6 reviews for Bubble Wrap
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Bubble Wrap
by Kalyani Rao
Description:
Twelve-year-old Krishna Singh has been married off to Shyam Singh of Rokhagadh, Rajasthan. Before the wedding, Krishna’s grandmother gives her a box filled with exquisite jewellery, telling her to sell it in times of trouble, but otherwise to hide it from her parents and in-laws. Accompanied by Gudiya, the fifteen-year-old widow of her cousin, Krishna realises that her cold marital home is a far cry from the loving one she left behind. The world outside has modernized and is beamed via television into her home. But she is not allowed to go to school, instead a female tutor comes home to teach her. A dubious father-in-law, a husband away at boarding school, and a mousey mother-in-law clearly show Krishna what is a woman’s place in this family. An unfortunate incident leads Krishna and Gudiya headlong into a series of events that change their lives forever. As they deal with one situation after another, the girls discover each other and learn much about the world they live in. Bubble Wrap is a story about their fight for survival against impossible odds in a shallow male-dominated society.
About The Author
Bubble Wrap is Kalyani Rao’s first novel. She is an avid traveller who is passionate about writing. She believes that travelling has broadened her horizons and that it has taught her the most important lessons that she ever learned in her life. She idolises Haruki Murakami. She is also a businesswoman and owns and manages a theme-based travel company.
Skryf Review
“Good Reading”
Sejal
The cover is Simple yet attractive. It speaks volumes. The figure of two young girls holding hands and moving as if on flight as well as the tagline “Sometimes the only way is escape” give an insight into the story.Relevant given the fact that there are still some states/ places in India where child marriage,female foeticide, denial of formal education to girls and cruelty to widows are rampant. The story is an expression of the desires of the female race shackled within the four walls of their homes, forced to blindly follow traditions much against their will. This is a story of two minor girls who plunge headlong into an unknown world unaware of the dangers, trials and tribulations awaiting them. While one tries to protect the other by forming a bubble wrap around her, the other puts at stake her life, her luxuries and comforts in an attempt to save the former from a life worse than that of a dog. Language is Simple, engaging, easy to understand. One can visualize the scenes as the story moves on. he story is a wake-up call to society, the Government and the parents of girl children in particular to educate the girl child/ their daughters, sensitize them of the dangers lurking both at home and outside and equip them to deal with such situations effectively. The story is also an appeal to the authorities to ensure the ban on child marriage and female foeticide effectively. The story gives us food for thought.
Ninad
Bubble Wrap’ is a moving story. Written in the first person, it tells the story of a very young girl-bride, Krishna. Through her words we learn of social ills that, shockingly, still prevail in society. Krishna rebels instinctively even though, being so young, she only half understands the problems. The author tackles issues like child marriage, alcoholism, widow taboos and prostitution with adeptness and sensitivity. The editing could have been better but the story moves fast – Krishna and her sister-in-law/friend go through a lot. They meet some lovely people, but also mean, horrible ones. The ending cannot be predicted. Must read to find out.
Kaushal
“Some authors can get the reader so lost in words and images that the story becomes secondary. Some authors tell such good stories the reader couldn’t care less about the language. Then here are those authors who can do both equally well.” Read this somewhere, very apt for this author. “Kalyani Rao is one of those authors.” I loved this book, read it in one sitting for that matter. I felt like I was seeing the world from the protagonists, Krishna & Gudiya’s, point of view. The author did a great job of writing emotion, made you feel like you were one of the characters. The characters were written keeping in mind young girls in our society – naive, clueless & protected by family. A society in the 20th century riddled with issues like child marriage, female foeticide, denial of child education, etc. The book isn’t very long, but it still provides the necessary details in a simple lucid language. The landscape covered is rich & beautiful, the relationship between the protagonists is depicted well. It’s a gripping tale with an unexpected & poignant ending. It is, for me, an insightful book relevant in today’s India. Looking forward to more books from this author !
Abbas
Really touching survival story about two girls Krishna Singh who gets married off to Shyam Singh of Rokhagadh, Rajasthan and her fifteen-year-old windowed cousin Gudiya. It has subtle humor and doesn’t get over dramatic. Couldn’t put it down.
Shrawan
Kalyani Rao has done a wonderful job in portraying the condition of women in our country in this evocative read. The author has amazingly brought to life every character that I could actually visualize the characters come alive in her words. However, I found the character of the tutor needing a bit of elaboration to dispel the haziness it develops in due course of time. The book is a simple story narrated well in simple words, opening our eyes to the grave issues women face in our country, even in the 21st century. On one hand the story unveiled the many dangers young girls of our country are thrown unaware into, on the other, it takes us through a roller coaster of trials & tribulations our society subjects young girls to by being mere spectators instead of reaching out to help them in hours of need. I couldn’t help but note how the book clearly points that in our society, a girl or woman without the presence of a man in her life is looked upon as easy preys with many vultures hovering over them in various forms from time to time.