Nine Yard Sarees: A Short Story Cycle

by Prasanthi Ram

Nine Yard Sarees is a multigenerational portrait of a fictional Tamil Brahmin family. Comprising eleven interlinked stories, this short story cycle traces the lives of nine women from 1950 all the way to 2019, shedding light on the community and its evolution through the decades. As the stories take us from India to Singapore, Australia and even America, we follow the experiences of the women in the family: Raji the matriarch who lives in seclusion at an ashram; her daughter Padma who struggles to raise her family the traditional way; Padma’s daughter Keerthana who is about to be married and don the nine yard saree, a symbol of womanhood. Tender, dynamic and full of heart, this cycle is a resonant portrayal of female solidarity and the complexities of the diasporic experience in contemporary Singapore.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, India, Asian Literature, Literary Fiction, Womens, Romance

272 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2023

Reviews

[Diana · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the specificity of the book as the stories cycles through the generations of women in the Tamil Brahmin community. On the one hand, there’s all the immersive cultural details like the food, practices, social rituals, and so on. These certainly made it an enjoyable read. But how did I, as a Muslim woman, relate to a book that was so culturally specific? Precisely because it was so truthful in its specificity that it felt universal.

Take for example religious trauma—casteism and tradition were something especially the younger characters chafed and struggled against (I also enjoyed how the gender element is present, while for the male it is more of an issue of individual expression and identity, for women religious trauma is literally because she felt oppressed in material and social ways). Then there is the perennial fraught mother-daughter dynamic when the mother wants to enforce patriarchal order or values that she herself had been victimised by. But the stories are not didactic, they peel the real, complex ways these issues play out in real life, as women try to build their own lives, dreams, families amongst loved ones that may disappoint them but whose affection and approval remain so important. Things like iur heritage, upbringing, cultural values are so baked into our beings and ties, how do we strike out on our own as women while still honouring and loving what sometimes cannot love us as we are? Do we discard? Transform? (one story has sarees transform into modern pieces!)

A landmark book for sure. One that is about “brown” existence in Singapore but as how life simply is and not as centrally concerned with the most explicit, adversarial experiences. Not that this is bad to do of course! It’s necessary, Prasanthi’s book is just markedly different and I appreciate the diversity it brings to brown narratives here while also unpacking topics like fatphobia, casteism, religious trauma, sexual violence and queer joy, amongst so many other topics.

[Jolin (twentycharm) · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars. Prasanthi Ram has captured so much emotion in these pages, skillfully representing the feeling of “all the things left unsaid” within relationships, especially familial ones. I believe these stories will inspire everyone differently, but for me, it made me miss my mother, reflect on the ways she has shielded me throughout the years, and encouraged me to articulate my gratitude towards her more often.

Seeing what these women have been through and likening them to my own experiences also gave me strength. The similarities made me feel closer to this collective yet more defined as an individual at the same time; it made me recognise how every part of our identity propels us forward in some way, consciously or not.

On top of that, I must also commend Ram for her ability to subtly relay cultural and religious details, such that someone completely uneducated in the matter, like me, can understand. The way she’s able to step back and consider all the context required for the story is astonishing, and it’s one of the many things that makes her writing a joy to read.

I strongly encourage everyone to read this book. I feel it captures so much of what life is about—grief, injustice, kinship—all from the eyes of women. I laughed, I cried, and I sobbed, and I am so thankful to Ram for bringing this to life and to Ethos Books for publishing and sending it over. All opinions are my own.

“She might have been just a girl, but she was her mother's Draupadi, a miracle child. So, she bloomed, strong and unshakeable.”

“They seem to have understood death much better than even I have at this age, for unlike my own daughters, I am inconsolable. Then again, I am grieving for then and now at once.”

[Pamela Qafoku · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stories in this book are independent and interelated at the same time. That is actually the definition of a short story cycle but as a novice to this literary genre, I was pleasantly surprised on the depth of each story.
The author is able of masterfully interweaving the Woman as a subject, all emotions, feelings, strength in one. So much to learn about the Tamil culture but most importantly the Tamil woman and her positioning in the society as part of diaspora in Singapore and in her homeland.
The power and weakness, the creation and destruction of it, so much and so little, it has been a perfect read leaving you wanting more.

[Sanjana Ramesh · Rating 5 out of 5]

As someone who has been striving to carve out a sense of belonging in Singapore, this book resonated with me on a profoundly on multiple levels. This collection of narratives proved to be not just a book, but a cathartic experience, offering a mirror through which I could see my own journey reflected in the lives of the women within its pages.

The stories within this book tug at every heartstring, weaving together a tapestry of experiences that Indian women globally face at various stages of their lives. I found myself celebrating with the women, but also mourning and crying alongside them.

[Bren | Wordwanderlust · Rating 5 out of 5]

“As a women, and especially as a mother, society will make you believe that everything that happens to your family is your fault. Why? Because women are meant to be infallible pillars of every home. But you and I both know you’ve tried your best despite everything. So, what more can you do?”
•••
First of all, I would like to thank Ethos Books for providing us with a copy of this gorgeous and elegantly written book of short stories. Reading Nine Yard Sarees was such an enriching and almost nostalgic journey where the different short stories are intricately weaved together to present a narrative about women, migration and identity in a Singaporean Tamil Brahmin family across a span of decades. I am so glad that I managed to finish this book just in time for Deepavali so that I can share my review on this festive occasion.

Prasanthi Ram certainly has a way with words, as seen by how she was able to delicately weave together a complex array of topics to present an intriguing narrative of the journeys experienced by the different women in the stories. I found myself relating to various elements in the different short stories as well, especially in the context of familial relationships and community. Even though I am not part of a Tamil Brahmin family in Singapore (as I am a Singaporean Indian), I realised that I still understood the struggles and experiences portrayed throughout the different stories. For instance, Ram’s portrayal of Keerthana was definitely my favourite, as her journey of growing up with an endearing yet somewhat controlling mother was something that definitely hit home with me. Also not to forget, the inclusion of several Tamil phrases made me so happy!! Seeing my language in fiction books isn’t something that I am used to, so this really made the collection of stories extra meaningful to me.

Overall, I am still coming down from the highs of finishing this magnificent masterpiece, and as I sit down today to collect my thoughts and emotions, one thing that I wish to convey in my review is the raw, meaningful, yet comforting nature of Prasanthi Ram’s work. I hope to read more of her work in future, and I urge everyone who is interested in Nine Yard Sarees to please take the time and indulge in this book! You can thank me later 🫶🏽

[Ning · Rating 5 out of 5]

A short story cycle! What even is this? I don’t usually go for short story collections as I tend to prefer more fully developed characters and plots. But then again, some multi-generational novels can sometimes feel overwrought and cumbersome. So it’s wonderful that Dr Ram has written a collection of linked stories :D

Told through the lens of the women in and around the Iyer family, we get to understand the lives of the Iyers not just individually, but also through each other’s eyes. This layering offers a fuller picture and helps us develop greater empathy for each co-protagonist.

As Dr Ram puts it in her author’s note, “I had the flexibility to tell a multi-generational family story while allowing each of my co-protagonists to have their own protected space to share their equal truths.”

Some quick thoughts: My initial impressions were of heartwarming, nostalgic vignettes of 90s Singapore, vividly capturing HDB life (ie. karang guni). I especially enjoyed learning more about the culture of Singapore’s Tamils, and very happy to pause my read to do some frantic googling of poonal, iyers, Coimbatore, vegetable poruthuval, kootu etc..

Grateful to Dr Ram for giving us this precious collection of stories from underrepresented POVs in English lit, in such an accessible and thoughtful form.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Found this book at SWF this year!
It’s my first time reading a short story cycle style of book, but it kind of reminds me of Joy Luck Club if it were about Indian Singaporeans.

I think the moment this book really hit for me was when it reached the grandmother’s story, my other personal favourite was Fiona’s story because I found it relatable to current young people’s struggles with identity and relationships.

[Wen-yi Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

a unique, deft structure that really works for all the woven threads of this tamil family's women; i loved how we got to follow characters through different points in their lives and how it finally coalesced. tender and encompassing; the ending made my heart swell and there's a sapphic couple in here - singaporean female centric fiction we are soooo up these days

[Kes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable read - different women in a Tamil Brahmin family. I liked that the story focused on relationships and how people can love each other (while still hurting each other). (Eg Prema’s hurtful remarks over Vani’s skin condition.)

[Vidhya Nair · Rating 1 out of 5]

Throughly uninteresting.

[Pammi Raghavendra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heartwarming stories with female protagonists- enjoyed the Tamil culture with contemporary themes across generations and countries. Set mostly in Singapore

[amber :) · Rating 3 out of 5]

“The cycle is simply a mirror of what we sometimes shy away from reality.”

i love how how all the women in this short story cycle had space to share their stories and feelings, and that there was still hope present despite their generational trauma. some stories were not as memorable to me though and i wish there were footnotes to explain the cultural terms!! also i only realised there was a family tree in the final pages when i was nearing the end 😭😭

[CJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love reading the acknowledgments of any Singlit novel because they reveal how closely intertwined any one text and writer is with a litany of others—local networks of mutual support and inspiration. So, after finishing Nine Yard Sarees, I thought, ah, of course I loved this; it was lovingly propped up by the teaching of Boey Kim Cheng and the friendship of Balli Kaur Jaswal, people who have produced my favourite contemporary works of Singaporean literature, marked by the same overarching themes of emigration, genealogy, otherness, and the difficulty of belonging in transforming familial, social, and national landscapes.

This isn’t a comment to deride or reduce NYS but rather a reflection of how Prasanthi Ram is embedded in, and in conversation with, these other texts and writers, in really beautiful ways. And NYS is a gorgeously written book—some of the clearest and yet poignant prose writing I’ve read in a while. But what really destroyed me in reading this was how it used the short story cycle; this idea of one person’s story and one person’s perspective passing into another’s, and another’s, literalising intergenerational gulfs and passages between each chapter, how much painfully separates every person, how much holds them together. How much we cannot see of each other, how much we cannot give to each other; the thin threads at which we connect, the things we have no choice but to do and then the things we can choose. Basically, this book made me cry.

There’s a careful specificity with which Ram teases out the contours of the lives of this Tamil Brahmin family—by which I mean there’s a expansive and beautiful way in which the book opens up beyond a narrow field of understanding identity and ethnicity and family and flows into the lives of the other women—the domestic worker, the korean-australian girlfriend, and of course, Vani—who touch this family, who circulate within, who come to belong in fraught and difficult but unentangle-able ways. Family is the centre of the novel, but what a beautiful and difficult portrait of family this is; of people and places and pasts chosen and not chosen, all to carry, all to hold, all moving forward and accumulating together, even the ghostly, the uncanny, the silent wounds, the silent loves. In other words, I guess you really are the sum of all that has come before and all that is.

[Timothy David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nine Yard Sarees is a brilliant ode to the nostalgia of growing up in an Indian household; the smells of sambar on Sundays, the textures of sarees folded with care, the silent codes of family life, and the unspoken rituals that shape identity. Prasanthi Ram captures this familiarity with remarkable sensitivity, pulling readers into a world that feels intimate even if they did not grow up within it.

Yet, I must be honest. While the cultural nostalgia resonated deeply with me, I was also put off by the predominantly Brahmin (casteism) perspective that anchors the stories. At times, it felt limiting, almost reminiscent of the ex-colleague who once casually asked me which caste I belonged to. That question and the hierarchy behind it, resurfaced uncomfortably at moments in the book.

However, to reduce Nine Yard Sarees purely to caste representation would be to overlook the work’s major achievement: its courageous exploration of trauma across generations of women. The collection probes what is often silenced; marital wounds, body shame, sexual assault, queer identity, emotional estrangement, and the quiet violence of expectation. These are not shouted; they surface gently, sometimes painfully, through memory, regret, shame, and silence.

Ram’s choice of form is also remarkable. She does not present this as a traditional novel but as what she calls a “short story cycle”, a constellation of interconnected voices that echo across time and geography. This structure cleverly if not brilliantly mirrors the very theme of the book: some stories are direct, others ancestral; some wounds are visible, others inherited. The trauma does not end; it adapts, mutates, and finds new ways to speak through different women.

What lingers after reading is not just the characters, but the emotional residue they leave behind. Their stories feel lived-in, the kind that may not end, but continue through us.

[Ria Sharma · Rating 5 out of 5]

The lives of generations of women and the nuances of their individual challenges across decades are tied together so beautifully and masterfully. Also really enjoyed the short story format!

[Sara. · Rating 5 out of 5]

From start to finish, I found this to be an excellently well-written collection of interconnected short stories. Author Prasanthi Ram masterfully addresses multiple issues in NYS: the double standards of a patriarchal culture, internalised misogyny, slutshaming, casteism, ableism, lesbophobia, fatphobia, exploitation of migrant workers, sexual harassment and sexual assault. I commend the choice of the story revolving around the power of a mother's cooking as the opener for this book. Ask most Asians and food that's personally prepared and cooked gives off a Welcome Home vibe. Fittingly, it's like inviting the reader into a space of both sanctuary and pain. Peek through the lens and learn the intimate details of the lives that we're about to be introduced to.

Massive props that there wasn't a single story that I didn't at least like or felt deeply about. Even with the sole one that I didn't necessarily love as much as the others (Loose Threads, the story focusing on Krishnan & his Korean girlfriend Fiona), I could see the necessity for the inclusion of his POV. i.e. The way his role in the family as the Favored Son On A Pedestal who gave up on the family's traditions contrasts against Keerthana's Rebellious Daughter Who's Always Under Scrutiny but still follows said traditions.

The multigenerational approach to this anthology was a clever creative choice, as it really offered the fascinating insights of women whose experiences from different time periods shaped their differing views and beliefs. Not only did we get the POVs of Indian women across three generations (matriarch Raji, her daughters Padma & Prema, Padma's sister-in-law Shweta, and granddaughters Keerthana & Vani), but including those from outside the family yet deeply involved with them—domestic helper Sivagami and Vani's girlfriend Mira—were also a great touch. Every POV offered something to reflect upon.

I may not be Indian myself, but growing up as the eldest daughter of a Malay-Muslim mother meant I felt deep relation to the stories in the book. Be it how a mother's cooking is always a reminder of comfort & home, how the ""worth"" of a woman depends on her ability as a caregiver with children, or how a young girl's insecurities and self-consciousness of her looks & self-worth can start from home, due to judgement from the very same mother. Too often, our mothers are both our greatest allies and the source of our earliest traumas at the same time. This book lovingly captures such complexities of this relationship.

All in all, highly recommended! I was wholly absorbed and devoured this book in a day.

[Rachna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ended up just weeping at this. For the first few chapters of the book, a lot of my interest & love came from recognition — the adventures of seeking edible Indian food when going to a 'vellaikaaran' country, the karung guni man. Then the stories unfurled into stories about women; specifically, Tamil Brahmin women, and the stories they live with, the men & culture that shape their lives, and the women who build them. Even in not being in the same situations as them, I found so much of it deeply recognisable. And in a way I found that gutting? Not the good parts or the parts about love, but the parts that felt culling or restrictive or abrasive — because that means there are other women like me who have thought and seen these things about the women who came before them, like my grandmother's too-traditional response to periods, or the distant aunt in my family who was married off and never returned. Idk man. The granddaughter of the family managing to work out an arranged marriage with someone she loves felt healing, as did the other granddaughter canoodling with her girlfriend in front of the family during the wedding, lmao. <3

Anyway. Feelings aside, I thought this worked on a technical level too. The "short story cycle" style works perfectly, with little connecting threads of people you know and want to know more about. I loved that Ram wrote about traditions and cultures and snuck in Tamil words (& even sidenotes about accents) without spelling shit out every step of the way for people who wouldn't understand. And I loved that her approach to even big, "dramatic" moments that made my heart ache never tipped into feeling melodramatic or weepy, just matter-of-fact. It's lovely, efficient writing. I found it deeply moving.

[Niranjanaa Ram · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got recommended this book by a friend, and I am not able to thank her enough.

This book made me cry - I devoured it on the bus, first thing in the morning, last thing at night and during those silent moments at work. Generational trauma, generational love things and the grappling struggle between keeping traditions alive and yet progressing with modernity. There are experiences that have not been talked about openly in the community, and yet are a common thread that ties so many behind closed doors.

I didn’t read this as an outsider to the community, but one very much inside. Yet the series of short cycle stories have made brought out comments that even I never once considered, one that I thought is just the way of life. The “fatso” late 20s daughter who had moved out of the family home, unmarried, after many a failed bharath matrimonial attempts, to constantly be chided as a burden. The mid thirties daughter who did everything by the book at the right time but is still snarked against and weathered trying to fulfill both the modern role and the traditional. The everlasting love that lasts between the families, strained by pride.

The manner in which the book is written is amazing - each story a standalone but with the same thematic occurrences throughout. Flowing between times and between memories you are transported from singapore to kalakad to Australia.

I would recommend this for your next book club. Wherever you are from in the world, the book contains hard hitting issues, family, love, and the human spirit that anyone can relate to.

[Akash Mattupalli · Rating 5 out of 5]

I completely loved Prasanthi's Nine Yard Sarees, a short story cycle that beautifully tackles many issues faced by the diasporic South Asian community, specifically one Tamil Brahmin family. Its complexity and nuance, which Prasanthi writes skilfully about, are as beautiful and intricate as the sarees and madisars that play a motif throughout the cycle.

Nine Yard Sarees was also the first book that I've read that is from a South Indian Singaporean perspective, an intersection that I never thought that I would read about in literature, an identity that lies very close to my heart. I especially loved how every story is narrated from female voices, a great subversion of the rigid patriarchy and traditions present within the Indian diaspora, along with the presence of Tamil and Singlish words within the English narration.

The plurality of voices and feelings is especially powerful when grasping difficult themes such as fatphobia, religious trauma, casteism, homophobia, and domestic violence. This plurality also exists within the same characters, with the reader witnessing how Raji, Padma, Prema, Keerthana, and Vani mature from children to adults, grasping cultural and generational conflicts, and intergenerational trauma.

Overall, this was an amazing read. I'd highly recommend others to read it too! I genuinely can't wait to read more of Prasanthi's work.

[Rashini D · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nine Yard Sarees by Prasanthi Ram.


“Their Girl. Their “burden”, Amma had once said.” This book hits a nerve too close to home. A short story cycle that invites readers to a first-hand introspection into the lives of nine women across different generations. I witnessed generational trauma, love, and pain interwoven in complicated familial relationships. Like the nine-yard sarees, love tethers one to their mother’s clothing, lost memories buried in keepsakes and etching in one’s wrinkles and laugh lines.

Superstition, fear of harming one’s reputation among relatives, and gender stereotypes pit women against the walls of the household, confining their existence to the watchful eyes and mouths of family. However, we dive into these women’s deepest thoughts, strengths, fears, and vulnerabilities, which span across texts and manifest differently in each character.

Most importantly, NYS portrayed how familial tensions spark a flame within the safe space we hold for one another in the privacy of our houses, where we should be able to be vulnerable and not be hurt by the ones we trust and love.

I truly took my time devouring this book, and these three stories—Loose Threads, In Her Graveyard She Bloomed, and Before The Rooster Call—will linger in my thoughts for now.

Congratulations, @prasanthi, for Nine Yard Saree’s win as the Best Fictional Book in SLP 2024!

[Hanrong Tham · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed reading Nine Yard Sarees. The book offers a captivating glimpse into the lives of traditional Indian families, revealing their rich culture, deep-rooted values, and the intricate dynamics that bind generations together.

Each story is evocative and riveting, drawing the reader in with vivid descriptions and emotional depth. What I especially appreciated was the element of mystery woven into every tale — there's always something to be unravelled, which kept me eagerly turning the pages.

The characters are thoughtfully crafted, and their experiences—both ordinary and extraordinary—feel authentic and immersive. Through the author’s storytelling, I was able to appreciate the beauty and complexity of Indian customs and traditions, especially those surrounding family and community life.

I truly hope there will be a sequel. The book left me wanting more of these compelling stories and deeper insights into the cultural tapestry it so beautifully portrays.

One suggestion for future editions would be to include a glossary at the back of the book. Some of the romanized Tamil words were unfamiliar to me, and having a reference would have helped deepen my understanding and appreciation of the language used.

All in all, Nine Yard Sarees is a wonderful read—thought-provoking, mysterious, and culturally enriching.

[SgJuliaKristeva · Rating 5 out of 5]

So often I get frustrated reading stories from diaspora culture (especially in the West) because it seems like there is only grief and longing that people cannot see past and outgrow. I'm not trying to trivialise your experiences and difficulties living abroad, but a part of me longs to have these elements of grief and longing alongside elements of joy, hope and rebirth. Humankind has never been static; what is so beautiful about life is our ability to grow from all the adversity that we fight so hard to articulate and enunciate.

NYS is a beautiful story that captures all of this grief, solace, sorrow, joy and hope in one place. It is an ode to the Tamil Brahim culture while also a contention of the legacy that castism has thrust upon us. It is a longing to return to India while also acknowledging the birth of new bodies, relationships, livelihoods and ways of living in Singapore, America and elsewhere the family has moved to. It is a Singaporean Tamil take on presenting the many cycles of life that we go through, all while inviting us readers of any background to experience as the characters and narratives cycle through the ebbs and flows of life.

Tangentially, I've been watching so many videos on IG and Tiktok about Indian (albeit not just Tamil) textiles and clothing because of how vivid and symbolic the saree imagery has been.

[chaptsandchai · Rating 4 out of 5]

i am thoroughly in love with the author's writing style. first of all, she makes the most common and mundane of settings sound so vivid and interesting with her descriptions. next, the book was so well thought out; a series of short stories, each about an individual woman, who together, makes up a specific indian family. her stories perfectly encapsulates the struggles and burdens of being a female; the traditional stereotypes and expectations of brahmin women and how they strive to overcome all odds. she also touches on topics that affect so many women around the world, such as domestic abuse, fat-shaming and sexual assault, bringing to light important topics that should be talked about more.

this book reflects traditions and experiences that are common in many diasporic/asian families and i felt a multitude of emotions while reading it, having experienced some of them myself. my heart ached with the sufferings the women endured, yet i also found joy in the little things, like raji finding love again and vani's sexual preferences being respected by her traditional mother.

overall a super good read that i enjoyed a lot!

[Deepika · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is rare to find a book where you find yourself nodding at every obrservation and relating to almost every anecdote. Nine Yard Sarees was like that for me, a peek into the past of a community that i have grown up in. A book club session with the Author only enhanced the experience of this book.

Since this is a short-story cycle , these were my short notes for each tale in prepping for the book club.

The Panasonic - A trip to Newyork. Panasonic rice cooker
The Cassette - Karang Guni man and passing away of Padma’s dad
Rakshasa - Keerthana is selected to play Rama but wants to be Ravana
Agni’s trials - Sivagami’s tales of her employers in Singapore. Nickname Draupadi - works for 5 families
The Perfect Shot - Mira shoots Vani’s portraits of her psoriasis
Nine Yard Sarees - K goes to Mylapore to purchase her madisar
Loose Threads - Krish & Fiona in Australia
In her graveyard, she bloomed - Vani leaves to NewYork with Mira
Amma’s suitcase - Shwetha builds her business with her late mother’s madisars
Before the Rooster calls - Kamala gets her first period and is married off
A long way from Kalakad - Raji comes to meet her daughters in Singapore during K’s wedding

[Weiqi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got to know of this book from attending Prasanthi's SWF panel this year, and I'm so glad I immediately decided to pick up a copy to read.

beautifully written, I loved the cast of characters and their very honest, real stories that we got to experience, the last 2 chapters made me cry and really made me connect with the emotional world and the entirety of all their journeys. I also really the short story cycle form, Prasanthi herself talks about how the theme of family and the cyclical nature of our histories fit nicely into this cycle form, and I couldn't agree more. this was such a lovely way to weave in different perspectives within the same world, I really felt like it gave me so much perspectives think about on recurring themes of womanhood, relationships, family.

as someone who lives in singapore but not from the tamil brahmin culture, this was also a very educational read for me. I don't really get exposed to such in-depth contact with it in my day-to-day unless I really make an effort to go study it, so I also enjoyed learning more about the culture and language through this read.

[Rachele · Rating 4 out of 5]

so i started this book feeling a little unused to the specificity of ram’s writing style. she seems to really enjoy inserting details into her prose, to make things as vivid/imaginable as possible - which i admittedly did not really like at first. it distracted me for a while, and made me feel unable to sit and immerse myself in the emotions of the book. that being said - after i got used to this, i found myself appreciating the tiny details. i learnt that ram’s details, naming of things etc. allowed me to learn so much more about the intricacies of tamil brahmin culture, and singapore at large

by the end of the book, i was tearing!! i felt like a part of this family, for lack of a better expression. knowing about the little details of each woman’s life, the way they relate to one another - the arguments, the rivalries, the love, the affection, that had taken place between these women to varying degrees in each short story, to be conjoined and ‘resolved’ at least temporarily at keerthana’s wedding. the kind of joy i felt seeing mira and vanu’s union, the acceptance of prema (in her own way - a coming out that i think is very specific to brown Asian parents/children) - and honestly just the legendary return of raji to singapore. also seeing the way raji still cried for her sister hit close to home, as someone who’s family also went through a similar trauma. it filled me with such a peace and happiness that you can only feel when youve read a small intimate window into each woman’s life. this reminded me of joy luck club in many ways, and thats one of my favourite books. the trials and tribulations between women are always a worthy read in my books ☺️

reading the other reviews i love seeing how this book resonated and meant so much to other singaporeans who are ethnic minorities. it makes me love this book more and i respect ram so much as a writer for writing from her heart and for her community xx

[Madhura Bhargave · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is the first time I read a short story cycle. It's taken me time to warm up to this format, and I found that the stories in the second half of the book had much more depth compared to the earlier ones, and therefore they were more engaging for me. Its always challenging for a native Indian to understand or relate to a diasporic Indian's narrative, and it was quite apparent to me while I read this book. I found the constant references to Tamil Brahmin culture a bit uncomfortable, as were the narratives presented about fair skin and self-righteousness..while it may very well be reality for majority of Indian's, diasporic or otherwise, I was hoping or expecting them to serve more as supports for a central plot or theme rather than the the main points of some stories. I'm still not sure how much I like this genre, compared to a straight out novem/novella or independent short stories.

[pigeon · Rating 5 out of 5]

AMAZING BOOK hands down the best singlit book i've read so far, 'before the rooster calls' made me especially emotional :')

I love the format of the book; showing the POVs of different women in the family made the characters
less one-dimensional, and helped prevent instinctive dislike against flawed characters while not absolving them of their actions by showing the hurt they can unknowingly inflict on their family.

The only suggestion i have is to have some sort of annex at the back explaining the significance/meaning of some cultural terms used, because having to check google halfway is a bit of a mood killer. Writing-wise, i have nothing to complain about. Not surprised it got nominated as a finalist for singapore book awards. Hoping for more from this author

[Austrin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I stopped rating books on Goodreads a few years back because it's so hard to put numbers on things, but I made an exception for this book. This one is absolutely exceptional, the best I've read this year even. This book made me feel seen in a way that no other book has ever done. I have no Indian background at all, but I could relate so much that it left me bawling in the middle of the night. Prasanthi offered multifaceted perspectives on seemingly typical Asian family stories and intentionally created gaps for readers to discover and fill. If you're Asian or come from a society that really put an emphasis on filial piety, please make sure this book is on your reading list—you'll find it resonates with you in ways you never imagined.

[Maudy · Rating 3 out of 5]

the cover is absolutely beautiful. i got this from bookbar when i was strolling around maxwell st. i was looking for a local book by a local publisher, and the librarian suggested this one. i wasn’t aware that it was going to be extra niche. it has a lot of potential, but i guess i just don’t feel attached enough to the background of the story. it includes a lot of terms that only local singaporeans would understand, with no footnotes at all! call me lazy, but i am not the type to check my phone and look up unfamiliar words to understand the context. i always choose to just keep going and trust the writer’s explanation, and sadly, this kind of fails me. maybe my expectations were too high to be met.

maybe this book deserves a reread someday in the future.