: Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Sexual violence, Violence, and Blood
flimsy_whimsy's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Physical abuse, and Sexism
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Sexual harassment
itsredandread's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Misogyny, and Murder
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, and Gaslighting
Minor: Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Child abuse, Cursing, Slavery, and Religious bigotry
nikspandya's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Fatphobia, Misogyny, and Rape
Minor: Addiction
emg3's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Sexual violence, Suicide, Violence, Murder, and Classism
Moderate: Fatphobia, Pedophilia, and Islamophobia
dewo0019's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Infertility, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Classism
skbat's review against another edition
Moderate: Fatphobia
siria's review against another edition
2.75
There are things to like about Parini Shroff's The Bandit Queens—mostly the moments of somewhat dark humour, and the complicated and prickly female friendships—but this was a debut novel that needed not just one but probably at least two more drafts before it was published. The tone is wildly uneven and the dialogue often stilted.
I get there are always compromises to be made when you're writing a book in English but the characters are really "speaking" in another language (in this case, Gujarati). Not every concept will translate, capturing particular cadences might be difficult, and so on. But here Shroff repeatedly indulges in one of my pet hates, where a word that does have an equivalent in English is left in the "original" language for... coyness? Humour? Colour? I don't know. But I do know that every time a character goes to "make su-su" in this book (and it's a lot), I was gritting my teeth and saying "just say 'pee'!" Shroff's linguistic register is also all over the map—characters sprinkle their dialogue with as many "likes" as an American millennial and much of the prose is fairly informal, but occasionally we're told that a character has a "falcate back" or that one of the women has made an "aperçu". At one point, one woman refers to another as "zaftig." Encountering Yiddish slang in a rural west Indian context does break suspension of disbelief a little.
And that ties into the other major issue that I had with The Bandit Queens, which is that there was a lot about the framing and subtlety of approach (or lack thereof) which made it clear that Shroff is an American of Indian heritage rather than being born and raised in India. I had the sense that for an Indian to read this would probably be what it's like for me most of the time when I read a book by an Irish-American set in Ireland.
I think Shroff has potential as a writer and I wouldn't swear off her future work, but this was a bit of a disappointment.
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Murder, and Classism
Moderate: Fatphobia and Islamophobia