Rosarita

After Team India's comeback to the ICC championship, Anita Desai's comeback to the literary scene has got to be my favourite.Desai's writings have always been focused on exploring family dynamics and to be honest,her works have made me think a lot about my own relationships. Such as in Rosarita, Desai makes you think do you really know you mother?Bonita's mother had a past that Bonita never thought could exist. Was it because she did not expect it of her mother or simply because she was a mother.I have said this before and I say it again. If there is a writer,whose writing style I eagerly wish to copy,it would be Desai but I am aware I certainly cannot. Her prose has beauty in them, she would make you take a pause and admire the beautiful description of the ordinary and mundane.Additionally, this was the book that I read written in second person and I loved it. I felt as if Desai was not just talking to Bonita but also me. It gives you a better connection with the novel.Moreover,if you are new to Desai,I won't say that this should be your first pick. Despite this book being an absolute beauty, it might not be very interesting for you to read the descriptive insights and thus you might end up not enjoying the book.Lastly,Rosarita was a very short read, and that is the very thing I hate about it.

Anita Desai masterfully explores the theme of understanding our parents' lives before us. The story follows Bonita, a young woman who travels to Mexico to study Spanish. Her chance meeting with a mysterious woman who claims Bonita resembles her mother, Sarita—referred to as Rosarita—leads Bonita on a journey that challenges her perception of her mother's past.Through Bonita's quest, Desai skilfully weaves themes of identity, family, and memory thereby questioning how well we truly know our loved ones. The evocative writing blends the beauty of the Mexican landscape with Bonita's emotional journey, delving into the complexities of motherhood and the hidden aspects of our parents' lives. ‘Rosarita’ is a deeply thought-provoking and beautifully written novella.

In Desai's new novella, a young Indian woman in Mexico grapples with a shocking revelation about her artistic mother after a chance encounter throws her identity into question. A captivating read, Rosarita's 96 pages offers a richness and depth that lingers long after you finish. The narrative is a profound meditation, not just on family secrets, but on the very construction of the self, a compelling reminder that the greatest mysteries often lie not in faraway lands, but within the labyrinthine depths of ourselves.

Book torn

In Anita Desai's "Rosarita," we are invited into a landscape where melancholy pervades every page, a somber tale interwoven with the delicate threads of grief, nostalgia and sadness.The story unravels in second person through the eyes of a daughter, who embarks on a journey to a distant land, thousands of miles from her motherland, to study languages. As she sits on a bench, absorbed in the tranquility of her surroundings, a stranger approaches. This unexpected visitor, tells her she bears a striking resemblance to her mother, who once journeyed to the same country to learn art. This revelation for the daughter who only knew her mother as her 'mother' opens a Pandora's box of memories, questions, and contradictions. The daughter's memories of her mother—tender, intimate, and familiar—clash with the stranger's portrayal of a woman who seems almost alien in her artistic fervor and emotional intensity.This was my first Anita Desai and I was left mesmerized by the tranquil and effortless flow of her writing, reminiscent of a gentle waterfall while at the same time having the power to flood your emotions. Desai skillfully paints a somber tale that resonates with the reader, evoking reflections on the fragility of memory and the weight of past experiences. With it's lyrical prose "Rosarita" becomes a hauntingly beautiful read, a flower wrapped in grief and sadness, yet blooming with the promise of understanding and self-discovery.

oh this book is the perfect holiday or siesta read! before i tell you what rosarita was about, i’d like to put it on record that it’s been a while since i’ve read such a descriptive book. the charm of such authors, generations really can’t take that away. so i consider myself lucky to be living in a time when anita desai comes out with another book.today is my stop in the book tour and i’m grateful for having had the mind space to read and soak up everything this book has to offer. i really felt like i was taking a trip through mexico with our protagonist, bonita. her journey from colima to la manzanilla reminded me of my journey from hilly munnar to sea side alleppey in kerala last year! you know an author has done justice to her readers when you visualise almost every single description in the book.rosarita is about our protagonist making a journey to mexico as a language student where she encounters a lady who claims to know her mother, who was once an art student - her mother who has never travelled to mexico, her mother who was never an artist. this reminded me so much of cyrus from martyr! by @kavehakbar.kavehakbar - i believe if bonita & cyrus were to be put inside a room, they would definitely have a lot to talk about, of their discoveries of their mothers. however the two stories while may seem similar are quite different.rosarita is calm, it’s elegant & of course the writing gives away that it’s the work of a skilled writer because i’m stilling thinking about it. i’m thinking of bonita’s mother as much as she is and maybe that’s why at the end desai writes, “you have come as far as you can: you can go no further.”, not as a judgement to your thoughts or imagination. but as a reminder probably, that as the story comes to an end, allow it to end for you too, at some point allow the pondering to end. this book is almost meditative if you ask me.definitely recommend you to read it, it’s not a novel, it’s literature.