Review by ardalgarcia -- Salt and Pepper by Maria Akhanji

[ardalgarcia]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Salt and Pepper" by Maria Akhanji.]

---

4 out of 4 stars

---

Share This Review

---

Ranya is a six-year-old Bangladeshi girl who lives with her siblings and parents in Dubai. The book is mainly from Ranya’s perspective and follows her childhood through various challenges such as moving house and the family’s financial troubles. However, the overarching challenge facing Ranya and her siblings are their abusive parents. Ranya is sexually abused by her father and frequently beaten by her mother. As a teenager, to escape her parents, Ranya moves from Bangladesh to her brother’s flat in London. However, living with her brother’s family is far from easy due to misogynistic attitudes and a clash with Western culture. It becomes increasingly clear that the problems she escaped have simply been replaced with different ones.

I found this book very enjoyable to read. Maria Akhanji writes sensitively about controversial topics that are considered to be “taboo” in Asian culture. I was particularly impressed with how Ranya’s increasing awareness of her parents’ abusive behaviour develops naturally and gradually throughout the book.

The aspect I liked the most in Salt and Pepper: Unearthing Taboos were the sections with different narrators. Even in short chapters, the author creates complex yet likeable characters that provide a contrasting insight into Ranya’s life. For example, her older sister Di allows the reader to understand the extent of abuse by describing incidents that Ranya doesn’t fully comprehend. Similarly, when Ranya moves to London to stay with her brother, her behaviour is described through the perspective of her brother’s wife, Bibha. I found Bibha’s accounts particularly engaging, as the negative consequences of Ranya’s childhood are brought to light in her behaviour. I liked that Bibha also provided an understanding of the cultural traditions that affect married women.

However, the aspect I liked least was that although the simple short sentences described Ranya well when she was very young, it made the older characters in the book appear childish. I think that a more complex style for Di, Bibha and teenage Ranya would have helped highlight their different perspectives on the situation. Otherwise, I only found a couple of errors which didn’t detract from my enjoyment of this book, so I believe this book was professionally edited.

I awarded Salt and Pepper: Unearthing Taboos 4 out of 4 stars because I found it very engaging and didn’t find the writing style issue too distracting. Overall, I highly recommend Salt and Pepper: Unearthing Taboos for anyone who would like to learn more about both Bangladeshi culture in general and some of the issues that many women face. I look forward to reading the next book in this series! This book is not suitable for children as there is frequent profanity and descriptions of sexual abuse.

******
Salt and Pepper
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon

[Adanna Inya]

Ranya lived with her parents in Dubai, but moves from Bangladesh to her brother's flat in London? How? I feel so sad for Ranya. Sexually and physically busive parents can be the worst. I hope to read this book sometime.

[ardalgarcia]

Ranya lived with her parents in Dubai, but moves from Bangladesh to her brother's flat in London? How? I feel so sad for Ranya. Sexually and physically busive parents can be the worst. I hope to read this book sometime.

Sorry that this wasn't clearer, their family moves around a lot when Ranya is younger and they move from Dubai to Bangladesh.