Product Description

The beautiful, spoiled, and bored Olivia, married to a civil servant, outrages society in the tiny, suffocating town of Satipur by eloping with an Indian prince.

Fifty years later, her step-granddaughter goes back to the heat, the dust and the squalor of the bazaars to solve the enigma of Olivia’s scandal.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #82603 in Books
• Published on: 2003-10-13
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 192 pages

Review
'A superb book. A complex story line, handled with dazzling assurance ! moving and profound. Ruth Prawer Jhabvala has not only written a love story, she has also exposed the soul and nerve ends of a fascinating and compelling country. This is a book of cool, controlled brilliance. It is a jewel to be treasured' -- The Times 'A writer of genius ! a writer of world class -- a master storyteller' -- Sunday Times 'Coolly assured novel ... Written with seek elegance, this book delves into the heart of an unmistakably seductive country' -- The Good Book Guide 20031101 'Her tussle with India is one of the richest treats of contemporary literature' -- Guardian 20031101

Winner of the 1975 Booker Prize, this is a coolly assured novel that charts the fates of two very different women in 20th century India. Married to the solidly worthy Douglas, Olivia withstands the heat and dust of everyday life but, in the middle of an alien culture, finds herself increasingly drawn to the enigmatic Nawab. Fifty years later another woman arrives, intent on discovering why Olivia's name has become a forbidden topic. The experiences of both women begin to overlap as India exerts a magical fascination for each of them. Written with sleek elegance, this acclaimed book chronicles not only two parallel love affairs but delves into the heart of an unmistakably seductive country. (Kirkus UK)

Review
‘A superb book. A complex story line, handled with dazzling assurance … moving and profound. Ruth Prawer Jhabvala has not only written a love story, she has also exposed the soul and nerve ends of a fascinating and compelling country. This is a book of cool, controlled brilliance. It is a jewel to be treasured’ (The Times )

‘A writer of genius … a writer of world class – a master storyteller’ (Sunday Times )

'Coolly assured novel ... Written with seek elegance, this book delves into the heart of an unmistakably seductive country' (The Good Book Guide )

‘Her tussle with India is one of the richest treats of contemporary literature’ (Guardian )

Guardian
‘Her tussle with India is one of the richest treats of contemporary literature’

Customer Reviews

A portrait of India
A deceptively simple story, written in a clear, economical and direct style. Set in India both before and after the British Raj, it is as much a portrait of a country as it is a story of two women. I could really feel the heat and dust of the title and the atmosphere and culture of India are well evoked.

The plot has two strands. One is set in 1923, and revolves around Olivia, the bored British wife of a civil servant working in India. She is drawn into the circle of the charismatic Nawab of Khatm, an Indian prince. The second strand is composed of diary entries by Olivia's step-grandaughter, who has travelled to India in the 1970s to explore her family's past. The two interweave nicely, with some parallels developing.

Despite its simplicity, this is a readable and enjoyable story which retains momentum. I was a bit disappointed with the ending which was unsatisfying - the story built to a climax only to fizzle out.
I felt that it rather let down the rest of the writing. But it was certainly an intimate portrait both of India and of human nature in general, and explored some of the issues around colonialism in a gentle but probing way. I would certainly recommend it to anyone with an interest in India, but not to those who prefer books with lots of action.

THE HEAT OF THE ROMANCE...THE DUST OF ITS ASHES...
This is a well written book that explores Anglo-Indian relations through the power of romance. Set in two distinct eras, colonial India of the nineteen twenties, during the time of the Raj, and the independent, freewheeling India of the nineteen seventies, during the time when India was a mecca for disenfranchised youth, it tells the story of two women.

One story is that of Olivia, the wife of a minor district official in colonial India, who in 1923 caused great scandal by running off with the Nawab, a local Indian prince. Divorced by her husband, Douglas, for this scandalous transgression, Olivia remains in India, while Douglas remarries.

The second story is that of the narrator, a descendant of Douglas and his second wife. During the nineteen seventies, fascinated by the story of the now deceased Olivia, she goes to India, visiting those locations where Olivia had lived and those which would have been a part of her existence at the time. As did Olivia, she falls under India's spell. As did Olivia, she, too, has an Anglo-Indian love affair, and picks up where Olivia left off, giving the reader a powerful sense of de-ja vu.

The book is a beguiling story of two women from two different generations who come under the spell of India. The book is evocative of British colonial India, as well as of India of the nineteen seventies. During both eras, Anglo-Indian relations are pivotal to the budding romances. The book is evocative of the rythyms of Indian life in all its richness and tumultuousness, as well as its lingering poverty and superstitions. It is redolent of a time gone by and hopeful of what is to come. It is also an interesting dichotomy of the good and bad in both cultures, Anglo and Indian, and the influence that both cultures have on these two women, who are so different, yet so alike.

This is a book that whets the appetite, leaving the reader wanting more than the author is prepared to give. It is, nonetheless, a book well worth reading. The book was also made into a Merchant Ivory film starring Julie Christie and Greta Scacchi.

This book won the Booker in 1975, NOT 1983
The Amazon synopsis is in error--I couldn't figure out why a book that came out in 1975 had won in 1983, then I checked some lists, including Amazon's Awards list and found '83 was wrong. Interesting book, but not on my all time greats list.