{"id":13337,"date":"2021-01-01T19:23:23","date_gmt":"2021-01-01T13:53:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/?p=13337"},"modified":"2021-01-01T19:30:04","modified_gmt":"2021-01-01T14:00:04","slug":"a-plate-of-white-marble-by-bani-basu-translated-by-nandini-guha-book-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/2021\/01\/01\/a-plate-of-white-marble-by-bani-basu-translated-by-nandini-guha-book-review\/","title":{"rendered":"A Plate Of White Marble by Bani Basu, Translated by Nandini Guha &#8211; Book Review"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"306\" height=\"475\" src=\"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/55758793._SY475_.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-13338\" srcset=\"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/55758793._SY475_.jpg 306w, https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/55758793._SY475_-193x300.jpg 193w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 306px) 100vw, 306px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/55758793-a-plate-of-white-marble\">Goodreads\u00a0<\/a>|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.in\/gp\/product\/B08HRW8FJF\/ref=x_gr_w_bb_sin?ie=UTF8&amp;tag=x_gr_w_bb_in-21&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;camp=3626&amp;creative=24790\">Amazon<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Pages:<\/strong>\u00a0185<\/li><li><strong>Publisher:<\/strong>\u00a0Niyogi Books <\/li><li><strong>Publication Date:<\/strong>\u00a0September 2020 (first published January 1, 1990)<\/li><li><strong>My Rating:<\/strong>\u00a04\/5<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Goodreads Blurb<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>First published in 1990 in the original Bengali, A Plate of White Marble tells the tale of the \u2018new woman\u2019 of an era that just witnessed the independence of a nation. Bandana, the protagonist, though grieves over her husband\u2019s early death, never conforms to the social connotation and ideals of \u2018widowhood\u2019, thanks to her uncle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>She dares to begin her life afresh in every possible sense. But naturally, the road proves to be full of thorns as she gradually faces bitterness from many quarters of the society. The only thing she clings to is her son, but once that anchor too is lost, she leaves behind the safe concrete walls of what she used to consider \u2018home\u2019, only to work for a far greater cause\u2014she joins a children\u2019s home to work for those who need her the most.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This first translation brings a significant Bengali novel with important social concerns to a wider audience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Review<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>There are a number of reasons why I loved reading this book. It is a Bengali book and having not read many Indian regional books, it is an absolute delight whenever I do. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The culture was represented well and I must say, this book is one of the best translated books I have read so far. Set in the 1950s, it follows the life of Bandhana, a young woman who gets married at a young age and becomes a widow when she is 27. The book goes on to narrate her struggles as a widow, living with her orthodox in-laws as well as dealing with the rules prescribed by the society of how a widow should be. She is also a single mother. The book spans around 30 years of her life and the different ups and downs she goes through and introduces a number of characters who come into Bandhana&#8217;s life. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I loved how without being a very dense text, the book dealt with so many issues- widowhood, financial independence for women, societal norms, marriage and in-laws, family bonds, friendship, mental health and single parenting. It took me a while in the initial 100 pages to get into the book but after that, it was a breeze to read. The book is also quite realistic and I found the ending satisfactory. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you&#8217;re looking for an Indian book that is feminist in nature and has a strong element of family bonds, then I would highly recommend this book.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Thanks to the publisher Niyogi Books for a copy of this book!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-heading\">Q. Which is your favourite translated book? Let me know in the comments!<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong>Connect with me on&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/tavleen_words\/\">Instagram<\/a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/tavleensoni\">Twitter<\/a>&nbsp;|&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/user\/show\/32793447-tavleen-kaur\">Goodreads<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/2021\/01\/01\/a-plate-of-white-marble-by-bani-basu-translated-by-nandini-guha-book-review\/#more-13337\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading &#10142; <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">A Plate Of White Marble by Bani Basu, Translated by Nandini Guha &#8211; Book Review<\/span><\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[66,85],"class_list":["post-13337","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-book-reviews","tag-book-blogger","tag-book-review"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":4559,"url":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/2017\/02\/04\/books-i-read-in-january-2017\/","url_meta":{"origin":13337,"position":0},"title":"January 2017 Reads","date":"February 4, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Hello everyone! This is the first time i am doing a month reading wrap-up and I'm hoping to do a lot of these this year. January was a pretty good reading month for me. I finished 6 books. All of these were sent to me for review by their author.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Book Lists&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/images.gr-assets.com\/books\/1475398277l\/32329443.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5323,"url":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/2017\/03\/18\/spring-tbr-march-april-top-10-tuesday-7\/","url_meta":{"origin":13337,"position":1},"title":"Spring TBR (March-April): Top 10 Tuesday #7","date":"March 18, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Top 10 Tuesday is a weekly book meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.\u00a0For future Top Ten Tuesday topics & info on how to participate, click here. Hi everyone! How are you all? My exams just got over and I'm soo relieved. I've got a one month break before\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Book Lists&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/travellingthroughwords.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/img_20170312_155152-150x150.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":6086,"url":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/2017\/04\/02\/first-book-haul-post-january-march-2017\/","url_meta":{"origin":13337,"position":2},"title":"First Book Haul Post (January &#8211; March 2017)","date":"April 2, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Hello everyone!! So I've never posted a book haul before but I've wanted to for such a long time. The thing is I only buy about 1 or 2 books a month, only sometimes more. I always thought I don't have many books to include in a book haul post.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Miscellaneous&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/travellingthroughwords.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/img_20170312_155239-150x150.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":6433,"url":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/2017\/04\/12\/some-unique-books-ive-read-recently-top-10-tuesday-8\/","url_meta":{"origin":13337,"position":3},"title":"Some Unique Books I&#8217;ve Read Recently (Top 10 Tuesday #8)","date":"April 12, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Top 10 Tuesday is a weekly book meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.\u00a0For future Top Ten Tuesday topics & info on how to participate, click here. Once in a while, we find a story that is refreshing and different. It's rare that books like these come up nowaday\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Book Lists&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/images.gr-assets.com\/books\/1373059909l\/18079719.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":7795,"url":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/2017\/06\/04\/may-2017-wrap-up\/","url_meta":{"origin":13337,"position":4},"title":"May 2017 Wrap-Up","date":"June 4, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"In terms of reading, May was a good month. In the beginning, I was reading very slowly but towards the end my summer holidays started and then I was reading like crazy. I managed to complete\u00a08 books out of which 4 were sent to me for review. Also, 6 books\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Book Lists&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.files.wordpress.com\/2017\/06\/0601171351a-1.jpg?w=350&h=200&crop=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":13342,"url":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/2021\/01\/11\/all-115-books-i-read-in-2020\/","url_meta":{"origin":13337,"position":5},"title":"All 115 Books I Read In 2020","date":"January 11, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Hi everyone! 2020 was a good reading year for me. In this post, I have listed every book I read in 2020, its Goodreads page, and my review if there is one. Click on the book name to go to its Goodreads page. Please note that not every \"Goodreads review\"\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Book Lists&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/travellingthroughwords.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/all-115-books.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13337","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13337"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13337\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13337"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13337"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travellingthroughwords.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13337"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}