An entertaining novella, first published in Bengali in 1993, about three generations of very different women of the same family (by marriage) leading different lives in Pakistan.
When Somlata’s husband’s aunt, Pishi, dies suddenly, Somlata is shocked, but her horror continues when she is haunted by the feisty widow who refuses to pass on and continues to haunt Somlata.
Pishi is much more amusing as a character in death than she was in life and brings humour to this book.
An interesting read showing about the differences in wealth and changes over three generations in Pakistan.
Thanks to NetGalley for a Kindle copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to read a copy of this book
This book is a beautiful piece of writing. A lovely story about a young woman who is haunted by her Aunt. However, the story has a twist, and unexpectedly you are taken from one generation to the next in an unusual way. The only thing I was not completely able to grasp was the Indian forms of address within the family. Perhaps a brief list of translation of the terms would be helpful for us non- Indian readers.
Recommended to anyone who loves a gentle, descriptive story.

This was a quick and entertaining novella about three generations of strong, determined women in an otherwise male dominated world. It shows how society changes our lives over the generations and how the women choose to deal with the issues they are faced with. I enjoyed the story although sometimes got a little confused with the native language terms.

This book was recommended to me by the publisher.

This book spans social change in India - a woman is married into the dregs of a once wealthy family, she comes from a poor background and the family she marries into is left selling off their heritage and jewelry in order to continue to fund a lifestyle of leisure. The Protagonist marries a man somewhat older than her and although anxious about the expectations of the family and concerns about her own heritage juxtaposed with perceived wealth and class of her husband's family, uses her identity, and sex to drive change and a future for them all.

The husbands family carry traditional old values, whilst the woman takes the transitioning progressive views of the next wave of feminism, commanding a role outside of the family home, and building a future which results from hard work and ambition rather than living off the inheritance.

The book dedicates part of its time to the daughter - an independent, willed and educated girl, with the backing of a strong and supportive family of a mixed legacy that thrives on the nature of change and power of modern feminism.

The whole story is percolated with the despair of an aunt, married into the family at a young age, who became a widow before her time, whose only pleasure was invested in her jewelry box, the constant in her life which was otherwise regressed and strained. It tells of a child who was made a woman by the circumstance of marriage whose development and freedom is stunted until her death. Her character lives on as a ghostly presence in the protagonist's life, mostly spitting childlike anxiety and pain - spreading doubt and fear until she can be reincarnated and given the freedom of life in the modern world, where living in the real and changing world is much more vivid than the ornament of jewels valued in times past.

An excellent and thought-provoking book for the modern world. A fascinating read.

This was a quick and entertaining read about three generations of women and their feud over a jewellery box. Pishima, ignored and wizened and bitter, wise and hardworking Somlata and her daughter Boshon who is modern and independent and quite frankly mortified by her family. This novel touches on how society changes our lives more than we might expect, how these strong and determined women deal with that and the choices they make, right or wrong.

Four out of five valuable pieces of jewellery to The Aunt Who Wouldn’t Die by Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay.

This was a lovely read! It’s a very short novel but Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay packs lots of content into relatively few pages. The novel is about the lives of three different women of three different generations in a Bengali household and the ways their lives differ and intertwine.

I enjoyed following the lives of these three very different women. I loved the determination and single-mindedness of all them. It was like each of them had made a decision at some point, of ‘this is what I do’, whatever it was, and each of them just went ahead and did the thing, which was great!

Also the ghost is fucking hilarious. Once she’s made sure Somlata’s going to do what she wants her to do, she basically stands around insulting her and giving her terrible cooking advice. Really, if you were considering taking cooking advice from a ghost maybe rethink that. It’s so funny.

Eventually the whole story comes full circle, the loose threads are tied off, the questions are answered and it’s a very satisfying ending. I recommend this to anyone who’s looking for a very quick and very fun read.

This was such an entertaining read! I didn't expect it at all.

It's a novella about class, strong women, entrepreneurship, family, and more. It's packed with fun characters, interesting plot, with a ghost aunt!
I had such a good time. Totally recommended.

Thanks a lot Netgalley and the publisher for this copy in exchange for an honest review.

If I had to describe how I felt after finishing this book, I would say terrific, satisfying and effortless. And this description encompasses the writing and characters and the translation.

With only 140 pages long, this novella gives us three women, who are poles apart yet connected in the most ordinary ways. Somlata- a newlywed has a difficult time getting in terms with her in-laws, especially her pishima (father-in-law’s sister)- Roshomoyee. In a twisted and mysterious turn of events, this particular pishima entrusts her precious jewelry box to Somlata. But she does that after she has died, as a ghost basically.

Somlata, after hiding her new acquisition, falls back into her daily routine, only to be taunted again and again by the ghost. Somlata’s story is of a woman who takes charge of her failing household and brings back the lost prosperity and happiness through hard work and well-made decisions. Pishima, on the other hand, was widowed at a very young age and as a rule, was restricted from most worldly pleasures. She wanted to be free and live her life on her own terms, but little did she know that fate had other plans.

The final character to look out for is Boshon- Somlata’s daughter. She is fierce and free as the wind, detached from the world and opinionated as well as independent. Her story is hers to tell and I will leave it at that.

‘The Aunt who Wouldn’t die’ is a lot of things. It’s about the cruelties of life, the determination and strength while facing failure and the choices one gets to make in order to change the course of their life. From a completely different angle, it is the story of a Bengali household of Zamindars- proud as a peacock, egoistic and staunch believers of traditions and social status.

A funny warm entertaining novella ,a book about family strong women food a jewelry box .Throw in an interfering Aunt who Died long ago and has come back as a ghost.This is a delightful read highly recommend.#netgalley #Johnmurraypress

Impoverished Somlata marries into a family of landowner’s whose assets are rapidly diminishing through estate mismanagement and the notion that labour is beneath the dignity of their class. But when her aunt Rashomoyee dies and begins to haunt her, Somlata finds an opportunity to invigorate the family work ethic and reverse their fortunes.

Originally published in 1993, The Aunt Who Wouldn’t Die is a novella of class, love, family ties, entrepreneurship, and the mind of the modern Indian woman. It also suggests one should never take cooking advice from the dead.

Told by two alternating narrators, Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay covers some dark social truths - adultery, polygamy, child brides, and suffocating patronage - but does so with such sprightliness, The Aunt Who Wouldn’t Die maintains the feel of a short, fast, family comedy.

So I seem to be reading a lot of female empowerment books lately, any problem with that. NO ! There should be more books just like this one, this tells the story of different women from different generations but the connections of family and strength shared. A great read, well written and entertaining as well as inspiring

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

A refreshingly hilarious novella that offers a compelling celebration of female power. Three generations of Mitra women, a jewellery box and one fierce and feisty ghost who's sharp-tongue doesn't hold anything back. Told between two different perspectives and two very different timelines, Mukhopadhyay brilliantly captures the contrasting embodiments of each woman - Pishima - loud, bitter, opinionated but unforgettable; Somlata - entrepreneurial, wise yet utterly devoted; and Boshon - modern, bold and independent.

A seamlessly, fast-paced narrative reflecting the juxtaposition of women set against the social system of the time that I devoured in one sitting.