The Cauliflower

May 23, 2016
Barker's (Darkmans) antic, irreverent historical novel examines the life of real-life spiritual leader Sri Ramakrishna (1836â1886). The book takes a nonchronological approach to biography, jumping from point to point and leaving the reader to hang on for dear life. Gradually, however, an image of the man begins to emerge, in all his contradictory glory. Though he's seen from several points of view, the central one is that of his harried nephew Hridayram, who dedicates himself, not entirely happily, to ensuring the survival of a "delicate flower" of a man who falls almost daily into ecstatic trances, suffers extreme flatulence when exposed to "that most fateful of vegetables, the cauliflower," and only maintains his position at the temple devoted to the worship of "Black Mother" Kali through the indulgence of wealthy patron Mathur Baba. Barker lightens the mood further with passages from the point of view of a bird flying through the compound and a list of "Twelve slightly impertinent questions about Ma Kali" such as "Why is her hair such a dreadful mess?" Beneath the jaunty surface, the novel explores important questions about the nature of religious experience.

June 1, 2016
A headily curry-scented tale, part fable and part imaginative biography, by postmodern maven Barker (In The Approaches, 2014, etc.).Devotees of Indian religious thought will know at least the name of Sri Ramakrishna, the 19th-century guru who was deeply influential in the spread of Vedanta and other expressions of modern theistic Hinduism. He is perhaps less well known as the illiterate keeper of a temple to Kali who was as devoted to its benefactor, the widow Rani, as to the goddess. Barker calls her lively reconstruction of this episode "a painstakingly constructed, slightly mischievous, and occasionally provocative/chaotic mosaic." That's about right, though the chaotic parts deserve underscoring, especially when they involve such odd turns as an anachronistic point of view delivered by a camera fitted to a certain bird, which in turn yields a couple of Python-esque moments; catch one and see, Barker counsels: "This shouldn't be too difficult because the pre-1855 Indian swift is quite silly and highly accident-prone...." Why the ploy? Kali only knows. Her name lies hidden in the very title of the book, though the actual cabbage kin has a role, too, as does the Bengali city of Kolkata, which means "field of Kali," where such a vegetable might be grown. Suspend disbelief while you're catching the bird, and suspend the ordinary expectations of plot development; still, this is no postmodern, attention-deficit-begging exercise in the manner of a Danielewski or Kristeva but instead a more straightforward if still idiosyncratic story that evokes Eleanor Catton and even William Vollmann at points. In the end, that story centers on how faith works and religious communities and traditions are formed, sometimes, it seems, accidentally as much as by design: "The Brahmini has a very controlling manner and is of strong opinions, and after only a very short acquaintance with Uncle she became convinced that Uncle was an incarnation of God." Respectful, playful, and often entertaining--though just as often puzzling. Barker's fans will enjoy the outing, forgiving her quirks.

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July 1, 2016
A nineteenth-century Hindu mystic, his devoted nephew, and a powerful, generous woman philanthropist are at the center of Barker's (Darkmans, 2007) biographical novel. Rani Rashmoni, widowed with a vast fortune, follows a higher order to build Dakshineswar Temple on a Ganga tributary to serve Kali, the many-limbed, dark-skinned goddess of destruction and creation. Here, the mystic who will become known as Sri Ramakrishna will undergo his dozen years of ecstatic trances and become the temple's spiritual guru and main attraction for pilgrims and followers. Much of the master's story is told through journal-like entries from his nephew, Hridayram. Barker's telling is both deeply researched and imagination-drenched, and playful in language, tone, time line, and structure. (To first introduce us to the super-earthly temple grounds, a circa-1855 Indian swift equipped with a camera, the likes of which have yet to be invented, flies over Dakshineswar while a narrator explains what readers are looking at. ) Plot is not the propulsion here, but readers of mashed-up historical fiction, those interested in nineteenth-century Bengali culture, and Barker's many adorers won't need convincing.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)

August 1, 2016

What turns a mere mortal into a divinity? In this reimagined life of the guru and philosopher Sri Ramakrishna (1836-86), Barker (The Yips) turns a modern lens on the past in an attempt to separate man from myth. The legend may have begun with Ramakrishna's tendency, from an early age, to fall into trances and lose consciousness. There was also his ever-present smile, an infectious laugh, and healing powers. Much of his story is presented here by Ramakrishna's devoted nephew and minder, Hriday, who describes a life of paradoxes. Disdaining money and worldly attachments, Ramakrishna nonetheless benefits from the largess of wealthy benefactors Rani Rashmoni and her son-in law, Mathur Nath Biswas, who provide him with comfortable living quarters, servants, and exquisite places of worship. Although he suffers from lifelong indigestion and can eat only the blandest foods, he adores sweets and accepts them readily. And while he shuns sensual pleasures, he agrees to a betrothal to a five-year-old girl, although marriage comes much later and is reportedly chaste. VERDICT It may help to have an interest in Indian mysticism and the teachings of Sri Ramakrishna to appreciate fully Barker's imaginative novel, but the guru's message of love, tolerance, peace, and kindness should resonate with most readers in these somewhat dark days. [See Prepub Alert, 2/21/16.]--Barbara Love, formerly with Kingston Frontenac P.L., Ont.

Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 1, 2016

Not well known here, tell-it-slant British author Barker collects prizes and nominations like candy, having won the IMPAC Literary Award and been short-listed for the Man Booker and Ondaatje prizes. Her subject here is radical 19th-century Hindu mystic Sri Ramakrishna, plus a caretaking nephew and a low-caste woman named Rani Rashmoni who inherits a fortune and builds the temple over which he presides.

Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.