Nectar in a Sieve (1-15)

The story starts out with a woman talking (Rukmani) about the present although her story will be in the past. She talks about how she wishes her husband was still alive and with her.  She has three children, but technically only two of them are actually hers.  She had a daughter and a son named Selvam.  The other child is a boy named Puli who has no fingers.  Her son Selvam works in a hospitcal with a man named Kenny.  She is now an old women and talk about how her father was a headman in her village which his job became less important when the "collector" began to change things in the village.  She was the youngest of four daughters.  Her parents didn't have the money to afford good dowry

so they best they could do was marry her to a tenant farmer.  Even though she was matched with the farmer she says that she is happy with him.  She got married at the young age of twelve.  Nathan is her husband and he is described as caring and gentle.  As the story goes on she tell us how she helped Kunthi give birth to her child.  Rukmani returned home to her husband who was mad at her because she herself was pregnant and shouldn't put herself or the baby in danger.  Since she is pregnant she now has the time to do non work like read and write which is something her gather taught her.  Her husband finds Rukmani clever because she can read and write.  She gives birth to a baby girl named Irawaddy.  They love their daughter very much and so does Rukmani's mother.  Her mother even makes the long ride just to see her. This is before they have their son.  When Irawaddy turns six Nathan and Rukmani start to worry that they will only have one child.  She prays with the women of the village that she will have another baby Around the same time her mother gets sick and starts to die from consumption.  After learning about several other sad events that have occurred in the first 15 chapters I am surprised with Rukmani's positive attitude she still has.  I look forward to reading more :)