What do readers think of A People's History of Heaven by Mathangi Subramanian? Write your own review.

I enjoyed this book very much! Thought the author did a great job in developing each character, these women. If Heaven, a slum in India. The story depicted what it is like to live in poverty, but mostly what to like to have friends who will always raise you up when the going gets bad. These women were each other's strength and stability. I loved how the author chose first person plural to tell the story. I did feel like the chronology was a big hard to follow at times and would have liked to have a little more detail about the different languages and some of the customs. I know of the caste system , but could have used some brushing up on a few of the details. I think this author is going to be a big name in literature.. she did an outstanding job in her debut novel!

It was a delight to read a book that focuses on strong girls from backgrounds that aren't often seen - in fiction, or anywhere at all. Written in the first person plural, the author invites the reader to be part of the circle of friends. While the writing can sometimes veer into the slightly sappy and the level of diversity in a single group of friends seems unlikely, it's still a satisfying read that makes you root for these brave young women.

When I submitted my name to review this book I thought it would be like Dante's Inferno based on the many levels of hell. It would be more of a reference book than an actual novel. Instead, it is a story of families within a community who face down "advance" in their village. I would suggest reading this book because it is well written,strongly fleshed out characters and thoughtful in it's approach to what change can bring.

I would recommend this book to anyone interested in learning more about the need for education of women in modern day India. It is a grim story about real life poverty and the class distinctions that guide so many lives.

The young girls and their families are very engaging and talented in their different ways. It helped to have the list of the girls and their family relations at the beginning of the book to refer to.

It reminded me a bit of "The Fruit of the Drunken Tree" by Ingrid Contreras. That story had a major character trying to provide for her family while living in the slums of Bogota, Columbia.

I enjoyed the book and will be on the lookout for similar stories.

I would not of picked up and read A PEOPLE'S HISTORY OF HEAVEN. I am very glad that it was sent to me to read and review. I have not read much fiction about India and the living conditions, the way of life in the slum district. I was completely caught up in the story and writing. The words used to describe the life of these young women made me feel I was right there with them. Beautiful characters, the respect, the love that these young girls have for each other grabbed me and kept me reading. I wanted to fight right along with the families. A very rewarding story. I will share this copy with friends and request our Westchester Public library to order a copy. A beautiful adult first novel.

I was engaged with the characters for much of the book, but I felt chopped up among the girls and their moms.. I needed to keep a sort of log of who did what with or to whom. I most appreciated Deepa. Just kept herself centered. She made the book worth reading.

This book surprised me. The total lack of sentence structure and correct punctuation was very effective but hard to get used to, and this is the reason I did not give it 5 stars. I have several friends who would stop reading this book because of this feature. I am very glad I continued reading because it kept getting better and I really felt good by the time I reached the end. The family that these girls and their mothers have created is amazing and heartwarming. They are strong, resilient and joyful. They strive for education and finding a good man (sad there are so few) and create a sisterhood to survive the harshness of the reality they live in. The ending gives you hope for their future. This will be a good book club book.

Snippets of unconditional love between five girls. Well written, some irony and descriptions of real poverty. Somehow I expected more. I guess I expected to be fired up and looking for ways to help these brave women, and yet I was just quietly and smartly proud of my race. A good investment of reading time.