Mother Ocean Father Nation: A Novel
3.5/5
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About this ebook
LAMBDA LITERARY AWARD FINALIST
LONGLISTED FOR THE MARK TWIN AMERICAN VOICE IN LITERATURE AWARD
“A brilliant debut novel.” —Joyce Carol Oates
A brother and sister’s paths diverge in the wake of political upheaval: one forced to leave, one left behind
On a small Pacific island, two siblings tune in to a breaking-news radio bulletin. It is 1985, and an Indian grocer has just been attacked by nativists aligned with the recent military coup. Now, fear and shock ripple through the island’s deeply rooted Indian community as racial tensions rise to the brink.
Bhumi hears this news from her locked-down dorm room in the capital city. She is the intellectual standout of the family, an aspiring botanist on the path to success. But when her connection to a government official becomes a liability, she must flee her unstable home for California.
Jaipal feels like the unnoticed sibling, always left to fend for himself. He avoids their father’s wrath as he manages the family store, distracted only by his hidden desires. Suddenly, he is presented with an opportunity—one that promises money and connection, but may leave him vulnerable to the island’s escalating volatility.
Mother Ocean Father Nation is an entrancing debut about how one family, at the mercy of a nation broken by legacies of power and oppression, forges a path to find a home once again.
Nishant Batsha
Nishant Batsha is the author of the novel Mother Ocean Father Nation, named a finalist for a 2023 Lambda Literary Award, long-listed for a 2023 Mark Twain American Voice in Literature Award, awarded an honorable mention in prose at the 2024 AAAS Book Awards, and listed among the best books of 2022 by NPR. He lives in Buffalo, New York, with his family.
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Reviews for Mother Ocean Father Nation
5 ratings1 review
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5TW/CW: Ethnic violence, refugees, political violence, emotional abuse, murder, sexRATING: 3.5/5REVIEW: Mother Ocean Father Nation is the story of an Indian family who live on a small island in the South Pacific. They are faced with political unrest that turns into ethnic violence against Indians. In one family, the daughter is forced to flee to America while the son stays behind. This book is the story of those two decisions and how their lives differ.This was not a bad book, in fact, I really enjoyed reading it. It just…could have been better. It felt to me like it was lacking something, and I can’t really put words to what that thing was, other than to say that it left me feeling rather blah when I finished the book. Maybe the book needed a little more heart? It had a lot of detail about the horrible things happening but in places, especially towards the beginning – it read more like a newspaper than a book about real, living, human beings.Still, I did like this book. It’s not like anything I’ve read recently and tackles some very important topics, such as ethnic violence, racism, homophobia, misogyny, etc. It just wasn’t…as complete as it could have been.