micheal ondatjee's divisidero

the narrative structure of this book is based on the panchatantra style, which involves a number of sub-stories or "upakathas". there are three streams of stories which the book begins with- one with anna, then her adopted sister - claire, and coop. all three grow up as children in a farm in california. When anna's mother dies soon after giving birth to anna, her father adopts an orphaned baby from the hospital- claire, to be a companion to anna. When Coop's family was murdered, anna's parents adopt the lone surviving child, who is four years older than anna and claire.

coop, as befitting his youth, falls for one of the girls- anna. the anger, violence and horror that anna's father exhibits when he comes upon the young lovers, ends up tearing apart the fragile fabric of the carefully constructed 'family'. anna herself is so enraged that she causes physical hurt to her father.

coop and anna leave the farm and go their different ways, while claire stays on in the farm.
the narrative then moves on to an adult anna who is researching the story of a french writer while living in the dead writers' home in france. a gypsy who is familiar with the house, helps out anna and becomes a part of her life in that dead writer's house. the story then follows the thread of this gypsy, his childhood and the relationship that his parents shared with one another.

the next part of the narrative delves into the life of the dead writer.

at each point in this book, there is the repeated pattern of violence and uncontrollable anger which creates havoc. as a result, each of the characters are shown as breaking away from the past and creating a division of family, of their own lives- they refuse to integrate the past with their current existence.

a lyrical narrative which leaves the reader eager for more... imagining the ways in which the lives of all the characters could have progressed: would anna and coop meet again? would the father ever forgive coop and anna? what becomes of claire.. does she always live in the shadow of the violent event of the past?