Gone Girl

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Nick and Amy Dunne have it all - a perfect marriage, a house in New York, glamorous lives. Yet after they both lose their jobs unexpectedly, they discover that their relationship is not as strong as it seems. Nick decides to move to his hometown, North Carthage, Missouri to care for his parents - and Amy acquiesces reluctantly. And then, on the morning of their fifth wedding anniversary, Amy disappears without a trace - and the mounting evidence implicates Nick, his guilt more obvious with each passing day. Did Nick really murder Amy? Or is there a darker, deeper secret behind Amy's disappearance?

It is impossible to talk about this book without giving away key plot points - so fair warning, spoilers ahead! The tagline of the book reads 'There are two sides to every story' - and that is exactly how the book is structured. The two sides of the story - Nick's story, starting with the morning of Amy's disappearance, and Amy's story, by means of extracts from her journal going back seven years.  Even in his own narration, Nick comes across as a self-absorbed, selfish person - and his web of lies is alarming. Struggling with his feelings about his misogynist, abusive father, trying not be like him - Nick seems to be the most comfortable when being adored and indulged by the women in his life - his mother and his twin sister, the weirdly nick-named Go, are his biggest fan club.

Amy's journal - starting with her meet-cute with Nick and their subsequent falling in love seven months later to an entry few days before her disappearance claiming she is afraid that Nick may kill her - is a portrayal of a marriage gone terribly wrong. Although not entirely blameless - a little too needy, trying too hard to be the perfect wife - Amy still seems to be the only person really working at this marriage. And following Nick's mom's death, Nick seems to morph into an unfeeling, uncaring monster, his behavior bordering precariously on domestic violence. Having used his wife's money to set himself and his twin sister up in business, Nick resents his wife for helping him - and his unnaturally calm composure after Amy's disappearance is highly suspicious.

And then, wham! Part 2 begins with the shocking realization that everything the reader has learnt about Nick and Amy may not be entirely true! Amy is alive and well and has hatched a diabolical scheme to frame her husband for her own murder - a year of planning including writing seven year's worth of fake diary entries!! What??!!! All those fuzzy 'Dear Diaries' are a setup!! And Nick's secret? No surprises there - he's been having an affair with a woman 10 years younger than him, and he was planning to ask Amy for a divorce on the day she disappeared!! How's that for motive?? To complete the picture of Amy as a sociopath, we are introduced to a couple of people from her past who she has 'punished' for not living upto her expectations!!

Then, the author seems to forget that she has built up Amy as a super-intelligent, savvy woman - and puts her in situations that are absolutely ridiculous! Seriously, when you are in hiding while pretending to be dead, you do not befriend the people staying at your lonely bed-and-breakfast, you do not flash your fat money-belt when you're with them and then you don't let these 'friends' into your room, so that they can rob you without even a struggle! Dumb, dumb, dumb! And then after Nick figures out he's being framed, his master plan to find Amy? He goes on national TV, and accepts his guilt, accepts that he is a scumbag, and would Amy please, please forgive him and come back, so that he could make it up to her? And you know what - it works! Amy sees the interview, melts into a puddle, and decides to return - not before she casually destroys someone else's life! So then, is she a brilliant sociopath or is she a complete idiot - very confusing!!

Nick and Amy are probably the worst ever book characters I have ever met - and while the book was compelling enough to keep reading, I simply could not find it in me to root for either of them. Their problems are the problems of the self-centered, entitled, affluent and bored people - lost your job, well suck it up, and stop whining about the big, bad Internet, Nick! Too fancy for the solid middle-class with their casseroles and wall-to-wall carpets - well, guess what, Amy, not everyone has a trust fund and a brownstone in New York with a view of the river!! And please, how can you not know how much a gallon of milk costs - oblivious much?? I just cannot decide which of them disgusted me more!!

As for the ending, it was way too ambiguous and vague for me - a non-ending is what it is. So after all the cheating, lying, scheming, framing, killing and whatnot - we're expected to believe that Amy and Nick are settling into cozy parenthood - "on the eve of becoming the world's best, brightest nuclear family"!! Suddenly, the sleaze bag Nick is holier-than-thou, sticking it out with his "psycho bitch wife" for the sake of his baby? What kind of father does he imagine he's going to be? Ooh, he gave up his girlfriend, and he's taking care of his pregnant wife - let's give him a halo, and 'Husband of the Year' while we're at it!! Did not like the ending. At all.

The book is a psychological thriller - and it is a nail-biting read - but it will leave you with a bad taste in your mouth. I like Flynn's style of writing - could have done with a little less of the smutty talk, though. Her language is very descriptive, very visual - and the plot for the most part, is tautly written. Of course, a fast-paced crime novel like this one literally screams 'Film adaptation' - will be very interesting to see how this nasty story plays out on the big screen!! I'm still not completely sure if I would recommend this - read it if the genre appeals to you - it's definitely not Happy Reading!!

PK (2014)

Another December, another blockbuster release starring Aamir Khan - only after the Dhoom 3 debacle of last year, I wasn't really sure what to expect from PK. Other than Aamir, the big draw of PK was the director - Rajkumar Hirani - who in the last few years has turned into Bollywood's self-appointed social conscience - coining phrases like 'jadoo ki jhappi', 'All izz well' and my favorite, 'Gandhigiri'! Hirani's films are entertainers with a message - and the last outing of this director-actor duo, 3 Idiots, broke all kinds of records - will PK live up to the hype?

A spaceship lands in the dusty desert of Rajasthan, and a wide-eyed alien steps onto the Earth, his only adornment a flashy remote around his neck - which is stolen by the very first human he encounters. Without the remote, he cannot summon his spaceship, and he is stranded on a planet alien to him, with no means of communication or support. And so begins his quest - to retrieve his remote, and to return home. His search brings him to Delhi, and when told by a number of people that only God can help you now - he very literally begins to search for the seemingly elusive 'God' that would return his remote.

Meanwhile in Belgium, an Indian student, Jagatjanini, or Jaggu (Anushka) falls in love with a Pakistani, Sarfarash (Sushant). Their relationship founders on the rocks on religion and parental disapproval, and Jaggu returns to Delhi, nursing a broken heart. On assignment as a television reporter, Jaggu encounters PK on the Delhi Metro, handing out 'Missing - call if seen' leaflets - she is intrigued when she sees that these leaflets have pictures of various Gods on them. Sensing a story, she tracks down PK, and soon becomes a part of his incredible journey. Where do they find the remote? Will PK be able to go home? Will Jaggu be reunited with Sarfarash? Watch the movie to find out...

Just like Dhoom 3, PK is Aamir's film through and through - and just like Dhoom 3, his performance left me cold. The wide-staring eyes, the odd body language, jerky hand gestures - it's all too much, there is no subtlety - every scene screams, "Look at me, I'm an alien, I'm different, I can get away with anything!"!! Even the Bhojpuri dialect - I understand the logic - but really, it feels like Lagaan is being channeled here - especially when PK talks about different planets as gola - if I closed my eyes, it could be Bhuvan exhorting his team-mates to catch the gola! Truly Missing - the charming, natural Aamir Khan that wooed an entire nation!!

As for Anushka, I have to admit that she's never been one of my favorites - and while she does stay in character as Jaggu, she is little more than a glorified side-kick - even Munnabhai's Circuit had a meatier role. Sushant Singh exudes sincerity and boyishness - who wouldn't fall for him? I think I totally missed the point of Sanjay Dutt's character - sentimental casting, maybe? The other cast, too, is a motley of usual suspects from other Hirani films - Saurabh Shukla's self-serving Godman seems to be an extension of his role from Lage Raho, and he brings no additional menace or cunning, which I think was sorely needed.  But Jaggu's parents - Farhan's dad and Raju's mom - together??!! I appreciate Hirani's loyalty - but the mix-and-match cast is very distracting.

The best parts of the film show PK learning to live by the standards of society - whether it is stealing clothes from 'dancing cars', to trying to understand the intricacies of currency - it is quite funny to see PK collecting pictures of Gandhiji, and then use them to buy food! Stealing from the temple donation boxes, and pasting pictures of Gods on his face so that people won't hit him, and using a cycle lock to chain his chappals at the temple - all very delightful, the jabs are all light-hearted. Of course, with such a weighty theme - the search for God - the metaphysical is not too far away!

Inevitably, there is comparison with Paresh Rawal's OMG. With all its eye-opening questions, OMG remains a deeply religious film - PK comes across as merely irreverent. The questions are all over the place - for example, what is the point in highlighting that white is worn both by Hindu widows and Christian minorities? That seems to be more of a social tradition, rather than anything religious. And while OMG denounced various religious traditions - PK seems to be questioning the very existence of God. I don't think that was the intentional message, and PK's search was meant to symbolize the true spiritual search of God. What comes across is a petty pointing of fingers, which is quite distasteful.

Hirani also seems to have a very cynical view of our society and people in general. Starting with the initial scenes - naive as it may seem, I would like to believe that a person who comes upon a naked and clearly lost human being in the desert, would stop and provide succor, rather than rob the helpless person of his only possession. Or the whole setup with the tickets to the show - it's a meet-cute for Anushka and Sushant, but it also shows an elderly gentleman cheating these two, and what makes is worse is the way Anushka berates the said elderly gentleman. No, I am a firm believer in the best of people, and these characterizations make me uneasy - we're casually accepting irresponsible, bad behavior as the norm?

And the protests? Really, people, what is so threatening about this film? In one of the best and truest lines of the film, roughly paraphrasing PK - Are our Gods so weak that they need our puny protection? The demonstrations actually work in the film's favor - the controversy increases curiosity and interest, leading to bigger collections. Take away the hype and the big names, this is a very mediocre film. Watch ET instead - that little alien still has the power to bring tears to my eyes with his 'ET go home'!! 

Belong To Me

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"Imagine an enormous strutting peacock with the whole jeweled city for a tail" - that's how Cornelia Brown describes herself in the beginning - and yet she gives up the adventure and unpredictability of city life to escape to a suburban utopia. With her husband, Teo, she moves to a neighborhood much like the one they both grew up in - but to her dismay, Cornelia discovers that suburbia is not exactly the safe haven she was hoping for.

Piper Truitt is the Queen Bee of the neighborhood. Always impeccably turned out, with perfect nails and hair, with an opinion on everything under the sun and a set of rules that circumscribe her life completely - Piper would be completely at home in an episode of Desperate Housewives. Judgmental and with impossibly high standards, it is no surprise that Piper and Cornelia dislike each other on sight. But Piper's frostiness hides a turbulent heart, and her fierce love for her dying friend trumps all her other faults.

Cornelia has just about resigned herself to being the neighborhood pariah - when a saving grace appears in the form of Lake Tremain. The two bond over a shared love for pasta, literature and old movies. Like Cornelia, Lake has recently arrived in the town, so that her near-genius son, Dev, could attend a school for the gifted. A single mother, she has worked very hard to provide her son with all the right opportunities. But like Piper, there is more to Lake than meets the eye - and the secret she is harboring will eventually almost destroy the life she has painstakingly built up.

Three women, three lives, three stories - through their individual stories and mutual interactions, Marisa de los Santos spins an extraordinary tale of love, trust, betrayal and loss. On one end, Cornelia and Piper, whose mutual dislike evolves into first a grudging understanding and then a tentative friendship. The other end is Lake, whose instant rapport with Cornelia ends with disgrace and shame. Along with them, the other people in their life - especially, Cornelia's husband, Teo, and Lake's son, Dev - are drawn into a vortex of emotion, which will shake all relations to the core, ultimately teaching them all about belonging and acceptance.

This is a gorgeously written book, the lyrical descriptions of people, places, situations are absolutely mouth-watering - that alone would make the book a wonderful read!! And there's so much more - the characters are a delight, sharply drawn and vividly, lovingly brought to life. The situations these characters find themselves in, the mistakes they make are all too real - both their happiness and sorrow drawing the reader in - I was completely hooked! It has been a while since I've read such a 'real' book - a book that I could lose myself in, a book to savor, a book to stay up late for!

Piper's story - her defiance of death, her struggling to come to terms with her best friend's illness - had me in tears more than once. But in retrospect, it didn't really add anything to the main story - you could lift out that whole track and not miss a beat. And Piper does kind of disappear towards the end of the book - almost like she had played her part, and then made an exit! The climax didn't thrill me either - the raw emotion, the visceral grab-you-by-your-throat feelings all get packaged away neatly with a tidy red ribbon on top as well. Everyone gets a happy ending - and I think a grittier conclusion would have pushed the book to a completely different level!

Make no mistake, though - I loved the book! And I really loved Marisa de los Santos' style of writing - I'm eagerly anticipating more of her novels! Meanwhile, I'm going back for a second helping of 'Belong to Me'! Grab your own copy - now! Happy reading!

Aankhen (2002)

Having suffered through a succession of increasingly idiotic Bollywood films - Happy New Year and Bang Bang being the latest, and let's not forget Dhoom 3 - all big budget, big star cast films which were a huge, huge letdown - I've almost given up on Hindi films! Time for rewind - and a film which I've felt never really received the credit it truly deserves - Aankhen - a true blue Bollywood heist film, replete with emotion, drama, humor and even an item song or two!

Vijay Rajput (Amitabh Bachchan) has obsessively dedicated his entire life to the Vilas Jefferson bank - and when he is fired for brutally assaulting another employee, he comes up with a diabolical plan to avenge himself by robbing his own bank. Rajput hires 3 henchmen to pull off the heist - the twist, the 3 hired hands - Vishwas, Arjun & Ilias (Akshay Kumar, Arjun Rampal & Paresh Rawal respectively) are all blind. Neha (Sushmita Sen), a teacher at a blind school, is coerced into training the team. And so begins a dangerous game...

As can be expected, the 3 thieves-to-be have a long way to go before they can actually go loot the bank - and while the training sessions are a little repetitive, they are also necessary - not only does this screen time emphasize the blood, sweat and tears aspect of this 'workshop', the audience also gets to see the budding camaraderie within the team and also with Neha. This is what I want to see in a heist film - the actual planning, the hows, and the whens, and the ironing out of kinks by practicing over and over again - totally not needed are slomo shots of the thief leaving the scene of crime in a blaze of glory - are you listening, SRK and Aamir?

And even after all the dry-runs, the actual robbery is nail-bitingly tense - will they pull it off, and more important, what does Rajput have in store for the trio after the robbery? And the tension doesn't end there - the story skids off in a totally different direction, hurtling along at breakneck speed, not at all what I was expecting. Doesn't take too long for things to start going downhill and Rajput soon finds himself in a precarious position - his meticulously woven web of intrigue in tatters. The ending, too, is startlingly ambiguous....please, please tell me there's going to be a sequel!

The casting is spot-on - Amitabh steals the show with his menacing Rajput, but Akshay Kumar is a close second - he has the body language of a blind person down perfectly! Paresh Rawal, as always, is in a class of his own - his wise-cracks are a much needed dose of levity in this drama! Sushmita Sen - I'm always partial to her - she comes across as so sensible and intelligent, and her tightrope act between professionalism and her grief, especially at the climax - an awesome performance! Arjun Rampal - meh! A pretty face and nothing much else - it's a good thing that all the others are so strong!!

This film is based on a popular Gujarati play - so understandably, the script is a star here. Tightly written, no loopholes, no loose ends - very coherent, very precise. I especially loved the word play on the names of the characters - Neha - eyes - what better name for a teacher of blind? Vishwas - trust - for the person who trusts the least? Arjun - the archer - for the most lousy shot? Rajput - a synonym for upright honesty - as the most crooked crook? I'm hoping this was intentional - in either case, absolutely loved it!! A world away from naming the main lead 'Charlie', so his team can later be referred to as the 'Charlie's Angels' - really, Farah Khan??!!

To wrap up - skip Happy New Year - watch Aankhen instead! Happy viewing!!

Happy New Year (2014)

The promos of 'Happy New Year' made it seem like a daring heist movie, along the lines of Ocean's Eleven - add Farah Khan's madcap zaniness, SRK's charisma and Deepika's megawatt star power - sounds like it's going to be a really happy new year, and that too, in October! So, does the film measure up? Well, here it is - no holds barred...

The 'plot' - Charlie (SRK) burns to avenge his father - Manohar (Anupam Kher in an 'emotional' appearance) - who was duped by Charan Grover (Jackie Shroff) and sentenced to a very, very long time in prison for a crime he did not commit. So Charlie assembles a rag-tag team - Tammy (Boman Irani), Jack (Sonu Sood), Nandu (Abhishek), Rohan (Vivaan Shah) and the dazzling Mohini (Deepika). The master plan - steal diamonds worth Rs. 300 crores - or is it dollars - from an impregnable vault 150 feet below the famed Atlantis - yes, the one in Dubai - and in such a way that Charan and his son, Vicky are framed for the crime. Oh also, there's a 'World Dance Competition' being conducted at the Atlantis - which provides the perfect cover for the mission!

Okay, where do I start?? Hmm - Atlantis? Because we were there last year, and it was a pretty big reason for me to watch the movie? What about the Atlantis? Well, just one teeny question - WHY?? The Atlantis silhouette is the backdrop in many a scene, and there are - let me see if I can remember - 3 scenes inside? Yes, 3 scenes - one in the lobby, with a blink-and-miss shot of the signature blue sculpture, a second in one of the water suites with one wall looking over the aquarium, and the third - wait for it - in the dolphin pool!! And yes, how can I forget the aerial shots of the fireworks over the Palm islands?? So, the Atlantis must be integral to the plot, right - well, umm, no, not really - just another cheap, gimmicky, publicity stunt, that's what this magnificent hotel has been reduced to. What a shame!

Next? Obviously the plot - what an optimistic word, plot! - Charlie's grandiose plan to dance his team into the safest safe in the world. Again and again - the big million dollar - no wait, the 300 crore dollar - question, WHY?? Why are the diamonds in Dubai - no direct flights from Praetoria to Antwerp? Why the whole learning-to-dance buffoonery? Why the face-off with the Korean team? Why a vault 150 feet below the Atlantis? No, really, why a vault below the Atlantis, and why are the diamonds stashed here?? Why is it so easy to 'hackofy' the security system of the world's best security agency? Why is the password to unlock the safe so, so easy?? And don't even get me started on the 'master plan'!! The escape route - really, is that meant to be innovative?, the cover-up - the fake brick wall covering the vent, yeah, right, that's going to fool all the cops!! And this one takes the cake - the plan to take the diamonds through Customs - why, pass them off as ice in a drink - umm, no drinks are allowed through Security? Details, details!! Aarghh!! So much potential - squandered away hopelessly!!

Can't be all bad, right - what about the stellar cast, each and every one capable of carrying a bad film on their shoulders! Well, let's start with the big gun himself - King Khan, Charlie. All I have to say is - dude, let it go, a zillion abs do not a sexy body make. And the deliberately pontificating dialogue delivery - so not working!! Boman Irani - such a charming actor, limited here to a bumbling Parsee caricature. Sonu Sood - playing a deaf ex-Army bomb expert whose shirt flies off at the slightest provocation - his understated performance is probably the best thing about this film!! Abhishek - in a double role, no less, playing both Vicky Grover and his look-alike, Nandu - a street ruffian, whose 'talent' is his ability to vomit prodigiously. No, not funny. Throw-up is never funny. That leaves Vivaan - Rohan the juvenile hacker - this here is Naseeruddin Shah's son? And of course the belle, Deepika, playing Mohini, a bar dancer with - eyes rolling here - a heart of gold, who falls for - surprise, surprise - Charlie!! Cliche, much?!! Stellar cast - you bet!! And yet...

And the humor - oh the humor. Already mentioned the vomiting - never, ever funny. Grown up men dancing in tutus. Closet gay men dressed in pink boas. Bouncers with names like Pinky, Sweety, Babli. Abhishek's snake dance. Daisy Irani reminding her son, Boman, to wash his underwear. Referring to Korean dancers with different Indo-Chinese dishes. Lampooning Saroj Khan - now that was plain mean. Bad English - including misspellings and mispronunciations. All the movie references - Devdas, Chak De, Damini, all of Farah Khan and SRK's repertoire - nothing is spared. None of this, yes, none of this is funny. Not even remotely funny. Not even it's-so-ridiculous-but-still-makes-me-laugh funny. And that probably is the biggest downfall of Happy New Year. A lot of plot holes and hamming can be overlooked if a movie makes you laugh - here, what was passed off as humor was nothing but horrifying!

The irony is that I'm a huge SRK fan - and I would have gladly seized upon any shred of redemption for Happy New Year. Sadly, there is none. Even more ironical is the fact that this asinine film has broken all box-office records - which leaves the actors and director to claim that they have public acclaim - critics and reviews be damned. No contrition about unleashing this travesty on unsuspecting fans. Happy New Year, indeed!

Wild Swans - 3 Daughters of China

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Part memoir, part biography, part autobiography - Wild Swans is a chronicle of the struggle and survival of 3 generations of author Jung Chang's family in the tumultuous 20th century of modern China. It is an astounding personal account of a now well-known history, facts which are at times more disturbing than fiction could ever be! 3 women, 3 generations, 3 lives - so different, and yet bound by a common thread of strength and resilience!

The first is the author's grandmother, born during the unpredictable years of the overthrow of the Manchu empire. The beautiful Yu-Fang, a valuable bargaining chip for her father, has her feet bound to increase her potential market value - and is eventually taken as a concubine by a powerful warlord, General Xue. A baby daughter is born to them, and a couple of years later, Yu-Fang is fortunate enough to be given her independence by the dying General. Overcoming the stigma of having been a concubine, she finds love with Dr. Xia - an elderly widower who overcomes strong family opposition to marry Yu-Fang, and also adopts her daughter, De-hong - the author's mother.

De-hong, the second of the 'swans' - lives through some of China's most pivotal and turbulent moments. The Japanese occupation, the struggle between Mao Zedong's Communists and Chiang Kai-shek's Kuomintang, the ascendancy of the Communist party, the initial fervor and goodwill of the  Communist movement - De-hong soon becomes an officer of the Party and marries a die-hard, principled Communist, Wang Yu. The idealism of Communism soon degenerates into an atmosphere of distrust, suspicion and persecution. The consecutive Three Antis and Five Antis campaigns, the Anti-rightist campaign, and the Hundred Flowers policy lead to widespread insecurity, hatred, denunciation and massacres of thousands. Increasingly disillusioned, the author's parents struggle to keep faith with the Party policies, until finally, they themselves become targets.

Despite the catastrophic failure of the Great Leap Forward, and the devastating famine that followed, Map Zedong's cult went from strength to strength. An entire generation of youth, including the author, was indoctrinated to believe in the god-like status of Chairman Mao. Through the horrors of the Cultural Revolution and the unrelenting, debasing persecution of her parents, the author never loses faith in Mao. The Reform through Labour campaign sees the author sent to a remote village at the edge of Himalayas - where she works first as a peasant and a barefoot doctor. Relocating later to Chengdu, she also works as a steelworker and then an electrician. It is only after Mao's death and the fall of the Gang of Four that the author is able to enroll in an university, and then finally, win a scholarship to study in the West.

To be very honest, I did not really enjoy reading this book. It did not shed any new light on China's Communist history and Mao's disastrous reign. Despite all the hardships, it is very clear that the author and her family led a fairly privileged life as high-ranking Communists - makes it a little hard to sympathize when the author talks about receiving extra food coupons during the famine which killed millions!! The author's naivety - meant to be endearing - borders on simplistic ignorance, and it was a little strange to read about the natural beauty of the villages and the view from hospital windows when there were obviously larger issues at stake!! Even her father's defiance, his admirable principled stand - it is obvious that the author idolizes her father, and the hero-worship makes him out to be a paragon of Communist virtue.

Of the three swans, the author's grandmother comes across as the strongest character. From saving her infant daughter from the General's wife, to standing up to Dr. Xia's family, and ultimately, taking on the responsibility of her grandchildren - I especially loved here little gestures of defiance like wearing her long with flowers! The author's mother, undoubtedly, had a lot of hardship - her husband's callous indifference is something no woman should have to tolerate, and her regret at the end of the book about not having any family memories could be that of any career woman today! As for the author - right to the end when she uses her parents' contacts to get a back-door entry into University, just seems like she was coasting along when there were others drowning in the maelstrom!

Very rarely do I not finish a book - but I came close with this one. I do wish the author had written only about the First Swan, her grandmother - that would have definitely been way more interesting!!

Half of a Yellow Sun

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I absolutely loved Cutting for Stone, a novel set in Ethiopia - so it was with great anticipation that I started reading 'Half of a Yellow Sun', another novel of Africa, set in 1960s Nigeria. Author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie powerfully captures the rise and tragically short struggle of Biafra to establish itself as an independent country in the southwest part of Nigeria. The name of the novel comes from the flag of the ill-fated nation, destined to become a mere footnote in the annals of African history!

In a newly independent Nigeria, Olanna and Kainene are twin sisters belonging to a wealthy and influential family. Olanna is in love with Odenigbo, a professor and an intellectual - and she leaves a life of privilege in Lagos to live with him in the university town of Nsukka. Their household includes Ugwu, a 13 year old villager, who works as Odenigbo's houseboy. Kainene, although Olanna's twin, resembles her in only 1 way - her unconventionality. Richard, a British expat in Nigeria, is inexorably drawn to Kainene's droll wit and enigmatic bearing.

The novel switches back and forth between the early 1960s and the end of the decade - the early part of the book introduces the main characters, their almost banal domesticity, but it also sets the stage for the upcoming unrest, the conflict between the Hausa and Igbo communities of Nigeria. 1966 saw coup followed by a counter-coup and the merciless, senseless massacre of thousands of Christian Igbo living in the mainly Muslim Hausa-dominated North - which directly led to an Igbo secession, and the formation of the new Republic of Biafra, and then the inevitable civil war. With Nsukka under attack, Olanna and Odenigbo flee to Umuahia with Ugwu and their daughter, Baby - and then after the fall of Umuahia, finally move in with Kainene and Richard. With a dire shortage of food and medicine, Kainene decides to trade across enemy lines...

I liked the flow of the novel - the moving across times, the comfort and luxury of the pre-war days contrasting starkly with the deprivation and desperation of the civil war. The mystery of the fallout between Olanna and Kainene - though easy to guess - adds to the tense atmosphere, but seems just a tad contrived, the easiest plot device for the sisters' estrangement. And while the prose is beautiful, the characters themselves seem to be a little flat and dry - the passion, anger, outrage and even the fear does not come across, making it hard to sympathize - they remain fictional characters, never rising into the otherwise charged atmosphere of the novel.

The civil war is central to the novel - and like all wars, has not only stories of the most degrading atrocities, but also of noble sacrifices and selflessness. The author is at her best writing about the war, about the misery and helplessness, the starvation. The queuing up for meager supplies, the heartbreak of mothers unable to provide for their children, the slow strangling of Biafra - it is all straight from the heart. Tying in the history with the fiction are snippets from the novel-within-a-novel - 'The World Was Silent When We Died' - and the identity of the author comes as a surprise, and in Adichie's own words, it makes a political point about who should be writing the stories of Africa.

Which brings me to the expats - on one side is Richard, who considers himself as Biafran, all the way across the spectrum to the pair of American journalists - both called Charles, their callous indifference a comment on the indifference of the world powers? And it is actually Richard who irritates the most - the typical expat who identifies with a 'cause', his Biafran identity seems to be a mere extension of his obsession with Kainene. The journalists are almost caricatures and while their inclusion was puzzling - Richard's passivity is really annoying.

The brutal effects of colonization, the insidious politics of divide-and-rule policies, the seeds of distrust knowingly sowed between peacefully co-existing cultures, the massacres in the name of religion, the horrors of civil war, the hatred that percolates through generations - all these strike a deep, bitter chord within me. Half of a Yellow Sun could be a novel about India and the Partition - and for me, this made a very personal connection to the novel. The not-so-obvious effects of colonization - the degradation of culture and language, the existence of 'elite' anglophones, a twisted sense of history - again, this story of Nigeria is the story of so many nations today!

Half of a Yellow Sun is not a novel easily forgotten. Despite its shortcomings, the story it tells is real and profound. The war has ended, life goes on - but the scars will always remain. May we never forget!