The Bottom Line
Pros
- Well-written and lyrical, Splendor of Silence is pure pleasure to read.
- India is portrayed in poetic detail but also a realistic and historical light.
- The characters are appealing but flawed, and their stories captivating and honest.
Cons
- Frank and sometimes graphic depictions of wartime violence are inappropriate for young readers.
Description
- A young American woman receives a trunk from India that contains secrets of her mother’s past.
- Letters in the trunk tell Olivia the story of her parents and their brief affair in 1942 India.
- The heart of the story takes place in pre-Independence India and war-torn Burma.
- Splendor of Silence is about love, secrets, and the tension between Indians and the British raj.
Guide Review - Splendor of Silence by Indu Sundaresan - Book Review
The plot sounds like a clichéd romance, complete with star-crossed lovers, exotic locale, and disapproving elders. Sundaresan, though, is careful to avoid sentimentality or cliché. She treats all of her characters, however flawed, with respect, and their decisions and sacrifices are surprising but believable. Splendor of Silence also serves as an unflinching examination of British racism and caste identity as well as the promise and cost of the Nationalism movement, led by Ghandi. The magical and detailed descriptions of local Indian culture and landscape contrast with the artificial, rigid order of the British administration. Despite, or perhaps because of, the historical realism, Sundaresan’s story is absorbing and romantic, and a pure pleasure to read.
Indu Sundaresan’s previous two novels were international bestsellers, and readers would be wise to pick up a copy of Splendor of Silence and figure out why.
