Escape

Escape #1

by Manjula Padmanabhan

In the country she inhabits, Meiji is unique. The only surviving female in a land where women have been exterminated, she has been brought up in secret, cloistered and protected, by three men she knows as her uncles – Eldest, Middle and Youngest. Now, as she approaches adolescence, her guardians must ensure that the dictatorial clone Generals who rule their world never get to know of her existence, and it falls to Youngest to escort Meiji on a long and treacherous journey through ravaged landscapes to the very edge of the world known to them. An adventure story like no other, a tale of love and self-discovery in several unexpected layers, Escape is a novel that is as unsettling as it is unputdownable. In its captivating portrayal of tender relationships blooming and thriving in a vicious, forbidding landscape, it bears out Manjula Padmanabhan’s genius as a creator of compelling alternative worlds.

Genres: Science Fiction, Dystopia, Fiction

444 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2008

About the author

Manjula Padmanabhan is a playwright, novelist, journalist, comic strip artist, and children's book author.

Reviews

[Amit Gupta · Rating 4 out of 5]

In a country where women have been exterminated, one little girl remains alive. Her name is Meiji. Her uncles, Eldest, Middle and Youngest, have raised her against all odds. As her body buds into puberty, her aging guardians realize they cannot protect her from the vicious Generals who now nominate their world, assisted by artificially created slaves called Drones and marauding bands of witless Boy Soldiers who rove a brutalized landscape through which Youngest and Meiji must travel to escape. Youngest will have to deep dig into his resources to ensure their survival. But he has a greater challenge along the way: explaining to Meiji what it means to be female in an all-male world and why she must learn to control the powerful forces that are being unleashed within herself as she matures.

A gripping adventure and an oddly poignant romance, ESCAPE is rigorously imagined, philosophically powerful book that takes a raw fact of our present world- the declining sex ratio- and turns it into a vision of the future. At its core, though, it is an examination of love, of growing pains, and that of sexuality. Meiji is just not protected well by his uncles but also her physical development has been suppressed so that she remains a child only. Each detail about her living and approaching even the minutest every day work has been perfectly captured, turning her into a fascinating character. How slowly and gradually...she is exposed to her own sexuality, how she comes into terms with it - both in shock and awe is quite magnificently captured.

Escape works at different levels: It is a thriller, cat-and-mouse adventure set in an unique women-less world, it is a budding quirky romance between the two protagonists, it is sexual awakening for the last lady in the country to an obnoxious world of pervasive all-men world. The characters are amoral and disturbing; but have layers over them which are elucidated gradually to effectively exploit their trials and tribulations. The narrative flows smoothly, and even when it gets into reflective mode... the narrative is hold on tightly by some sharp writing and graceful restraint. When the screenplay plunges into exploring Meiji's sexuality - wearing of a prosthetic penis or painful realization of her first period; you are compelled to fully empathize with these situations.

The youngest uncle who takes this journey with Meiji turns out to be a one hell of a character. He is caring and affectionate towards him, but can't help being turned on by her. After all, he is a virgin male and she is the only female in the country. You can feel the irony in his actions; he is responsible for safeguarding Meiji to the destination but at the same time has to teach her exactly how different she is in this world and inside a female body. The ideas thrown in are novel, the situations are unique and hence, the reactions of the protagonists are varied. All this ultimately makes this book a perfect weekend read.

I am going with 4.5/5 for Manjula Padmanabhan, Escape. It takes a pertinent social issue and turn it on its head to give a throbbing portrait of human emotions, love and lust. I would have preferred a close ending rather than open one, but that give us all the more indication of a sequel to this one. Read it because it explores the possibilities of the human mind, stretches your imagination. It never preaches, still weaves an enthralling tale which will be difficult to get out of your head, days after you have finished reading it. Strongly recommended, read it if you haven't yet!

[Biogeek · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have to disagree with most of the reviewers here. There is nothing specifically awful about this book. In fact, the premise, the scenario the author constructs, is for most of the book highly believable and well thought-out. Where she falters is in not knowing what she wants from her book. At times she seems to be going for an Atwood-esque dystopian novel exploring where some of the misogynistic ideas of today may take us when coupled with cloning technologies and warlords. The scenes and relationships she builds are not always easy to red, but they are not supposed to be. But at the same time, Padmanabhan seems to want to write one of those sci-fi series in which entire worlds are created for multiple volumes. This apparent second ambition leads to the two main weaknesses of the novel...painfully slow pacing in some parts, and an awful ending contrived only to demand a sequel.

[Debojit Sengupta (indianfiction_review) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think I may have found my favorite Genre after reading this book. Dystopian / Post-apocalyptic novels are inherently interesting. I like the harsh reality and the stark truth of it all where human emotions are stretched to the absolute limit of perseverance.

Escape by Manjula Padmanabhan is a cerebral and philosophical work and takes us into a world where everything normal in our times, simply does not exist. We are thrown into a world where all females have been exterminated. The world is a wasteland where only small strips of land are habitable. The ground is a layer of industrial dust, water is a scarce commodity and individual identity no longer exists. The land is ruled by Clone Generals, numerous in number but genetically exact. Lesser humans are bred inside pigs and cows and are used as mindless armies of servants and soldiers.

In this world, there exists Meiji, a girl of sixteen hidden from the world, living in secrecy and protected by her three uncles, Elder, Middle and Youngest. Soon, it becomes dangerous to hide her any longer and Meiji and Youngest decide to make an epic journey across the wasteland only to give Meiji a chance at a better future.

The physical elements and world building is absolutely spell binding but what the heart of the story contains is the relationship between Meiji and her Uncle. Meiji is a clean slate, she has no concept of what a women is, she has not even seen the outside world for sixteen years and suddenly she has to make this journey without understanding clearly the reason for it. The chapters follow many conversations between Youngest and Meiji as she is coming to grips with her reality and the reality of the world.

It was seriously refreshing to get into the shoes of the character and understand their perspectives. I really enjoyed reading it. Don't expect any action or a crescendo climax, this is sort of a build up to the next part. Though a bit of action wouldn't have been so bad either.

[Mohita Namjoshi · Rating 3 out of 5]

What I loved about this book the most is how Manjula Padmanabhan has managed to build a dystopian, apocalyptic "India", without ever mentioning any country names. The ocassional Pans, Dal-Rotis and Dhotis, amidst the worst possible convergence of extreme technological advancement, socialism and communism is refreshing to read. I found the premise of the book to be extremely promising and enjoyed the book overall, though I felt the slow pacing made it dull in more than one place.
The two main characters, a genetically altered teenage girl who is hidden by her three Uncles, is taken on a dangerous journey by the youngest uncle to escape her bleak present and future. The book has mature content and points at pedophilia from time to time.

One of the great points of this book is its effective world building, that left me aghast. The soulless, genetically engineered human-drones was a spine-chilling concept. A land devoid of freedom, where one entire gender is eliminated and the one that remains is under fear and oppression of the half-human, half-machine leaders contributed to the heavy read. The book is dark, gritty and made me uncomfortable and I mean it as a credit to the author.
Where the book failed though, was in its verbosity. I felt that so many scenes could have been cut short and the book could have been at least 100 pages shorter. I kept reading because I wanted to get to the end asap, and I had to power through the slowness of the book.

[Mely · Rating 1 out of 5]

It's possible I'm supposed to hate Youngest as much as I do, but it doesn't stop me from hating have to read about him instead of about characters (Meiji, the drones) who seemed more likely to be interesting. I'm not sure whether Padmanabhan thinks men are innately aggressive/evil or whether it's a result of all the men in the book having been raised in a misogynistic state, but the gender implications struck me as simplistic and unhelpful. Probably I am missing some nuance about India, but I cannot bring myself to care.

There will be a sequel, and I will not be reading it.

I am appalled that some reviewers read this as a romance. Seriously? Seriously?!?

(A small quiz. Your child, who has been in an arrested pre-adolescent state for some time, has now been allowed to mature naturally. You set out on a dangerous trip to escort her out of your misogynistic and femicidal country to another land. Do you:

(a) educate her about menstruation?

(b) plan to leave the country with her?

(c) if not planning to leave the country with her, tell her about it in advance?

(d) not get turned on by bathing her even before she develops breasts (you have raised her since she was an infant)?

(e) all of the above

(f) any of the above

(g) none of the above

Guess which our hero picks!)

[Wiebke · Rating 3 out of 5]

Manjula Padmanabhan’s Buch “Escape” erzählt von einem zukünftigen dystopischen Indien, indem Frauen ausgerottet wurden und ein Mädchen alles daran setzt am Leben zu bleiben. Gemeinsam mit Ihrem Onkel Youngest begibt sie sich auf die Flucht durch dieses von Krieg und Katastrophen zerstörte Land und begegnet dabei den unterschiedlichsten Charakteren. Auf interessante Weise wird hier das rückläufige Geschlechterverhältnis unserer Zeit thematisiert und im Zusammenhang mit Umweltkatastrophen und technologischen Fortschritten behandelt.

Im Geheimen wurde Meiji fernab von allen Männern und den Generälen, die diese Welt kontrollieren von Ihren drei Onkeln aufgezogen, doch befinden wir uns am Anfang des Buches an einem Wendepunkt für Meiji. Das Unterdrücken der Pubertät und das Verstecken vor den Generälen können nicht für immer funktionieren und Meijis Existenz in dieser Gesellschaft wird immer gefährlicher, sodass sich Ihre Onkel dafür entscheiden einen riskanten Plan einzugehen und Meiji zur Flucht zu verhelfen, in der Hoffnung, dass sie ein normales Leben als Frau führen kann.

Da Meiji bis dahin keine Idee über Ihren eigenen Körper und Ihr Geschlecht hat, entwickelt sich diese Reise schnell zu einem Konflikt zwischen Meiji und Ihrem Onkel Youngest. Seine Aufgabe ist es nämlich Ihr zu erklären, was es bedeutet eine Frau zu sein in einer Welt in der nur Männer existieren.

So interessant wie die grundlegende Idee dieses Buches auch klingt, war ich von der Umsetzung leider etwas enttäuscht. Die dystopische Welt, die hier geschaffen wird, finde ich wirklich sehr spannend und einige Teile der Geschichte werden dem auch gerecht, doch oft werden Teile oder Charakteristika dieser Welt zu wenig beschrieben, um eine wirklich umfangreiche Idee dieser Gesellschaft zu bekommen. Auch Themen wie Geschlecht, Umweltschutz, Klasse oder Sozialismus werden oft zu oberflächlich behandelt und auch Meijis eigene Erfahrungen scheinen schnell in den Hintergrund der Geschichte zu rücken. So nimmt doch Ihr Onkel Youngest den Großteil des Buches ein und man erfährt als Leser vor allem seine Gedanken und Ideen, obwohl das Interesse doch eigentlich viel mehr bei Meiji liegt. Dazu kommt, dass Youngest in meinen Augen leider kein sympathischer Charakter ist. Fast die ganze Reise über vorenthält er Meiji sein Wissen über die Entwicklung, die Ihr Körper durchmacht und was es bedeutet eine Frau zu sein. Anstelle dessen verschiebt er jedes Gespräch und jede Frage des Mädchens auf einen späteren Zeitpunkt, wodurch Meiji nur verwirrter und verbitterter mit Ihrer eigenen Identität wird. Das hat mich wirklich gestört. Darüber hinaus äußert er bereits am Anfang inzestuöse Gedanken gegenüber Meiji an denen ich mich im Laufe des Buches sehr gestört habe.

Das Buch geht auf die verschiedenen Themen doch sehr oberflächlich ein und meiner Meinung entsteht dadurch der Eindruck, dass auch Padmanabhan nicht wirklich weiß wohin sie mit dieser Geschichte will. Dies merkt man vor allem am Ende der Geschichte, wenn Meiji und Ihr Onkel ihr vorzeitiges Ziel, die Stadt erreichen und das Buch auf einmal sehr antiklimatisch endet, ohne dass Meiji und Ihr Onkel in Freiheit sind, geschweige denn etwas anderes bemerkenswertes passiert. Ich hoffe, der zweite Teil setzt an dieses Ende besser an und arbeitet auch einige Ideen zum Thema Geschlecht noch einmal besser auf.

Ich denke das dieses Buch auch besser zu verstehen ist, wenn man mehr Ideen über die momentane Situation von Frauen in Indien hat und die kulturellen Hintergründe kennt, was mir leider fehlt. Dadurch gehen bestimmt einige Ideen für mich verloren.

[Sonia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Disappointed with the climax

[Mohita Namjoshi · Rating 3 out of 5]

What I loved about this book the most is how Manjula Padmanabhan has managed to build a dystopian, apocalyptic "India", without ever mentioning any country names. The ocassional Pans, Dal-Rotis and Dhotis, amidst the worst possible convergence of extreme technological advancement, socialism and communism is refreshing to read. I found the premise of the book to be extremely promising and enjoyed the book overall, though I felt the slow pacing made it dull in more than one place.
The two main characters, a genetically altered teenage girl who is hidden by her three Uncles, is taken on a dangerous journey by the youngest uncle to escape her bleak present and future. The book has mature content and points at pedophilia from time to time.
One of the great points of this book is its effective world building, that left me aghast. The soulless, genetically engineered human-drones was a spine-chilling concept. A land devoid of freedom, where one entire gender is eliminated and the one that remains is under fear and oppression of the half-human, half-machine leaders contributed to the heavy read. The book is dark, gritty and made me uncomfortable and I mean it as a credit to the author.
Where the book failed though, was in its verbosity. I felt that so many scenes could have been cut short and the book could have been at least 100 pages shorter. I kept reading because I wanted to get to the end asap, and I had to power through the slowness of the book.

[Pradipta Saha · Rating 1 out of 5]

schoolboy prose gets in the way of an otherwise interesting proposition...

[Battameez · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 stars

What a weird, uncomfortable, fascinating book! I'll write more when the book has settled in my feelings.

[Debraj Moulick · Rating 5 out of 5]

The horror of extermination of women population and a country without female..
One of the most crucial books of our time !!

[Monika · Rating 3 out of 5]

a good hard hitting book but I was disappointed with the climax may be she has a sequel in mind