There Is Room for You: A Novel

by Charlotte Bacon

"A richly endowed memory piece...Bacon is a seductive and gifted storyteller."―Maureen Howard, author of A Lover's Almanac

Anna Singer, a charmingly independent young New Yorker, feels derailed after losing her father to a car accident and her husband to a younger woman. She books a trip to India, hoping that there she will be able to put her grief into perspective. Though this is her first visit, India has always tantalized her English mother, Rose, was raised in Calcutta during the twilight of the British Raj, but seldom spoke of her childhood. Then, as Anna departs, Rose gives her a manuscript in which she has recorded her Indian memories, torn between two cultures and belonging completely to neither.

Genres: Fiction, India

288 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2004

About the author

I first started writing when I was a counselor in a halfway house after college and I had a colleague who always wrote, "Things just fine," in the log we used to track the states of mind of our clients. Given that they were all chronically mentally ill, 'things just fine' was a bit misleading. I started trying to use the small space we had to capture what I saw and discovered the power of clear description. I've always balanced writing with other pursuits: traveling, teaching, and now, being a mother to three kids. Those activities aren't separate for me; everything I engage in influences everything else. Words are the place where I filter what I see and think, the place I have to make things stick.

Reviews

[Leona · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. it was about a woman's journey through India, and also through her mother's diary - which her mother had given her. I loved that the ending wasn't hollywood happy because she needed time to figure out what she wanted before she jumped into things she wasn't sure she ready for. Plus the descriptions of India in two different time periods
(contemporary through her eyes and much earlier through her mother's diary) was super interesting to me.

[Anita · Rating 3 out of 5]

What initially attracted me to this book was India as a setting and the contrasts of modern India, pre-war/pre-Partitian India, and 1970's Maine. I also was attracted to the contrasts of a mother and daughter's voices across geographical and chronological space. Anna's story occurs in 1992, where she attempts to uncover her mother's past while mourning her father through her mother's writings, written during her youth in Calcutta. Rose's, the mother, story takes place in 1940's India, which is still part of imperial Britain's rule. Rose's story shows the the divisions in Indian society during British imperialism, including the racism that takes place between Britons and Indians. The novel also touches on Rose's father works as a scientist employed by the British government. Her father seems to fault her with her mother's death, which takes a toll on their relationship. Rose's relationship is strongest with her "nanny," who is a native Indian from a small village loveless marriage and several children who are left with their father. Despite their close relationship, Rose betrays her in predictable manner, which devoids Rose's life of any female or maternal figure while she is in India. Rose's story continues on somewhat predictably.
Anna's journey through India helped her discover India for herself, and not through her mother's footsteps. I was disappointed by her story, as she takes on a romantic friendship, with an American who has taken up residence in India, hoping to do some good through his medical work, which took away from the focus of her story. Also, she becomes too engrained in Indian culture and seeks to "save" part of Indian culture, which was not requested nor necessary to her character development. She seeks to be a savior, to Indiana child, where millions remain without her help. The idea that "there is room for us, all of us," only concerns the Western characters in this novel, as the Indian characters and bystanders who take part in this novel are not provided with room, but are forced to live within a caste system that has little flexibility even in the modern world.
I was left wondering if this book would present India differently if not written by Anna who is a WASP, but an Indian coming back to India, or perhaps a descendent of an Indian citizen living during the raj.

[Katie Logan Richardson · Rating 5 out of 5]

i'm always on the lookout for novels set in India... i've been twice, hoping to take my husband next year...one of my favorite quotes from the book: "there's room enough for all of us, there has to be."

[Adriana Martinez · Rating 2 out of 5]

It is not unusual to dislike the main character of a book as this in no way speaks to the significance of any novel. Conversely, when the novel ultimately surrenders to poor writing and a dull story line it becomes a noticeable and annoying flaw in any novel.

I initially thought I had stumbled upon a work of literary significance and continued to believe that several chapters into the book. It is clear that the author understands language as well as the important correlation between language and writing a good story. My problem deals mostly with the many instances that the author deviates from the sophisticated writing she grasps our attention with early in the book to something one might find in a trashy romance novel complete with “bulging biceps” and sprinkles of profanity. Her style is wonderful, and when she finds and maintains her focus and reverts to her above average writing technique some of her writing is comparable to the many wonderful novels written by some of our greatest writers. But, the inconsistency is what terribly annoyed me and more than that disappointed me. I continue my search for the modern great literary genius; I grow weary.

[Mona · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved reading this book that wove the stories of a mother and daughter together so beautifully. The two main characters shared their hearts and eventually the daughter came to understand her mother. I will have to admit that I wished for a more satisfying (finished) ending and went on to invent one in my mind. I could feel India as if I were right there while reading. Being transported to another time and place and into other lives is one of the reasons I love to read. That's why this book with it's beautiful writing was such a satisfying read. The transitions between the story of the mother and daughter felt abrupt because I wasn't ready to make the transitions. It all worked out and eventually I caught on to new characters and realized how adroitly the author managed to blend the past and present.

[Doranne Long · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written; reads as a non-fiction book. Good attempt to describe the sights, sounds, smells of India, even though the country is enormous, and beyond description. Good storytelling with resulting empathy as we learn of women's heart breaks.

[Jenifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am having a really hard time getting into this book.

[Shirley J · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm among the minority of readers that didn't commit to finish the book. The writing is exquisite and for that reason alone I wanted to keep reading. Right now, I was in the mood for a story with more character interaction and dialogue and this particular choice I made did not satisfy. The setting, both a contemporary India and 1940's era, is so much a component of the story, it could almost be considered a character.

[Connie B · Rating 2 out of 5]

Such a seductive precis . . I wanted to enjoy this - just could NOT get into it. Maybe cuz I was more interested in the mom and the India of old. Stopped about 2 chapters in . . .

[Gloria E Meunier · Rating 3 out of 5]

Blessed to be aware of your surroundings...

[Lawanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

BOOK CLUB AUGUST 2008

[Kathy Gilliland · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting story about India and how living there impacted the mother in the story. The story is told through a mother and daughter’s viewpoints in two different timeframes.

[Lance · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mixed feelings about this book. Enjoyed parts of it and then it would drag on. Took 6 weeks to read because I would find something else to read. Very descriptive, a narrative writing. Nearly like story telling.
Finished the book and have more questions, but have a better understanding of the period which England was ending their control of India. The Achnowledgements is of interest to any who has an interest in who supported the development of the novel in which UNH and St. Paul's School played a part.
If you are interested in living in India around 1940's it is worth reading.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. I can't quite figure out what it was I enjoyed so much, but I think it's this: The narrative is interwoven with different philosophies and religions, but you're never preached to. Just exposed to different ideas. Also, the ending isn't all pretty, tied up in a bow. Life and relationships are messy, and complicated, and this book acknowledges that. Not every problem is solved, not everything turns out perfect. A very satisfying book.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

After her father dies and her husband leaves her, American Anna travels to India in an attempt to discover more about her private mother who was raised there. Interwoven through Anna's story is her mother Rose's journal which tells of her growing up in India during the fight for Indian independence.
Lyrical writing and evocative descriptions of India.

[Sam · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had trouble with this one. Nothing grabbed my attention and pulled me forward. I thought it got better towards the end though.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the story and the writing (though my book group panned it.) But I recommended it to two other friends who also thought it was a lovely story.

[Lu]

daughter travels to India to find out about mother

[Phyllis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good story of seeking meaningful connections and reconnections among kin and others.

[Carolyn Feltus-atkinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

It had some interesting moments and ideas but it was somewhat confusing and dragged at times.

[Diane · Rating 2 out of 5]

Though I didn't expect the surprise towards the end, I found this book extremely slow and rather boring. I felt nothing for any of the characters.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the chapters from the mother's history so much better than the daughter's chapters.

[Munni · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best part of this book is the main "character" -- endlessly fascinating and unfathomable India.