Book Review: The Secret Daughter

I bought this book on my trip home from Canada, not expecting much, but hoping for a nice light read on my plane trip home. I don't like to watch movies or play games while flying, but I do love to read. And boy, did I read on that flight! I picked up the book on my first connecting flight to Vancouver, and didn't stop reading until I touched down in Brisbane, 18 hours later. Okay, I stopped reading to eat, and I had a couple of short naps, but other than that, this book kept me totally engrossed for the whole flight. I also bawled my eyes out in some parts, which was totally embarrassing for both me, and the person next to me. Oh well.

The story, written by Shilpi Somaya Gowda, begins in a small Indian village in 1984, where Kavita, a destitute mother gives birth to her second baby girl. Knowing that her husband will insist on killing the baby, as he had with their first daughter, she runs away and drops the baby off at an orphanage, saving her life. In the social stratum that Kavita lives in, daughters are considered worthless and a drain on the family because they can't do physical labor and they require a large dowry in order to marry.

Meanwhile, an American couple, Somer and Krishnan are having trouble conceiving and decide to adopt. They travel to Bombay and adopt a ten-month old baby girl, Asha, who is Krishna's daughter. The book continues by moving the plot forward to 2009. It alternates chapters between the three protagonists of the book: Asha, now a young woman, struggling to find her place in the world, Somer, trying to hold on to Asha, but feeling that she is losing her, and Kavita, living in a slum in Mumbai with her husband and young son.

What I loved most about this book was the vibrant imagery and beautiful language that Gowda uses, especially when describing their different experiences with India. As the story progresses, each woman grows to have a distinct love of the country and their own place within it.

I completely recommend reading this book - but fair warning, you will need to find a time when you can be totally engrossed in the story! You can find the book here, both hard copy and for Kindle.

- H

PS. Don't loan this book out. You might never see it again! (Yes, it is that good.)