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Gods And Ends
Philomena Sequeira knows what she wants by the time she turns fourteen. Her father wants something else.
Life is unyielding for the tenants of the rundown Obrigado Mansion in Orlem, a Roman Catholic parish in suburban Bombay. They grapple with love, loss and sin, surrounded by abused wives and repressed widows, alcoholic husbands and dubious evangelists, angry teenagers and ambivalent priests, all struggling to make sense of circumstances they have no control over.
Gods and Ends takes up multiple threads of individual stories to create a larger picture of darkness beneath
a seemingly placid surface. It is about intersecting lives struggling to accept change as homes turn into prisons. This is a book about invisible people in a city of millions, and the claustrophobia they rarely manage to escape from.
Life is unyielding for the tenants of the rundown Obrigado Mansion in Orlem, a Roman Catholic parish in suburban Bombay. They grapple with love, loss and sin, surrounded by abused wives and repressed widows, alcoholic husbands and dubious evangelists, angry teenagers and ambivalent priests, all struggling to make sense of circumstances they have no control over.
Gods and Ends takes up multiple threads of individual stories to create a larger picture of darkness beneath
a seemingly placid surface. It is about intersecting lives struggling to accept change as homes turn into prisons. This is a book about invisible people in a city of millions, and the claustrophobia they rarely manage to escape from.
205 pages, Hardcover
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 48 reviews
March 20, 2021
Set in a worn out building in Orlem in a Bombay of the late70s, Gods and Ends by Lindsay Pereira is a book that does not have a single element of joy or hope in the narrative. The characters lead wasted lives trudging over the remains of what they had earlier hoped would be good lives but in the end becoming only drudgery and ground for discontent and caustic anger that is tightly reigned in and let out only within their inner lives,affecting family members in ways that cripple them further. One other theme in the narrative is religion, something that binds all the protagonists but its portrayal is one that touches on how hypocritical one who believes in religion can be: as evident in the way everyone goes about following rites, by showing off the external practice systems while remaining inhumane in their personal lives.
The dilapidated interior of the Obrigado Mansion is almost a character as much as the many protagonists who live as tenants, the protagonists in this book. There is a weary air to the narrative that adds to the claustrophobic setting of the building and the decrepit lives of the men whose anger and egos drive the stories of other characters. When the back-stories of the characters are unraveled, they don’t leave you with any feeling of empathy for the author clinically lays bare the misogyny and abrasive nature of the men.
Of the two main female protagonists, one who makes only a fleeting appearance end up being the only person who lives life on her terms while the other starts as the underdog who readers will feel for and yet by the end of the book, she becomes no less than the abrasive old men she has seen and loathed. The writing is taut and cleaves apart all sentimentality with a caustic edge to almost every protagonist making readers reflect on morality or the lack of it in people bound by a shared religion. Rohinton Mistry readers ought to pick this up.
The dilapidated interior of the Obrigado Mansion is almost a character as much as the many protagonists who live as tenants, the protagonists in this book. There is a weary air to the narrative that adds to the claustrophobic setting of the building and the decrepit lives of the men whose anger and egos drive the stories of other characters. When the back-stories of the characters are unraveled, they don’t leave you with any feeling of empathy for the author clinically lays bare the misogyny and abrasive nature of the men.
Of the two main female protagonists, one who makes only a fleeting appearance end up being the only person who lives life on her terms while the other starts as the underdog who readers will feel for and yet by the end of the book, she becomes no less than the abrasive old men she has seen and loathed. The writing is taut and cleaves apart all sentimentality with a caustic edge to almost every protagonist making readers reflect on morality or the lack of it in people bound by a shared religion. Rohinton Mistry readers ought to pick this up.
March 22, 2021
In Obrigado, children grew up and left, adults stayed back and withered."
Gods and Ends is set in Orlem, Bombay in a dilapidated building called Obrigado Mansion. The tenants of the mansion are Catholics who lead miserable lives. They all feel trapped with nothing to look forward to in life. The chapters are named after each character( tenants ) revealing details about their past and present lives. Initially it felt snippets or short stories but as the book progresses you see how their lives intersect in more ways than one.
The book paints a raw picture of a claustrophobic environment that many people find impossible to escape from. Drunk husbands, abused wives, oppressed widows, an absent God and a doomed building makes it an extremely sad and depressing read. But the book is unputdownable. I turned page after page with a hope that things would get better. It didn't. Yet it provides an enriched reading experience which is truly the author's merit. Pereira writes in a matter-of-fact tone with a keen observant eye. Not a single character is likeable, which I think is a deliberate attempt from the author, but are provided with their own individual case. It is upon readers to interpret in any way we would want to. The other aspect of the book that I loved is its take on religion and God.
"The son of God ought to have done it, if only to try and figure out why more and more of His people were choosing to drop out of churches the world over, or why cathedrals that once shook with the voices of thousands in praise now survived only with the help of audio guides and photography passes rented out to curious tourists. He could have finally done something about the priests who gave His churches a bad name, making it harder for the clergy to trust them with children. He could have amended the rules too, giving women more power because it was about time someone did."
I honestly didn't expect the book would be this good. It was a such a surprise. It didn't feel like the author's first book at all. Looking forward to read more of his works.
Gods and Ends is set in Orlem, Bombay in a dilapidated building called Obrigado Mansion. The tenants of the mansion are Catholics who lead miserable lives. They all feel trapped with nothing to look forward to in life. The chapters are named after each character( tenants ) revealing details about their past and present lives. Initially it felt snippets or short stories but as the book progresses you see how their lives intersect in more ways than one.
The book paints a raw picture of a claustrophobic environment that many people find impossible to escape from. Drunk husbands, abused wives, oppressed widows, an absent God and a doomed building makes it an extremely sad and depressing read. But the book is unputdownable. I turned page after page with a hope that things would get better. It didn't. Yet it provides an enriched reading experience which is truly the author's merit. Pereira writes in a matter-of-fact tone with a keen observant eye. Not a single character is likeable, which I think is a deliberate attempt from the author, but are provided with their own individual case. It is upon readers to interpret in any way we would want to. The other aspect of the book that I loved is its take on religion and God.
"The son of God ought to have done it, if only to try and figure out why more and more of His people were choosing to drop out of churches the world over, or why cathedrals that once shook with the voices of thousands in praise now survived only with the help of audio guides and photography passes rented out to curious tourists. He could have finally done something about the priests who gave His churches a bad name, making it harder for the clergy to trust them with children. He could have amended the rules too, giving women more power because it was about time someone did."
I honestly didn't expect the book would be this good. It was a such a surprise. It didn't feel like the author's first book at all. Looking forward to read more of his works.
January 26, 2022
If there is a single word to describe the book, it would be 'grim'. A dilapidated building called Obrigado Mansion stands tall in Orlem, suburbs of Bombay, comprising a community of Roman Catholics. The novel takes through stories of different occupants of the building woven together to form the bleak tale.
In a language raw and dark, Pereira narrates stories of people grappling with routinal domestic violence, bullying, alcoholism and sexual assault. Like the peeling walls of the crumbling building they inhabit, their lives become naked putting into display the worst of each of them. None of the characters are likeable and inspite of all the trauma they have to endure, it is difficult to sympathize them. Each assumes horrible personas in their own way and hate each other with fervor. There are alcoholic and abusive husbands, tortured and silenced wives, bullied and unhappy children, oppressed widows and an indifferent landlord. Nevertheless, everyone seems to have come to terms with the banality of malevolence in their life.
The idealist conception of home and religion being the zones of comfort and consolation is shattered in this loveless chronicle of domestic spaces being bullying spaces and lovelessness. Similarly, faith becomes constantly a topic of contention and religion an epitome of hypocrisy. Confused priest, hateful and intolerant practitioners and wayward evangelists symbolizes the faith that is gradually crumbling like the building.
I cannot pretend that I am sad to reach the end of the book, however compelling the read is. Pereira's writing makes it difficult to stay distant from this gloomy tale lacking love, hope or light. A tale of people boxed into, as Bible says, a place where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 13:42). A forsaken terrain where there are no Gods and no Ends .
In a language raw and dark, Pereira narrates stories of people grappling with routinal domestic violence, bullying, alcoholism and sexual assault. Like the peeling walls of the crumbling building they inhabit, their lives become naked putting into display the worst of each of them. None of the characters are likeable and inspite of all the trauma they have to endure, it is difficult to sympathize them. Each assumes horrible personas in their own way and hate each other with fervor. There are alcoholic and abusive husbands, tortured and silenced wives, bullied and unhappy children, oppressed widows and an indifferent landlord. Nevertheless, everyone seems to have come to terms with the banality of malevolence in their life.
The idealist conception of home and religion being the zones of comfort and consolation is shattered in this loveless chronicle of domestic spaces being bullying spaces and lovelessness. Similarly, faith becomes constantly a topic of contention and religion an epitome of hypocrisy. Confused priest, hateful and intolerant practitioners and wayward evangelists symbolizes the faith that is gradually crumbling like the building.
I cannot pretend that I am sad to reach the end of the book, however compelling the read is. Pereira's writing makes it difficult to stay distant from this gloomy tale lacking love, hope or light. A tale of people boxed into, as Bible says, a place where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 13:42). A forsaken terrain where there are no Gods and no Ends .
January 15, 2022
This is the most powerful book I've ever read. Talks about women, the ones who were beaten, abused, tortured and ignored by all. The hardships of people in poverty and the trauma bore by children living with drunk fathers. Broken homes. Questioning faith. Seemed so real and heart wrenching. The ones who are interested in feminist books or books on real social issues or tragedies. This is an Indian author's book which isn't very hyped ( I know it's JCB shortlisted) but it still NEEDS to be. No doubt it's 5/5. Must read from my side. gods and ends.
March 20, 2021
The Obrigado Mansion is a dilapidated, dismal building in Bombay where a ragtag group of Catholic families live, mainly because of the dirt-cheap rent. The fading, crumpling walls of the mansion hold such pain, grief, disappointment, and helplessness that everyone living in it is miserable but finds no way to escape it. Life drags on, day-by-day, inch-by-inch.
Every chapter focuses on a particular character and we live their past and present. From jobless people to alcoholics to repressed wives and widows and abused children, it takes on a lot within 200 pages. It’s almost as if the building itself was a place where dreams came to die. All the characters were so dejected, so caught-up in the idea of false companionship, so consumed with their own trauma that only those who left the mansion were able to make something of their lives. Those who stayed, withered, perpetuating a never-ending cycle.
Some of the characters had a distinct way of speaking, a local dialect that took me a while to get used to. One character’s dialogue, in particular, was phonetic so I initially assumed it was a typo and only realized over time that it was intentional. The prologue mentioned 24 characters so I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to keep track but I found the characters distinct and easily distinguishable. What was interesting to me was that nobody was likeable. I hope it was intentional because even though I sympathized with them, I did not warm up to any character.
I hadn’t binge-read a book in a while and this was a pleasant surprise. Reading it felt like a perverse curiosity because none of the characters were worth rooting for but it’s a testament to the author’s skill that I was hooked from page 1 and closed the book with the ending seared in my brain. That ending and its implication is sure to haunt me for a while. It was so bleak though that as much as I enjoyed it, I can’t imagine re-reading it, knowing what transpires.
Every chapter focuses on a particular character and we live their past and present. From jobless people to alcoholics to repressed wives and widows and abused children, it takes on a lot within 200 pages. It’s almost as if the building itself was a place where dreams came to die. All the characters were so dejected, so caught-up in the idea of false companionship, so consumed with their own trauma that only those who left the mansion were able to make something of their lives. Those who stayed, withered, perpetuating a never-ending cycle.
Some of the characters had a distinct way of speaking, a local dialect that took me a while to get used to. One character’s dialogue, in particular, was phonetic so I initially assumed it was a typo and only realized over time that it was intentional. The prologue mentioned 24 characters so I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to keep track but I found the characters distinct and easily distinguishable. What was interesting to me was that nobody was likeable. I hope it was intentional because even though I sympathized with them, I did not warm up to any character.
I hadn’t binge-read a book in a while and this was a pleasant surprise. Reading it felt like a perverse curiosity because none of the characters were worth rooting for but it’s a testament to the author’s skill that I was hooked from page 1 and closed the book with the ending seared in my brain. That ending and its implication is sure to haunt me for a while. It was so bleak though that as much as I enjoyed it, I can’t imagine re-reading it, knowing what transpires.
December 15, 2021
Witty, dark, twisted. Strangely sad, wretched yet un-putdownable.
September 25, 2021
An exceptional book that shows the dark side of every human being ..Thank you Lindsay for this
November 18, 2024
Actual Rating - 4.8 stars
NPS - 10 (Promoter)
A cynical observer would have pointed out how easy it was to foster a full sense of camaraderie among those of socially isolated, but there was no room for such observers in this house of God.
This is what I seek in literary fiction.
Interconnected set of stories of various residents of a quaint, middle class Catholic community of Obrigado, in Orlem, Bandra, told through multiple perspectives is a well written and executed read.
It’s not too long or short, engages the reader in good writing, has an element of mystery associated with it, and gives you a glimpse into a Catholic middle class life along with the hypocrisy of religion.
Such a great read.
NPS - 10 (Promoter)
A cynical observer would have pointed out how easy it was to foster a full sense of camaraderie among those of socially isolated, but there was no room for such observers in this house of God.
This is what I seek in literary fiction.
Interconnected set of stories of various residents of a quaint, middle class Catholic community of Obrigado, in Orlem, Bandra, told through multiple perspectives is a well written and executed read.
It’s not too long or short, engages the reader in good writing, has an element of mystery associated with it, and gives you a glimpse into a Catholic middle class life along with the hypocrisy of religion.
Such a great read.
March 19, 2021
God and Ends was unlike everything I've read.The book was 'sad' through and through yet absolutely un-putdownable. It completely took me by surprise and managed to surpass my high expectations. It's a very promising debut and I hope I get to read more books by Lindsay Pereira in the future.
'Gods and Ends' is a story of life. Raw, unfiltered and dark, 'Gods and Ends' portrays the lives of a Catholic community living in a decrepit house in Bombay. Every member in the community is deeply flawed some more than others.The chapters are bite sized and the narrative changes quickly. There are a few characters you might feel bad for at the start but as soon as their story is unravelled, you might lose any empathy you had for them.
You get a glimpse into the life of every character, there are no protagonists or antagonists. If I had to describe the book in one line, I would say "Snapshots from seemingly normal lives". This book makes you question if people actually are who they seem to be.
The writing style is succinct with a dark narrative that makes you stop and think. The run down building inhabited by the characters gives an air of claustrophobia.
'Gods and Ends' brings into light some grave problems in our society : Impact of alcoholism on families, sexual & physical abuse, body-shaming, adultery and sexist language. It also highlights the deep-rooted misogyny and toxic patriarchy in the Indian Society.
'Gods and Ends' by any means is not an easy book to read. It bears stark resemblance to the real life. Lindsay Pereira brings together all these claustrophobic stories of every character infront of the reader without any judgements of good or bad and their interpretation is left to the reader.
'Gods and Ends' is a story of life. Raw, unfiltered and dark, 'Gods and Ends' portrays the lives of a Catholic community living in a decrepit house in Bombay. Every member in the community is deeply flawed some more than others.The chapters are bite sized and the narrative changes quickly. There are a few characters you might feel bad for at the start but as soon as their story is unravelled, you might lose any empathy you had for them.
You get a glimpse into the life of every character, there are no protagonists or antagonists. If I had to describe the book in one line, I would say "Snapshots from seemingly normal lives". This book makes you question if people actually are who they seem to be.
The writing style is succinct with a dark narrative that makes you stop and think. The run down building inhabited by the characters gives an air of claustrophobia.
'Gods and Ends' brings into light some grave problems in our society : Impact of alcoholism on families, sexual & physical abuse, body-shaming, adultery and sexist language. It also highlights the deep-rooted misogyny and toxic patriarchy in the Indian Society.
'Gods and Ends' by any means is not an easy book to read. It bears stark resemblance to the real life. Lindsay Pereira brings together all these claustrophobic stories of every character infront of the reader without any judgements of good or bad and their interpretation is left to the reader.
March 22, 2021
Gods and Ends by Lindsay Pereira
A witty, dark and twisted tale. The Obrigado mansion, a dilapidated makeshift apartment is the setting of the novel. A character itself, Obrigado rules the lives of the residents.
A colourful array of protagonists will vie for your attention in this well-spun debut of a novel. Each character has a demon they fight with, some choose to drown in their sorrow, while others, take the reign of their lives and waddle towards an uncertain future.
Francisco Fernandez and his daughter in law live in Room 101 and 102. Rooms 103-108 are occupied by the tenants, except for 106 which is unoccupied as "it is the place even dreams came to die". Francisco lives on the meagre income he gets from letting the mansion. He clings on to this place even when other landlords gave up their land for more money. He loved to have others under his control.
The tenants of Obrigado were poor and "devout" Catholics. The story moves from the perspective of all the tenants and their lives. Drunkards, evangelists, dreamers, criminals and what not ! This dark and desolate place breeds it's own kind of tragedy. Powerless in the greedy world and unable to grasp the future by their own hands, they pull others into the burning cauldron akin to the crabs in the pot.
You sigh, burn with rage and pity the fools. One thing is certain Pereira was able to create a farce of the society, their real dirty face in the murky depth of this book.
The language is local English with bits and pieces of Hindi thrown in. The slang catches on later and is easy to understand. A slice of Orlem, Bombay in the yester years awaits you. Don't think, grab a copy soon, men!
A witty, dark and twisted tale. The Obrigado mansion, a dilapidated makeshift apartment is the setting of the novel. A character itself, Obrigado rules the lives of the residents.
A colourful array of protagonists will vie for your attention in this well-spun debut of a novel. Each character has a demon they fight with, some choose to drown in their sorrow, while others, take the reign of their lives and waddle towards an uncertain future.
Francisco Fernandez and his daughter in law live in Room 101 and 102. Rooms 103-108 are occupied by the tenants, except for 106 which is unoccupied as "it is the place even dreams came to die". Francisco lives on the meagre income he gets from letting the mansion. He clings on to this place even when other landlords gave up their land for more money. He loved to have others under his control.
The tenants of Obrigado were poor and "devout" Catholics. The story moves from the perspective of all the tenants and their lives. Drunkards, evangelists, dreamers, criminals and what not ! This dark and desolate place breeds it's own kind of tragedy. Powerless in the greedy world and unable to grasp the future by their own hands, they pull others into the burning cauldron akin to the crabs in the pot.
You sigh, burn with rage and pity the fools. One thing is certain Pereira was able to create a farce of the society, their real dirty face in the murky depth of this book.
The language is local English with bits and pieces of Hindi thrown in. The slang catches on later and is easy to understand. A slice of Orlem, Bombay in the yester years awaits you. Don't think, grab a copy soon, men!
March 22, 2021
Here is an essential piece of literature about a place whose essentialism is in disguise under the local filthiness and societal hypocrisy...
Gods and Ends by Lindsay Pereira begins with an epigraph of John Milton's Paradise lost.
Six catholic families residing at Obrigado Mansion, a not-so-posh part of Bombay, six families' daily rebellious prattle, whispers of normalized abuse, a father touching his daughter just because his wife would not have sex with an inhumane drunkard; who he turns into. The stereotypical notions compelled to be passed down to generations as if they will make the offsprings look as they bloomed like flowers but they are eating away the hypocrisies of the families, religion, and the society by trapping bugs like a flytrap.
This is a bifurcation of stories that are hidden in the ghettos of a city that has given itself to those who either don't dare to look at them directly for the sake of sharing more about the glamour, or these stories seem boring or uninteresting for the so-called mainstream. The author has created a chronicle over something that is mostly shadowed, hidden in the dirt.
Here is an essential piece of literature about a place whose essentialism is in disguise under the local filthiness and societal hypocrisy...
Brilliant, brilliant stuff.
Gods and Ends by Lindsay Pereira begins with an epigraph of John Milton's Paradise lost.
Six catholic families residing at Obrigado Mansion, a not-so-posh part of Bombay, six families' daily rebellious prattle, whispers of normalized abuse, a father touching his daughter just because his wife would not have sex with an inhumane drunkard; who he turns into. The stereotypical notions compelled to be passed down to generations as if they will make the offsprings look as they bloomed like flowers but they are eating away the hypocrisies of the families, religion, and the society by trapping bugs like a flytrap.
This is a bifurcation of stories that are hidden in the ghettos of a city that has given itself to those who either don't dare to look at them directly for the sake of sharing more about the glamour, or these stories seem boring or uninteresting for the so-called mainstream. The author has created a chronicle over something that is mostly shadowed, hidden in the dirt.
Here is an essential piece of literature about a place whose essentialism is in disguise under the local filthiness and societal hypocrisy...
Brilliant, brilliant stuff.
March 20, 2021
Revolving around the lives of a catholic parish community residing in Obrigado Mansion in Orlem, Bombay; this book brings to us the raw accounts of the tenants' lives, woven through the fine threads of past and present.
The book starts with death of Jude Sequiera, a tenant of the mansion; and then we are taken to the past. We come across a widow, a drunkard, a sexually abused teenage girl, a physically abused wife, a priest and more such people - all of them just dragging their lives, simply going with the flow. They have no ambitions and no hopes. They have succumbed to their stagnant situations.
Feels depressing, doesn't it? But that is what kept me going. The sheer darkness of the story, the unsettling mansion, the irreparable flaws of the characters and the stark portrayal of reality kept me hooked. The author hasn't tried to make the the characters loveable or loathesome here, the only emotion I could feel was sorry for them, no matter how petty they were.
And how do I even begin to praise the writing now? Even though all the characters belonged to the same parish community, each of them had a different accent amd unique aura and this made the book an absolute delight to read! It amazed me - how can one single person create such diverse characters! The way the author has taken us from past to present, from one character's narrative to another is absolutely flawless and beautiful.
Books always make me happy regardless of their jovial or sad endings, but 'Gods and Ends' is an exception. It is a dark fiction - one that left me empty, but satisfied.
The book starts with death of Jude Sequiera, a tenant of the mansion; and then we are taken to the past. We come across a widow, a drunkard, a sexually abused teenage girl, a physically abused wife, a priest and more such people - all of them just dragging their lives, simply going with the flow. They have no ambitions and no hopes. They have succumbed to their stagnant situations.
Feels depressing, doesn't it? But that is what kept me going. The sheer darkness of the story, the unsettling mansion, the irreparable flaws of the characters and the stark portrayal of reality kept me hooked. The author hasn't tried to make the the characters loveable or loathesome here, the only emotion I could feel was sorry for them, no matter how petty they were.
And how do I even begin to praise the writing now? Even though all the characters belonged to the same parish community, each of them had a different accent amd unique aura and this made the book an absolute delight to read! It amazed me - how can one single person create such diverse characters! The way the author has taken us from past to present, from one character's narrative to another is absolutely flawless and beautiful.
Books always make me happy regardless of their jovial or sad endings, but 'Gods and Ends' is an exception. It is a dark fiction - one that left me empty, but satisfied.
September 10, 2022
A quick weekend read, which unlike a lot of community based novels, is not whiney-ly nostalgic. The criticality with which Pereira looks at these individuals trapped in what can only be called the honey sticky sepia of small communities with small minds and small dreams is commendable.
His efforts to recreate space using the patois of the Bombay Goans and East Indians is accurate and endearing, and the prejudice towards Mangaloreans is palpable (we're not that bad, men).
The book risks being culturally remote if you don't know enough Catliks.
Good job, men, Lindsay! Must put a drink together some time!
His efforts to recreate space using the patois of the Bombay Goans and East Indians is accurate and endearing, and the prejudice towards Mangaloreans is palpable (we're not that bad, men).
The book risks being culturally remote if you don't know enough Catliks.
Good job, men, Lindsay! Must put a drink together some time!
November 4, 2021
4.5 stars!
Whaaaatt!!
(Review soon!)
Whaaaatt!!
(Review soon!)
March 21, 2021
A building and many rooms, all on rent to diverse souls dealing with their pasts and present(s) in the best way possible. This is what is 'Gods And Ends' about, in the simplest of terms.
It is an uncomfortable read, made me shift on my seat time and again.
It is a difficult read, making me having to make my mind into reading it further.
It is an eye-opening experience, making me wade through the pages to read more.
It is a sentimental read, making me feel a plethora of emotions, all at the same time.
The tenants, a widow, a drunkard, an unhappy couple, an abused wife, a sexually harassed girl, an abusive father are all dragging along their lives without any hope, aspiration or ambition. They just go on, soulless and carrying the heavy burdens of their claustrophobic pasts and bleak present that have made them stagnant.
The narrative started slowly and was rather bleak challenging me to go on which I sure did. I was apprehensive about reading it further since it was frightfully unsettling but I was attracted to reading it all the same. The compelling writing style and the dark nuances and the thrill of knowing the past made it un-putdownable.
The phenomenal characterisation is an icing on the cake. Each character is a neighbor to the other, are so unconnected yet share a similarity. They all are not happy with their past lives, hasty decisions and unfruitful actions, and continually wish to be able to change them, undo them to live a happy life in which they were loved and cared for.
There were many characters I felt empathetic for, but when read about their side of the story, I couldn't hide my disgust for them.
Each chapter is a point of view, an addition to the cramped air of the Mansion.
They are presented in their absolute stark nature and rawness resembling the real life and its complexities and they bring forward the true nature of the society by subtly highlighting some grave social issues that make one stop and think hard, take a deep breath, swallow the harshness and move on.The narrative made me cringe and sometimes smile, at times both, at the silliness of thoughts or the unimaginable actions. The characters posed questions relevant to their times and the present, they acted older than their age, sometimes even younger, did hard-to-believe things, thought silly yet powerful notions and staged their real selves yet remained secretive to the world and to each other.The narrative brought the deep rooted misogyny and the gender biasness to the forefront through the perspective of its characters. It puts forward the entire society in a debatable position wherein the readers are left to judge the sentimentalities of them characters, the narrative giving a mere account of things as and when they happened and continue to happen.
It is laced with numerous trigger warnings and each act a blow after the other. Just when you think nothing worse could happen you're given another hard blow with your eyes turning as big as saucers at the harshness of the words leaving you numb and making you force into believing what you just read, as it happened with me.
I couldn't stop my pencil from running freehand, underlining and annotating and writing what I felt for the fear of rereading it and reliving those shocking episodes. The narrative ended and I felt a void inside me, a hollowness. I guess I wanted a happy ending after all the dark-ness and the unsettlement but I didn't get one and that is making me feel empty and...and sad, maybe?
In its sheer rawness with the stark characters speaking out their minds and figuring out the others', it again brought me closer to feeling what I felt while 'living' Rohinton Mistry's 'A Fine Balance.'
It is an uncomfortable read, made me shift on my seat time and again.
It is a difficult read, making me having to make my mind into reading it further.
It is an eye-opening experience, making me wade through the pages to read more.
It is a sentimental read, making me feel a plethora of emotions, all at the same time.
The tenants, a widow, a drunkard, an unhappy couple, an abused wife, a sexually harassed girl, an abusive father are all dragging along their lives without any hope, aspiration or ambition. They just go on, soulless and carrying the heavy burdens of their claustrophobic pasts and bleak present that have made them stagnant.
The narrative started slowly and was rather bleak challenging me to go on which I sure did. I was apprehensive about reading it further since it was frightfully unsettling but I was attracted to reading it all the same. The compelling writing style and the dark nuances and the thrill of knowing the past made it un-putdownable.
The phenomenal characterisation is an icing on the cake. Each character is a neighbor to the other, are so unconnected yet share a similarity. They all are not happy with their past lives, hasty decisions and unfruitful actions, and continually wish to be able to change them, undo them to live a happy life in which they were loved and cared for.
There were many characters I felt empathetic for, but when read about their side of the story, I couldn't hide my disgust for them.
Each chapter is a point of view, an addition to the cramped air of the Mansion.
They are presented in their absolute stark nature and rawness resembling the real life and its complexities and they bring forward the true nature of the society by subtly highlighting some grave social issues that make one stop and think hard, take a deep breath, swallow the harshness and move on.The narrative made me cringe and sometimes smile, at times both, at the silliness of thoughts or the unimaginable actions. The characters posed questions relevant to their times and the present, they acted older than their age, sometimes even younger, did hard-to-believe things, thought silly yet powerful notions and staged their real selves yet remained secretive to the world and to each other.The narrative brought the deep rooted misogyny and the gender biasness to the forefront through the perspective of its characters. It puts forward the entire society in a debatable position wherein the readers are left to judge the sentimentalities of them characters, the narrative giving a mere account of things as and when they happened and continue to happen.
It is laced with numerous trigger warnings and each act a blow after the other. Just when you think nothing worse could happen you're given another hard blow with your eyes turning as big as saucers at the harshness of the words leaving you numb and making you force into believing what you just read, as it happened with me.
I couldn't stop my pencil from running freehand, underlining and annotating and writing what I felt for the fear of rereading it and reliving those shocking episodes. The narrative ended and I felt a void inside me, a hollowness. I guess I wanted a happy ending after all the dark-ness and the unsettlement but I didn't get one and that is making me feel empty and...and sad, maybe?
In its sheer rawness with the stark characters speaking out their minds and figuring out the others', it again brought me closer to feeling what I felt while 'living' Rohinton Mistry's 'A Fine Balance.'
May 10, 2022
Gods and Ends • 3/5 ⭐ • Contemporary Fiction
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TW: Domestic Violence, Sexual Harassment, Pedophilia
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Chronicling the lives of the tenants of Obrigado Manson in Orlem, Gods and Ends is a story about a Roman Catholic parish in suburban Bombay. In a world where men escape to the Gulf to earn thousands of rupees in Dinars and come back to beat their wives and abuse their children, the novel throws light on the levels humanity stoops to by feeding on years of poverty, generational trauma and frustration.
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This will be more of a personal + academic review, because the lines were blurred for me when I read the book. On first hand, it is obviously well written- I haven't researched on the author's background, so from what I believe there must have been a lot of research that went into this book. On the other hand, it did not make me think as normal Indian contemporary makes you think. I was expecting more metaphors and juxtapositions, thoughts that made you close the book and relate your own life to those words as contemporary usually made me feel- that is a characteristic of female contemporary Indian authors. This was my first ever contemporary by an Indian male author, and though I wasn't disappointed- I looked forward to more pondering.
One thing that is striking is the beautiful characterization. It is, to say the least, very detailed & surprisingly very unique, because the author relies on dialogue more than anything for development. I think the reason I am not giving this a higher rating is because the themes were disturbing, the ending making me revolted. I have read such themes, but those books were so immensely emotional that you were bound to feel. Lindsay Pereira on the other hand gives us exactly what domestic & sexual violence looks like in real life- bleak & utterly unromanticized. From one point of view, abuse is the best character in the book, for nothing else is as realistically depicted. Maybe I need more time to digest such books, for I am used to stories that almost always end on a happy note after such themes.
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TW: Domestic Violence, Sexual Harassment, Pedophilia
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Chronicling the lives of the tenants of Obrigado Manson in Orlem, Gods and Ends is a story about a Roman Catholic parish in suburban Bombay. In a world where men escape to the Gulf to earn thousands of rupees in Dinars and come back to beat their wives and abuse their children, the novel throws light on the levels humanity stoops to by feeding on years of poverty, generational trauma and frustration.
.
This will be more of a personal + academic review, because the lines were blurred for me when I read the book. On first hand, it is obviously well written- I haven't researched on the author's background, so from what I believe there must have been a lot of research that went into this book. On the other hand, it did not make me think as normal Indian contemporary makes you think. I was expecting more metaphors and juxtapositions, thoughts that made you close the book and relate your own life to those words as contemporary usually made me feel- that is a characteristic of female contemporary Indian authors. This was my first ever contemporary by an Indian male author, and though I wasn't disappointed- I looked forward to more pondering.
One thing that is striking is the beautiful characterization. It is, to say the least, very detailed & surprisingly very unique, because the author relies on dialogue more than anything for development. I think the reason I am not giving this a higher rating is because the themes were disturbing, the ending making me revolted. I have read such themes, but those books were so immensely emotional that you were bound to feel. Lindsay Pereira on the other hand gives us exactly what domestic & sexual violence looks like in real life- bleak & utterly unromanticized. From one point of view, abuse is the best character in the book, for nothing else is as realistically depicted. Maybe I need more time to digest such books, for I am used to stories that almost always end on a happy note after such themes.
March 22, 2021
Set in a rundown building in the suburbs of Bombay, the tenants at the Obrigado mansion in Orlem are set in their emotionless ways and continue to live a life of no purpose. Gods and Ends by Lindsay Pereira takes you back to the old Bombay of 70s, in a Parish household with obligated men & worn-down women, abusive husbands & repressed wives, and a young Philomena Sequeira.
Philo is the only one who had any spark, a will to live beyond the depressed borders of this godforsaken mansion. A little bud waiting to bloom in the most beautiful flower, before it all comes crashing down. The Obrigado mansion is proven to engulf anyone in its sinister grasp who dares to live longer than a year. The tenants here have spent their lives in distress and have no inkling of hope but they all have a misplaced faith.
There isn’t a single breath of fresh air in this claustrophobic home to a dysfunctional group of people, even the only vacated Room 106 has an unknown soul haunting it. What is most engaging about this book is the constant self-inflicted misery of people that goes up a notch with each character. They have come a long way from humans wanting to live a fulfilled life to souls tired of waiting for damnation for their sins.
Only one woman in this whole mansion fights for the life she wants to live.
The author has managed to create an atmosphere around his narrative. You can hear the characters, their unique accents and constant bickering across corridors (atleast I could imagine this lol). You see the dilapidated mansion right in front of you and yet you never question its existence. You become a slave to the narrative.
Its an extremely engaging story. Its more character driven so don’t expect any ups and downs in the storyline.
Philo is the only one who had any spark, a will to live beyond the depressed borders of this godforsaken mansion. A little bud waiting to bloom in the most beautiful flower, before it all comes crashing down. The Obrigado mansion is proven to engulf anyone in its sinister grasp who dares to live longer than a year. The tenants here have spent their lives in distress and have no inkling of hope but they all have a misplaced faith.
There isn’t a single breath of fresh air in this claustrophobic home to a dysfunctional group of people, even the only vacated Room 106 has an unknown soul haunting it. What is most engaging about this book is the constant self-inflicted misery of people that goes up a notch with each character. They have come a long way from humans wanting to live a fulfilled life to souls tired of waiting for damnation for their sins.
Only one woman in this whole mansion fights for the life she wants to live.
The author has managed to create an atmosphere around his narrative. You can hear the characters, their unique accents and constant bickering across corridors (atleast I could imagine this lol). You see the dilapidated mansion right in front of you and yet you never question its existence. You become a slave to the narrative.
Its an extremely engaging story. Its more character driven so don’t expect any ups and downs in the storyline.
July 5, 2021
Lindsay Pereira's Gods and Ends is a book devoid of any hope. Set in Orlem, and populated by Roman Catholic characters, the book is a testament of their claustrophobic lives and tragedies, which are largely of their own making.
It is a little hard to say what works so well for a book which is so bleak from beginning to end, which doesn't have a proper 'plot' per se, the chapters being related to each other by the simple and tenous thread that they all tell the lives of people living in the same building.
Perhaps what works so well is its narration, where we readers - akin to God - get to see what goes on behind close doors. We become privy to the innermost desires, the most shameful actions and the biggest secrets of all the characters. We see them as they see themselves as well as the others see them.
With its multiple points of views, multiple voices and multiple characters, the book also becomes a linguistic delight. There are chapters narrated in first person, with all the complexities of language and inflexion, there is a chapter that has no sentence breaks and there is the pleasure of knowing that about the characters which they hide from everyone else.
Make no mistake though, this book is bleak. It is populated by drunk men who beat their wives, women who pray for their husbands' death and children who suffer at the hands of their parents. Pereira takes care to snuff the only ray of hope one feels for a character when he makes her a perpetrator of the same that she has suffered. And yet, if you start this, you won't be able to stop till its done
It is a little hard to say what works so well for a book which is so bleak from beginning to end, which doesn't have a proper 'plot' per se, the chapters being related to each other by the simple and tenous thread that they all tell the lives of people living in the same building.
Perhaps what works so well is its narration, where we readers - akin to God - get to see what goes on behind close doors. We become privy to the innermost desires, the most shameful actions and the biggest secrets of all the characters. We see them as they see themselves as well as the others see them.
With its multiple points of views, multiple voices and multiple characters, the book also becomes a linguistic delight. There are chapters narrated in first person, with all the complexities of language and inflexion, there is a chapter that has no sentence breaks and there is the pleasure of knowing that about the characters which they hide from everyone else.
Make no mistake though, this book is bleak. It is populated by drunk men who beat their wives, women who pray for their husbands' death and children who suffer at the hands of their parents. Pereira takes care to snuff the only ray of hope one feels for a character when he makes her a perpetrator of the same that she has suffered. And yet, if you start this, you won't be able to stop till its done
October 17, 2021
Gods and Ends, as the name all characters in the book either believe in God, in search of hope or betterment, or simply living their worn out lives with no desires and waiting for their individual 'ends'.
Set in Orlem in 70s Bombay, it's a multi-facets novel about catholic residents of Obrigado Mansion. Just like the outworn Mansion, with chipped, crumpling walls, the lives of the characters are shaped in similar fashion.
Initially when I began reading it there was a sense of sympathy developed in me for characters but it went opposite when I read a good part of it. I know many of you will relate to this if you have read it.
Although each character has been dedicated with a stand out chapter, one that etched in my memory is Philomena, a girl who witnesses failed marriage of her parents, sexual abuse, and taunts every day for her obese body. All this collectively doesn't do any good to her and it makes us regret awfully because all this still happens around us.
The book is also a sheer example of when one doesn't believe in hope or renewal, selfishness eat them. This is not true for every character but at least for some.
The author has done a splendid job in putting forward 24 characters distinctly in a compact yet impactful way. From writing dialogues in phonetic style of characters to scathing the religious credence with his humour.
Although a grim tone hovers through out the book, I still binge read it with no moments of hanging my neck in boredom.
Now I can clearly see why it deserves to be in JCB shortlist.
Set in Orlem in 70s Bombay, it's a multi-facets novel about catholic residents of Obrigado Mansion. Just like the outworn Mansion, with chipped, crumpling walls, the lives of the characters are shaped in similar fashion.
Initially when I began reading it there was a sense of sympathy developed in me for characters but it went opposite when I read a good part of it. I know many of you will relate to this if you have read it.
Although each character has been dedicated with a stand out chapter, one that etched in my memory is Philomena, a girl who witnesses failed marriage of her parents, sexual abuse, and taunts every day for her obese body. All this collectively doesn't do any good to her and it makes us regret awfully because all this still happens around us.
The book is also a sheer example of when one doesn't believe in hope or renewal, selfishness eat them. This is not true for every character but at least for some.
The author has done a splendid job in putting forward 24 characters distinctly in a compact yet impactful way. From writing dialogues in phonetic style of characters to scathing the religious credence with his humour.
Although a grim tone hovers through out the book, I still binge read it with no moments of hanging my neck in boredom.
Now I can clearly see why it deserves to be in JCB shortlist.
Read
August 16, 2022There's no redemption for anyone— especially for those who remain behind in Orlem— in this book.
Tenants of Obrigado mansion are miserable men and women who have been wronged by each other and hold grudges accumulated over ages against each other. Featuring alcoholic husbands, devout wives and confused children, 'Gods and Ends' offers a grim portrait of a Catholic community living in the suburbs of Bombay in late 70s. Separated by dusty curtains and papery walls which offer an illusion of privacy, each family in the 'mansion'- a building with crumbling infrastructure- desperately attempts to preserve its nonexistent reputation, or naturalness. The cost of such an exercise is high, and some like Gavin and his mother and Michelle know better than to bite through the pain. Brigette and Angelina, on the other hand, are among those who do not turn their lips away the cup of suffering they are called to drink from.
The author snoops into the residents' lives, their woes and their aspirations through chapters presented in the forms of dialogues and vignettes.
For a book that deals with heavy TW content(SA, domestic abuse, fatphobia) it actually manages to be engaging and humorous.
I wish the ending had been different or at least, not so brutal. Perhaps, that comes from a personal place of belief that survivors will not perpetuate what they have undergone themselves—not that the story must abide to such political correctness.
Tenants of Obrigado mansion are miserable men and women who have been wronged by each other and hold grudges accumulated over ages against each other. Featuring alcoholic husbands, devout wives and confused children, 'Gods and Ends' offers a grim portrait of a Catholic community living in the suburbs of Bombay in late 70s. Separated by dusty curtains and papery walls which offer an illusion of privacy, each family in the 'mansion'- a building with crumbling infrastructure- desperately attempts to preserve its nonexistent reputation, or naturalness. The cost of such an exercise is high, and some like Gavin and his mother and Michelle know better than to bite through the pain. Brigette and Angelina, on the other hand, are among those who do not turn their lips away the cup of suffering they are called to drink from.
The author snoops into the residents' lives, their woes and their aspirations through chapters presented in the forms of dialogues and vignettes.
For a book that deals with heavy TW content(SA, domestic abuse, fatphobia) it actually manages to be engaging and humorous.
I wish the ending had been different or at least, not so brutal. Perhaps, that comes from a personal place of belief that survivors will not perpetuate what they have undergone themselves—not that the story must abide to such political correctness.
July 16, 2023
Gods and Ends is a grim book because the characters within are ruled by the holy trinity of Wine, Women and Song. Their stories are narrated by Pereira in a language that’s raw and dark and though they come alive I for one, would rather forget them. They depressed me. They are unlikeable, every one of them.
There was a “Groundhog Day” feeling about their lives, a feeling that they were caught in a claustrophobic loop of despair and ruin that bred alcoholism, domestic violence, sexual assault, oppression and unhappiness with no end in sight.
The novel succeeds in shattering the idealist conception that home and church are zones of comfort and safety. Instead, it portrays them as bullying loveless spaces where trust becomes an issue of contention and religion an epitome of hypocrisy.
There was a “Groundhog Day” feeling about their lives, a feeling that they were caught in a claustrophobic loop of despair and ruin that bred alcoholism, domestic violence, sexual assault, oppression and unhappiness with no end in sight.
The novel succeeds in shattering the idealist conception that home and church are zones of comfort and safety. Instead, it portrays them as bullying loveless spaces where trust becomes an issue of contention and religion an epitome of hypocrisy.
May 15, 2022
Keenly observed vignettes of the lives of a Catholic community in the Mumbai suburb of Orlem, Lindsay Pereira captures the frustrations, feuds and fading dreams of each resident of the Obrigado Mansion in bleak detail.
March 13, 2023
Lindsay Pereira debut novel is spun from the broken, joyless lives in crumbling Obrigado Mansion in Orlem. As devastated are the tenants as the mansion is in ruins.
The eight-roomed, time ravaged mansion is a miniscule Goan catholic diaspora. Its septuagenarian owner, Francisco Fernandez occupies the two rooms at the front. His world revolves around rent, feni libation. In Room 103, Peter Vaz, jobless, forsaken by wife and son, wastes away listening to fado or watching porn if not at Eddie’s country liquor bar. Gilbert , the evangelist, and Angelina D'Souza, are locked in a loveless, sexless marriage in Room 104. Gilbert, however, finds succour in the bed with the widow, Joannes Nunes. After all, ‘God wanted him to spread joy , not sorrow’, so he believes. Bella Quadros, a sixty year widow, sleepwalks through life in Room 105.
Unsurprisingly, Room no 106 is unoccupied. No one has stayed in it for more than a year for it is a place where ‘dreams went to die’ . Michelle, the lovely daughter of Joslyn and Mary D'Costa in Room no 107 wants to marry a Hindu boy. In Room 108 Jude, the wife-beater and grumpy Brigette Sequeira have a daughter Philomena whose obesity is the talk of the town. Jude pisses away his worldly worries and boose in the well from which many draw their drinking water. Father Gonsalves torments himself reconciling concupiscent urges with vows of celibacy , the spiritual with the carnal.
These piteous characters, despairing and dispirited, losers at fortune's lottery, go through the motions of living like zombies. Their aborted dreams, repressed desires, and frustrations find outlets in misogynistic violence, the oblivion of drunkenness, and squabbles. They have become dregs of society, incapable of bettering themselves yet envious of those who have made it in life . Obviously, for them religion has lost its essence. They attend Sunday mass, celebrate Christmas and Easter, seek redemption of sins through confessionals but continue to lead sinful lives. A fruitless existence of praying and preying . An abiding sense of loneliness, gloom, hopelessness pervades Obrigado Mansion .
Though the skyline of Orlem is fast changing, they cstay frozen in time like Eddie’s bar ,‘a relic from another time stuck in a cocoon of its own making’. Understandably, there is diasporic pining for Goa, for a surrendered way of life, and also the realization that things back home have moved on, beyond them.
The use of chapter length soliloquys to interlock independent lives of the characters into a sparkling composite appealed to me. The raffish, impish and raw tone of the narrative also drew me in. The writing stance is that of a clinically detached, unaffected outsider.
The writer leaves one question hanging in the air, were the piteous characters hurtling towards ends ordained by gods or were ends begotten of existence excised of gods ?
Definitely a good read.
The eight-roomed, time ravaged mansion is a miniscule Goan catholic diaspora. Its septuagenarian owner, Francisco Fernandez occupies the two rooms at the front. His world revolves around rent, feni libation. In Room 103, Peter Vaz, jobless, forsaken by wife and son, wastes away listening to fado or watching porn if not at Eddie’s country liquor bar. Gilbert , the evangelist, and Angelina D'Souza, are locked in a loveless, sexless marriage in Room 104. Gilbert, however, finds succour in the bed with the widow, Joannes Nunes. After all, ‘God wanted him to spread joy , not sorrow’, so he believes. Bella Quadros, a sixty year widow, sleepwalks through life in Room 105.
Unsurprisingly, Room no 106 is unoccupied. No one has stayed in it for more than a year for it is a place where ‘dreams went to die’ . Michelle, the lovely daughter of Joslyn and Mary D'Costa in Room no 107 wants to marry a Hindu boy. In Room 108 Jude, the wife-beater and grumpy Brigette Sequeira have a daughter Philomena whose obesity is the talk of the town. Jude pisses away his worldly worries and boose in the well from which many draw their drinking water. Father Gonsalves torments himself reconciling concupiscent urges with vows of celibacy , the spiritual with the carnal.
These piteous characters, despairing and dispirited, losers at fortune's lottery, go through the motions of living like zombies. Their aborted dreams, repressed desires, and frustrations find outlets in misogynistic violence, the oblivion of drunkenness, and squabbles. They have become dregs of society, incapable of bettering themselves yet envious of those who have made it in life . Obviously, for them religion has lost its essence. They attend Sunday mass, celebrate Christmas and Easter, seek redemption of sins through confessionals but continue to lead sinful lives. A fruitless existence of praying and preying . An abiding sense of loneliness, gloom, hopelessness pervades Obrigado Mansion .
Though the skyline of Orlem is fast changing, they cstay frozen in time like Eddie’s bar ,‘a relic from another time stuck in a cocoon of its own making’. Understandably, there is diasporic pining for Goa, for a surrendered way of life, and also the realization that things back home have moved on, beyond them.
The use of chapter length soliloquys to interlock independent lives of the characters into a sparkling composite appealed to me. The raffish, impish and raw tone of the narrative also drew me in. The writing stance is that of a clinically detached, unaffected outsider.
The writer leaves one question hanging in the air, were the piteous characters hurtling towards ends ordained by gods or were ends begotten of existence excised of gods ?
Definitely a good read.
Read
March 22, 2021While I was reading Gods and Ends, I was reminded of certain modernist poems I had read back in my undergraduate years. Indeed, Gods and Ends has a very modernist setting, evident in its sordidness and the haplessness that accompanies it's characters. The fact that the story does not promise any sort of hope or redemption for the people is manifested in the Obrigado Mansion in suburban Bombay.
At some point, it does seem that the moss and damp on the walls of the mansion are as much part of the story as the tenants themselves. The damp permeates into the lives of these characters, dampening the littlest of hope they had at some point of their lives, by the time we are in the last page.
However, Gods and Ends is not a story devoid of hope per se. Rather, what I realised after I finished reading it, Gods and Ends is a study of the persistence of experience. Well yes, I took inspiration from Dali's painting, but I believe that it is perhaps best way to explain what I want to convey. Seeing and perceiving sadness through the moss that grows over the dreams or whatever aspirations that these tenants have for themselves is quite painful. Yet, the capability of language to throws occasional rays of humour and wit through the canopy of despair makes Gods and Ends such an impactful read. I can't thank enough @vivekisms and @penguinindia for this opportunity.
At some point, it does seem that the moss and damp on the walls of the mansion are as much part of the story as the tenants themselves. The damp permeates into the lives of these characters, dampening the littlest of hope they had at some point of their lives, by the time we are in the last page.
However, Gods and Ends is not a story devoid of hope per se. Rather, what I realised after I finished reading it, Gods and Ends is a study of the persistence of experience. Well yes, I took inspiration from Dali's painting, but I believe that it is perhaps best way to explain what I want to convey. Seeing and perceiving sadness through the moss that grows over the dreams or whatever aspirations that these tenants have for themselves is quite painful. Yet, the capability of language to throws occasional rays of humour and wit through the canopy of despair makes Gods and Ends such an impactful read. I can't thank enough @vivekisms and @penguinindia for this opportunity.
August 16, 2023
A wonderfully written book about a microcosm in Mumbai, a testament to the lives of the marginalised, dreaming of a better tomorrow as the city changes around them, dealing with a complete lack of privacy and daily hardships, and coping by escpaing. This book is almost a companion piece to Bombay Balchao, which was decidedly warmer and funnier, set in South Mumbai, compared to Gods and Ends in Malad, and showing the stark difference of the impact of where you live on your life within the same city.
March 23, 2021
Set in Orlem, a Roman Catholic parish in Malad which is a suburb of Bombay, this debut novel unveils the lives of the tenants in the dilapidated Obrigado Mansion - home to the meek, the desolate, the vindictive, the pitiful, and the pious. Where ‘the children grew up and left, adults stayed back and withered’.
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Each chapter showcases a different tenant’s perspectives, and little disjointed sketches come together to form the narrative. Some are memories, and some stream of consciousness monologues, while others are narrated in third person to bring us up to speed with each of their personal struggles and inner turmoils. As the characters are fleshed out, over the course of the novel, the multitude of shades of grey are revealed gradually.
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Tenuous filial bonds, disdain for a certain type of piety, abusive and toxic relationships, and schadenfreude, are just some of the themes touched upon as we delve into disturbing vignettes in and around these neighbours’ lives. Abrupt petty viciousness follows abject desolation, however, none of these people are likeable despite quite a few situations rooted in reality, which require trigger warnings, and may be difficult to read.
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Some of them are living with the consequences of their choice while others suffer tragedies not of their own making. A few opinions expressed read like those of the author, rather than the characters’, and the shifts in scale of the writing style felt jarring which was probably intentional. As the tenants get acclimatised to the stench of despair only by virtue of the passage of time, this narrative draws you in imperceptibly. The atmosphere of suffocating dilapidation, not just of the physical building but also to the very fabric of the mundane existence within, is palpable in the prose at times but it could get overwhelming. This is not for you if you’re hoping for a neat ending. A quick read indeed, but not a light read in the least.
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A personal note about the writing style… reading about characters from a culture not ones own is always an intriguing experience for me. Having lived in Bombay, and being part of an eclectic social circle, at times I tend to take languages and dialects for granted. The conversational style used in this book still stood out for me and made m curious about how it would be received by readers not as exposed to the idiosyncrasies of the typical cadence and it’s nuances. Would love to know your thoughts!
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Each chapter showcases a different tenant’s perspectives, and little disjointed sketches come together to form the narrative. Some are memories, and some stream of consciousness monologues, while others are narrated in third person to bring us up to speed with each of their personal struggles and inner turmoils. As the characters are fleshed out, over the course of the novel, the multitude of shades of grey are revealed gradually.
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Tenuous filial bonds, disdain for a certain type of piety, abusive and toxic relationships, and schadenfreude, are just some of the themes touched upon as we delve into disturbing vignettes in and around these neighbours’ lives. Abrupt petty viciousness follows abject desolation, however, none of these people are likeable despite quite a few situations rooted in reality, which require trigger warnings, and may be difficult to read.
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Some of them are living with the consequences of their choice while others suffer tragedies not of their own making. A few opinions expressed read like those of the author, rather than the characters’, and the shifts in scale of the writing style felt jarring which was probably intentional. As the tenants get acclimatised to the stench of despair only by virtue of the passage of time, this narrative draws you in imperceptibly. The atmosphere of suffocating dilapidation, not just of the physical building but also to the very fabric of the mundane existence within, is palpable in the prose at times but it could get overwhelming. This is not for you if you’re hoping for a neat ending. A quick read indeed, but not a light read in the least.
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
A personal note about the writing style… reading about characters from a culture not ones own is always an intriguing experience for me. Having lived in Bombay, and being part of an eclectic social circle, at times I tend to take languages and dialects for granted. The conversational style used in this book still stood out for me and made m curious about how it would be received by readers not as exposed to the idiosyncrasies of the typical cadence and it’s nuances. Would love to know your thoughts!
December 18, 2021
An Unforgiving Book
Lindsay holds the reader captive till the very end. The book kind of makes you hate yourself at the end, but in a good way. An awesome debut.
Lindsay holds the reader captive till the very end. The book kind of makes you hate yourself at the end, but in a good way. An awesome debut.
July 1, 2022
That ending left me with a shudder.
On a more elaborate note, the idioms and idiosyncrasies of the 'Catlick' community have been captured perfectly – nuances you ordinarily wouldn't be able to pinpoint and yet, Lindsay put it in across in words? What even! It's not a happy book, by any measure. But I found myself greedily lapping up the vagaries of each character, and entering their murky worlds. I particularly liked the lengthy diatribes scattered across the book; it served as a real look-see into moral depravity.
A stupendous piece of work!
On a more elaborate note, the idioms and idiosyncrasies of the 'Catlick' community have been captured perfectly – nuances you ordinarily wouldn't be able to pinpoint and yet, Lindsay put it in across in words? What even! It's not a happy book, by any measure. But I found myself greedily lapping up the vagaries of each character, and entering their murky worlds. I particularly liked the lengthy diatribes scattered across the book; it served as a real look-see into moral depravity.
A stupendous piece of work!
August 21, 2021
"The son of God ought to have done it, if only to try and figure out why more and more of His people were choosing to drop out of churches the world over, or why cathedrals that once shook with the voices of thousands in praise now survived only with the help of audio guides and photography passes rented out to curious tourists. He could have finally done something about the priests who gave His churches a bad name, making it harder for the clergy to trust them with children. He could have amended the rules too, giving women more power because it was about time someone did."
Set in Obrigado Mansion, Orlem, Gods and Ends is the story of Catholics who live an unremarkable life. In a city like Bombay, where people come to fulfill their dreams, people like the ones in Obrigado Mansion are often forgotten, overlooked. The characters in this are miserable, angry, humans with terrible past and almost a predictable future. Their present is unfolded through multiple POV's in the book, which includes alcholics, abusive husbands, depressed and grieving father, a priest and children trying to find their reality outside this low-spirited place.
After finishing the book I found that Obrigado is used to express gratitude in Portuguese and 'mansion' is almost ironical for the single roomed houses here. Although this place has enough space to hold their grief and anger without breaking the walls, hopes and will to live often seems to be crushed here.
The story doesn't get hopeful as it progresses (neither does it shows any signs of) but I couldn't stop myself from reading it. The writing style was new for me as there use of Goan dialect in the conversation, still it didn't put me down or baffle me.
Every character is so unique and the way they are portrayed, then eventually perceived by us is brilliant if you ask me. This is a solid debut novel.
Set in Obrigado Mansion, Orlem, Gods and Ends is the story of Catholics who live an unremarkable life. In a city like Bombay, where people come to fulfill their dreams, people like the ones in Obrigado Mansion are often forgotten, overlooked. The characters in this are miserable, angry, humans with terrible past and almost a predictable future. Their present is unfolded through multiple POV's in the book, which includes alcholics, abusive husbands, depressed and grieving father, a priest and children trying to find their reality outside this low-spirited place.
After finishing the book I found that Obrigado is used to express gratitude in Portuguese and 'mansion' is almost ironical for the single roomed houses here. Although this place has enough space to hold their grief and anger without breaking the walls, hopes and will to live often seems to be crushed here.
The story doesn't get hopeful as it progresses (neither does it shows any signs of) but I couldn't stop myself from reading it. The writing style was new for me as there use of Goan dialect in the conversation, still it didn't put me down or baffle me.
Every character is so unique and the way they are portrayed, then eventually perceived by us is brilliant if you ask me. This is a solid debut novel.
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