In a desperate bid to generate income, Charlotte rents a room to Madan, an Indian tailor with an astonishing talent for making beautiful garments. Madan is unable to communicate verbally, but the two have an immediate and electrifying connection. And, as the extreme heat before the impending monsoon paralyzes the residents of Rampur, the details of their lives unfold: Charlotte's unhappy childhood and the early death of her husband, Madan's poverty-stricken life on the streets, and how and when their paths have crossed before.
After a friend of mine lent me The Kitchen House as a recommended read, I took her up on her next recommendation and borrowed this next book called Waiting for the Monsoon. This book is a good read. The author gives you great cultural language to work with and understand without distracting from the storyline. The setting is in India, but crosses over to English territory periodically to give the story some depth. The story does not evoke tears, but it is a sad tale.
The story is a life journey for a white woman who spends most of her life in India, an idea she loves and questions throughout her life. A woman who knows little of love and knows more about responsibility than most people will in a lifetime. The book speaks to the Indian culture and some of their rituals, and superstitions which I always find fascinating.
Although I did not find that the book had a terrible amount of excitement to keep me turning the pages, I did find myself wanting to know what the heck was going to happen to this woman. It was a pick up and put down book, but one that I found I kept picking back up for short spurts.
I would recommend this book as a vacation book. Something you can pick up and put down while going through airports or sunning on a beach. I would give this book a 3 of 5 star rating.