By Bharati Mukherjee
Hyperion
Hardcover and Paperback Editions

Steeped in Indian (specifically Brahmin) culture and legend, this story of 3 sisters is "narrated" by the youngest of them, Tara. Having grown up in Calcutta in the strictest of Brahmin upper-class households, the three sisters each find their own niche in the world, be it in the homeland or in the more modernized setting of America.

The main idea of the story revolves around Tara's life, and everything she's ever believed to be true about her family, being turned upside-down by the appearance of a young man who claims to be a close relative. Tara suspects he has underhanded motives and is determined to find the truth. In her journey to do so, she becomes reacquainted with the sisters who have remained so aloof from each other

Desirable Daughters Excerpt The city I knew was (and remains) the magnet of hope for the world's third-largest population, the target of all their ambitions. To be a native-born Calcuttan was (and is) to be a Londoner, a Parisian, a New Yorker, at the zenith. To be Calcutta bhadra lok, as we Bhattacharjees were, was to share a tradition of leadership, of sensitivity, of achievement, refinement, and beauty that was the envy of the world. That is the legacy of Calcutta high society, a world into which we three sisters were born, and from which we have made our separate exits. ©2002 Bharati Mukherjee Published with permission from Hyperion.

even through their regular contact.

The plot branches off into another secret, this time one held by Tara's own son, and delves into her relationships in general which strengthen considerably when she is faced with an element of danger she must try to free herself of.

Desirable Daughters is, without a doubt, elegantly written which is to be expected of an English professor such as author Bharati Mukherjee. Unfortunately, the story itself is heavily overshadowed by the powerful lesson on culture and the overly-long background descriptions of each character. At any given point in time, the reader can become lost in a sea of information that wasn't necessarily required for the plot to succeed.

Had the book been a non-fiction one based solely on Brahmin life and legend, it would have been excellent indeed. Since it was meant to be a fictional story with a thread of suspense and mystery, however, it was somewhat of a disappointment. Any suspense that may have built up was quickly drowned by yet another in-depth look into the inner workings of one of the characters.

Bookworm's Briefing
Bharati Mukherjee is an amazing author and the reader is given a brilliant and fascinating look into a world they may otherwise never have known. Those facts are indisputable, but this particular book didn't have the balance needed to make it a successful piece of fiction.