Module 9: Karma

Book Summary: Fifteen year old Maya (Jiva to her father) lives in Canada, her Hindu mother has just committed suicide and her Sikh father decides to take her to India in order to return her mother's ashes to their final resting place. Upon arriving in India, the prime minister, Indira Gandhi has just been assassinated. There are riots where Hindus and Sikhs are killing each other in the streets. Maya's father disappears within the turmoil and Maya goes on a train (pretending to be a boy) in order to get away from the violence.  She witnesses hate towards a Sikh man when he is dragged off the train by guards and burned to death. She goes into the car of a family when the eldest daughter, a doctor, discovers her on the street. She knows that she is able to communicate and is mute intentionally. She asks her brother to help her tell her story so that she can begin healing. What results is a journal of thoughts passed back and forth between the two. The boy decides to help Maya cross the desert in order for her to find her father. When Maya is united with her father, the boy disappears because he knows it would not be honorable to maintain a relationship with a teen girl, especially a girl with a Sikh father. In the end, both daughter and father return to Canada, both changed.

APA Reference of Book:
Ostlere, C. (2011). Karma: a novel in verse. New York, NY: Razorbill.

Impressions: Despite the sad tale of the political turmoil in India in 1984, this book is beautifully written in verse.  It is easy to identify with Maya (called Jiva by her Sikh father) in her coming to terms with her religious leanings and beliefs. When she witnesses a Sikh man getting burned to death, as a reader, you feel the horror she feels. When she goes voluntarily mute, you understand why she does not want to talk. Further, you feel her inner turmoil with her crisis of identity as a half-Hindu, half-Sikh teen.

Ultimately, this is a love story in a way, when a Hindu family takes her in, after finding her on the street all alone and mute.  The adopted son in the family feels for her and helps her find her father. There is a small part of heartbreak when Maya goes back home to Canada. Her father had originally promised Maya into marriage upon arriving in India, but both have been changed by circumstance. Universal themes in this story include the the idea of hope, the power of love, and willingness to help someone in need.

Professional Review: "The first thing I discovered about Karma by Cathy Ostlere (besides the fact that it was about India, which is why I wanted to read it in the first place) was that it was written in verse.  And I will admit that little tidbit almost made me skip over the book; after all, I figured a novel in verse would be difficult to read, and that I wouldn’t connect with the main character at all.  But because the book sounded so interesting, I decided to persevere, and I am incredibly glad I did; not only was this book fascinating, but all my preconceived notions were in error.

Karma is lyrical and deft, beautiful yet very easy to read.  Despite the length, the novel flowed very smoothly and it was quick.  I had no trouble understanding what was happening, nor did I have any difficulty connecting with Maya.  In fact, she was the highlight of the novel for me.

Maya is half-Sikh and half-Hindu, and as a result, the conflict that is raging all around her between the two religious groups is mirroring what is happening within her.  She doesn’t know where her loyalties lie or whom she can trust.  Even her name, the very clue to her identity, is uncertain – is she Jiya, the “official” name that her father pressed upon her, or Maya, the name her mother wanted to give her that she identifies with?  It’s so eye opening to see what Maya feels inside reflected all around her with horrible violence.

The time period is tragic yet important in India’s history, and it’s fascinating to see it through the eyes of a fifteen year old.  While that kind of violence would be horrific at any age, to see it so young really changes Maya.  She falls mute, unable to speak because she is so racked with guilt over what she’s seen.  She thinks she no longer deserves to speak – she is already carrying guilt over her mother’s death, after all.  Ostlere does an incredible job making the reader feel like they are part of the narrative, immersed in this place of horrifying violence.  The reader only wants Maya to return home, to find a place of safety, yet it’s unclear where that could be because she seems to be pushed against her will wherever she turns.

Karma was a fascinating, eye-opening coming-of-age novel, and I am so glad I gave it a chance.  I realize novels in verse don’t exactly excite most people, but I urge you to try this book.  You may not connect with it, but it’s possible you might, and you’ll be rewarded with an absolutely incredible story and a heartbreakingly real main character.  This was really an amazing book and I can’t wait to see what Cathy Ostlere does next" (Krishna, 2011, http://skrishnasbooks.com/2011/05/book-review-karma-cathy-ostlere.html).

Krishna, S. (2011, May 18). [Review of the book Karma, by C. Ostlere] Retrieved from http://skrishnasbooks.com/2011/05/book-review-karma-cathy-ostlere.html

Library Uses: I could see recommending this book for reluctant readers because of its novel-in-verse format. While the book looks daunting, it is actually beautifully written verse and reads quickly.