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Showing posts from November, 2016

KR Meera's The Gospel of Yudas: A gripping, disturbing portrayal of the Naxalite movement during Emergency in Kerala

Winter mornings are great to read gripping novels that explore the heart's longing for the forbidden , but you need the comfort of a warm sweater, an inviting quilt and a cozy bed to snuggle into.  And lots of chai - piping hot, laced with a dash of cardamom. That is how I read the first sentence of  KR Meera's novel,  The Gospel of  Yudas , translated by Rajesh Rajamohan, and the sentence simply leapt   into my consciousness as I read the words, " A traitor can never sleep. His hunger is eternal; his thirst, insatiable. " I HAVE to say this: This blurb took my breath away - the different shades of green-blue tones and the sinking girl evoked strong emotions even before I touched the first page. And you feel a spark of rebellion stem from within when you read poignant sentences like this, " In our lake, dead bodies raced among themselves daily to find their way to the surface , " and " In our feudal home - our Naalukettu - before I went t