Ode to Lata

by Ghalib Shiraz Dhalla

Book Overview

Banker by day and denizen of Los Angeles' clubs by night, the protagonist of Ghalib Shiraz Dhalla's groundbreaking, critically-acclaimed novel has left behind a tempestuous childhood in postcolonial... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1893329135
• ISBN13: 9781893329133
• Release Date: February 2002
• Publisher: Really Great Books
• Length: 293 Pages
• Weight: 1.08 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.6" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

Ode to the World, Really

~~~~~~~~~_________~~~~~~~~I have read this book on my way to New York from Los Angeles. Including the transit time, I spent about eight hours reading it -- on and off. I simply could not put it down. It is a story so real and resembles every LGBT Muslim's struggle to put his past and his present together. Ali Khosla, an Indian Muslim from Kenya, lives in the fabulous queer city of West Hollywood, California. Ali has some major issues to deal with. First, he lost his father when he was only five. Second, he is gay and Muslim. He was brought up in an Indian Muslim house in Kenya and now lives in West Hollywood. All of these are things that clash like two speeding cars on the freeway, going to each other's direction -- a ticking bomb, to put it midly. Ghalib Shiraz Dhalla can write like no other. His short chapters allow you to take the time to breath from all of the sex the sex-obsessed Ali is thinking or doing. Of course, it wouldn't be any drama without a Desi Ma(mother) involved. Lets just let you read the book, shall we? This is a good one, da-h-lings!

I would give Dhalla more than 5 stars!

Splendid work! Ghalib has taken us through a struggling child's soul trying to make his culture accept his identity, at the same time fighting wars with a family he left in Mombasa, Kenya that demands of their only grandson and child to meet the ordinary and "normal" requirements of giving them an heir. The entire book is of a homosexual's struggle to live as "normal" as he knows how, at the same time trying to get over his obsession of his lover. All the time, Ali has a wonderful circle of friends in LA who do not leave his side through all his painful struggles with love and obsession. Added to that is great humor. I could not keep the book down. I laughed and cried with Ali! I can't wait for the Two Krishnas to hit the book store. A must read for everyone. Very well written, Ghalib!

Ode to Lata is one of the finest novels you'll ever read.

I read Ode to Lata in one night. It made me laugh and cry and even angry at times. This book is a powerful exploration of the joys and agonies of love and doesn't try to sugarcoat any of it. Reading it made me feel like I had been granted permission to somebody's innermost thoughts and feelings. What stands out most about this novel is that even the main character, Ali, is not some heroic, positive embodiment of all that is good. Like the other characters, Ali is multi-layered and possesses, like the rest of us, the good and the bad in his personality. He is human so we can relate to him. Ghalib Dhalla's writing is so poetic at times, even the darkest passages in the book take on a musical quality to them and leave you amazed. I only wish it had spent a little more time in Ali's homeland of Kenya where Dhalla is at his best but I still enjoyed all the places it takes you to, including some very disturbing ones. Good books should leave you with some kind of a lasting feeling just like good movies. Ode to Lata is such a book.

Ghalib captures the essence.

Ghalib captures the essence of what most of us have or will go through at some point in their lives in their quest for the ironic difficulty in finding simple happiness. At times, some of the main character's revelations were all too poignant. Ghalib's writing is astute and vivid. Ali's yearning for constant physical and emotional belonging was anything but fictional. At times, Ali's dramatics and self-loathing made me grind my teeth in vain frustration - probably because of how easily one identified with him. I was pleasantly surprised that there was only a conclusion of the book - but not an ending to Ali's drama. Life has no ending when you're still breathing.

An Emotional Non-Stop Rollercoaster Ride

Ghalib Shiraz Dhalla captures the essence of what most gay men have or will go through at some point in their lives in their quest for the ironic difficulty in finding simple happiness. At times, some of the main character's revelations were all too poignant. Dhalla's writing is astute and vivid. Ali's yearning for constant physical and emotional belonging was anything but fictional. At times, Ali's dramatics and self-loathing made me grind my teeth in vain frustration - probably because of how easily one could identify with him. From the self-absorbed lovers to the required theatrical queens - Dhalla narrates an often sexually explicit, but never gratuitous, story of one man's quest to find true love. A truly raw and intelligent portrait of a gay man's journey to find himself.