Book No: 16
Title: The Palace of Illusions
Author: Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
Genre: Fiction
Published: 2008
Obtained: 2008/Bookbrowse.com
Completed: 3/09/08
No. of Pages: 360
Rating: 4/5****
The Mahabharat is an epic poem that tells the tale of the Pandava and Kaurava families and their rivalry for the throne of Hastinapur. The author uses that poem as the basis for her retelling, imagining the story from the view point of Panchaali, the woman who was the wife of the five Pandava brothers.
Divakaruni expertly brings together the stories of the two families, effortlessly weaving history, mythology and magic together into a fantastical retelling of this tale. Reminiscent of the story of Homer, here too the gods live and intermingle with the people on earth. The writing is so well done that we soon accept the magic and interaction with the gods as normal.
Panchaali’s story is fascinating and complex. Born in fire and told that her destiny is to change the world she is always wondering what it is she is meant to do. When her desire for revenge sets a course of action that ends in devastation she realizes that she does indeed change history, but not necessarily for the better.
At times I had a little difficulty with the names in the book as they were sometimes very similar, but I soon was able to follow the story line and was captivated by Panchaali, even when she was sometimes petty or whiny. I read through the last half of the book in one sitting, I had to know how everything turned out. I loved the ending; it was the perfect finish to a wonderful story.
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