Whatever the reason, or however the Mr. Banker has done it I found Armies of Hanuman had an even better flow and narrative then any of the previous titles. Instead of admiration for simply managing the feat of presenting the story in an understandable way, competing with enjoyment of the tale, I was able to just sit back and read the adventures of Rama as I would any other novel. That is an amazing accomplishment on the part of Mr. Banker.
I'm left with only one question, being unfamiliar with the original text. (Out of interest I took out an adaptation from our local library that was done in 1910, and found it totally incomprehensible in terms of plot and story line, so I can't use it as any basis for study.) It was the inclusion of Ratnaker's conversion to Valmiki, the ant hill. Had the original author included himself in the tale as an example of how even the most corrupt could be changed for the better? Or was this Mr. Banker's nod to the originator of the story?
The Armies of Hanuman is another example of Ashok Banker's abilities as a story teller par excellence. The characters continue to develop and mature, his villains, although evil and despicable, are multifaceted and interesting, and the introduction of new characters is handled seamlessly and naturally. There is a certain organic quality to the way this tale is progressing; it's like watching the development of an exceptional plant from a green and tender shoot to the point that it bears fruit. Right now we are beginning to taste its first sweet rewards. Well there you go. I hope you enjoyed it, and I really hope it makes you go out and buy the book—and if you haven't bought the first three, do that too. It's well worth the effort and the read.
Article comments
1 - Mickey
Another great review by Gypsyman , who is fast becoming one of the biggest stars of blogcritics with his scholarly and yet charming writing....Good job as usual.
2 - gypsyman
Blush!!
Thanks for that, I've had a hard fight with literacy due to dyslexia which has me wixing my mords occasionaly. Also make for a heavy reliance on spell check.
Sometimes it's worse then others, one morning I put all my clothes on backwords and my earing on in reverse!!!
My wife was amazed.
cheers
gypsyman
3 - mpho
Gypsyman, I'm looking forward to reading this and the other reviews of the series though I can't just now. It caught my eye because I'm two thirds of the way through what is billed as Ramesh Menon's "modern retelling of the great the great Indian epic." I'm enjoying it quite a bit, but I didn't know anything about the Ramayana until I picked this version up. You've gotten at least one glowing commendation here, so I'm gonna set these aside and check up out just as soon as I finish w/ Menon's version. Out of curiosity, do you know anything about it?