The Color of Our Sky

A Novel

By: Amita Trasi

Narrated by: Zehra Jane Naqvi, Sneha Mathan

In the spirit of Khaled Hosseini, Nadia Hashimi and Shilpi Somaya Gowda comes this powerful debut from a talented new voice—a sweeping, emotional journey of two childhood friends in Mumbai, India, whose lives converge only to change forever one fateful night.

India, 1986: Mukta, a ten-year-old village girl from the lower caste Yellama cult has come of age and must fulfill her destiny of becoming a temple prostitute, as her mother and grandmother did before her. In an attempt to escape her fate, Mukta is sent to be a house girl for an upper-middle class family in Mumbai. There she discovers a friend in the daughter of the family, high spirited eight-year-old Tara, who helps her recover from the wounds of her past. Tara introduces Mukta to an entirely different world—one of ice cream, reading, and a friendship that soon becomes a sisterhood.

But one night in 1993, Mukta is kidnapped from Tara’s family home and disappears. Shortly thereafter, Tara and her father move to America. A new life in Los Angeles awaits them but Tara never recovers from the loss of her best friend, or stops wondering if she was somehow responsible for Mukta's abduction.

Eleven years later, Tara, now an adult, returns to India determined to find Mukta. As her search takes her into the brutal underground world of human trafficking, Tara begins to uncover long-buried secrets in her own family that might explain what happened to Mukta—and why she came to live with Tara’s family in the first place.

Moving from a traditional Indian village to the bustling modern metropolis of Mumbai, to Los Angeles and back again, this is a heartbreaking and beautiful portrait of an unlikely friendship—a story of love, betrayal, and, ultimately, redemption.

Depressing with a capital D

I had almost wished this was a true story because to think that a writer could be this bleak and dark about life, and one's ability to make your own way, was deeply sad and depressing.

Wonderful story

I really enjoyed all aspects of this book. The narration was great - once I got used to the two voices. Although I want it to carry on, I am happy that it ended the way it did. A huge wake up to the type of life that some women still are born into. Recommended.

Vulnerability

Excellent portrayal of life; The good, the bad, and the ugly. Mixed with understanding, acceptance, and hope. A must read!

Hard to hear

This book was hard because of the truth behind its words. The cast society, prostitution and the children who are sold or kidnapped into this life is a hard true reality! This book made me see and understand these truths and it broke my heart. Fell in love with the characters!

Wow

Throughout the book I hated the character Tara. Couldn't understand how she was. Without spoiling anything, her redemption was so deep I was in tears. This world needs more Muktas.