NOVEL THOUGHTS
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RANDOM HOUSE, 1997
(available in paperback from Perennial, 1998)
IN HER PRIZEWINNING NOVEL, The God of Small Things, Arundhati Roy introduces readers to the Kochamma family of Ayemenem, Kerala, India, in 1969. At the center of the story are “two-egg twins,” Estha (the brother) and Rahel (the sister). Though physically separate, they are joined at the soul: They know each other’s thoughts and dreams, they can taste what the other is eating and sense each other’s unseen presence. As their family unravels against a backdrop of political upheaval and traditional social taboos, Roy captures beautifully the twins’ childlike perceptions of the adult world and their assumption of responsibility for events beyond their control.
From the beginning, the reader senses that the Kochamma family is fragmenting. Ammu, the twins’ beautiful and educated mother, has divorced her alcoholic husband and returned to the family home because she is unable to sustain herself independently. Ammu’s ineffectual Rhodes Scholar brother, Chacko, unable to hold a job in England, has moved back home, too, after his wife has asked for a divorce. The twins’ grand-aunt, Baby Kochamma, willful and treacherous, is forever enamored of the forbidden Irish monk, Father Mulligan. Ammu and Chacko’s mother, Mammachi, who is nearly blind, plays Handel on the violin and runs the family’s pickles and preserves factory. Last, but certainly not least in importance to the story, is an untouchable, Velutha, a skilled carpenter, Marxist activist, and handyman to the family business.
The story, which shifts back and forth in time, begins with Rahel’s return to Ayemenem twenty-three years after the tragic accidental death of her visiting cousin, Sophie Mol. Rahel has not seen her twin brother, Estha, during those twenty-three years. He is silent and withdrawn, but the twins’ unspoken connection to each other is undiminished.
The story quickly shifts to the funeral of Sophie Mol and the events that led to her death. Childhood traumas unknown to or unacknowledged by adults are among the dangerous secrets kept by both children and adults in the story. And the story’s tragic conclusion seems to validate the twins’ apprehension that everything can change in a single day. Although a profoundly human story, The God of Small Things echoes the high drama, surprising twists of plot, and gorgeous imagery of the great mythic Indian legends that Rahel and Estha love.
Rahel and Esta’s childish perceptions give The God of Small Things its poignancy. In spite of India’s rich culinary tradition, however, The God of Small Things includes few details about the preparation and consumption of food, probably because these activities have little relevance to a child. When food is mentioned, it often relates to children’s concerns: reward and punishment, and the need for consolation and approval.
The familiarity of Mammachi’s Paradise Pickles and Preserves business, which shapes the Kochamma family’s identity in Ayemenem, offers sanctuary, or at least distraction, to Estha under traumatic circumstances. When the Orangedrink Lemondrink Man sells Estha a drink in the lobby of the movie theater and then molests him, Estha runs through his grandmother’s products in his mind—“pickles: mango, green pepper, bitter gourd, garlic, salted lime; squashes: orange, grape, pineapple, mango; jams: banana, mixed fruit, grapefruit marmalade”—until the act of molestation is over.
Soon after this incident, and another one in which his mother rejects him, Estha visits the Paradise Pickles and Preserves factory, positioning himself by a vat of freshly boiled banana jam. This is where Estha can think, a place where “the smell of vinegar and asafetida stung his nostrils, but Estha was used to it, loved it.” Estha especially loves the banana jam because Ammu had allowed him the honor of copying Mammachi’s banana jam recipe into her new recipe book. In the quiet of the factory, Estha hatches his fateful plan to escape his mother’s rejection. As he stirs the jam and it thickens and cools, “the jam-stirring became a boat-rowing” and his plans for escape congeal.
Rahel, too, expresses her need for approval through food. When Rahel lashes out at Ammu with hurtful words, Ammu implies that she loves Rahel a little less. Desperate to regain the full measure of her mother’s love, Rahel begs for punishment, suggesting that she might be made to skip dinner. When Ammu resists, Rahel refuses dinner, hoping to exact punishment on herself. Her uncle Chacko eats all the chicken and ice cream with chocolate sauce himself, never understanding the reason for Rahel’s refusal to eat.
The Network of South Asian Professionals (NetSAP–DC) Book Club of Washington, D.C., reads South Asian literature exclusively. The group named The God of Small Things as a favorite selection. For their meetings, members often prepare a variety of South Asian dishes, always featuring a vegetable-based dish to accommodate their many vegetarian members.
Member Amber Masud contributed a Pakistani recipe she prepares for the group, aloo tikki (potato cutlets). Masud’s mother-in-law, Shafqat Masud, taught her to prepare this old family recipe. Masud has added a modern twist to the preparation to save time—she uses a food processor. “Everyone who eats the potato cutlets loves them. They are quite easy to make and come in very handy for parties or lunch.”
NOTE: The potato cutlets may be made ahead. To store, place the cooked cutlets on a tray and freeze for 2 hours. Once frozen, stack the cutlets in freezer bags or wrap and keep frozen until ready to use. Remove from freezer and microwave for 2 minutes before serving.
Red chili powder has a different flavor from chili powders commonly found in grocery stores. It can be found in most Indian groceries or online.
Wear plastic or rubber gloves while handling the chiles to protect your skin from the oil in them. Avoid direct contact with your eyes, and wash your hands thoroughly after handling.
4–5 medium red potatoes 1 teaspoon red chili powder (see note) 1 teaspoon salt 1 small yellow onion 1 tablespoon whole coriander seeds, or ¾ teaspoon ground coriander |
4–5 scallions 2–3 serrano chiles, seeds and membranes removed (see note) ¼ bunch cilantro, stems removed 2 eggs 1 cup vegetable oil for frying |
Wash the potatoes (leave skins on), and add to a large pot of boiling water. When the potatoes are tender, remove them from the water, slip the skins off, and place in a flat tray or baking dish. Mash with a potato masher or fork immediately, while hot. When cool enough to handle, add red chili powder and salt and, using your hands, mix in well.
In a food processor, finely chop the onion. Squeeze out and discard the juice, and add the onion to the potato mixture.
Add the coriander to the food processor along with the scallions, serranos, and cilantro. Process to a fine consistency and add to the potato mixture. Mix with your hands until all ingredients are well blended. Adjust salt and chili powder to taste. Let stand for 30 minutes.
Form potato mixture into round patties about 2½ inches across and ½ inch thick. In a bowl, beat the eggs with a fork. Heat ½ cup of the oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. When the oil is very hot, dip a cutlet in egg to coat and place it in the frying pan. Repeat with more cutlets, frying about three at a time, not overcrowding the pan. When browned (about 1 minute), turn the cutlets over and brown the other side. Remove from the heat, place on brown paper or paper towels to drain, and keep warm. After half the cutlets are cooked, discard the used oil, wipe out the pan, and use the remaining ½ cup of oil.
Yield: 15 to 20 2H-inch cutlets
¼ bunch cilantro A few sprigs of mint 1−2 teaspoons lemon juice |
2 cups plain yogurt Salt |
Place the cilantro and mint in a blender or food processor with lemon juice. Process to a fine paste. Add to yogurt and stir well to blend. Add salt to taste. Serve at room temperature.
Yield: About 2 cups
NOVEL THOUGHTS
“We specifically choose novels that raise provocative questions about relatively recent political history and related themes of identity,” says Tammi Coles of her Booker Tea Reading Group of Washington, D.C. The Booker Tea began discussing Booker Prize–winning fiction over Sunday afternoon tea; now the group seeks out favorably reviewed works with a commitment to demographic, geographic, and thematic diversity. They also balance their reading list by gender, selecting six male and six female writers each year.
The Booker Tea Reading Group has read many great works by Indian writers, but The God of Small Things had particular resonance. “The characters and politics were so well described,” says Coles. “We look for novels that expose us to varied political perspectives on recent world history. The way politics affected the characters was so vivid. It was a novel, but it brought us to a clear understanding of India’s real political history.”
Katherine Sawyer admired Arundhati Roy’s evocative use of language to create striking imagery and the way she skillfully drew characters from very different walks of life, from an eight-year-old child to a middle-aged man. Coles admired how the book’s vivid characters “evoked a strong emotional response.” “I can’t say enough about how excellent the book is for a group discussion,” she adds.
More Food for Thought
Members of the Meeteetse Book Group in Meeteetse, Wyoming, shared homecooked Indian dishes, including shrimp curry, spicy chicken curry, rice, and flatbread, over discussion of The God of Small Things. The group has read several books set in India that have inspired other menu ideas. “Lentil dal is a nice side dish,” suggests Rosemary Lowther, a group member for five years. “And mango ice cream makes a great dessert for an Indian dinner.”