The Storyteller's Secret

 

Wonderful story, rich characters, fantastic structure and culturally insightful, this is a great book for deepening your understanding and empathy for other people's life experiences and struggles, both past and present - even if told through fictional characters. There are lessons to be found throughout this story, if read with an eye to find them, and if that's not your motivation in reading, there's just the plain, simple enjoyment of getting lost in a great story for awhile. This multi-generational story gives the reader a whole new appreciation for the history of families and the impact it has on the generations of us who come later.

I do have a couple annoyances with this book, though, which brought it from being a 5 Star experience to a 4 or 4 1/2 one (if half stars were available). I'll try to sum it up without giving spoilers, so I'll speak as generally as I can. First, and only mildly consternating for me, was the fact that I felt the grandmother, Amisha, was treated with a higher esteem than her actions in the book deserved. While I'm very sympathetic to her cultural constrictions and why she felt the need to do certain things, I didn't think that warranted her later estimation by Ravi, her faithful servant, as someone who "only thought of others". She certainly had a great deal of generosity and kindness in her character, but it could certainly be argued that a number of her later actions were profoundly self-centered, no matter how she rationalized it. I can understand those who see it differently or give her a pass because of the situation she was in, and I had enough goodwill towards her character that it didn't ruin anything for me.

The second issue, and I wish it hadn't bothered me as much as it did, but it was REALLY distracting at times, is Ms. Badani's constant use of the word "whispered" and it's related tagalongs "softly" and "quietly" (among others). The last time I saw that word written so much was back in the day when I read the Twilight series, and that may not be a comparison the author would welcome. I get trying to set a mood or communicate the delicacy and caution of the situation, but there's got to be another way to get the point across. Same problem with some of the emotional scenes, when the idea of two people's bodies being pulled closer to each other gets repeated about 5 times until your head is screaming, "They can't possibly get any closer to each other without passing through their partner's body to the other side!" A silly complaint perhaps, but those little things can really pull me out of a moment that I'd rather not be pulled out of.

All things said, it's still a very good book, and I'm so pleased I found it. Ms. Badani tells a beautiful, touching story and it's well worth the read!

★★★★ ½