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The Space between Us (P.S.)

by Thrity Umrigar

The Space between Us (P.S.) Cover

 

Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments:

Each morning, Bhima, a domestic servant in contemporary Bombay, leaves her own small shanty in the slums to tend to another woman's house. In Sera Dubash's home, Bhima scrubs the floors of a house in which she remains an outsider. She cleans furniture she is not permitted to sit on. She washes glasses from which she is not allowed to drink. Yet despite being separated from each other by blood and class, she and Sera find themselves bound by gender and shared life experiences.

Sera is an upper-middle-class Parsi housewife whose opulent surroundings hide the shame and disappointment of her abusive marriage. A widow, she devotes herself to her family, spending much of her time caring for her pregnant daughter, Dinaz, a kindhearted, educated professional, and her charming and successful son-in-law, Viraf.

Bhima, a stoic illiterate hardened by a life of despair and loss, has worked in the Dubash household for more than twenty years. Cursed by fate, she sacrifices all for her beautiful, headstrong granddaughter, Maya, a university student whose education — paid for by Sera — will enable them to escape the slums. But when an unwed Maya becomes pregnant by a man whose identity she refuses to reveal, Bhima's dreams of a better life for her granddaughter, as well as for herself, may be shattered forever.

Poignant and compelling, evocative and unforgettable, The Space Between Us is an intimate portrait of a distant yet familiar world. Set in modern-day India and witnessed through two compelling and achingly real women, the novel shows how the lives of the rich and the poor are intrinsically connected yet vastly removed from each other, and vividly captures how the bonds of womanhood are pitted against the divisions of class and culture.

Review:

"Artists know very well that a good way to depict overwhelming social problems is to tell the story of an individual who represents many others....Umrigar is a skilled storyteller, and her memorable characters will live on for a long time." Washington Post

Review:

"Part of what makes The Space Between Us so engrossing is its ability to make readers feel empathy for its subjects." San Francisco Chronicle

Review:

"With humanity and suspense, novelist Thrity Umrigar tackles love, loyalty, injustice — and survival." Marie Claire

Review:

"Umrigar is a perceptive and often piercing writer....Her portrait of Sera as a woman unable to transcend her middle-class skin feels bracingly honest." New York Times Book Review

Review:

"Journalist Umrigar evocatively describes daily life in two very different households in modern-day Bombay....[She] beautifully and movingly wends her way through the complexities and subtleties of these unequal but caring relationships." Library Journal

Review:

"[A] ruminative novel, told from inside the heads of these close-but-distant women....Umrigar is at her best...conveying the small moments that sustain or degrade the minuet of intimacy." Cleveland Plain Dealer

Review:

"Sadness suffuses this eloquent tale, whose heart-stopping plot twists reveal the ferocity of fate." Booklist

Review:

The novel is provocative and disturbing, asking how female friendship might bridge individual isolation and loneliness." Boston Globe

Review:

"Umrigar's imagery, gorgeous yet unflinching in its realism, creates a rich picture of Indian society in Bombay, from slum to skyscraper." Charlotte Observer

Synopsis:

Poignant, evocative, and unforgettable, The Space Between Us is an intimate portrait of a distant yet familiar world. Set in modern-day India, it is the story of two compelling and achingly real women: Sera Dubash, an upper-middle-class Parsi housewife whose opulent surroundings hide the shame and disappointment of her abusive marriage, and Bhima, a stoic illiterate hardened by a life of despair and loss, who has worked in the Dubash household for more than twenty years. A powerful and perceptive literary masterwork, author Thrity Umrigar's extraordinary novel demonstrates how the lives of the rich and poor are intrinsically connected yet vastly removed from each other, and how the strong bonds of womanhood are eternally opposed by the divisions of class and culture.

About the Author

A journalist for seventeen years, Thrity Umrigar has written for the Washington Post, the Cleveland Plain Dealer, and other national newspapers, and regularly writes for the Boston Globe's book pages. She is the author of the novels Bombay Time, If Today Be Sweet, and The Weight of Heaven, and the memoir First Darling of the Morning: Selected Memories of an Indian Childhood. She teaches creative writing and journalism at Case Western Reserve University, and she lives in Cleveland, Ohio.

What Our Readers Are Saying

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Average customer rating based on 3 comments:

jadelin, May 24, 2011 (view all comments by jadelin)
This book is a page turner. Thrity Umrigar pens an emotionally gripping novel which exposes the jarring differences of caste life in India. Her storytelling is engaging as there are anguish filled twists and turns in the life of a mistress and her servant. The grinding hurt, suffering and disbelief at circumstance is highly reminiscent of Mistry's A Fine Balance. The Space Between Us is a story that draws the reader in by the compelling dilemma that links and contrasts the life of privilege and those who are left to suffer in the bowels of the slums, each hoping for a better circumstances and happiness. Is anyone really happy where they are?
Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No
jadelin, May 24, 2011 (view all comments by jadelin)
This book is a page turner. Thrity Umrigar pens an emotionally gripping novel which exposes the jarring differences of caste life in India. Her storytelling is engaging as there are anguish filled twists and turns in the life of a mistress and her servant. The grinding hurt, suffering and disbelief at circumstance is highly reminiscent of Mistry's A Fine Balance. The Space Between Us is a story that draws the reader in by the compelling dilemma that links and contrasts the life of privilege and those who are left to suffer in the bowels of the slums, each hoping for a better circumstances and happiness. Is anyone really happy where they are?
Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No
writermala, March 27, 2011 (view all comments by writermala)
While there was many a twist in the tale, it was pretty obvious right from the beginning where the story was headed. The descriptions were vivid and one could visualize exactly the scene the author was painting.

There may be a huge space between Sera the mistress and Bhima the Maid but their commonality as women and suffering women at that, transcends this barrier.
Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No
View all 3 comments

Product Details

ISBN:
9780060791568
Author:
Umrigar, Thrity
Publisher:
Harper Perennial
Author:
by Thrity Umrigar
Subject:
General
Subject:
General Fiction
Subject:
Literature-A to Z
Copyright:
Edition Description:
Trade PB
Series:
P.S.
Publication Date:
20070231
Binding:
TRADE PAPER
Grade Level:
General/trade
Language:
English
Pages:
352
Dimensions:
7.96x5.60x.89 in. .58 lbs.

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Related Subjects


Fiction and Poetry » Literature » A to Z
Languages » Foreign Languages » Spanish » Fiction and Poetry » Literature » Contemporary Women
Languages » Foreign Languages » Spanish » Fiction and Poetry » Literature » Cultural Heritage

The Space between Us (P.S.) Used Trade Paper
0 stars - 0 reviews
$3.95 In Stock
Product details 352 pages Harper Perennial - English 9780060791568 Reviews:
"Review" by , "Artists know very well that a good way to depict overwhelming social problems is to tell the story of an individual who represents many others....Umrigar is a skilled storyteller, and her memorable characters will live on for a long time."
"Review" by , "Part of what makes The Space Between Us so engrossing is its ability to make readers feel empathy for its subjects."
"Review" by , "With humanity and suspense, novelist Thrity Umrigar tackles love, loyalty, injustice — and survival."
"Review" by , "Umrigar is a perceptive and often piercing writer....Her portrait of Sera as a woman unable to transcend her middle-class skin feels bracingly honest."
"Review" by , "Journalist Umrigar evocatively describes daily life in two very different households in modern-day Bombay....[She] beautifully and movingly wends her way through the complexities and subtleties of these unequal but caring relationships."
"Review" by , "[A] ruminative novel, told from inside the heads of these close-but-distant women....Umrigar is at her best...conveying the small moments that sustain or degrade the minuet of intimacy."
"Review" by , "Sadness suffuses this eloquent tale, whose heart-stopping plot twists reveal the ferocity of fate."
"Review" by , The novel is provocative and disturbing, asking how female friendship might bridge individual isolation and loneliness."
"Review" by , "Umrigar's imagery, gorgeous yet unflinching in its realism, creates a rich picture of Indian society in Bombay, from slum to skyscraper."
"Synopsis" by , Poignant, evocative, and unforgettable, The Space Between Us is an intimate portrait of a distant yet familiar world. Set in modern-day India, it is the story of two compelling and achingly real women: Sera Dubash, an upper-middle-class Parsi housewife whose opulent surroundings hide the shame and disappointment of her abusive marriage, and Bhima, a stoic illiterate hardened by a life of despair and loss, who has worked in the Dubash household for more than twenty years. A powerful and perceptive literary masterwork, author Thrity Umrigar's extraordinary novel demonstrates how the lives of the rich and poor are intrinsically connected yet vastly removed from each other, and how the strong bonds of womanhood are eternally opposed by the divisions of class and culture.
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