THE BEST EXOTIC MARIGOLD HOTEL by Deborah Moggach

 

In my quest to seek out books that are not dark, murderous, violent, grim, dystopian - too many similarities to the current world - I found this sitting on a shelf at home. The perfect antidote for lock down claustrophobia, drizzly weather and general slothness. This book is what the movie was based on, originally published in 2005, some years before the movie. The original title was 'This Foolish Thing', a song from 1935 and covered countless times since, translated into French, all about lost love. So the wrong title for this book - doesn't capture at all what this all about, so glad it was changed - far more enticing to take an intrepid journey to India than dwell on foolish things.

So you know the story - ageing impoverished British pensioners are lured to a an ageing run down hotel in an Indian city to live out their remaining years, in a warm benevolent climate, no NHS, a chance for a new beginning, or at the very least a changed beginning. The film is great, lovely, uplifting, happy, warm, a real boost to the spirits. The book is too, but just so much better, and like most book/film comparisons so much more than the film, deeper, more complex and really very good. And being India, of course, the complexities are diverse and more complicated than what you can put into a film.  And darker. But like the film, the book is also joyful, with the delight and otherwise of meeting of new people, building a different type of family, acceptance of new circumstances and the  wonders of a new life. You will feel happy after finishing this.