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The Wedding Drums
Twelve year old Amina lives in the village of Granville, in 1917 Trinidad, and her dreams of becoming a teacher are dashed. As she struggles to recover from typhoid, her father plans to marry her off.
Her friend Sumati is also suffering a similar situation - a marriage against her will. But when Sumati tries to get her own way, everything goes horribly wrong.
Amina turns to Mr Clifford and his religion for answers.
Seventeen year old Rajnath uncovers a criminal operation involving exploitation, and he and Amina become dangerously embroiled.
As rumour, tragedy and the supernatural take over the village, violence and crime seep into the marriage contracts, and into the beat of the wedding drums, and the peaceful rural life, will never be the same again.
This is a novel that will keep you thinking long after you’ve read it.
428 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 5, 2019
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5 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
September 12, 2020
Awesome
It's always good to see local books on the Kindle. I really enjoyed this novel since I can relate to it based on stories that I would have heard growing up. It's a reflection of how far we have come as East Indians here in Trinidad. Today many of us their female descendants are teachers and we no longer need to convert to Christianity to be a teacher.
It's always good to see local books on the Kindle. I really enjoyed this novel since I can relate to it based on stories that I would have heard growing up. It's a reflection of how far we have come as East Indians here in Trinidad. Today many of us their female descendants are teachers and we no longer need to convert to Christianity to be a teacher.
April 30, 2020
Kindle edition.
An interesting read set in Trinidad - a country I knew very little about. The story is complex and touching as it follows the lives of two young friends. Set at the turn of in 1917, the story transports you back to a different era - which is described well by the author. Some information/details shocked me but allowed me to appreciate the story being told and be grateful of the era in which I live.
A worthy read. Five stars.
An interesting read set in Trinidad - a country I knew very little about. The story is complex and touching as it follows the lives of two young friends. Set at the turn of in 1917, the story transports you back to a different era - which is described well by the author. Some information/details shocked me but allowed me to appreciate the story being told and be grateful of the era in which I live.
A worthy read. Five stars.
August 17, 2019
Reading the first few chapters, I was reminded of Earl Lovelace's work where he explores the history and culture of a Trinidad past through storytelling.
What I loved: the sense of time and place evoked by the Wedding Drums; the attempt to re-create the experience of a generation beginning to question and defy the cultural inheritance of Hindu India; the bringing of the experience and lives of the first few generations of Indians in Trinidad to life.
I particularly liked Rajnath and initially disliked Annan. They made a good contrast and Annan grew on me. I came to realise the cynical Annan who didn't share his brother's idealism was also the voice of defiance against the injustices faced by indentured Indians.
Sumati and Amina's quests were interesting and by mid-story I was very much engaged by the evolving complexity. It's too much of a 'busy book' to get deeply emotionally involved with the characters though, but that was fine. There were plenty of narrative questions to keep me busy enough.
I don't think Amina's ambiguous feelings towards Rajnath worked though. I think it confused and distracted us slightly. What would have worked better would be an Amina who had ZERO interest or attraction for boys, because hey, such girls do exist. This was minor though.
Disappointingly, for all the things I did appreciate and enjoy about this book, the story's writing unravelled towards the end. The writing lost its texture and just became sequential telling - though the story line could still have worked generally, there were specifics in the telling which needed work because they were just too unlikely, too co-incidental. Some of the conflict that happened in the fire scene could much more credibly have taken place outside of it.
The resolution felt a bit rushed.
Nonetheless, I give it a 3 for all the aspects of it which worked very, very well for most of the reading process!
I loved the way the author took us to rural Trinidad 2017. It's re-sparked my interest in learning the history of Trinidad over 1800-1950 and particularly the history of the Indian indentured labourer immigrants and the way the Indian and African populations of the era engaged with each other - and since.
What I loved: the sense of time and place evoked by the Wedding Drums; the attempt to re-create the experience of a generation beginning to question and defy the cultural inheritance of Hindu India; the bringing of the experience and lives of the first few generations of Indians in Trinidad to life.
I particularly liked Rajnath and initially disliked Annan. They made a good contrast and Annan grew on me. I came to realise the cynical Annan who didn't share his brother's idealism was also the voice of defiance against the injustices faced by indentured Indians.
Sumati and Amina's quests were interesting and by mid-story I was very much engaged by the evolving complexity. It's too much of a 'busy book' to get deeply emotionally involved with the characters though, but that was fine. There were plenty of narrative questions to keep me busy enough.
I don't think Amina's ambiguous feelings towards Rajnath worked though. I think it confused and distracted us slightly. What would have worked better would be an Amina who had ZERO interest or attraction for boys, because hey, such girls do exist. This was minor though.
Disappointingly, for all the things I did appreciate and enjoy about this book, the story's writing unravelled towards the end. The writing lost its texture and just became sequential telling - though the story line could still have worked generally, there were specifics in the telling which needed work because they were just too unlikely, too co-incidental. Some of the conflict that happened in the fire scene could much more credibly have taken place outside of it.
The resolution felt a bit rushed.
Nonetheless, I give it a 3 for all the aspects of it which worked very, very well for most of the reading process!
I loved the way the author took us to rural Trinidad 2017. It's re-sparked my interest in learning the history of Trinidad over 1800-1950 and particularly the history of the Indian indentured labourer immigrants and the way the Indian and African populations of the era engaged with each other - and since.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews