Rate this book

Anila's Journey (2008)

by Mary Finn(Favorite Author)

3.38 of 5 Votes: 1

ISBN

0763639168 (ISBN13: 9780763639167)

languge

English

genre

Historical Fiction

publisher

Candlewick Press

review 1: This is a really fine book. For some reason it was aimed at the YA market but I think it will appeal to older readers just as much. Densely textured, fabulously descriptive, beautifully realised, it tells the story of Anila Tandy, an eighteenth century Irish-Indian girl fending for herself in Calcutta. Shown in a series of chapters interspersed with flashbacks, it describes how Anila’s Irish father seemingly abandoned his Indian “family,” leaving her mother with little choice but to pine away as the mistress of a kindly, but unimaginative English banker. Without going into graphic detail, the book makes it clear how vulnerable women were in those days, and how dependent they were on the goodwill of the European men who took them on. Anila never stops believing... more in her father. After her mother’s death, she resolves to stay in Calcutta alone in case he returns. She decides to make her living as a bird painter: a decision which is exquisitely illuminated by the author’s delicate, evocative descriptions of birds. When Anila is hired by a curious but likeable Englishman to take a trip upriver to search for rare birds, her life changes. The book is both readable and poetic. Anila notices that the European houses at night “glittered with their hundreds of chandeliers and sconces and lanterns, as if a piece of starry night was laid across the earth.” Her own house is an enchanting abandoned Gothic folly hidden in the wilderness at the bottom of a painter’s garden. Her Calcutta is peopled with real characters, bustling about, sweating, eating, scheming and arguing. It’s almost impossible to believe that the author, Mary Finn, was not brought up in India herself. Highly recommended
review 2: Reviewed by Tasha for TeensReadToo.comWhen Anila Tandy's guardians, the Hickeys, decide to leave Calcutta, they beg her to accompany them, but she stubbornly refuses to come so that just in case her long-gone father returns as he promised many years ago, she'll be there. Miss Hickey then sets her up with everything she'll need to survive by herself. Most importantly, she finds Anila a job as a bird painter on an expedition up the Ganges River. As the days go by and she discovers new birds, she also reflects on her past. How life was like when her mother was still alive and her father was still around, or remembering the stories her mother used to tell. Along the journey, Anila also finds herself and grows up. ANILA'S JOURNEY was a well-written historical story. The re-creation of historic India was fascinating and I enjoyed learning more about the older Indian culture. I thought that it was really interesting how Mary Finn alternated the chapters by telling what Anila was experiencing at the present and then stories about Anila's past - and then bringing them together in the end. Anila herself was an interesting character who really grew up throughout the novel and became her true self. I loved all of the culture references and felt like I learned quite a bit. At times, the book got dry and I found that it was hard to keep reading, but then it would get better over time. Overall, I really did enjoy the book. less

Download links for: Anila's Journey

Advertising