The Question of Red
The Question of Red is another of Amazon's translated works that I picked up for free on world book day. This one was actually translated by the author herself, who is bilingual, and I think that helped retain a lot of the poetry of the original story. Pamuntjak has an incredible gift for language. It was easy to get caught up that language, which made the rest of the story go down easier. Because this tale is deeply tragic. It centers on Amba, a woman named for a character in the Mahabharata who was twice scorned and doomed to a life of bitterness and vengeance. The modern Amba doesn't really believe that her fate is so tied up with that of her namesake. But when she finds herself engaged to a man named Salwa and in love with a man named Bhisma, just like the Amba of the stories, she begins to have her doubts. And to self-sabotage. In attempting to escape her fate, she might just bring it down upon herself. This is a book about stories and how they shape our lives. We tel...