Title: Jana Bibi’s Excellent Fortunes
Author: Betsy Woodman
Publisher: Henry Holt and Company
Source: ARC from Henry Holt and Company
From Henry Holt’s site:
Meet Jana Bibi, a Scottish woman helping to save the small town in India she has grown to call home and the oddball characters she considers family
Janet Laird’s life changed the day she inherited her grandfather’s house in a faraway Indian hill station. Ignoring her son’s arguments to come grow old in their family castle in Scotland, she moves with her chatty parrot, Mr. Ganguly and her loyal housekeeper, Mary, to Hamara Nagar, where local merchants are philosophers, the chief of police is a tyrant, and a bagpipe-playing Gurkha keeps the wild monkeys at bay. Settling in, Jana Bibi (as she comes to be known) meets her colorful local neighbors—Feroze Ali Khan of Royal Tailors, who struggles with his business and family, V.K. Ramachandran, whose Treasure Emporium is bursting at the seams with objects of unknown provenance, and Rambir, editor of the local newspaper, who burns the midnight oil at his printing press. When word gets out that the town is in danger of being drowned by a government dam, Jana is enlisted to help put it on the map. Hoping to attract tourists with promises of good things to come, she stacks her deck of cards, readies her fine-feathered assistant—and Jana Bibi’s Excellent Fortunes is born.
Are you looking for an escape from the winter weather in your area? Or are you already planning your summer beach reads? Jana Bibi’s Excellent Fortunes will transport you to a small Indian town in 1960. Like any small place, Hamara Nagar is full of characters who aren’t likely to be found anywhere else.
Jana Bibi is lonely and doesn’t feel as if her son understands her. Mary, who has been with her for years, understands Jana Bibi’s kind nature and anticipates her employer’s house won’t hold just the two of them for long. Mary’s correct.
Woodman perfectly captures how one woman can win over a town by engaging people in conversation and listening to their concerns. The secondary characters, while interesting on their own, really reveal the kindness and determination of Jana Bibi.
I’m sure more adventures for Jana Bibi and her neighbors is just around the corner.