The Glass Palace by Amitav Ghosh

 The story spans for over sixty years. Through the story of Rajkumar, his children and grandchild, the history of India and Burma comes alive involving the British invasion and natives fight for independence.

The story begins in 1885 with British invasion of Burma over teak wood. 

Eleven year old Rajkumar works on a boat which takes him from India to the city of Mandalay in Burma. He is sent to a lady named Ma Cho, who is half-Indian and owns a food stall. Her stall is close to the walls of the fort belonging to Burma’s kings, currently to King Thebaw and Queen Supayalat.

At the center of the fort, “there is a vast hall that is like a great shaft of light, with shining crystal walls and mirrored ceilings. People call it the Glass Palace.” No matter what Ma Cho says Rajkumar knows he will find a way in to see it.

Soon there are rumors of war as English want all the teak wood in Burma and the king won’t let them have it.

On November 14, 1885 the imperial fleet crosses the border. The British artillery is so powerful like never before. “The Burmese could not match this firepower. (…) The war lasted just fourteen days.”

As the fort is being plundered, this gives Rajkumar an opportunity to enter it. There he sees one of the queen’s maids, “perhaps nine or ten years old.” Her name is Dolly and he cannot forget her.

The Royal Family is transported from Mandalay, Burma to Madras, India.

Rajkumar doesn’t want to go back to working on a boat. But what else can he do? Since teak wood was so precious to Brits to start a war over this, now he needs to figure out what was so precious about it.

With some help and enough luck, he makes enough money to make him feel comfortable and confident to search for Dolly.

This story is over 500 pages long and the last 20% could be more condensed. Nevertheless, the blend of history, intriguing characters and interesting plot brings one of the most memorable stories.

Many threads of history are woven into this story including: British invasion effecting the lives of the Royals and their people; epidemics that ravaged during that time period; the Ghadar Party – many Indian immigrants living in America and Canada, once serving in the British Indian army, turned from loyalists into revolutionaries. “It was the Irish who were their mentors and allies, schooling them in their methods of organization…” One of the groups coming out of this was the Indian Independence League; also a clash between Indian and Burmese workers.

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