Of Customs and Excise by Rachna Mara

by Rachna Mara

This collection of interweaving short stories links together the lives of several very different women across oceans and decades.

Genres: Short Stories

Unknown Binding

First published June 1, 1991

Reviews

[Joel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Me gustó mas de lo que pensaba.

[Three O'Clock Press]

A collection of interweaving short stories, Of Customs and Excise links together the lives of several very different women across oceans and decades. Some we meet in India, others in England and still others in Canada. In one story, an Indian woman who becomes pregnant is rushed quickly into marriage. In other stories we meet a doctor, a white woman, who helps hide her secret, and the doctor's servant whose background and position cause her to despise her well-meaning employer. Many years later, in Prince Edward Island, we meet that baby, now a teenager rebelling against her family's customs which are so different from the society around her. Women bound together by their gender, by the effects of racism, oppression and sexism are only a few of the themes explored in this compelling collection of original stories.

[Nesdy · Rating 4 out of 5]

It works really well as a short story cycle, focusing on particular aspects of these women's lives, and going back and forth between different characters. Usually, in a short story collection, the stories are a bit irregular in terms of quality, but I think these were consistently great. I would strongly recommend you read it.

Individual opinions:

Pipal leaves - 5 stars. Short but there's a lot to think about here.

Asha's Gift - 4 stars. I really liked Asha's perspective, her actions and her hatred are completely understandable. I like the bit about her making the food unpleasant so that she can eat if afterwards: it's a great example of how she needs to do anything necessary to survive.

Market analysis - 5 stars. I loved it. The "damaged goods" idea is maybe not too subtle, and the connection would have been made anyway with the title, but that's my only gripe with it. There are a lot of details that make Mala's world real even in such a short amount of pages.

Muni - 5 stars. I love them all so far. This one takes a lot of craft. Mara balances very well the conflicting sides of the character, who both believes everything she's been told (while at the same time thinking about the injustices she has suffered) and wants to rebel and help her daughter.

Daffodils - 4 stars. I really like how, again, Mara manages to portray the contradictions within Mala's relationship with her mother, and how from Mara's perspective, we see the mother as what she really is: a slave to her husband.

Doctor - 4 stars. The more we learn about Parvati, the more I empathize with her. I think it's really important that Muni is one of the first stories involving her, because it's better to see the way she thinks and feels about her situation and THEN see her from outside perspectives; otherwise I don't think I would have been able to understand her.

Seed Pearls - 4 stars. Mara manages to make us sympathize with all the characters, which I think is a very difficult task.

Auspicious Day - 3 stars. It's consistent with what we've seen of Asha (her practicality being her main feature) and it's the most direct rebellion against the status quo we've seen so far, but I just didn't enjoy it as much.

Moon Snails - 4 stars. This is spot on. I love that Mala doesn't budge, doesn't suddenly forgive her father, and I also love that no-one else truly understands, because that is very realistic as well.

Parvati's Dance - 2 stars. This is kind of a weak way to end the story. I understand the theme of matrilineal genealogies, telling other women's stories, as the ending, but I didn't particularly like this story.