When I started reading the initial pages, of the first in Amitav Ghosh’s trilogy of novels ‘Sea of Poppies’, I wondered if it might have been written while on an opium high. As the multitude of characters speaking complicated dialects confused me enough to frequently return to read pages already read and then pause to absorb and make sense of all that I had read, and re-read, so far.
Acute exasperation almost caused me to give up reading this 512 page, hardback tome, but Amitav Ghosh’s polished writing slowly and surely enticed me into familiarizing myself with the characters who would board the ship Ibis, all for very different reasons of their own.
Painstaking research, which Ghosh has expertly used, helps form an impressive, informative and rich in detail base for the first of the trilogy. His fine writing has done justice to each of the characters, of which there is a diverse abundance of. And before you realize it you have picked out your favorites and are eager to know more about them and how they would face circumstances that come their way.
With ‘Sea of Poppies’, Amitav Ghosh also reveals a new facet of his writing, with chuckle-worthy humor subtly woven in the most unexpected of situations. The book is also liberally sprinkled with enlightening cuss-words, some of which are ridiculously amusing.
With ‘Sea of Poppies’ Amitav Ghosh takes you on a journey that you will be glad to be part of, once you are patient enough to embark on it.