Honor

I’ve been a fan of Thrity Umrigar since I read The Space Between Us several years ago, Searing…traumatic…haunting…beautiful…powerful… I read Honor in three days, while also teaching and meeting family responsibilities. It was hard to read and even harder to put down. The story follows Meena, a young Hindu woman, who marries Abdul, a Muslim man. Meena’s brothers burn Abdul to death and maim Meena badly in the process—an honor killing as retribution for their sister marrying a Muslim. Meena, pregnant and alone, survives; a lawyer persuades her to file a case against her brothers. Everything is stacked against Meena: patriarchal villagers; disgruntled, angry, emasculated brothers; a ruling village elder who bribes the villagers and the judge. Will Meena find justice? What do you think? The other storyline follows an Indian-American journalist tasked with covering Meena’s story when she arrives in Mumbai, the city of her birth, which she left at age 14 after traumatic, life-altering circumstances. Smita doesn’t just cover the story; she becomes part of it. Smita is accompanied in her visits to Meena’s village by a local Indian man, Mohan, with whom she forms an attachment. Umrigar tells the story at a fast pace, and while I wanted to skip over some of the heart-wrenching, cruel scenes, I couldn’t. As a writer, I foresaw the difficulty of finishing the story in a way that was true to the characters and the setting, yet realistic. Umrigar manages this impossible task with her characteristic brilliance. It is also the story of a love/hate relationship with a country—sound familiar? Smita grew up in India and had a happy childhood, until it was marred by hatred, vitriol, and betrayal she experienced as a teen, forcing her whole family to depart India. Umrigar positions India as a land of contrasts: great beauty and wrenching ugliness; warmth and hospitality, and unbending hatred; compassion and cruelty; extreme poverty and astounding wealth. Memorable quotes: On driving a car in Mumbai: “It was like listening to a demented, cacophonous orchestra; she had the strange sensation that the cars were communicating to one another, like in some science-fictional post-apocalyptic movie.” “Monster. Demon. Satan. In Smita’s line of work people often bandied around such terms to explain away horrendous behavior. Every time there was a mass shooting in America, for instance, there was a rush to label the shooter a crazed monster, rather than place him within the context of a culture that fetishized guns.” This quote especially interested me as we recently discussed the ‘monstrous’ in British Lit, as we discussed Beowulf and Grendel. We discussed the concept of the abject, othering people to distance them from ourselves, those we deem outside the realm of the acceptable, trying to prove we are nothing like them. Describing Meena’s scarred face: “That’s it exactly, Smita thought. Meena’s face was a map created by a brutal, misogynistic cartographer.” “Because traditions are like eggs—once you break one, it is impossible to put it back inside its shell.” I highly recommend Honor.

This book is beautiful and tells a relatable story that makes you fall in love with the characters. The first half was a touch slow for me. I remember telling someone about the book but not certain what the themes were was it more than am American Indian reporter covering a really hard story. The next day when I was Reading all was revealed and I couldn’t put it down. I would absolutely recommend this great story.

For my fellow HSPs out there, this book *will* make you cry. I couldn't get through two chapters without my eyes welling up, or without full-on tears coming down my face. As a second-generation Korean American woman whose parents fought tooth and nail to build their family a prosperous life in the US, so much of Smita's narrative and viewpoints mirrored mine (minus the twist that we encounter halfway through the book). Furthermore, Meena's story is simply tragic--no way around that. My heart aches and breaks for all the women who have to suffer from the injustices that outdated and violent patriarchal/religious views can impose on the innocent. And of course, I wish all the people who partake in this violence a long afterlife in the worst Hell following a painful, excruciating, dreadful death. That said, Umrigar is an incredibly talented and poetic author. Though it was hard for me to get through the book because of my heavy heart, I read on due to the beautiful candor and cadence that Umrigar brings to her literary art. I also loved reading this book on my Kindle, as I could look up all the unfamiliar words that Umrigar throws at us. It's important to me that I read this book because I learned so much about Indian culture. Highly recommend if you don't mind plenty of tears and heartbreak along the way.

“Honor” by Thrity Umrigar exposes a side of India we rarely see. A woman loses her husband to arson after their interfaith marriage, and a reporter who left India voluntarily must return to her homeland to cover the story. Smita, the reporter, returns to India after her family left when she was a teen and remembers why they left. But, unfortunately, the cultural traditions could stifle someone who has left the Western way. One must consider many cultures to understand how Western and Eastern styles conflict. Sure, some Indian ways seem backward, but the way of life works for them. Many could not imagine living somewhere else. Knowing that a decision like marrying outside of your religion could cause an incident that could cause unrest among those who are not technically involved makes you uneasy. India holds traditions dear, but, as the author says, “…traditions are like eggs-once you break one, it is impossible to put it back inside the shell.” Smita is glad to be away from it, but Meena lost her husband to those that disagreed with her decision. In addition, both Islam and Hinduism have rigorous gender role expectations, and Smita experiences culture shock as people use their faith to rationalize many transgressions, up to and including murder. Even the scenes of romance (my least favorite genre) ring true because of the element of danger created. So when we read of Meena’s courtship with Abdul, we go against our instincts and root against them. As we define “Honor” as the reason for the book’s title, the characters justify their actions as doing what they needed to do under the circumstances. Having convictions is admirable, but the characters go to extremes here. The twist at the end of the second act is a doozy that changes anything you thought the author was trying to say. Atrocities occur in the name of religion, and you can see how that behavior could drive people out of the country. Every culture has its quirks, and India, unfortunately, lends theirs to a miscarriage of justice that will make you angry even more when you realize that there is no way around it.

I set aside time each night to read in bed before I go to sleep. As a result of that, a book the size of Thrity Amrigar’s Honor, a little over three hundred pages, normally would take me six days. But I was so enthralled by the book that I carved out time each day to read, and I consumed it in two days. What an amazing book Amrigar has constructed. The story is of a young Hindu girl who marries a Muslim boy in rural India and her brothers murder him to protect their family’s honor. That story is being covered by an American reporter, she who was born in India and migrated. This is the basis of a story that explores all the shades of love, from family ties, to religious fervor, to country loyalties, to romantic entanglements. Amrigar examines the culture of India, both city and rural, and in the process, she draws parallels to American culture, and in fact, world culture. She shows us people are the same the world over. Some are tolerant and understanding and have a wider view of the world and religion, while others are tiny in their viewpoints. The book can be violent at times, but overall, it proves that love does indeed conquer all. The fact that it is set in a country few of us know much about is engaging and enlightening, all the while cautioning us that this is not a book about India, Hindus, or Muslims. It is about humanity.

A very intense and powerful novel about how the uneducated male dominant communities abuse the word honor under the theme of traditions and religions. Sadly but very true , this does not only take place in Hindustan but in all the different places of the world. This is a novel about the abuse of honor under traditions as well as the love and hatred one feels for their own country.

Although this story is horrific and heartbreaking, it’s is so beautifully written and wonderfully structured. I appreciated the dual timeline that eventually merged into parallel encounters. . The way Smita’s story was told in the present simultaneously while Meena told her story from the first person perspective was interesting, engaging and well executed. . Without giving too much of the story, Smita is an Indian America journalist telling the story of a Hindu woman from a small village in India who falls in love and marries a Muslim man. This union has a brutal ending to a sweet love story because of religious differences. Although extremely sad with significant trauma, there were also moments of beautiful tenderness and innocence. . Additionally, this book was very informative. I knew there was enmity between Hindus and Muslims in India, but this story really drove home the violence and destruction this enmity sometimes brings to families, friendships and relationships in general. . I highly recommend this read, especially for a book club or buddy read as there are so many points to discuss and work through.

This unflinching story contrasts two women – Smita, an American journalist set out to cover a trial and Meena, the young Hindu victim who is the defendant. When Meena fell in love with Abdul, a Muslim man, her brothers’ backlash against their marriage and child is so violent that Abdul dies and Meena is left grossly scarred. Represented by an activist attorney, Meena agrees to submit criminal charges against her family. As Smita investigates, we see how misogyny, torture, abuse, and public shaming all have been used to strip Meena of her dignity. The social structure upholds the perpetrators’ actions, excusing horrific cruelty. Although born and raised in India, Smita left for the States when she was a teenager and dislikes India. As she “gets” the cultural context of the grisly crime, we also find out she bears a secret reason for her dislike, she’s ultimately called upon to confront. This is a tough story to read but in the end worth it. Smita’s emotional journey resolving the past is satisfying. Meena’s first-person accounts of loving Abdul are beautiful and heartbreaking. The epic story itself of taking on the topic of a developing country’s social problems is enormous. Umrigar’s intentions of casting light and finding light in the darkness of incomprehensible acts is impressive and I’m grateful.

Bel libro, storia appassionante

Highly recommend, the character development is wonderful and the story stays with you for days after. A beautiful story of change, human evolution and the need for love in one’s life.

I gave it 5 stars because of the writing style. It was an eye opener to the horrors and the beauty of India. A book not for the faint of heart but very well-written!

A beautiful book about a our prejudices and lack of tolerance as well as love kindness and family. We have so much to learn about each other. Love is an amazing healer. Highly recommended

Loved this book. I found the start to be a bit slow but once it started getting into the main story line, I couldn’t put it down!