ACROSS THE MILES

BOOK REVIEW

I just finished reading the book "SONG OF THE CUCKOO BIRD" By Amulya Malladi

This is a story set in southern India , where a group of outcasts create a family while holding on to their dreams.
It houses a girl who is deemed to be a goddess. Charvi is that young goddess; when she's born her father declares her a deity. The people in the village bring her offerings, and in turn Charvi's family gives individuals a place to stay, food, and blessings from the goddess. No one ever doubts the veracity of the situation, and even Charvi grows up believing that this is her fate, never questioning what she has been told for as long as she can remember.

Then there is Kokila barely a month after she is promised in marriage eleven year old orphan Kokila comes to Tella Meda an ashram by the Bay of Bengal.She makes a bad decision and instead of leaving to become a wife an mother she stays on , that foolish choice alters the fabric of her life. But by standing by her conviction she makes Tella Meda her home alongside other flawed women. sometimes they are her friends and sometimes her enemies but always they are her family.

Another inhabitant is Chetana, the daughter of a prostitute, and she becomes good friends with Kokila. Kokila, Chetana and Charvi grow up together but have may different lives due to the choices they make or are made for them, yet all three live their lives out at Tella Meda.

I loved this bookeven though it had many complex characters.The author transports you through different era's from the 1940's to present day India as many makeshift families seek comfort and joy in a makeshift homeTella Meda.
Thr story is mysterious and deals with life,death,and secrets. It is mesmerizing and this is one book you may not want to put down.

THE MEMORY KEEPERS DAUGHTER (sorry could not upload a pic of the book)

The #1 New York Times Bestseller!

Award-winning writer Kim Edwards's The Memory Keeper's Daughter is family drama that explores every mother's silent fear: what would happen if you lost your child and she grew up without you?

On a winter night in 1964 Dr Henry is forced by a blizzard to deliver his own twins.His son, born first is healthy. But his daughter is born with Down's Syndrome.

Wanting to protect his wife Norah he makes a decision that will alter their lives forever. He asks his nurse to take the baby to an institution and not tell anyone. But Caroline the nurse decides to keep the baby and raise it as her own.

I liked this book because it captures the way life takes unexpected turns and how the mysterious ties that hold a family together help us survive the heartache that occurs when long buried secrets come out into the open.