The Seduction of Silence: Summary and book reviews of The Seduction of Silence by Bem Le Hunte, plus links to an excerpt from The Seduction of Silence and a biography of Bem Le Hunte.
The Seduction of Silence
by Bem Le Hunte
Hardcover: Jan 2003,
416 pages.
Paperback: Mar 2004,
416 pages.
Infused with the magic of India and the great mysteries of life, The Seduction of Silence follows the spiritual and emotional journeys of a remarkable Indian family through five generations.
Aakash, venerated sage and healer, is the founder of Prakriti -- an abundant farm in the Himalayas. From this soulful mountain home, his children embark on the journeys that will sway the destinies of future generations: gentle son Ram, whose fierce search for enlightenment will force him to choose between his family and his soul; daughter Tulsi Devi, whose convent schooling provides an unexpected, brutal education forever altering her life; Tulsi Devi's beloved first child, Jivan -- born in the waters of the Ganges, cruelly separated from his mother; and Aakash's granddaughter Rohini, who travels across the world on a painted bus to a new land and a new kind of freedom, immersing herself in the London of the 1960s.
With Rohini's daughter, Saakshi, the search for enlightenment comes full circle, and the great-granddaughter returns to her spiritual home -- the holy mountains of Prakriti, where their family story first began. Both magical and utterly compelling, this spellbinding novel interweaves family sagas with the richness of Indian mysticism, creating an intimate portrait of an unforgettable family.
Washington Post
A lovely… ambitious novel …Le Hunte threads events together with a confident, steady hand.
Booklist - Deborah Donovan
India-born Le Hunte concocts a glorious melange of family saga, social commentary, and treatise on spirituality in her debut novel.
Publisher's Weekly
The magic realist touches scattered throughout the novel have won Le Hunte comparisons to Isabel Allende and Salman Rushdie, but Le Hunte has a snappy, more commercial style (when Rohini tells her pregnant daughter to stop complaining, the acid-tongued daughter thinks, Thanks, Mama. Can you remember to tell me your worst birth stories just before I go into labor? We'll put some time aside, OK?)
Kirkus Reviews
A splendidly conceived saga weaving the history of an entire culture into the portrait of one family vivid, compelling, utterly fascinating.
The Booklover (Australia)
A brilliant new voice on the Australian scene... Le Hunte weaves a spell over her readers.
Geraldine Brooks, author of Year of Wonders and Nine Parts of Desire
There is real enchantment here...[in] prose as vivid and arresting as a marigold. I couldn’t put it down.
Lalita Tademy, author of Oprah Book Club selection Cane River
An unexpected delight... [Le Hunte] gives new meaning to the search for spiritual fulfillment.
Thomas Keneally, author of Schindler's List
A work of persuasive imagination...such scope, power and narrative charm...ample and fascinating.
Recent Reader Reviews
Rated of 5
by Firefighterlady
I finished this book early this morning. I read the entire book in less than 2 days -- quite an accomplishment for me!! I was hooked on the book even before I finished the Prologue. I have always had a fascination with the Hindu/Indian culture... Read More
An unconventional heroine defies tradition by making a marriage between the strict customs of India and the wild freedoms of America to find her own happy ending.
In a family driven by jealousy and propriety as much as by love, an unspoken tradition of deceit is passed from generation to generation. These fiercely protected secrets gradually drive the Santerres apart; it will take astonishing courage and compassion to bring them back together.
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Geraldine Brooks, author of Year of Wonders and Nine Parts of Desire
of 5
by Firefighterlady
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