Cereus Blooms at Night
by Shani Mootoo
Mystery, intrigue, rape, desperation, hidden secrets….. this
book has it and is written in beautiful prose.
The book, Cereus Blooms at Night,
by Shani Mootoo, begins with the end and the author brings us to the sordid
past – it reminds me of the technique used in Fried Green Tomatoes. Mala Ramchandin, viewed as a crazy elderly
woman, is brought to a nursing home by the local authorities after she is found
innocent of a murder in her own home.
What we don’t know is what actually happened. The story-teller, Tyler, is a recently hired nurse
at the paradise Alms House. He is given
no real work projects, but, when Mala arrives, he has the opportunity to be her
private nurse. The rest of the book
gives Mala’s history and how the dead body ended in her home. Mala was raised by her abusive father
(Chandin) after her mother (Sarah) ran off with her friend and lover (Lavina),
who happened to be the woman her father loved.
When her mother escaped the home, she tried taking her two daughters,
but they were stopped when her father returned home from work early that
day. Chandin was raised by Lavina’s
parents, and grew up as her brother. The
story unfolds with great detail and in a chronological flow, piece by
piece. Mala’s love interest as a young
girl is also revealed and the role he plays in all that has unfolded. The
mystery is revealed as to whom the dead body is and how it got there. Love, friendship, homosexuality, incest, rape
and guilt are all entwined in the story.
It’s a relatively quick read and also shows that people are complicated
as is jealousy. Add in the annual bloom
of the cereus plant and you have a “tight” story that fits very nicely together.
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