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Oct 26, 2016geordie18 rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
Madhu is born in Bombay to a poor but not impoverished family. From the start Madhu's father is embarrassed by Madhu's effeminate bahaviour. Madhu identifies with the female sex. Rejected by his peers and his family, Madhu is relieved to leave his family to become a " hijra" - a person of the ' the third sex" - neither man nor woman. Madhu, now aged 40, has spent most of her life as a transgendered sex worker in the red light district of Bombay. She has a sense of of belonging as part of this group. As part of her work ,Madhu is summoned is to prepare" the parcel " a code word for a ten year old girl who has been betrayed and trafficked into the sex trade. Madhu works with the girl to force her to accept the harsh reality that is in store for her. In the midst of this , Madhu's past comes back to haunt her, and gradually Madhu's world unravels. A dark, gritty, very graphic and heart- breaking novel, not for the faint of heart. I don't think it will have a broad appeal, but it opened my eyes to a reality in both Mumbai and here in Canada and elsewhere.