Celestial Bodies

The book in frame is 2019's The Man Booker International Prize winner Celestial Bodies by Jokha Alharthi & translated by Marilyn Booth. Celestial bodies wouldn't have been this compelling if Jokha's voice hasn't got Marilyn's moving words. This is a fusion masterpiece by two legends.Moving on to the story of three Omani Sisters living in the village of al-Awafi, Mayya the silent wire; Khawla the sturdy soul; Asma the sensible one were the larger beads in the rosary with other smaller beads revolving around them with their mother as the thread holding them up together. With time all three of the larger beads break the thread and rolls around in the different corners to start their own round world. The most striking among the smaller beads was Abdallah the forsaken one with his frequent appearance will build his place inside your heart without your consent or information.Some stories stays with you, some stories dwindles away but this story will walk with you.I was walking back from my college while on the sidewalk instead of thinking about food or home I was thinking about what was going to happen to Abdallah and what was the secret behind his mother's disappearance. I think if it can seep into my mind and deep root it so well without me realising it, it really deserves all the praises it is receiving. The characters are very strong yet vulnerable. Their stories are ordinary yet special in thier own way. The story has lot's of character whose secrets are concealed carefully yet revealed in sneak peeks.You need to read this book in whichever form you can.[5/5] 🌟 for this masterpiece.

I purchased and read the book as I am not familiar with a Omani author or life in the Middle East.Al-Harty does not disappoint. The introduction to the book is instructive.The author traces the intricate relationships between father and children,husband and wife,master and slave as experienced in the Middle East intricately.It is so much unlike in the West.It is a smooth reading though the method of story telling adopted by Al- Harty is unique. The reader goes back and forth without feeling uncomfortable and losing track.Young Hanan’s advice to her friend London that “The right person is the one who respects and honours you and you feel totally comfortable with, the one who will be a father you can be proud of for your children’s sake.”is sensible and she comes out as mature beyond her years.A good read. I gained the insight I wanted to about life in the Middle East.

The book was in very good condition and with a book mark..😝

As someone who did not know that Middle Eastern literature even existed I was pleasantly surprised by the great narrative that the author has provided of life in Oman. If one takes away the quirks of culture, geography and history one realises through the descriptions in the novel that love, hatred, greed, jealousy, conflicts etc. between man and woman and between woman and woman are universal and omnipresent. The intense, individualistic and acutely personal lives of small town womenfolk are starkly delineated and are particularly interesting and enlightening. The ubiquitous burqa comes off - in fact there is not a single mention of it in the novel - and one catches a rare insight into the raw lives of the human beings that come clothed in it.A very good read indeed!

It was an okayish read. The stories of all the involved women might have sounded little intense if narrated in a better way. At times , it could confuse the reader as to what the noun in the statement indicates. Another thing is, the story of everyone is scattered in a way that could make the reader feel lost at times ( or in other words , difficult to follow anyone 's story in particular ). This is a little drawback in terms of holding the reader.Moreover, some of the stories were found incomplete..especially the story of Mayya who was supposedly the main character of this book.Overall, the book wasnt as great as what i read in the Hindu newspaper book column ( that gets published on weekends ).