Review of THE SPACE BETWEEN US by Thrity Umrigar

 3 Stars

I had come across Thrity Umrigar’s name a few times and so decided to choose this book as my audio companion on morning walks.  I was a tad disappointed.

The book focuses on two women from different backgrounds living in Bombay.  Sera Dubash is an upper-middle class Parsi widow.  Bhima, an illiterate Hindu, has worked for Sera for twenty years.  Bhima is heartbroken that her granddaughter Maya, whom she has been raising since the death of Maya’s parents, has left college because she is pregnant.  Meanwhile, Sera’s daughter Dinaz and her son-in-law Viraf are happily awaiting the arrival of their first child.  From the beginning it is obvious that very different fates await the two unborn children because of the economic classes to which their mothers belong.   

The title clearly suggests that a space divides Sera and Bhima, a space that is not bridged.  Though Sera has been paying for Maya’s education, Sera does not see Bhima as an equal.  For instance, Bhima must sit on the floor to have her tea and she is not allowed to use the family’s dishes.  The two women have both had hardships, both having suffered at the hands of their husbands, yet that is not enough to bring them together.  Sera’s choice when faced with a devastating truth is very telling. 

One of the themes is that women suffer unfairly in a society dominated by men.  Sera’s husband was physically and emotionally abusive, and Bhima’s husband abandoned her because he blamed her for actions she took during a crisis.  Maya becomes pregnant because she is coerced into having sex and is left to deal with the pregnancy while the man escapes any consequences for his behaviour.  Even when the truth is known about a man’s egregious behaviour, women accept it. 

What bothered me is the piling on of tragedies.  Every conceivable wrong is experienced by the women: domestic abuse, sexual abuse, a domineering mother-in-law, abject poverty, abandonment, loss of children, illness, economic exploitation, and prejudice.  It almost felt like the author had a list which she checked off once she’d included that trauma in the narrative. 

The ending is emotionally manipulative.  Bhima’s actions at the end are supposed to suggest that she has an epiphany, but it seems trite and artificial.  Given what awaits her in her future, her spending money as she does makes absolutely no sense and is totally out of character.  The author obviously wanted to end on a hopeful note, but the reality of Bhima’s situation offers little hope. 

This is not a bad book, but it doesn’t offer much that is original or exceptional.  The plot is predictable and the growth supposedly experienced by Bhima is unconvincing.  There is a sequel, The Secrets Between Us, and I’m torn as to whether I will add it to my iPod.