I just read the Booker nominee [b:Burnt Sugar|52969580|Burnt Sugar|Avni Doshi|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1588840376l/52969580._SY75_.jpg|73076925] by [a:Avni Doshi|19501445|Avni Doshi|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1568197380p2/19501445.jpg] in which the narrator describes her fraught love-hate relationship with her mother who is sliding into dementia, and retraces the mother's neglect of her daughter growing up in an ashram in Pune, and the lover the two shared after the daughter grew up. The girl's American-born husband, Dilip, "was handsome and tall in a way that let everyone know he'd grown up abroad. Baseball caps, good manners and years of consuming American dairy," struggles to accommodate her foibles, her inexplicable repetitive art, her relationships with her family. The writing is lively and interesting. Much attention is devoted to smells (the bakery, the smoking rickshaw engine, fried cumin and garlic, armpits, food (dal, pakoras, samosas, koftas), memories and anger, and time in the book is askew. I read it with interest, occasional amusement, and a longing to revisit India. The character of the daughter is not sympathetic, but she is not dull and her reactions and thoughts are insightful as she struggles to do her duty by her mother.
"The habit of waiting has already been instilled...deeply ingrained. I wonder if, when I'm old and frail and can see the shape of my end in front of me, I will still be waiting for the future to roll in." ( )

Dark, disturbing and thought-provoking, Burnt Sugar centres around a toxic mother/daughter relationship, the veracity of memory and obsessive, fanatic behaviours.
Antara’s early recollections of neglect, isolation, cruelty and hunger form the foundations for the unfolding and unravelling of her relationship with her mother Tara, who abandoned her unsympathetic husband for a gigantean guru and penniless, pockmarked photographer in turn with her young daughter in tow. Revenge and punishment, hurt and humiliation, long-buried secrets and deep-rooted resentments are the weapons of choice in a destructive battle that can never be won. Amidst friends and family whose characters, characteristics, flaws and foibles are described with biting wit, Tara and Antara vacillate between love and hate as shocking thoughts and deeds soar out of control.
Although not the easiest of reads I was hooked from the opening line.
I was left with a vivid picture of Pune, the sights and sounds, hustle and bustle, poverty and pollution, country clubs and compound apartments as well as a better understanding of Asian culture.
I’m so pleased that the cover and blurb prompted me to buy Burnt Sugar from one of my favourite local charity shops after a 3 plus year absence. ( )

How can one bring herself to care for a sick parent who neglected her?

I may be in the minority, but I found myself enjoying Doshi's debut novel. Perhaps "enjoy" isn't the right word, as the subject matter can be difficult to stomach at times. But it is the type of book that has stayed with me long after reading it.

The mother-daughter relationship in this book illustrates the toxic and selfish side of human nature, both from the mother and daughter's perspectives. The characters are not likeable, but they are incredibly complex and possess so much depth. I loved how Doshi subtly references some of the social-political factors that may have contributed to this strained relationship. She also portrays the impact of direct and generational trauma in such a visceral way with vivid descriptions of scents.

This is a hard one for me to recommend to others, but I have to admit this was one of my favorite books I’ve read this year. Recommended to those who are able to handle difficult topics around childcare and elderly care. ( )

This is my second attempt at reading this book and I successfully(almost successfully) finished it.

The book, I have to admit has it's high points but the lows kept constantly distracting me from them. “Reality is always co authored” is my favourite quote in the book.

Antara (meaning "different"/"of-Tara") and her mom Tara have a troubled relationship. It was interesting to read how toxic relationships bind people together.

The stream of consciousness method of narration was extremely good but started to cross the territory into being pretentious after a point.

The first part was definitely interesting and surrounded around the concept of memory.

As the book goes on it gets repetitive (though not visibly but the feeling I had was this) and exhausting. The portrayal of India is something I do not want to get into but will have to mention. The stereotypical and exaggerated portrayal that confirms widespread views (and very often false) might work well with non Indian readers but not Indians. This is precisely why I saw a lot of non Indian readers recommend this one.

Overall, an okay read. It was worth the effort. Definitely not something I would pick up if it did not have the Booker Prize logo on it.

Spoiler: I personally believe that the narrator is a sociopath (from neglect and abuse; she also has all the basic characteristics of a sociopath) and that changed things up for me a bit. It is always interesting to have a different kind of narrator. ( )

This was a complicated read filled with complicated characters and Indian stereotypes. Maybe because the stereotypes are real? The rawness is unsettling, I'm glad I read it. ( )