This is Leah Erdmann with the Sioux City Public Library, and you’re listening to Check It Out.
Today, I’m recommending The Bandit Queens, a roller coaster of a tragicomedy by Parini Shroff.
Five years ago, Geeta’s abusive husband Ramesh disappeared from their small village in India, igniting rumors that Geeta had taken her marital grievances into her own hands– killing Ramesh and disposing of his body without a trace. The truth, however, is that Ramesh had abandoned her without explanation, leaving only his considerable debts behind.
Since his disappearance, Geeta has been ostracized and isolated by everyone who once seemed to care for her. Even so, abandonment is not without its silver linings. Now free from her abuser and feared by all, Geeta has more power and autonomy than she ever deemed possible. She likes being left alone, and her assumed aptitude for murder provides safety and security women in her position aren’t generally afforded. She has even established her own source of income– making and selling jewelry.
Above her workstation hangs a picture of Geeta’s heroine– the original Bandit Queen, Phoolan Mallah. After years of abuse at the hands of various men, Phoolan escaped and, like a modern, female Robin Hood, took charge of a gang of robbers who stole from higher caste villages and sought revenge on her abusers. Geeta sees a little of herself in Phoolan, and aspires to her bravery as she faces the world alone.
When Farah, an acquaintance of Geeta’s she isn’t very fond of, enlists Geeta’s help disposing of her own abusive husband, she discovers Geeta isn’t the cold-blooded killer everyone believes her to be. Geeta must act quickly to preserve her hard-won independence and, despite claiming indifference, she is sympathetic to Farah’s hardship. She becomes a Bandit Queen in her own right, coming to the aid of desperate women and, incidentally, getting involved with the village bootlegging operation and criminal underworld.
Check out The Bandit Queens and more great reads at the Sioux City Public Library!
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