Review: The Color of Our Sky by Amita Trasi

Overview:

 

India, 1986: Mukta, a ten-year-old girl from the lower caste Yellamma cult of temple prostitutes has come of age to fulfill her destiny of becoming a temple prostitute. In an attempt to escape this legacy that binds her, Mukta is transported to a foster family in Bombay. There she discovers a friend in the high spirited eight-year-old Tara, the tomboyish daughter of the family, who helps her recover from the wounds of her past. Tara introduces Mukta to a different world—ice cream and sweets, poems and stories, and a friendship the likes of which she has never experienced before. In 1993, Mukta is kidnapped from Tara’s room.

Eleven years later, Tara who blames herself for what happened, embarks on an emotional journey to search for the kidnapped Mukta only to uncover long buried secrets in her own family.

Moving from a remote village in India to the bustling metropolis of Bombay, to Los Angeles and back again, amidst the brutal world of human trafficking, this is a heartbreaking and beautiful portrait of an unlikely friendship—a story of love, betrayal, and redemption—which ultimately withstands the true test of time.

 

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Review:

 

I can't help but compare this novel to The Kite Runner. In some ways it read very much The Kite Runner meets Slum Dog Millionaire. I could not completely escape the parallels of The Kite Runner, however after several characters the story began to stand on its own. Particularly because it sheds light on human trafficking in India. For that reason alone I would recommend this novel. While The Color of Our Sky is a work of fiction, it is a composite of real experiences. I look forward to Trasi's next novel.