ISBN/ASIN: 9780330458535
AUTHOR: Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
GENRE: Fiction / Mythology
NUMBER OF PAGES: 360
FORMAT: Paperback
SERIES / STANDALONE: Standalone
HOW I GOT THIS BOOK:
This book is a gift from a very special friend, a fellow bibliophile who shares my love for good books, good food, melodious music and much more! It is a treasured personal copy.
SUMMARY:
A reimagining of the world-famous Indian epic, the Mahabharat—told from the point of view of an amazing
woman.
Relevant to today’s war-torn world, The Palace of Illusions takes us back to a time that is half
history, half myth, and wholly magical. Narrated by Panchaali, the wife of the legendary Pandavas
brothers in the Mahabharat, the novel gives us a new interpretation of this ancient tale.
The novel traces the princess Panchaali's life, beginning with her birth in fire and following her
spirited balancing act as a woman with five husbands who have been cheated out of their father’s
kingdom. Panchaali is swept into their quest to reclaim their birthright, remaining at their side
through years of exile and a terrible civil war involving all the important kings of India. Meanwhile,
we never lose sight of her strategic duels with her mother-in-law, her complicated friendship with the
enigmatic Krishna, or her secret attraction to the mysterious man who is her husbands' most dangerous
enemy. Panchaali is a fiery female redefining for us a world of warriors, gods, and the ever-
manipulating hands of fate.
FIRST IMPRESSION:
The book was of substantial size, with nearly 400 pages. The cover looked stunning, with a green tone
and an impressive palace doorway fittingly used as the cover. The summary was succinct and actually
drew me into the story. Even though I knew what this might probably be about and even though I have
been hearing since my childhood about how it all began and ended, I really wanted to open and read the
book. And that, I guess, is the author's success amongst her readers.
REVIEW:
Who is your sister? I am she.
Who is your mother? I am she.
Day dawns the same for you and me.
The Palace of Illusions is a book that came with high recommendations from a lot of people. All my
friends who had read it were very possessive of their copies and also very appreciative of the book,
its characters and the overall story. Naturally, my expectations for the book ran high and there was
the pleasant anticipation throughout the entire time I read (and re read) the story. I, like most
children before me, have grown up hearing the stories of the two great Indian Epics, The Ramayana and
the Mahabaratha. But unlike many who were captivated with the heroic deeds of the incarnations of the
the Lord and the other males who mattered, I was always drawn towards strong female characters and of
course, tried my best to see every story from the antagonists' point of view.
The story is of Draupadi, or Panchaali, one of the strongest women ever written about in Indian
Mythology. The book did not give the history of Panchali in a bland and factual way. It made her real.
It made her believable and most importantly, it told us Draupadi's side of the story, which is similar
to the part of the iceberg that is submerged in water. For me, as a reader, the book gave a whole new
palette of colours to the epic called Mahabaratha.
It begins with Draupadi being born out of fire, as a residue, and an unwanted child, a by product of
the penance king Drupada made to beget a son. She grows up as a princess and with the hopes and dreams
of a young girl. She realises early on that she was an unexpected, unwanted child, but does not let
that bog her down. She grows up into a dark skinned (oh yes, she was, like Krishna) young woman. In her
Swayamvar, she meets a man she likes, and though her heart longs to get together with him, she spurns
him and chooses Arjun instead. And from then on, her life twists and turns. She becomes a devoted wife
to her husbands and helps them through the famous difficulties they faced. The author's explanation of
just how exactly her chastity was maintained amongst five husbands goes on to say how male dominated
our epics have been.
The Palace of Illusions, one of the famed buildings in our mythology was built under her supervision
and that, she realises later on, was what started the whole huge war. The story of how the palace was
built and the foreboding warnings sending a chill through our spine are all marks of just how effective
a story teller the author is. Then comes the notorious dice game, subsequent humiliation and the exile,
the return and finally, the greatest war of all times.
Well, yes, we all know these stories. So, what is different in this book? Have you ever known the real
reason of why Panchali was born? How many of us know that she originally preferred and fell in love
with a different man? Or how many of us actually know the real reason why she spurned him? Have you
ever wondered about how the palace of illusions looked? Do you know the story behind how she became
wife of five men and how she maintained the fire of her chastity amidst all that chaos? Most
importantly, other than the obvious parts she played in the war, do you know about the sacrifices she
made to participate in the war? I felt that the author has asked all these and more questions, and
interestingly enough, answered them.
It is difficult to rewrite a great, popular epic, from a little known perspective and succeed in making
it connect with the readers. What is even more difficult is writing it in the first person narrative of
a woman who was admired and feared in equal measures. The author manages both of these with an
easygoing grace that makes this an amazing read. The story of Draupadi as a woman like any other, with
hopes, dreams and expectations that were shattered, instead of the jealous empress we have always been
told about, is only for those who can stomach the alternate view point without blowing a fuse.
- The story itself had everything to interest me. It belonged to one of my favorite genres.
- The character of Draupadi was not made flawless. It would have been really bad to read a book that idolised her. The main plus point of this book is showing her as a human character prone to all weaknesses and not just the jealous manipulative wife of five men
- The best part of the book was the memorable dialogues and the strong writing.
- Draupadi's friendship with Krishna
- The ending threw me off guard, and was a bit dull for such a greater story.
- The story does seem like it veered away from what we know after reading the 'official' version and factual inconsistency might be a deal breaker for some.
VERDICT: This is one of my favorite books, a story I read often and go back to whenever I need a sparking change. It has flaws, but that is what makes it one of my favorite books.
RATING: 4.75/5
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni is an award-winning author and poet. Her work is widely known, as she has
been published in over 50 magazines, including the Atlantic Monthly and The New Yorker, and her writing
has been included in over 50 anthologies. Her works have been translated into 20 languages, including
Dutch, Hebrew and Japanese.Her newest novel is Oleander Girl (Simon and Schuster, 2013)
She was born in India and lived there until 1976, at which point she left Calcutta and came to the
United States. She continued her education in the field of English by receiving a Master’s degree from
Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, and a Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley.
To earn money for her education, she held many odd jobs, including babysitting, selling merchandise in
an Indian boutique, slicing bread in a bakery, and washing instruments in a science lab. At Berkeley,
she lived in the International House and worked in the dining hall. She briefly lived in Illinois, Ohio
and Texas, but has spent most of her life in Northern California, which she often writes about.
Chitra currently teaches in the nationally ranked Creative Writing program at the Univ. of Houston. She
serves on the Advisory board of Maitri in the San Francisco Bay Area and Daya in Houston. Both these
are organizations that help South Asian or South Asian American women who find themselves in abusive or
domestic violence situations. She is also closely involved with Pratham, an organization that helps
educate children (especially those living in urban slums) in India.
Chitra has judged several prestigious awards, such as the National Book Award and the PEN Faulkner
Award.
Two of her books, The Mistress of Spices and Sister of My Heart, have been made into movies by
filmmakers Gurinder Chadha and Paul Berges (an English film) and Suhasini Mani Ratnam (a Tamil TV
serial) respectively.
Chitra lives in Houston with her husband Murthy, her two sons Anand and Abhay (whose names she has used
in her children’s novels) and Juno, the family dog.
EDITIONS AVAILABLE: Hardcover, Paperback, Kindle
PRICE Rs. 1440 for Hardcover, Rs. 490 for Paperback, Rs. 192.85 for Kindle
BOOK LINKS: Amazon.in
You have convinced me to read this one. I have been hearing a lot about this. When I went looking for it in a bookshop, I found another of the author's books. I read a couple of pages and wasn't really impressed. Amazon, here I come....
ReplyDeleteExcellent review Dhivya. I like the way you write one