Review by Cantabrianna -- Elastic Girl by Olivia Rana
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Cantabrianna
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- Latest Review: Elastic Girl by Olivia Rana
Review by Cantabrianna -- Elastic Girl by Olivia Rana
[Following is a volunteer review of "Elastic Girl" by Olivia Rana.]
4 out of 4 stars
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I didn’t really know what to expect, the Indian culture is quite unknown to me, but I was pleasantly surprised. ‘Elastic Girl’ reads like a train ride from Chennai to Mumbai, I finished the book in just two days!
The first chapter takes a bit of getting used to the Indian terminology, but pretty soon you figure out that amma means mother, and the use of original Bollywood movie titles adds to the charm. I just wish I knew more famous actors or movies so I could feel the same excitement as the main character when talking about these (for her) famous people. Whenever there is the need to, cultural traditions are explained such as is the case with the Janmashthani festival.
‘Elastic Girl’ is really a beautiful coming of age novel, where we follow the girl Muthu who seems to be born for bad luck – at least that is what her family thinks. Not quite getting along with her sisters (who are getting a proper education, as opposed to Muthu herself) we meet her first and only childhood friend Maheesh, as the author paints a dark and cruel but also very realistic picture of Indian society. Government evictions, child trafficking, lack of women’s rights, poverty and references to public lynching are just some of the recurrent themes.
My favorite part is when Muthu first arrives to the circus. The book evokes the glamorous images of ‘Water for Elephants’. Indeed, even in Indian circuses there are ring masters, acrobats, clowns and of course elephants and monkeys. The main difference is that the focus is more on the artists and their sufferings. The animals aren’t treated very well but apart from the monkey who will become Muthu’s first friend at the circus, they don’t play an active part in the story.
On her journey to adulthood, Muthu transforms from being a naïve and desperate child to a young woman who despite betrayal and hardships finds joy in the simple things of life. I love how she turns out to be such a strong character, much stronger than some of the friends she makes along the way and who appear to be very world wise but end up in a downward spiral.
I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. My main reason for choosing this book was that I love circus stories and coming of age novels, and I was not disappointed. Also the fact that I wasn’t really interested in Indian culture but ended up really enjoying it and learning quite a bit is a good reason to give the book the maximum amount of stars!
******
Elastic Girl
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4 out of 4 stars
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I didn’t really know what to expect, the Indian culture is quite unknown to me, but I was pleasantly surprised. ‘Elastic Girl’ reads like a train ride from Chennai to Mumbai, I finished the book in just two days!
The first chapter takes a bit of getting used to the Indian terminology, but pretty soon you figure out that amma means mother, and the use of original Bollywood movie titles adds to the charm. I just wish I knew more famous actors or movies so I could feel the same excitement as the main character when talking about these (for her) famous people. Whenever there is the need to, cultural traditions are explained such as is the case with the Janmashthani festival.
‘Elastic Girl’ is really a beautiful coming of age novel, where we follow the girl Muthu who seems to be born for bad luck – at least that is what her family thinks. Not quite getting along with her sisters (who are getting a proper education, as opposed to Muthu herself) we meet her first and only childhood friend Maheesh, as the author paints a dark and cruel but also very realistic picture of Indian society. Government evictions, child trafficking, lack of women’s rights, poverty and references to public lynching are just some of the recurrent themes.
My favorite part is when Muthu first arrives to the circus. The book evokes the glamorous images of ‘Water for Elephants’. Indeed, even in Indian circuses there are ring masters, acrobats, clowns and of course elephants and monkeys. The main difference is that the focus is more on the artists and their sufferings. The animals aren’t treated very well but apart from the monkey who will become Muthu’s first friend at the circus, they don’t play an active part in the story.
On her journey to adulthood, Muthu transforms from being a naïve and desperate child to a young woman who despite betrayal and hardships finds joy in the simple things of life. I love how she turns out to be such a strong character, much stronger than some of the friends she makes along the way and who appear to be very world wise but end up in a downward spiral.
I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. My main reason for choosing this book was that I love circus stories and coming of age novels, and I was not disappointed. Also the fact that I wasn’t really interested in Indian culture but ended up really enjoying it and learning quite a bit is a good reason to give the book the maximum amount of stars!
******
Elastic Girl
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Like Cantabrianna's review? Post a comment saying so!
Latest Review: Elastic Girl by Olivia Rana
