Beneath the clouds and coconut leaves::Indian Novel

BENEATH THE CLOUDS AND COCONUT LEAVES Novel By Moncy Pothen


Published in USA on March-2006 · More Book Reviews · Reader Resources · Free Downloads · Resources for all · News · Unlimited Resources · Writer's Resources · Sign Guest book · View Guest book · Contact the Author · Review this book · Home
	Poems, Songs and Lyrics by Moncy Pothen



	Published in India on August-2006 and in UAE on September 2006.

Author Pothen should be applauded on his ability to handle such revolutionary ideals as social enlightenment and welfare issues in such a backwater setting; a rather laid-back rural community where change is frowned upon and things can only move at a snail’s pace. Linguistically, the book should delight all with its generous imagery and plethora of picturesque descriptions. The kaleidoscope of exotic characters, Hindus, Muslims and Christians, living side by side in peace and amity, also adds to the overall warmth of the novel.

- Safi Abdi (Safia Mohamed), well known Somalian writer, has been living in Dubai for the past five years. Her books, A Mighty Collision of Two Worlds and Offspring of Paradise are popular.

"A simple story of people who retrace their steps to pick up life's broken threads to re-stitch them into a healthy picture of reunion. Using a unique style and structure, Moncy Pothen's vintage tale set in Kerala, the land of monsoon clouds and coconut palms, projects the human virtues."

Dr. Sukumar Azhikode- Sanskrit/Vedic scholar. Calicut University professor and pro- vice chancellor, till 1986. His philosophical book, 'Tatwamasi," has been awarded many prestigious awards in India.

"Extremism, now more widely termed, terrorism, is on the lips of every human being and on the front pages of the world’s newspapers every day. But we still long for love and love still thrives. This poetic novel by Moncy Pothen plunges us directly into the forests and paddy fields of Kerala, India from the 1960s to the 1980s, describes the delicate and heartfelt awakening of love in two lives, and has roots in ancient Indian tradition. Can you forgive a terrorist, if he has participated in the murder of your own father? Like the heroine, Ahalya, we live in complicated times, where black and white give way to shades of gray, and in Beneath the Clouds and Coconut Leaves, we hold our breath to witness which will win the battle, love or hate? Like the hero, Arjunan, we are fighting to win that battle within ourselves."

-Allana Joy Bourne. Newspapers in Education Program/Curriculum Specialist, The Seattle Times, Washington. Adjunct faculty, Seattle Pacific University and an awarding winning journalist-- won the Newspaper Association of America's Best In Print award in 2001.

P.V.Vivekanand.

Chief Editor, Gulf Today Daily, Sharjah, UAE and the recipient of the Journalist of the year award in 1997 by International Journalists Congress.

Mr. P.V.Vivekanand's speech. Click to play the video.

I lack enough vocabulary to deliver a qualified literary speech, but I shall explain a few things that I know. I had planned to stay away from the Onam related functions this year, but when Moncy called and informed me about the book's releasing, I decided to attend; because, I liked his book very much. About one and half year back Moncy came to me with the manuscript, but I could not read it in a stretch at that time. He called me frequently to enquire and I conveyed some of my observations. After that, four, five months back he informed me about publishing the book in USA and I had announced that in the Gulf Today. But, during this period I could read the manuscript completely. This book has written in such a way that it should intensely touch human mind. In my opinion, this book stays a notch above every other book written in English about life in Kerala, including Arundhathi Roys book; that I am so confident about. Because, this book is closer to the human mind and it explains how things happening in real life and especially in our unique social background; and I would say that Moncy has succeeded very well in its metamorphosis. Arundhathi Roy has got Booker Prize for her work and beyond doubt, without exaggeration, I can predict that, if this book is being supported in its proper way and introduced in a national level, the concerned people will look into it and it will be nominated for a Booker prize. I am not joking. What I meant to say is that; it is a classic book. Beneath the Clouds and Coconut Leaves offers not simply glimpses into life in Kerala but deep insights into how the Kerala people think and behave, their considerations, contemplations and motivations. It offers explanations, in a simple language, of the very fascinations that a non-Malayalee might have about Kerala. I have not intended to degrade Arundhathi Roy's book, but I assume it was recognized at that time due to its particular style and background were new. I wish you all the best and thank you for inviting me to release this book in UAE. I am so honored to have attended this function and one day when this book hits the international headlines, I am so confident that it will; and I will feel so proud and the news will definitely comfort me.

Moncy Pothen’s novel, ‘Beneath the Clouds and Coconut Leaves’ gives a panoramic view of the socio-economic life in Kerala in a realistic manner, threading along the warp and weft of the Kerala community.

Arjunan the hero and Ahalya the heroine are mythological names. Arjunan is the ideal fighter in the eternal battle between right and wrong; Ahalya stands for the curse-befallen society that needs a stone-like persistence for its final liberation.

The novel is full of meticulous descriptions of the coconut land filling the air with the flutter of the Coconut fronds and the fragrance of the paddy fields. The vernacular expressions in the novel add to the Kerala flavor of the story.

-Prof. Bridget Joseph M.A.M.Phil. Retired Professor, Assumption College, Changanacherry, Kerala. Former Co-coordinator of undergraduate courses, School of distant education, M.G.University. Former Resource person for Post Graduate Courses in English, M.G University. Former faculty at the International Embassy School, Dammam , Saudi Arabia.

By its very name, Beneath the Clouds and Coconut Leaves, Moncy Pothen's book tells you it has to do with Kerala, aptly described as God's own country. I was very touched by his excellent presentation of life in the raw in Kerala. All the characters he has presented definitely exist in some part of the southern Indian state, and every incident he narrates happens every day there.

Beneath the Clouds and Coconut Leaves offers not simply glimpses into life in Kerala but deep insights into how the people there think and behave, their considerations, contemplations and motivations. It offers explanations of the very fascinations that a non-Malayalee might have about Kerala. Pothen has skillfully used Malayalam words without leaving any room for ambiguity.

Beneath the Clouds and Coconut Leaves is a very refreshing work, and it will not be an exaggeration that every Malayalee would wish to have authored such a presentation at some point in time. It is all the more true among Malayalees who live outside Kerala who grasp at little straws to remind them of their childhood, their small little villages, the typical characters who exist there.

A job excellently done. I rank Beneath the Clouds and Coconut Leaves a notch above every other book written in English about life in Kerala, including, 'The God of small things,' which won Booker Prize in 1997.

-P.V.Vivekanand. Chief Editor, Gulf Today Daily, Sharjah, UAE and the recipient of the Journalist of the year award in 1997 by International Journalists Congress.

Author Bio

Moncy Pothen was raised in a village in Kerala. Born as the youngest and only brother of four sisters, Pothen started writing poems at 18. Many of his poems in his mother tongue have been published and broadcast over local radio stations.

Raised by his father, a schoolteacher who left to eternity on February 29, 2004 and mother, who survives. Pothen is a member of the Christian Community in Kerala . After completing his education in Kerala, Pothen started a career as an accountant in UAE in 1985. Now he lives in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates and works as Chief Accountant at a private firm. He is one among the many millions of overseas Indians.