Rating: 
Summary: Overwhelmingly Good
Review: "Difficult Daughters" is so well written that you want to pull Virmati out of the pages and try to talk some sense into her!!! To top it off Kanpur does an excellent job in making it not seem like a tour of India and therefore expain every "word" and "detail" in Indian lives... A must read by far!
Rating: 
Summary: FOR MOTHERS ,DAUGHTERS -WOMEN
Review: 'THE ONE THING I HAD WANTED WAS NOT TO BE LIKE MY MOTHER'- THIS IS THE FIRST SENTENCE OF THE BOOK WHICH INSTANTLY GRABS YOUR ATTENTION.THIS BOOK TELLS THE STORY OF MOTHERS AND DAUGHTERS OR RATHER DAUGHTERS WHO DEFY TRADITION AN HENCE ARE TERMED 'DIFFICULT'. FIRST THERE IS KASTURI AND HER DAUGHTER VIRMATI.KASTURI WHO HAD AN EARLY MARRIAGE AN 11 CHILDREN WITHIN 17 YEARS. IN THE END WITH ALL HER EDUCATION AN REBELLING ALL SHE WANTS IS A HOME AND A LEGALLY RECOGNISED HUSBAND,HENCE SHE DOSN'T SEEM TO COME ACROSS AS A WOMAN WHO BREAKS RULES AN DOES NOT REGRET DEFYING TRADITION.HOWEVER VIRMATI IS VERY ENDEARING FOR HER INDECISIVENESS AND THERE IS A CERTAIN TRAGIC QUALITY ABOUT HER. VIRMATI'S DAUGHTER ON THE OTHER HAND STRUGGLES WITH HER FATHERS GREAT EXPECTATIONS ACADEMICALLY WHICH SHE IS UNABLE TO MEET.THERE IS ALSO GREAT ANTAGONISM BETWEEN VIRMATI AND HER DAUGHTER.WHEN VIRMATI'S DAUGHTER DIVORCE'S HER SPOUSE HER RELATIVES DISMISS IT AS EXPECTED AS SHE HAPPENS TO BE THE DAUGHTR OF A WOMAN WHO DIDN'T FOLLOW THE NORM. THIS BOOK MAKES A GREAT READ THOUGH SOME OF THE CHARACTERS REALLY ANNOY YOU AND THE AUTHOR SHOULD HAVE INCORPORATED SOME HUMOUR.
Rating:
Summary: Beautifully written!!!!!!!!!
Review: After reading the reviews of this book, I bought it myself and read it. I found that all the reviewers had really covered the book throughly. All that I can add is that again allows us to see inside another culture. I have yet to read a story where a planned marriage has turned out badly, but I am sure they have. But Virmati certainly proves that chosing for oneself is not without mistake. I think that the Professor was totally wrong to influence this young woman. What a cad! Her family was totally unsuspecting of a man of this nature and had done little to educate her in the ways of devious men. A good read!
Rating:
Summary: definitely worth your while !
Review: an absorbingly intelligent , witty and sentimental story , "difficult daughters" follows the journey of a rebellious woman who chases her dreams at the cost of dishonouring her family name at the backdrop of partition , a time when both india and virmati (the protagonist) are in a state of turmoil . she falls in love with her neighbour , the proffessor , and sacrifices everything to marry him (even though he is already married) and to study further . in return , she earns the wrath of her family . the only problem is that manju kapur has limited her audience by absorbing a couple of hindi words into the otherwise english narrative , without providing a glossary . it makes you ask yourself whether sacrificing all you have to attain something else is really worth it .
Rating:
Summary: Explores, Creates and Re-creates lives, loves and legacies..
Review: Manju Kapur's novel is the story of Virmati, a young girl torn between desire and duty in the time of Partition. As in other novels ( notably, those such as Nervous Conditions by Zimbabwean author Tsitsi Dangarembga), the protagonist struggles against the dual forces of colonialism and patriarchy. In pre-independent India, they exert themselves even more rigidly. Yet, Kapur's wonderfully simple, beautiful style of writing makes this an enthralling love story as well as an absorbing representation of the women who dared to dare, yet went down as unsung heroes in the history of the nation. Or perhaps, went down simply as difficult daughters. And mothers.
Rating:
Summary: The Oppression of Indian Women.
Review: Out of all the books I have read so far in my life there are two book characters which will always stay close to my heart. The first is Sampath in 'Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchard' by Kiran Desai and the second is Virmati in 'Difficult Daughters'. I loved the quote by Swarna Lata to Virmati- "men do take advanatge of women". After I finished this novel, I was saying to myself- Thank God for the Feminist Movement!!! Thank you to Manju Kapur for writing such a fine novel!
Rating: 
Summary: To rail against convention is to be damaged...
Review: Suggested by the Bengali women in my local book club, this was a fascinating (at times frustrating) but mostly educational (for me) novel about the incredibly intense social and familial structures of Northwest India during Partition. Our story-teller is the daughter of Virmati who, as a young woman, is drawn more to the intellectual pursuits of life rather than the political ones some of her schoolmates are drawn to. Virmati has been given the chance to study (though rather reluctantly) by her parents and travels to Lahore to do so. She is a woman ahead of her time and is not keen to be relegated to the kitchen and the bedroom like wives of the time are, and her wish to never marry is somewhat disgraceful to her family. After returning home she begins to fall in love with (and he with her) an educated man who is a family neighbor (The Professor), in large part because he openly values her intelligence and encourages her constant pursuit of knowledge. He is tormented by his love for her because he is already married - but finally is pushed by a friend to make her his second wife. She is torn about the decision, but to live with the man she loves (and one who treats her as an intellectual equal) is more important than anything. This marriage results in a complete and total abandonment of Virmati by her family something that wounds her terribly. We discover that Virmati's daughter, as she seeks out those who can tell her about her mother, has also been a difficult daughter in her own way. This book was both wonderful and terribly sad....anyone, man or woman, who rails against convention to do what they believe is right for them in their hearts, is bound to be damaged in the process.
Rating:
Summary: Daughters like Virmati !!
Review: The urge to differ, the daring to defy the society, the family name and it's reputation for the sake of one's love is all that are reflected through the character of Virmati. The life of a girl who has the dare and attitude to live her own life is worth admiring. This book will definitely help others to see deep into the psychology of women in love and child bearing. Their innocence is foiled by good and educated people like the married Professor. Though he is in love with Virmati, he's being portrayed as a bit coward too. So is Virmati, who is portrayed as brave but she does an abortion in fear of defamation. May be the situations or the Professor's cowardice did that for her. Brave women are not made. They are born. Too much pain, too much tolerance and too much dareness are all reflected in the character of Virmati. Perhaps Kapur has tried to establish the strongness and the dareness of women in love. All in all, the narration is very appealing. As a debutant, Manju Kapur has done the best way it can have been done. Hats off to her on her first book. Rupesh
Rating:
Summary: Mothers & Daughters & mirrored lives
Review: This is a very good summer read.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful first book
Review: This is the story of Virmati, a woman who struggles against the traditions that her family would like for her to follow. After spending some time with an aunt, she realizes that she doesn't have to be a mother and wife. Virmati becomes interested in furthering her education, despite her mother's desire to have her look after all of her younger brothers and sisters and wed a man through an arranged marriage. While continuing her education, Virmati falls under the influence of one of her professors. He falls in love with her and pursues her. She is wiling to become involved with him, though she initially does so because he expresses his need for her. The Professor is not that interested in how the love affair impacts Virmati's life until one of his friends tells him to do the right thing--marry Virmati. The rest of the book talks about Virmati's marriage, her relationship with the Professor's family and her daughter. This story is beautifully written and shows the options that women have in Indian society. For a woman to step in or out of the traditional roles, there is often a very steep price to pay. Virmati's story is a sad one, but it was a very honest and compelling tale. I am looking forward to future works by Ms. Kapur.
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