I loved Amitav Ghosh’s Sea of Poppies, the first installment
in his trilogy about the Opium Wars in China in the mid-19th-century.
Yes, I learned something about history, but I was entranced by his playful use
of language. The Opium Wars represented
a mixture and clash of many cultures and languages, and Ghosh reveled in the richness
of the stew. The writing is playful,
clever, and often downright funny (almost like Victor Borge or Syd Caeser doing
their language schticks). Yes, there is a conventional plot, but for me it
doesn’t matter much.
The second installment, River of Smoke, was a little
disappointing. Less playful, more plot
driven, more seriously historical.
The third and last of the trilogy, Flood of Fire,
unfortunately continues the trend. The
language just isn’t much fun anymore, history dominates in a less interesting
way, and Ghosh spends lots of time tying up plot lines from the previous two
books. But I didn’t care much about
those plot lines when I read the earlier installments, and I didn’t even
remember them clearly on reading the third.
So I was disappointed in the finale. Ghosh ends up focusing greater attention on
the weaker points of the series, and neglecting what made the first book so
enjoyable.
Well, I do know a lot more about the Opium Wars now. It's interesting to think about the Iraq and Afghanistan wars in the context of the Opium Wars. Nonetheless, Flood of Fire is not what I was hoping for.
