Chacko's wife left him about nine years ago for a man who is know dead. Now that the man is dead, Chacko can see his baby girl, Sophie Mol, who he hasn't seen since the divorce nine years ago. When he gets to the city they all go to see The Sound of Music at the movie theater. The experience is a terrible one for Estha for has a bad experience with the man who sells the drinks at the theater. Ammu makes the family leave the theater after Estha becomes sick and they go back to the hotel for the night. Estha never tells Ammu what happened with the drink vender because he doesnt want Ammu to love him less.
Back at the hotel, Estha sleeps in a room with Ammu and Baby Kochama because he is sick and Rahel sleeps with Uncle Chacko. Uncle CHacko cannot stop thinking about his baby girl who he hasnt seen in forever and therefore cant sleep. He wakes up at 2am to find that Estha has come into his room to sleep with Rahel.
I hated these chapters so much. They were really sick and I wonder what they are going to have to do with the book later on. I realize now the bond that Estha and Rahel have as twins and how Ammu tends to favor Estha more. I really hope the guy at the movie theater doesn't show up and abduct Estha. I also hope the book moves on from these negative chapters and takes a more positive turn.
I think its dumb that CHacko had to wait until Joe was dead to see Sophie Mol. The more influence he could have had on her when she was younger would have been better than her being raised just by her mother. I know i wouldnt be comfortable if my kid was being raised by some stranger.
Estha really needs to tell someone what happened in the theater, although i think Rahel knows somehow, because all of the could collect inside of him and drive him to insanity or to commit suicide or something. He needs to know that Ammu will still love him.
1 comment:
Chacko's situation is sort of sad, and then later he loses Sophie, which makes it even worse. Poor guy.
If you hated these chapters, you could have bailed on the book. It would have been early enough for you to go back to library cart and pick another selection?
As for a positive turn, the book is about poverty stricken families in India, so there really isn't much room for happy endings and the like. Lets see if you stick through it a bit longer or if your feeling change later in the story? Again, if not, you should have changed books.
That's what divorce does to families. It tears them apart, as we see with Sophie Mol. Her father should have been in her life, but the mother moved away and he had no say in it.
Mr. Farrell
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