What did you think of Geeta's journey as a character?

Over the course of the novel, we see Geeta learn to open herself up to new experiences, to rekindling friendships, and even to new love. What did you think of her journey as a character? Were you rooting for her all along the way?

I was definitely rooting for Geeta from the beginning. Although she was just as mean-spirited as the other women in her loan group as the story began, I believe it was her way of coping from a sense of abandonment by those she had trusted and actual shunning by the villagers as a whole. Feared by others due to the vicious, unfounded rumors that had been spread about her, Geeta had convinced herself that she preferred being alone. Despite this ostracism, she did show compassion to others--Farah, Khushi, Karem, Raees (Karem's son), the nomadic women at the well, and the suffering dogs. She also had much more solid sense of right vs wrong than the other women in her group. She felt guilt where the others just felt relief & joy for achieving the outcome they had desired. I enjoyed Geeta's softening as she reconnected with others who treated her as a peer. I also enjoyed, once Ramesh & Bada-Bhai no longer instilled fear & submission in her, seeing the strength & confidence she had when dealing with them, Ramesh's mother and those that she felt had been unfairly wronged due to their position within society. I particularly liked the implication that she was willing to buck the religious customs in place by pursuing her happiness with Karem.

As the story progressed Geeta changes from a woman living a small, isolated existence into a person others turn to for help and companionship. She comes to understand that much of her separation from the other women has been due to her own miss interpretation of motives and events. Her character becomes more forceful and self directed as she learns to engage and accept the kindness of others.

I felt it was such a shame that she had isolated herself totally right from the start. That she didn't look beyond that horrible Auntie that dumped garbage on her head when Rasheesh disappeared. She had such low esteem that she never took the chance to open herself to others. I realized that her husband, his family and her own, had beaten her down so much that this one event drove her into reclusiveness. It was wonderful to see her gradually reclaim she self-worth and be able to accept the attention of the other women and even that of a nice man.

I really enjoyed watching Geeta's character development. I was always put off by people telling her she couldn't relate to children because she was never a mother, so I was pleased when she was able to prove them wrong. I liked that the author didn't rush this journey, as Geeta had a lot of ground to make up, starting from a sheltered childhood, and moving into a married life that didn't offer her many opportunities.

I loved the journey of Geeta's character development from normal childhood to a bad marriage to being ostracized and vilified, to being needed , even for the wrong reasons. To being the only one of the group to have the moral compass and letting it bother her while the others brushed it off. And then to find love, we hope, for the first time. It was heartening to see a woman succeed on her own fortitude in a country where women are thought of as liabilities and worthless. She was her own worse enemy until she could see how it hurt other people. Her development was a big job for a woman to take on all on her own. Wonderful insight to human behavior.

I feel great about Greta’s journey as a character. While it may seem that she progresses quite quickly from a solitary person to being a group leader, we have to remember that she has already lived through several life stages, and had time to experience life as a solitary woman. I think she had to be ready to interact not only with the other women, but with Karen too, in order to move so quickly back into society.

I think that Geeta felt trapped by her circumstances in the beginning of the book, so she made the best of it. She embraced her isolation to live her life creating her art. I was glad to see she could slowly reconnect with her neighbors, yet retain her individuality once she got her husband permanently out of her life.

It was the part of the story I enjoyed most, watching her regain self respect and courage to believe in herself, It really is small changes that can snowball into whole new situation

I was pleased that Geeta's isolation and hurt were gradually relieved as the novel progressed. Perhaps in a reverse way, she has Farah to thank for some of that, but when I really started seeing the change was when Bandit came to live with her. Bandit gave her something else to think about besides her life situation. That enabled her to open up to Kareem, reconnect with Saloni, and allow the other ladies in the loan club to help her.

I really liked and enjoyed Geeta. It was nice to see her grow into herself and be more personable.