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The Mahabharata: Sons of Gods
A royal family split in two and caught in a lethal conflict: the righteous Pandava brothers, aided by the divine Krishna on the one side; the cheating Kauravas, usurpers to the throne, on the other.
Karna, sired by the Sun-god Surya, is born to the unmarried princess Kunti. She abandons him to the river; he is found and raised by a low-caste couple. Spurned by all, Karna finds a friend and ally in the avaricious and wicked prince Duryodhana. But Duryodhana's worst enemies just happen to be the five brothers, the Pandavas, the noblest warriors in the world. And their mother is Kunti, that very princess who still grieves for the child she abandoned as a girl.
Karna and Arjuna -- the middle and mightiest Pandava -- each vow to kill each other without knowing they are brothers. As tensions mount, so does their hatred for each other; until, in the cataclysmic war that will destroy the known world, they meet in the inevitable face-off on the battle-field of Kurukshetra. This is a war in which no-one can be the winner.
The Mahabharata is a grand and timeless story, the oldest and longest epic in the world. It is a story as enthralling as it is moving, as wise as it is entertaining, a living fount of wisdom for Hindus everywhere; an epic legend that has endured the millennia.
Sons of Gods is a new version for contemporary readers of both East and West, the essence of the story brought to life.
Karna, sired by the Sun-god Surya, is born to the unmarried princess Kunti. She abandons him to the river; he is found and raised by a low-caste couple. Spurned by all, Karna finds a friend and ally in the avaricious and wicked prince Duryodhana. But Duryodhana's worst enemies just happen to be the five brothers, the Pandavas, the noblest warriors in the world. And their mother is Kunti, that very princess who still grieves for the child she abandoned as a girl.
Karna and Arjuna -- the middle and mightiest Pandava -- each vow to kill each other without knowing they are brothers. As tensions mount, so does their hatred for each other; until, in the cataclysmic war that will destroy the known world, they meet in the inevitable face-off on the battle-field of Kurukshetra. This is a war in which no-one can be the winner.
The Mahabharata is a grand and timeless story, the oldest and longest epic in the world. It is a story as enthralling as it is moving, as wise as it is entertaining, a living fount of wisdom for Hindus everywhere; an epic legend that has endured the millennia.
Sons of Gods is a new version for contemporary readers of both East and West, the essence of the story brought to life.
330 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 25, 2011
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
June 1, 2015
There are many retellings of the Mahabharata, India's classic epic. I have read several and would recommend Sons of Gods for anyone not already familiar with this ancient tale.
Taken as a whole, the Mahabharata is unwieldy, to say the least. It is filled with digressions and stories within stories that resist linear narrative. Sharon Maas's version is admirably streamlined for readers who want to get a grounding in the basic story before exploring in more detail the rambling conglomeration of myths, legends, and history that make up this massive tale.
The greatest strength of Sons of Gods lies in its introduction to the complex Kuru-Pandava lineage. Understanding the complicated issues around the succession is key to understanding the tragic war between the two princely lines. Maas lays out the whole convoluted tale, from the grandfather Santanu to the grandsons Dhritarashtra and Pandu. Dhritarashtra, who is born blind, cannot rule. Pandu, the younger one, will inherit.
The princess Kunti serves the great sage Durvasa and because of her piety receives a boon from him. He teaches her a mantra that enables her to summon any god, and though she is warned not to use it lightly, she can't resist trying it. She summons the sun god Surya, and by him she bears a son. Her honor is at stake, however. Not daring to reveal she has borne a child she sets her little son afloat in a basket. Unlike Moses, who is rescued by a royal princess, a charioteer's wife finds Kunti's son. She and her husband, ignorant of his illustrious lineage, raise Karna as their own child.
In due course, Kunti marries Pandu. Because of a curse (read the book if you want to know more!) Pandu is unable to father children on his wives Kunti and Madri. To ensure her husband's line, Kunti uses her mantra to summon the gods Dharma, Vayu, and Indra, who father sons on her. She allows Pandu's other wife to use the mantra to summon the Ashvins, twin gods who father Madri's twins. These sons of gods, who by ancient law of levirate become Pandu's heirs (the Pandavas), grow to manhood ignorant of their half-brother Karna just as he is ignorant of his lineage.
Maas's version goes straight and true from the early conflicts between the young Kuru and Pandava princes, who are raised in the same royal household, to the martial contest where an unknown charioteer's son Karna challenges the haughty Pandava prince Arjuna and becomes an ally of the Kurus, through the infamous game of dice to the Pandavas' thirteen year exile to the final war. I read avidly; didn't put it down, even though the ending was no mystery to me. It hits the most important events and illustrates the moral conflicts, but necessarily leaves out a great deal. Also, Maas's prose is lovely and descriptive, and it reflects the fact that the Mahabharata is a religious text as well as a ripping tale. For me, this sometimes renders the characters two-dimensional.
For a lengthier version, I highly recommend the poet Carole Satyamurti's Mahabharata: A Modern Retelling. It includes more of the digressions and backstory from the 75,000+ verses that make up the whole. (Note: it includes a useful guide to pronunciation of the impossible names.)
For lively retelling, wonderfully illustrated by the author and including discussions of themes, history, and philosophy after each chapter, see Devdutt Pattanaik's Jaya: An Illustrated Retelling of the Mahabharata.
For an interesting (if not as well-written) take on the epic, see Neelakantan's Ajaya: Roll of the Dice. This version makes Dhritarashtra's son Duryodhana, the Kuru prince whose envy and lust for power bring about the war, into the misunderstood hero, and the Pandava princes into hypocritical prigs.
For a feminine point of view, The Palace of Illusions by Chitra Divakaruni tells the story of Draupadi, the wife the five Pandava brothers share. In Divakaruni's version, she's in love with Karna.
Taken as a whole, the Mahabharata is unwieldy, to say the least. It is filled with digressions and stories within stories that resist linear narrative. Sharon Maas's version is admirably streamlined for readers who want to get a grounding in the basic story before exploring in more detail the rambling conglomeration of myths, legends, and history that make up this massive tale.
The greatest strength of Sons of Gods lies in its introduction to the complex Kuru-Pandava lineage. Understanding the complicated issues around the succession is key to understanding the tragic war between the two princely lines. Maas lays out the whole convoluted tale, from the grandfather Santanu to the grandsons Dhritarashtra and Pandu. Dhritarashtra, who is born blind, cannot rule. Pandu, the younger one, will inherit.
The princess Kunti serves the great sage Durvasa and because of her piety receives a boon from him. He teaches her a mantra that enables her to summon any god, and though she is warned not to use it lightly, she can't resist trying it. She summons the sun god Surya, and by him she bears a son. Her honor is at stake, however. Not daring to reveal she has borne a child she sets her little son afloat in a basket. Unlike Moses, who is rescued by a royal princess, a charioteer's wife finds Kunti's son. She and her husband, ignorant of his illustrious lineage, raise Karna as their own child.
In due course, Kunti marries Pandu. Because of a curse (read the book if you want to know more!) Pandu is unable to father children on his wives Kunti and Madri. To ensure her husband's line, Kunti uses her mantra to summon the gods Dharma, Vayu, and Indra, who father sons on her. She allows Pandu's other wife to use the mantra to summon the Ashvins, twin gods who father Madri's twins. These sons of gods, who by ancient law of levirate become Pandu's heirs (the Pandavas), grow to manhood ignorant of their half-brother Karna just as he is ignorant of his lineage.
Maas's version goes straight and true from the early conflicts between the young Kuru and Pandava princes, who are raised in the same royal household, to the martial contest where an unknown charioteer's son Karna challenges the haughty Pandava prince Arjuna and becomes an ally of the Kurus, through the infamous game of dice to the Pandavas' thirteen year exile to the final war. I read avidly; didn't put it down, even though the ending was no mystery to me. It hits the most important events and illustrates the moral conflicts, but necessarily leaves out a great deal. Also, Maas's prose is lovely and descriptive, and it reflects the fact that the Mahabharata is a religious text as well as a ripping tale. For me, this sometimes renders the characters two-dimensional.
For a lengthier version, I highly recommend the poet Carole Satyamurti's Mahabharata: A Modern Retelling. It includes more of the digressions and backstory from the 75,000+ verses that make up the whole. (Note: it includes a useful guide to pronunciation of the impossible names.)
For lively retelling, wonderfully illustrated by the author and including discussions of themes, history, and philosophy after each chapter, see Devdutt Pattanaik's Jaya: An Illustrated Retelling of the Mahabharata.
For an interesting (if not as well-written) take on the epic, see Neelakantan's Ajaya: Roll of the Dice. This version makes Dhritarashtra's son Duryodhana, the Kuru prince whose envy and lust for power bring about the war, into the misunderstood hero, and the Pandava princes into hypocritical prigs.
For a feminine point of view, The Palace of Illusions by Chitra Divakaruni tells the story of Draupadi, the wife the five Pandava brothers share. In Divakaruni's version, she's in love with Karna.
January 24, 2012
I’ve always loved mythologies. Like most of my American contemporaries, Greek and Roman myths were part of our school curriculum. On my own, I sought out Native American and Norse tales. As I let them, they spilled the secrets of the forces and spirits that put color and flourish over the grey cogs of physics and rationalism. I’ve loved these stories for the freedom from the strictly literal that they offer; the chance to swim in what it says of humanity in the stories we invent to explain the universe.
I had certainly heard of India’s rich fables and parables, particularly, the Bhagavad Gita. But I didn’t know of its larger contextual epic, The Mahabharata. And I also didn’t know that I was poorer for it.
I had read Sharon Maas (writing here as Aruna Sharan) several years ago. Her gorgeous and riveting, OF MARRIAGEABLE AGE, is a treasure to me as it is currently (but perhaps not for long) out of print. I was delighted for the opportunity to read a new work of hers.
SONS OF GODS: THE MAHABHARATA RETOLD is kaleidoscopic in its beauty and intricacy. The hurdle of the tale’s massive scope has always daunted translators, and the difficulty of prising the right tone from an ancient grand epic to suit a modern and Western audience has relegated it to largely academic obscurity.
What’s saved it for us is that Aruna Sharan knows full well that love, betrayal, lust, envy, pride, devotion, and heroism never go out of style. SONS OF GODS is a literary soap opera with a soul that spans the full horizon.
Love for the panoramic story itself and the patience of more than three decades of careful crafting has solved the literary puzzle of how to present it for an audience in the digital age. Aruna Sharan is well-suited in both talent and passion to deliver a new classic for lovers of mythology.
The unique category of mythology also makes SONS OF GODS a clever fit for Amazon’s Kindle publishing as proving ground for its appeal. The price is incredible for a work of such excellence. Still, I hope for the day to hold it hardbound in my hands, as well. This isn’t just a book, it’s the Universe explained.
I had certainly heard of India’s rich fables and parables, particularly, the Bhagavad Gita. But I didn’t know of its larger contextual epic, The Mahabharata. And I also didn’t know that I was poorer for it.
I had read Sharon Maas (writing here as Aruna Sharan) several years ago. Her gorgeous and riveting, OF MARRIAGEABLE AGE, is a treasure to me as it is currently (but perhaps not for long) out of print. I was delighted for the opportunity to read a new work of hers.
SONS OF GODS: THE MAHABHARATA RETOLD is kaleidoscopic in its beauty and intricacy. The hurdle of the tale’s massive scope has always daunted translators, and the difficulty of prising the right tone from an ancient grand epic to suit a modern and Western audience has relegated it to largely academic obscurity.
What’s saved it for us is that Aruna Sharan knows full well that love, betrayal, lust, envy, pride, devotion, and heroism never go out of style. SONS OF GODS is a literary soap opera with a soul that spans the full horizon.
Love for the panoramic story itself and the patience of more than three decades of careful crafting has solved the literary puzzle of how to present it for an audience in the digital age. Aruna Sharan is well-suited in both talent and passion to deliver a new classic for lovers of mythology.
The unique category of mythology also makes SONS OF GODS a clever fit for Amazon’s Kindle publishing as proving ground for its appeal. The price is incredible for a work of such excellence. Still, I hope for the day to hold it hardbound in my hands, as well. This isn’t just a book, it’s the Universe explained.
May 12, 2020
Mahabharat, the great epic has been written and retold in various ways. I have read this epic from the perception of almost all the characters, still, this epic never fails to amaze me. Amidst the corona pandemic and nationwide lockdown, Doordashran has telecasted the old and beautiful TV series, Mahabharat (made in 1988) again. It was a great experience to rewatch this TV series. Star plus is also re telecasting the Mahabharat TV series (Made in 2013). So, yes, it was a great opportunity to dwell again in the mysterious Indian epic, Mahabharat. This book is written by Sharon Maas aka S. Aruna who is an established authoress and loves India. This is her compiled version of Mahabharat to attract readers of all ages.
Do not miss to check out reviews of more books based on Mahabharata
Plot summary:
This book is divided into three sections, Beginnings, Five fingers, one hand, and Kurukshetra.
Sage Durvasa, famous for his ill-temper grants boon to Kunti, who succeeds to fulfill all the needs of the sage. Out of curiosity, she tries chanting the mantra thus Karna born. Unmarried Kunti, panics and decides to leave the glorious child in the river, placing in the basket.
Then the story moves to Shantanu, who is a Kuru monarch of the moon god’s lineage. While hunting he comes across a beautiful maiden and decides to marry her. She agrees to marry on certain conditions and blind by love Shantanu agrees. Soon she delivers a baby and throws him in a river. She does this for seven-time and for the eighth time, Shantanu unable to see his babies getting killed, stops her, thus Bhishma aka Gangeya born.
After many years, while hunting Shantanu meets a fisher girl dressed in rags, who has a beautiful fragrance, this girl is Satyavati. Enchanting by her beauty and fragrance, he asks her hand to marry. However, her father put a condition that only her son should get the throne of Hastinapur. Because of this, Bhishma vow that he will remain celibate to fulfill the condition made by Satyavati’s father.
After a few years, Dhritrashtra and Pandu born from the union of Sage Vyas and queens, while Vidur born from a servant girl. Dhritrashtra is blind thus not suitable for the throne, Vidur is a son of a lower caste, hence, Pandu is the sole heir of the throne. Soon, Pandu loses his life due to a curse. Here, Dhritrashtra had a hundred sons, and Pandu, Kunti, and Madri had five sons from the boon of Sage Durvasa.
Duryodhana, the eldest Kaurava demands his right on the throne and he envies his cousins, the Pandavas. He plots to kill them in many places; however, they escape. Soon, Arjun, the third Pandava wins Draupadi in swayamver, and because of destiny, she becomes the wife of all the five Pandavas.
Duryodhana, because of his ego and spites refuses to give any part of the kingdom to Pandavas. Pandavas creates a new kingdom, Indraprasth out of nothing. Still, Duryodhan is not satisfied and he invites, Yudhisthir, the eldest Pandava to gamble. Through cheating, He gets all the wealth of Pandavas and also humiliates Pandavas’ wife Panchali in the full court.
Thus, the seed of war is sown. Few years after this, the whole dynasty of Satyavati and Shantanu stand opposite to each other in the Kurukshetra war. This war is not for the kingdom but for the dharma and truth.
Lord Krishna, who is an inseparable part of this epic plays an important role at each step.
My perception:
This book is mainly written to attract the westerner to this great Indian epic and those Indian youth who are unaware of the Mahabharat. Keeping this in mind, I loved this compiled version. This book has all the great elements which can arouse interest in the reader for further reading of Mahabharat. I have already read many versions of Mahabharat but still, this book hooked me till the last. Especially the Kurukshetra war. I always love to imagine the characters of Mahabharat while reading the book. This time co-incidentally the events in the book and the TV-series related to each other, which helped me to see this epic tale again with the fresh imagination.
I love the way how authoress has started this book from the creation of the universe and finished it to the Parikshit, who was the grandson of Arjuna.
One can read as many books on Mahabharat but the thirst to know more about this epic is never ceases.
If you want to read about Mahabharat and looking for books, which can introduce you to this, then this book is surely for you.
Beautiful, crisp, and interesting, this is how I like to describe this book.
Do not miss to check out reviews of more books based on Mahabharata
Plot summary:
This book is divided into three sections, Beginnings, Five fingers, one hand, and Kurukshetra.
Sage Durvasa, famous for his ill-temper grants boon to Kunti, who succeeds to fulfill all the needs of the sage. Out of curiosity, she tries chanting the mantra thus Karna born. Unmarried Kunti, panics and decides to leave the glorious child in the river, placing in the basket.
Then the story moves to Shantanu, who is a Kuru monarch of the moon god’s lineage. While hunting he comes across a beautiful maiden and decides to marry her. She agrees to marry on certain conditions and blind by love Shantanu agrees. Soon she delivers a baby and throws him in a river. She does this for seven-time and for the eighth time, Shantanu unable to see his babies getting killed, stops her, thus Bhishma aka Gangeya born.
After many years, while hunting Shantanu meets a fisher girl dressed in rags, who has a beautiful fragrance, this girl is Satyavati. Enchanting by her beauty and fragrance, he asks her hand to marry. However, her father put a condition that only her son should get the throne of Hastinapur. Because of this, Bhishma vow that he will remain celibate to fulfill the condition made by Satyavati’s father.
After a few years, Dhritrashtra and Pandu born from the union of Sage Vyas and queens, while Vidur born from a servant girl. Dhritrashtra is blind thus not suitable for the throne, Vidur is a son of a lower caste, hence, Pandu is the sole heir of the throne. Soon, Pandu loses his life due to a curse. Here, Dhritrashtra had a hundred sons, and Pandu, Kunti, and Madri had five sons from the boon of Sage Durvasa.
Duryodhana, the eldest Kaurava demands his right on the throne and he envies his cousins, the Pandavas. He plots to kill them in many places; however, they escape. Soon, Arjun, the third Pandava wins Draupadi in swayamver, and because of destiny, she becomes the wife of all the five Pandavas.
Duryodhana, because of his ego and spites refuses to give any part of the kingdom to Pandavas. Pandavas creates a new kingdom, Indraprasth out of nothing. Still, Duryodhan is not satisfied and he invites, Yudhisthir, the eldest Pandava to gamble. Through cheating, He gets all the wealth of Pandavas and also humiliates Pandavas’ wife Panchali in the full court.
Thus, the seed of war is sown. Few years after this, the whole dynasty of Satyavati and Shantanu stand opposite to each other in the Kurukshetra war. This war is not for the kingdom but for the dharma and truth.
Lord Krishna, who is an inseparable part of this epic plays an important role at each step.
My perception:
This book is mainly written to attract the westerner to this great Indian epic and those Indian youth who are unaware of the Mahabharat. Keeping this in mind, I loved this compiled version. This book has all the great elements which can arouse interest in the reader for further reading of Mahabharat. I have already read many versions of Mahabharat but still, this book hooked me till the last. Especially the Kurukshetra war. I always love to imagine the characters of Mahabharat while reading the book. This time co-incidentally the events in the book and the TV-series related to each other, which helped me to see this epic tale again with the fresh imagination.
I love the way how authoress has started this book from the creation of the universe and finished it to the Parikshit, who was the grandson of Arjuna.
One can read as many books on Mahabharat but the thirst to know more about this epic is never ceases.
If you want to read about Mahabharat and looking for books, which can introduce you to this, then this book is surely for you.
Beautiful, crisp, and interesting, this is how I like to describe this book.
April 13, 2021
After failing to get past Rajaji's Mahabharata prose for over an year, I complete Sons of Gods in less than 24 hours! Sharon Maas's retelling is an eminently readable edition of the greatest story ever told.
The book got me hooked with a fiction-isque style and short chapters.
A popular saying in India, "What's not in Mahabharat is not in life" rings true after reading the great tale. It has everything: war, peace, love, lust, strategy, tactics, and many more.
Although most of the stories are already well known to me, this is the first time I read it as it should be: in complete.
I look forward to reading the denser and more intricate versions of Mahabharata: those of Ganguli or Rajaji.
The book got me hooked with a fiction-isque style and short chapters.
A popular saying in India, "What's not in Mahabharat is not in life" rings true after reading the great tale. It has everything: war, peace, love, lust, strategy, tactics, and many more.
Although most of the stories are already well known to me, this is the first time I read it as it should be: in complete.
I look forward to reading the denser and more intricate versions of Mahabharata: those of Ganguli or Rajaji.
April 24, 2020
It was a coincidence when I was browsing through my news stream of goodreads.com and a post caught my eye. It was the announcement of a free giveaway of this book: Sons Of Gods - Mahabharatha posted by the author: Sharon Maas. Since I was disappointed with C. Rajagopalachari's version of Mahabharata, I was keenly looking for a better work of the great epic written in English. I wasted no time in showing my interest in reading her work. She sent it to me right away. When I read the prologue and I thought: Wow! It's amazing. This is the one! I am and will be grateful to her forever.
It overwhelmed me right from the start. The writing style, the apt use of poetic words, the conversations, the dialogues and the way the story eloquently flows like a calm river has made me fall in love with it. It's aesthetically appealing. The beauty of the language is experienced throughout the book as it weaves through all the episodes covering the substance of the original epic. I can imagine how difficult it was for her to first read the other versions of the great epic, then analyze them, and then meticulously extracting all the essential details and to finally come up with something as priceless as this, is nothing short of a literary marvel. (As a matter of fact, she has watched TV series of the epic. It really shows how interested she was about Mahabharata.) It's not just the beauty that appeals to the reader, but also that it misses nothing important; thereby doing justice to the original epic nonetheless.
There are 72 chapters. The chapters are more or less equally spaced. Each chapter is about ten minutes long. So, it will help you keep up with it without boring you even for a minute. Therefore, you can easily read a chapter or two during a break from your busy work schedule.
The aesthetics in defining each of the great characters, for instance, describing the charm of the heavenly maidens, their relationships with the kings - the conspiracies and fight scenes, and the principles of wisdom, makes the reader fondly remember all the episodes and the epic as a whole. It's truly a commendable effort. Well done, Sharon!
I want to urge all the people who are interested to read Mahabharata in English, buy this version without a speck of doubt. You won't be disappointed. I'll give you my word for it. It is prose poetry in the form of a novel.
It overwhelmed me right from the start. The writing style, the apt use of poetic words, the conversations, the dialogues and the way the story eloquently flows like a calm river has made me fall in love with it. It's aesthetically appealing. The beauty of the language is experienced throughout the book as it weaves through all the episodes covering the substance of the original epic. I can imagine how difficult it was for her to first read the other versions of the great epic, then analyze them, and then meticulously extracting all the essential details and to finally come up with something as priceless as this, is nothing short of a literary marvel. (As a matter of fact, she has watched TV series of the epic. It really shows how interested she was about Mahabharata.) It's not just the beauty that appeals to the reader, but also that it misses nothing important; thereby doing justice to the original epic nonetheless.
There are 72 chapters. The chapters are more or less equally spaced. Each chapter is about ten minutes long. So, it will help you keep up with it without boring you even for a minute. Therefore, you can easily read a chapter or two during a break from your busy work schedule.
The aesthetics in defining each of the great characters, for instance, describing the charm of the heavenly maidens, their relationships with the kings - the conspiracies and fight scenes, and the principles of wisdom, makes the reader fondly remember all the episodes and the epic as a whole. It's truly a commendable effort. Well done, Sharon!
I want to urge all the people who are interested to read Mahabharata in English, buy this version without a speck of doubt. You won't be disappointed. I'll give you my word for it. It is prose poetry in the form of a novel.
June 15, 2015
First of all thanks a lot to the author for offering a soft version of this book while I was going to wait forever for the hard copy to release.Despite not being a die hard Karna Fan I have to say this is a Karna centred(as mentioned by author herself)book which does not twist and turn facts to suit the glorification of its central character.It is a very short retelling I would say(18 days war description only can cover a single book ) but the way of narrating the story is good and entertaining.Overall a very nice read(specially if you have no prior knowledge of the epic which unfortunately I did have a little bit) but being very short and simple version many complex characters of the epic did not get enough space to be potrayed properly in my opinion.
November 22, 2012
Absolutely fantastic
April 17, 2019
This is the best English version of The Mahabharata. Here is my review.
March 27, 2022
I won this book as part of a Goodreads Giveaway.
Formatting wise: it may benefit from an edit or glance back over to fix some typos and grammatical errors, but they do not hinder the reading experience.
First, I did not remember entering this giveaway, but I am GLAD I won, because the book was excellent and I enjoyed every minute of it, and could not stop reading. I am not well versed in the legends of Hindu, Dharma, and other folklore related to it (apologies if I am incorrectly categorizing it). The story started a bit slow the first few pages, but when the story picked up, it was fast paced and exciting.
As I read, I was tempted to compare it to King Arthur, but that is unfair, because this story came first, and was more precise and entertaining. Once it focuses on the main characters, which are two sections of the same family feuding over the kingdom and how the decades and time had led to this moment, where main gods were prominently involved with them, building to a final battle more enthralling than Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, Rowling’s Harry Potter, Gaiman’s American Gods, or others I am forgetting.
I enjoyed it, and am excited to track down a way to watch the tv series based on it. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys mythology, historical fiction, fantasy, or Indian-centric stories, because it is excellent.
Formatting wise: it may benefit from an edit or glance back over to fix some typos and grammatical errors, but they do not hinder the reading experience.
First, I did not remember entering this giveaway, but I am GLAD I won, because the book was excellent and I enjoyed every minute of it, and could not stop reading. I am not well versed in the legends of Hindu, Dharma, and other folklore related to it (apologies if I am incorrectly categorizing it). The story started a bit slow the first few pages, but when the story picked up, it was fast paced and exciting.
As I read, I was tempted to compare it to King Arthur, but that is unfair, because this story came first, and was more precise and entertaining. Once it focuses on the main characters, which are two sections of the same family feuding over the kingdom and how the decades and time had led to this moment, where main gods were prominently involved with them, building to a final battle more enthralling than Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, Rowling’s Harry Potter, Gaiman’s American Gods, or others I am forgetting.
I enjoyed it, and am excited to track down a way to watch the tv series based on it. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys mythology, historical fiction, fantasy, or Indian-centric stories, because it is excellent.
September 12, 2023
3.5 stars I received a copy of this ebook in a Goodreads giveaway. I really enjoyed this delving into this take on a piece of ancient Indian literature. I am not super familiar with the Mahabharata or Hindu mythology but I really liked getting into it. As a novel however, I had trouble keeping track of all the characters and story threads and how the effected each other.
March 28, 2023
By far the best English edition of this great epic saga. I was held captivated from start to finish.
May 7, 2021
Never having read The Mahabharata in full I cannot judge how a good a precis this is, all I can say is that it achieves its goal of conveying the meaning of Dharma and adharma and the grey areas between the two. The parallels with other great works are many including: The Old Testament, the Shanameh and The Illiad.
May 3, 2015
This retelling of the Mahabharata has been my introduction to the Hindu classic. I found it interesting, but a book I will need to reread again in the future.
January 4, 2016
I loved the book. The description of the people and the objects were wonderful. I love the hidden messages.
April 24, 2014
This was a great re-telling of one of my all time favorite stories. Enjoyed it immensely.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews