The Hungry Tide By Amitava Ghosh
Genre: Fiction
The Hungry Tide by Amitava Ghosh is a work of fiction and happens to be the author’s sixth novel. Mr. Ghosh was awarded the 2004 Hutch Crossword Book Award for this book in the genre of fiction.
The novel tracks the journey and the emotional discoveries of a young marine biologist, Piyali Roy, who although Bengali-Indian by origin is American at heart. The plot is set in the Sundarbans where Piyali is stationed for her research. When she falls into the water infested with crocodiles, a local illiterate fisherman, Fokir comes to her rescue and the two share an uncanny bond, in spite of not being able to communicate with each other in a decipherable language. Fokir goes on to help her with her research.
In the book, the author brings alive the tiny array of islands, Sundarbans, in the easternmost Indian coast, in Bay of Bengal, through his gripping and lucid story telling style. The reader can almost visualise the on goings in the tiny village of the Sundarbans, including the hardships of the residents and their struggles for life, day in and day out. The readers become a part of Piyali’s life and experiences various events during her stint in the Sundarbans, thanks to the mastery of storytelling that the author depicts.
Amitava Ghosh was born in Calcutta in 1956 and raised and educated in Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Iran, Egypt, India and the United Kingdom, where he received his Ph.D. in social anthropology from Oxford. Acclaimed for fiction, travel writing and journalism, he has many best sellers to his credit. The Hungry Tide has been sold for translation in twelve foreign countries and is also a bestseller abroad. Mr. Ghosh’s work stands out by his signature style of writing and giving shape to complex human emotions in a very relatable and vivid manner. This book lets the readers have a sneak peek into the lives of the natives of Sundarbans and has been a renowned work of fiction, since it’s publication in 2004.
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I loved his descriptions and the way he creates atmosphere making the reader feel as if you’re right there.
With tigers and crocodiles lingering, I was truly terrified.
At the end, it was a relief that Piyali and Kanai decided to proceed as a team.
Hungry tide is an ecological wake up call.