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The Lament of the Dhobi Woman
Seelawathie, a young, village girl is brought to the city to care for Cat, the daughter of a prominent Colombo family. With her parents involved with each other and their active social life, Cat soon comes to regard Seelawathie as her parent and best friend. They build their own happy microcosmic life within the large household, and are relatively content until Seelawathie falls in love. Her forbidden relationship challenges the rigid boundaries of society and leads to a cataclysmic end of innocence. The Lament of the Dhobi Woman explores the issue of class in Colombo society and the fragile intricacies of love and forgiveness.
292 pages, Paperback
First published July 15, 2010
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About the author
Karen Roberts
27 books17 followersBorn in Sri Lanka, Karen Roberts worked in advertising in her home country and the United Arab Emirates before her first novel, The Flower Boy, was published in 1999 by Phoenix. She moved to California in the early twenty-first century, where she lived with her husband and son, both named Michael, until her death in February 2018.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
January 3, 2017
The plot is not extraordinary but language is a page-turner. I think knowing and telling myself 'oh this is where it's going. Can it be more obvious', it was the narrative style that got me till to the end.
June 9, 2021
Easy to read, well written, plot clichés, exaggerations and contradictions
What drew me to this book was the title. It hinted at drama and tragedy. And after all, dhobi women are not commonly seen these days.
I found the book easy to read and finished it in less than 2 days. Well-written with simple straightforward prose. The story is narrated by Cat, initially as a child and then as an adult. Cat (short for Catrina) is the 3rd daughter in a dysfunctional, rich family living in Colombo in the 70s - the time period deduced by references such as Robin Blue, Brasso, Silvo (household products) and Bulto (a kind of toffee). Her mother Sarla is herself the product of a broken marriage between a Sri Lankan diplomat and a white British socialite. Sarla has two much older daughters and Cat is the result of an 'accident'- probably the reason for the lack of affection she has for her. Sarla appears to have eyes only for her husband (and occasionally for her older daughters) who in turn is besotted by her and the couple go out almost every night to parties, dinners, clubs etc. Sarla finds it impossible to cope with he
r baby almost from the beginning and resorts to hiring Seelawathie, a fifteen year old girl from a village, to be Cat's ayah. Soon a strong attachment forms between the child and her carer. Then Cat's rich, handsome, uncle Rick appears and seduces Seelawathie with little gifts and promises of 'going away together'. Two threads run through the story:
1. The difficult relationship between Cat and her mother and the bond between Cat and Seelawathie
2.The 'affair' between Seelawathie and Uncle Rick and the consequences of the said affair.
The first is portrayed quite effectively, although somewhat exaggerated in my opinion. The love that Cat bears for Seelawathie is portrayed with all the senses (the smell of the coconut oil she uses for her hair, the feel of the safety pins on her blouse) . Cat's mother and father are portrayed as having only eyes for each other and quite useless at parenting. Although the practice of having ayahs to look after children of rich parents is not uncommon, the bond here is so strong it is almost pathological. It is Seelawathi who sees Cat through milestones like attending school for the first time, first period etc. and spoils her so much that she screams whenever the ayah leaves. Cat's mother is so self-absorbed she fails to notice that the child does not sleep in her own bed but on a rough mat with Seelawathie well into her teens. Cat yearns for her parents' affection and to be included in their activities, but the only time she is asked to go on holiday with them (on a trip to Switzerland) she refuses and insists that she be allowed to accompany Seelawathie to her village and stay with her for 2 weeks till her parents return. Unbelievably, the parents allow this, agreeing to the child sleeping in a hut, using an outdoor toilet and bathing in the river while they swan about in Europe.
When Rick starts paying attention to Seelawathie, Cat is the first to notice (after all, she sleeps with her on the same mat and hears him summoning her through the window) . In her innocence she imagines they will marry and take care of her. This state of affairs continues for several years till (predictably) Seelawathie becomes pregnant. Sarla finds out and banishes Seelawathie back to her village and persuades Rick not to do the honourable thing.
The rest of the story deals with the devastating consequences of Seelawathie's departure on Cat. She is psychologically scarred, refuses to speak and throws herself into her painting. Many years later after studying art in London she becomes famous and returns to Colombo on a visit. The story ends rather tamely although satisfyingly with Cat and Seelawathie having an emotional reunion in the village, and Cat appearing to strike a truce with her parents.
In summary: a familiar trope (servant from village comes to work in rich household) but with a difference, the difference being that the narrator who is part of the rich elite society seeks to distance herself from her own people and aligns herself with the servant.
Finally, the puzzling title- there is much lamenting, but ...Dhobi woman? Update: I read an author interview where she said that the dhobi woman is actually a metaphor for dirty laundry. Oh OK.
What drew me to this book was the title. It hinted at drama and tragedy. And after all, dhobi women are not commonly seen these days.
I found the book easy to read and finished it in less than 2 days. Well-written with simple straightforward prose. The story is narrated by Cat, initially as a child and then as an adult. Cat (short for Catrina) is the 3rd daughter in a dysfunctional, rich family living in Colombo in the 70s - the time period deduced by references such as Robin Blue, Brasso, Silvo (household products) and Bulto (a kind of toffee). Her mother Sarla is herself the product of a broken marriage between a Sri Lankan diplomat and a white British socialite. Sarla has two much older daughters and Cat is the result of an 'accident'- probably the reason for the lack of affection she has for her. Sarla appears to have eyes only for her husband (and occasionally for her older daughters) who in turn is besotted by her and the couple go out almost every night to parties, dinners, clubs etc. Sarla finds it impossible to cope with he
r baby almost from the beginning and resorts to hiring Seelawathie, a fifteen year old girl from a village, to be Cat's ayah. Soon a strong attachment forms between the child and her carer. Then Cat's rich, handsome, uncle Rick appears and seduces Seelawathie with little gifts and promises of 'going away together'. Two threads run through the story:
1. The difficult relationship between Cat and her mother and the bond between Cat and Seelawathie
2.The 'affair' between Seelawathie and Uncle Rick and the consequences of the said affair.
The first is portrayed quite effectively, although somewhat exaggerated in my opinion. The love that Cat bears for Seelawathie is portrayed with all the senses (the smell of the coconut oil she uses for her hair, the feel of the safety pins on her blouse) . Cat's mother and father are portrayed as having only eyes for each other and quite useless at parenting. Although the practice of having ayahs to look after children of rich parents is not uncommon, the bond here is so strong it is almost pathological. It is Seelawathi who sees Cat through milestones like attending school for the first time, first period etc. and spoils her so much that she screams whenever the ayah leaves. Cat's mother is so self-absorbed she fails to notice that the child does not sleep in her own bed but on a rough mat with Seelawathie well into her teens. Cat yearns for her parents' affection and to be included in their activities, but the only time she is asked to go on holiday with them (on a trip to Switzerland) she refuses and insists that she be allowed to accompany Seelawathie to her village and stay with her for 2 weeks till her parents return. Unbelievably, the parents allow this, agreeing to the child sleeping in a hut, using an outdoor toilet and bathing in the river while they swan about in Europe.
When Rick starts paying attention to Seelawathie, Cat is the first to notice (after all, she sleeps with her on the same mat and hears him summoning her through the window) . In her innocence she imagines they will marry and take care of her. This state of affairs continues for several years till (predictably) Seelawathie becomes pregnant. Sarla finds out and banishes Seelawathie back to her village and persuades Rick not to do the honourable thing.
The rest of the story deals with the devastating consequences of Seelawathie's departure on Cat. She is psychologically scarred, refuses to speak and throws herself into her painting. Many years later after studying art in London she becomes famous and returns to Colombo on a visit. The story ends rather tamely although satisfyingly with Cat and Seelawathie having an emotional reunion in the village, and Cat appearing to strike a truce with her parents.
In summary: a familiar trope (servant from village comes to work in rich household) but with a difference, the difference being that the narrator who is part of the rich elite society seeks to distance herself from her own people and aligns herself with the servant.
Finally, the puzzling title- there is much lamenting, but ...Dhobi woman? Update: I read an author interview where she said that the dhobi woman is actually a metaphor for dirty laundry. Oh OK.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 2, 2012
Wish I could give half marks, I think I'd give this book 3.5. I enjoyed the narrative of the relationships in Cat's life. I felt the post-Seela parts of the book were a little too "perfect" in the way they turned out. Things weren't resolved as such, they just worked out without any real depth.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 13, 2016
Old plot, successfully written. Easily readable. Many parts that don't fit very well: the narrator as an adult is bland. The initial description of Seelawathi gave impression of an old woman, until the love affair is mentioned!
June 18, 2014
Simple, touching and honest.
May 9, 2015
Terrific!
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews