It will take me several readings to get a better sense of its history and interconnectedness with Indian/Pakistani cultures
340264
It is always hard to do justice to a religious system in a brief book. I got this book to help me have a basic grasp and that's what I think I got: a basic grasp. It will take me several readings to get a better sense of its history and interconnectedness with Indian/Pakistani cultures.
1061584
When an author uses family experiences to tell a story of a country, the result is often an emotional and powerful tale that stays with the reader long after the book has been finished. Thus it was, for me, with A Fort of Nine Towers by Quais Akbar Omar and now, The Upstairs Wife, by Pakistani author, attorney and human rights activist Rafia Zakaria. Rafia tells us her familys story in a forthright and unemotional style, yet one which leaves the reader more knowledgeable about a country so different from ours in culture, economic prosperity and, of course, womens rights.

From the partition from India of land intended to give Indian Muslims their own country, through the travails of the Indian migrants who took the risk to form a new society, to the first democratically-elected, then eventually assassinated Prime Minister, Benazir Bhutto, Rafia spins her familys evolution with warmth and humor. And, when the Taliban take over  as they did in Omars Afghanistan  squeezing every bit of life and freedom from so many parts of Pakistan, you wonder how Rafias family and her neighbors and friends continued to survive, as their way of life was callously and brutally wiped out, in the name of Islamic purification.

But, it is for the women whose benefit that Rafia writes, even as the Taliban threaten a way of life that originally offered rich culture and joyous family gatherings. Not only do they suffer in order to pursue education, they are treated as less than second class citizens, even by the men in their lives. Rafia bravely faces her readers with the horror of being a woman in many regions of Pakistan today, and her readers should not flinch from the picture she holds up to her readers for it is, sadly, a tale of emotional, cultural and physical abuse from which many women are never able to escape.

Read The Upstairs Wife  it will stay with you.
3628428
Although it may be tedious in places this is a must read, especially by the privileged white community(of which I am one)
3275452
i am intrigued by the ethenticity of cultural practices and beliefs that i knew of had exsisted in the days of my non exsistence but wasn't aware of it being continued here and now as i exsist today!
1858917
If you are up to it with Indian history, this book makes for a good read. A lot of the book is thronged in history. And a lot of it is clouted in modernism as well. To that end it is a good mixture of the old and the new.
The cricket matches which are the opium of the Indian masses is the basis of the story and a murder is set in the background of one of these cricket matches. Descriptions of what happens at cricket matches are vivid and  I should say, accurate.
 A visit to Pakistan, the land of Vish Puri's ancestors, makes for interesting reading.
As usual the book is moralistic without truly sounding preachy. It encourages Indo Pak unity and dialogue rather than political vendetta.
3350526
I believe it is going to help me gain more knowledge of my Hebrew Roots.  Haven't had much time to really get into it, but I do believe it will be a blessing as I search it out.
3941515
On reading this, it didn't impress me hugely, but over time it has stuck with me and given me a gut-level sense of understanding of these topics that I really appreciate. Six months later, I'm much more glad that I read it, than I realized I would be when I finished it.

While the author seems to meander about meeting odd people on his quest to find anyone that really knows (for some definition of "know") a very large number of languages, he manages to bring to life the questions about what it even means to know another language, how people who know many languages learn, maintain, and switch between them, the effort required and the rewards.
750921
The subject of this book, trade and cultural interchange between India and North Africa (and the Far East as well to some extent), told through the story of the Indian, Bomma, slave of a Tunisian Jewish Merchant in the 11th century who settled in Mangalore, is quite interesting and a refreshing look at history. For one, Ghosh manages to bring a seemingly lost history back to life and sets the events of the slave and his master's life in context that makes for interesting reading. Also Ghosh's analysis is refreshing as it is a non-westerners account of cultural interchange. While there were certainly plenty of non-Western cultural interchange before Westerners arrived, this history was lost, suppressed even, by Western histories that tended to focus on Western encounters with non-western cultures or non-western cultures taken in isolation rather than considering the deep intercultural relationships that preceded European colonization and trade in the East. Ghosh's observations of life in Egypt also form a kind of modern cultural interchange between Egypt and India which present a different kind of travelogue from the typical Western ones that are typically laced with some imperialist ideology subtle or not. The modern cultural interchange between India and Egypt though are somewhat different than the ancient connections between these regions and the narrative subtly points that out.

While this book may not be as connected as some of Ghosh's other works, it nevertheless is commendable as both a travelogue from an Indian perspective as well as a book than enlightens the reader about the Indian Ocean sea trade that existed before the arrival of the Westerner.
1407841
We know of the history of India mostly through the period of colonial control, as well as Mahatma Ghandi and the non-violence movement.  This provides a view of damage left by the former, and uncorrected by the latter.
This book is a great read that provides food for thought as it makes it's way through the maturation of two boys who go very different ways. Both political and personal influences have different effects on the brothers, with vastly different outcomes.
Ms Lahiri describes the challenges and loneliness faced by the newly arrived immigrant to America who must find his way around not only a new campus, but also a new culture, and how adaptation to the one culture creates a distancing from the other.
This is an enthralling and captivating read, and makes for great Bookclub discussion!
2796554
It took me awhile to get into the book but as I read further it took me to some of the places that I have traveled to and that was very interesting.
760567
The narrator, a linguist researching on the use of Bhojpuri in Trinidad meets Deeda. Deeda, 110 years old woman, recounts narrator about Indian diaspora some 90 years ago, when many Indians where subjected to the perilous journey across the ocean from Calcutta to Caribean, all in Bhojpuri.  Narrators search of her own identity, and Deeda's strong sense of belonging to something that she has left behind makes it a fasinating read switching between past and present.

Mohan's book is very informative about the history, which is rarely told in India and it is multi layered. Hidden within the book is its strong feminist character. All the protagonist are women and men are just making background figures (is it rare in literature ?). Evolve through the book, very casually, is intricate, complex and discrimanatory nature of Indian cast system. Her account at times may sound exaggerated but such is the complexity of the system that it might just be true. The hierarchical nature of Indian society where even the languge you practice puts you in different social class, etc.

And in the end book leaves you with the strong sense of belonging to something you might have left behind. After the last page I found myself lost in my thoughts for few minutes, thinking about Deeda, her village, her stories, her psychology, the diaspora, me, myself, my city, etc, etc ...

Peggy Mohan achieves lots aim without ever diverging from the main topic and without ever overdoing anything.

Thanks
1486491
The backdrop is Madras in the 1920s as dissent with the British rule in the Indian Raj is starting to foment among the local citizenry.  The discovery of a young white womans body and the subsequent search for the killer or killers by investigating officer Le Fanu and his trusty sidekick Mabibullah reveals the authors deep knowledge of India during this time and his understanding of the relationships between the different strata of society.  The pomposity of the British government bureaucrats contrasts with Le Fanu and Habi's no-nonsense demeanour as they interact on so many different levels.  The need for  down-to-earth sleuthing without the benefit of high tech forensic analysis made this a most interesting read. LF and Mabi make a promising team, and I look forward to more adventures as the push for democracy in India creates more unease in British society
4355104
I initially wasn't sure if I liked this book, but as I got deeper into the story, it began to grab me.  I initially thought they were just another dysfunctional family, but began to realize that some of what I saw as dysfunctional, was culture.  I had to step back and shift "my" perspective.  I enjoy reading foreign books for that very reason, seeking out other cultures and learning about the people and what drives them.  As an avid reader I've learned that even in fiction there is truth.  I finished this book knowing more about the people, region and their plight.  If I would have had to rate midway through, it would have been maybe 2.5 stars, but I'm glad I did not stop there.  It was a good book told from the perspective of 12 year old Blessing.
4054185
This account of Sindh, which is a province in Pakistan, was previously part of India, is a helpful narrative which includes information from ancient times up to the present. The historical information from long ago is not always easy to be certain about--and the author is aware of that. The different strands of history are considered, and the best understanding is articulated, with awareness that it as a complicated subject. Sindh is not much written about, and the author wanted to piece together what knowledge he could find, to give the most complete account he was capable of. The history during the 19th and 20th centuries is especially interesting. But the earlier centuries before the modern age are of interest too, including the advent of Islam. At the time of India's partition Sindh was declared part of Pakistan, so in 1948 many Hindus left, and many lost all their family land and possessions. The personal account of a Sindhi Hindu named Hiroo is of special interest. Through his eyes the reader can get a sense of the experiences of someone who lived through the partition and into the recent decades. The author makes every effort to be fair, and notes the good-natured qualities of many Sindhi Hindus who fled, and many Sindhi Muslims whose families had been in that region for generations. But there is heartbreak in the story too, injustices, greedy people who profited from the historical misfortunes of others. The experiences of Sindhi Hindus in 1948 reminded me of the experiences of the Kashmiri Pandits in 1989--the loss of home, and homeland, because of attacks and the threats of violence, is always a tragic experience.
295747
Recommended by a friend, I ordered this used book, written in the 1980's. I'm enjoying it thoroughly ... so very interesting as he travels throughout the Muslim world (his family is Hindu) for the first time. The first 48 pages was an experience in culture shock. I felt as shocked, overwhelmed, and confused as he did, due to his rich, detailed writing of those early experiences. As a non-speaker of the language, his senses and mind were terribly overwhelmed by the strange cultural chaos surrounding him. With time and exposure, and always with English-speaking guides, he slowly gains some insights along the way. As for a better understanding of the Middle East, I'm not sure yet (half still to be read). Sometimes the cultural differences are so striking that I feel we never will understand. But if something is gained, that's a good thing, and I plan to continue to the end. It will make a good comparison to more current books on the subject, now on my reading list.
4724663
Take your time reading this book as it has lots of information that is not easily understood the first time through.
2754112
4 and a half stars.  I really appreciated the fact that Dalrymple has troubled himself to investigate a thrilling and significant turning point in Indian (and perhaps world) history. The fact that he has delved not just into Western but also Urdu and other Indian records says much for his desire to explore contestable and contested history. Dalrymple is a humanist scholar. I must admit to skimming the long accounts of the siege of Delhi (yes, I can be an intransigent reader with an eye on the plot) but the book has moved me to plan a trip to India to see for myself the Last Mughal' s legacy. Fascinating stuff that  the student of history would do well to read. I am looking forward to reading Dalrymple's White Mughal..