Review of The Appearance of Death to a Hindu Woman by Rick Harsch

This is the 2nd book set in India Rick Harsch wrote, and after finishing it, I am eager to read the other one, called Arjun and the Good Snake.

This is a story of an American making his way from Madras to Calcutta and journeying through surrounding areas, mostly on trains or by autorickshaw or on foot. He sleeps, eats, and craps anywhere he can, negotiating with people along the way as he suffers from a near-fatal illness, a run-in with a cobra, and the painful pining for his love Sushila. The various business dealings and details of his life are secondary to his observations of the places and the people. Not only is the setting magnificently realized and meticulously detailed, the speech of the people and the background context of their myths, religions, languages and cultural differences are inserted at the reader’s peril. Even having read some of the Mahabharata and other examples of Indian literature, I felt unmoored by his frequent inclusion of cultural references. But what this did accomplish was to convey the feeling and texture of a foreign culture, which was a sensation I could relate to. Being an American dipped in the raucous and bustling metropolis, a world so far removed from one’s native land, is both terrifying and liberating. The warmth and buffoonery of the mixed bag of individuals our main character encounters paints a varied and distinct picture of the locale and its colorful inhabitants. There is much love and triumph flowing through the work. It is a heartbreaking account of a personal journey through fulfillment, about pursuing a lofty goal, winning someone else’s love, and physically passing through exotic barriers which will test his physical and mental limits. The force of his love drives him against unlikely odds and burdensome travails.

It is rife with hilarious conversations and thoughtful philosophical musings. It shares the linguistic brilliance of the author’s other masterpiece, titled The Manifold Destiny of Eddie Vegas. While it does not quite reach the unrivaled heights of that once-in-a-lifetime literary accomplishment, this is still a rousing and memorable book. An inspired and well-researched immersion into Indian moments, the equal of anything you might expect from another author of that country’s innumerable literary paramours. Harsch can hold his own against a Rushdie or whomever you might consider a consummate stylist of the English language.

This is a neglected work of literature or great value to anyone who enjoys travel fiction. Do yourself a favor and collect his books.