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Sea of Poppies
- Publisher : Picador; First edition (29 September 2009)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 560 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0312428596
- ISBN-13 : 978-0312428594
- Item Weight : 431 g
- Dimensions : 14.15 x 2.51 x 21.08 cm
At the heart of this vibrant saga is a vast ship, the Ibis. Her destiny is a tumultuous voyage across the Indian Ocean shortly before the outbreak of the Opium Wars in China.
A motley array of sailors and stowaways, coolies and convicts is sailing down the Hooghly aboard the Ibis on its way to Mauritius.
In a time of colonial upheaval, fate has thrown together a diverse cast of Indians and Westerners on board, from a bankrupt raja to a widowed tribeswoman, from a mulatto American freedman to a free-spirited French orphan.
As they journey across the Indian Ocean old family ties are washed away and they begin to view themselves as jahaj-bhais or ship brothers who will build new lives for themselves in the remote islands where they are being taken. The vast sweep of this historical adventure spans the lush poppy fields of the Ganges, the rolling high seas, and the exotic backstreets of Canton.
A stunningly vibrant and intensely human work, Sea of Poppies, the first book in the Ibis trilogy confirms Amitav Ghosh's reputation as a master storyteller.
