How did your reading go this month? Share in the comments. In August, we honored South Asian Heritage Month by celebrating the diverse cultures of people from the South Asian countries of Nepal, Bhutan, the Maldives, India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka. We read stories by Indian and South Asian authors as well.
I read our main title: The Bandit Queens by Parini Shroff. This book sent me down a research rabbit hole, even though it is a fiction title. (I’ll get into that a little later). Geeta has lived in a small village in India her entire life. Her marriage to her husband started well enough, but after time, their relationship changed. Five years ago, her husband disappeared. Rumors swirled around the village with most villagers assuming that Geeta murdered him. Needing money after he disappeared, Geeta and a group of girlfriends form a microloan group. One day, one of Geeta’s friends approaches her about Geeta murdering her husband. Geeta tries to convince her that she didn’t actually murder her husband, but she doesn’t believe her. This misunderstanding sets Geeta and her friends off into a mess. Check out The Bandit Queens if you’re interested in a book about women unhappy with their husbands and what they are willing to do about it.
Let’s get into what prompted my research rabbit hole! Phoolan Devi, the original bandit queen. In the author’s note, Shroff gives more information about Phoolan Devi’s life and how she became the bandit queen. Hearing about her research process and how Phoolan’s life influenced this novel was eye-opening. The Bandit Queens is a book about the oppression of women, violence against women, as well as religious and caste inequality in India. These are all heavy topics, but this book is also hilarious, quirky, light, and offbeat. It’s a dark comedy that is also smart and silly.
Next month, we will be reading about Hispanic Heritage Month by reading a book that pays tribute to Hispanic American culture.
In addition to following the Online Reading Challenge here on our Info Cafe blog, you can join our Online Reading Challenge group on Goodreads and discuss your reads!
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