The Milkman is an immersion into a society which demands taking sides, loyalty to one’s “ tribe” and especially for “ middle sisters” staying below the radar. Dreaming of a future free of these ties, reading while walking are all as noticeably so odd as to cause comment and negativity. Even a Middle Sister can be caught up in false rumors and facing the unwanted attentions of a local, powerful thug. The author, using dialogue, interior monologue and simple actions, creates the pervasive and claustrophobic sense of everything being political and potentially violent. There can be no bystanders , no escaping, even if you walk with your eyes literally down, stuck in a book. There is also humor — engine repair parts as a political stance . The reader experiences the reality of living in the midst of domestic terrorism. And isn’t that an astonishing achievement?!

I think, based upon other negative reviews about the confusions some found reading, that perhaps this text works better as an audiobook. I did not find it confusing or difficult with the audio narration. Don’t expect the traditional, but don’t dismiss this book so quickly.

The long scope of time and the wide sweep of place in this novel seemed to result in a skim over the surface of many of the themes/ ideas it attempts to take on. ( and I had hoped to be more delved into in the story. ) I wonder if a narrative nonfiction book about the Sultan, the Tiger of Mysore, his resistance to the British, and his commission of the automaton would have served as a better vehicle for investigating the impact of colonization and empire.