Review: Goddess of the River

Goddess of the River by Vaishnavi Patel
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A couple of years after her first foray into Hindu legendary fantasy with Kaikeyi, Vaishnavi Patel returns to retell aspects of the Mahabharata from another woman’s perspective. In this case, it’s the goddess of the river that she focuses on, a goddess after whom India’s greatest river took its name. Granted, I ought to read the old stories at some point, especially if I’m to truly understand where Patel is coming from in her work - although I certainly wouldn’t be smart enough to read it in the original Sanskrit as Oppenheimer would’ve attempted circa a century ago. What I do understand best about this book, though, is how it teaches the importance of restoration, one stone at a time. Restoration of nature, or justice, or balance? Why not all of the above? Heaven knows we need it.

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