Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh

A book worth reading is Amitav Ghosh's Sea of Poppies. Unfortunately, this is the first of a trilogy, and the wait for book two seems a long one. The characters who travel across the Indian Ocean from Calcutta to Mauritius in the ship called Ibis come alive so effortlessly. Their pain, worries and happiness simply cannot leave the reader alone. The research behind the background of the mid-19 century is immense and being a lover of history I find that an added attraction. The working of the East India Company and their realtionship with the zamindars and the working class of India, as well as the poppy plant business from the fields by the Ganges covers a vast area. This book is an intellectual marvel.