Maturing in Wilderness: Shobhaa De’

I was reading the book Spouse by Shobhaa De’ which I happen to purchased while waiting for the red-light to get over. I’ve read De’ novels, and seen a few of her tele-serials as well, but never admired of her works. More so because it has an overdose of high society life filled with artificiality and fictitious display of wealth. But also those characters had less or no substance in their life with no resemblance to reality. They were just social objects and nothing more to that. But new this book by De’ deals with the success, failures, setbacks and joys of married life enlisting instances of her experiences. As the book says it about trust, companionship, affection, sharing and claims to enlist how marriages work and why they fail. Apart from suggestions and practice leaning practices what makes this book most interesting is that it opens a window to De’s very own married life which is more real with less frills or drama of high social life. One can easily relate to similar instances in their own life. If not called as a complete guidebook of married life then at least it can be taken as a reference book dealing with a-to-zee issues relating to marriage. Another thing to look for in this book is its interesting tittles given to the various chapters.
This interesting book led me pick up another by De’ with the name of Speed-Post, which is a collection of letters written to her children on various time and occasions. It depicts her relationship with her children as a parent, and herself as a child to her own parents also taking into consideration her other relations. Shobhaa is unlike the normal mothers worrying about the class scores and the adolescent years of her children. She been keeping strict vigil on her children and also given them enough space to grow in life. It can be summed up in her words only as it is about ‘living, loving, caring and coping with the world’.
Both the books opens up De’ in a more transparent and honest and interesting manner. When it comes to portray of her characters it is herself only emerging as the most down to earth, mature, sensitive, emotional and strong person capable to enough respect. I must say that De’ had come a long way from socialite evenings to speed-post. I hope her characters in her soap-operas were hold substance as she is herself.