BKMT READING GUIDES
Blues from the Malabar Coast
by Nalini Warriar
Paperback : 144 pages
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Introduction
Winner of the 2002 McAuslan First Book Award, Blues from the Malabar Coast is a collection of 12 delightful linked stories that begin in a small village on India's Malabar coast. The Variyars are a traditional matriarchal family, large and close-knit,their children are numerous and spoilt, and life revolves around the temple. The family and its fortunes are described through the perceptions of its various members, particularly the young ones. "Blues from the Malabar Coast" describes the life of a family, dominated from dusk till dawn by the old grandmother in the kitchen... In "Leela's Dream," a young widow gives birth to a daughter whom- by invoking an old custom- she promises to the son of a beloved brother who will soon marry. In "Greener Pastures" they arrive in Quebec City, whose winters Ven adores and Seema recalls the life of her family. In "Going Back" Seema returns for the cremation of her father, an honest, unassuming tax inspector with whom she has wandered the length and breadth of India.
Joyful, poignant, and sad, this wonderful collection tells a story of a village and its people, of a nation,and of our times.
Excerpt
From Leela's Dream:Leela was in pain. Yet not a sound passed her parched lips. This birth was her worst. She wondered if it was due to the fact that her husband had died before this, his sixth child, was born. The birth couldn't have occurred at a more inauspicious moment. ...
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Discussion Questions
1. In Blues from the Malabar Coast, the temple plays a central role? Do you consider this to be unusual? Why?2. Do you think the social fabric of society in general and of that in the Variyar household are the same or different?
3. In what time frame has Warriar set her stories in? How does she convey the time setting to the reader?
4. Is family as important in America today as it was in India? In India is it still the same? And in America/
5. What values, both social and moral, are portrayed?
6. In Blues from the Malabar Coast, is there any evidence of discrimination? Is that social or racial?
7. How does the infamous ‘caste system’ affect life in Blues from the Malabar Coast?
8. What is the origin of the ‘caste system?’
9. The British occupied India for many years. Does the author provide any clues to the situation?
Notes From the Author to the Bookclub
1. ‘America is a male dominated society’ is a phrase common to the American way of life. How is the family in Blues from the Malabar Coast different? Why? 2. The author uses many voices. Why do you think she made this decision? 3. Do you identify with a particular point of view? A character? 4. In the title story, Blues from the Malabar Coast, how does the author take distance from the narration? 5. In the move towards the West, do the characters feel at home? 6. In ‘Going Back’ what sentiments appear and why?Book Club Recommendations
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