When Peacocks Dance

Book excerpt: In these stories there is an interweaving of the past and the present while the main characters -women are seemingly engaged in some ordinary pursuit of daily life. As in The Long Journey where Kamala is traveling by rail, or in the case of Nirmala in The Corner Laundromat, Asha waiting to pick up her child outside school in Blessing From Above, Uma commuting to work in Silicon Valley in Suburban Mona Lisa; the small betrayals or infidelities in their lives, whether real or imagined, and their effort in surmounting these form the main theme of this collection. The stories are short and precise and written in a compelling narrative voice that draws the reader in. There are no boundaries here, whether it be the U.S. or India, they all celebrate women's lives-their trials and tribulations and the heartfelt messages of soul and survival. "Vasanthi Victor's stories are infused with tastes and textures of India. Her ability to transform the mundane and ordinary with her words drew me into her stories and I stayed with her characters through their sorrows, their dreams and their victories." -Amulya Malladi, author of A Breath of Fresh Air and The Mango Season "The surprises emerge when we realize the skill with which she is able to portray the wide range of characters in her stories short and precise and the narrative voice is fascinating These are the kinds of stories that may become the stitches that keep our lives seamed together." -from the foreword by Roshni Rustomji-Kerns, author of The Braided Tongue, editor of Living In America and other anthologies