Four grown-up grandchildren are gathering from London and US on the occasion of chaurasi - the celebration of the 84th birthday - of their strong-willed grandmother Chitralekha in a region in India with a stong Nepalese minority. A hilarious dysfunctional family with whom we are invited to spend about a week together.
Land Where I Flee by Nepalese-Indian author Prajwal Parajuly has a cast of very unique characters that are into a lot of unexpected, morally doubtful situations - created by them or just casting - while rich in cultural and historical details about this part of India.
It may be just another book about a dysfunctional family, due to the conflict between ´Westernization´ and local traditions - the grandchildren mostly speak English to each other. Who will buy a read a book about ´normal´ people, anyway? But I´ve personally read about some of the interactions between characters laughing out loud and took note about many of the cultural and traditional remarks I clearly was not familiar about.
I can easily see this book serialized, as it keeps a soap opera glamour and state of permanent crisis. The choice of reading was completely random, but felt like I was right with my choice as now I have some new cultural topics to think about it.
Landd Where I Flee is a recommended read for any curious reader looking to discover some special ideas and traditions of Nepalese in India.
Rating: 3 stars
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