Halfway Up the Mountain
A simple and gripping story of a village girl who tries to find out whether happiness is accessible to the ordinary too. Being born in a traditional Indian family, she fights her fate and faces immense hardships and heartbreaks with courage and conviction. Abandoned and undone by the men closest to her, this is the story of Maya, who still manages to emerge as an independent, successful and good human being in a society that places no value on a woman who is on her own. The narrative is simple and full of beautiful imagery. What stands out in this novel is that the author, a man, tells the story of the coming of age of a young woman. In the process of telling Mayas story, the novel throws light on issues like homosexuality and how it is treated in India, sexual politics, the world of poetry, painting and music etc. The story captures the essence of modern India that is still trying to get rid of its traditional shackles.
