Play Book Tag discussion

It took me a little while to get into the swing of this book. But then I just had to laugh at the dark humor and ridiculous scenarios.

In a small village in India, abused housewives start killing off their husbands. The book also tackles the Indian caste system, the Hindu/Muslim divide and the overall lack of women's rights in India.

The author notes that she based the story on the real life "Bandit Queen" Phoolan Devi. Devi was born in poverty, was repeatedly sexually abused then married off at age 11. She eventually formed a Robin Hood style gang that stole from high-caste villages and shared the wealth with lower-caste villages. She also went on a vendetta to hunt down and kill rapists.

She was eventually sent to jail for her actions, but was such a folk hero that she was elected as a Member of Parliament upon her release from jail. And then tragically was assassinated outside her home in 2001.

I had never heard of Phoolan Devi, but she's clearly a household name in India. I'm amazed I had never heard of her (thank you myopic 24-hour American news).

This was a fun book - but now I'm interested to find a biography of the real Bandit Queen.

I got a kick out of this book, but there have been mixed reactions to it.

I'm glad you appreciated it as well. Great review!

This sounds so interesting, but I keep going back and forth on it. Is there discussion of sexual abuse in the book? I think that's what's keeping me away, but I can't really tell if it's actually present in the book...

I would say the sexual abuse is not graphic at all. The phrase "sexual abuse" is about as graphic as it gets. There is some description of physical violence, but not too gruesome - and the bad guys get the worst of it.

There is some animal cruelty which I find very hard to read through, but all the animals get away and are OK. The main character rescues a small puppy who becomes her pet and companion for the rest of the book.

Thanks for sharing the info about Phoolan Devi. That makes the book a lot more interesting. I wish I knew (or noticed it) when I read the book.

I enjoyed the book too. I don't remember many of the details, but I remember that some of the women made life so much harder for other women.