Synopsis: In Mary Finn’s excellent debut novel Anila, a young girl with a Bengali mother and an Irish father, lives in Calcutta during the late 1700s. Her response to an advert for an apprentice draughtsman takes her on a journey up the Ganges but also in search of her missing father, the memory of her dead mother and herself.

Review: The copy I received of ‘Anila’s Journey’ was the proper published edition rather than the usual uncorrected proof and it is a lovely book – a dark rich cover with an intriguing series of overlapping images and even French flaps! The colours reminded me very strongly of my last box of very posh chocolates and the comparison remained apt because this is not a book to be gobbled at a sitting – savouring the flavour was very much part of the pleasure.

The plot unfolds in a way, which carefully reflects an age when the pace was slower, and there is much to see whilst moving through the text. The settings are vivid to the point where I felt I could smell the fruit, the streets, even the river and the emphasis on painting means that the book is rich in visual imagery as well. There was plenty of historical detail but Finn is too skilful a writer to be didactic – details about the East India Company and other aspects of Calcutta life are slotted invisibly into the plot, which twists and turns in a satisfactorily engaging way. The pages are also peopled with believable characters – even Carlen, by far the most morally ambiguous, stayed well within the boundaries of credibility.

Good historical fiction is a rare treat and to find that combined with strong characters and good plotting is very unusual indeed,. This isn’t a book for every reader, but for thoughtful and enquiring teenagers who like to stretch their comfort zones it’s a must.

Mary Hoffman's Review in The Guardian

 2008-01-22