Holy Cow!
For the past few weeks, I have been reading this book called "Holy Cow!" by Sarah Macdonald on her travel through India. What are the words that come to mind when reading such a book? Entertaining, funny, frustating, annoying, superficial, commercial. It has got everything that a foreign traveller to India would expect. Getting disgusted by the filth, exhilarated by the human conundrum and then if they stay long enough, going on a predictable and endless journey to "find" themselves. *sigh*. Is there ever a different experience for a foreigner in India?
The book is honest and yes, very funny at times. Some of the experiences hit close to home (my wife, like the author of the book, is an Australian). Some of the remarks are forcefully degrading to drive home a point and it gets annoying. How many times do we have to hear that New Delhi is heavily polluted and filthy?
But all in all, I like the book for it is candidness. That is refreshing. The author makes no assumptions, presents her feelings in a straightforward manner and admits when she is wrong and confused. I hope she gets rid of her confusion by the end of the book, because I know, even though I was born and brought up in India, I am still confused about a lot of things Indian.