For Matrimonial Purposes.

Kavita Daswani. 2003. Read by Anne Flosnik. 6 cds. 7 hrs. Brilliance. 1-59086-945-1. $82.25. Vinyl; plot, author, reader notes. SA

Anju's grandmother was married two days shy of her 10th birthday; Anju's mother tied the knot at 20. But Anju herself, at age 33, sees no matrimonial prospects in sight. She despairs of ever putting on that red sari and entering the bridal suite at Bombay's Oberoi Hotel. Her parents have done their best to come up with candidates, to no avail. Perhaps the US will prove a happier hunting ground for husbands, and at least it will be a change of scene, so off Anju goes to New York. She studies at an American university, wears Western clothes, gets a job in the fashion industry. But her basic problem remains. The panicky phone calls from home continue: "Have you met anyone yet?" Back in Bombay on vacation, Anju finally likes a man picked out by her parents, only to discover that he has a guilty secret. There's one last hope. "Computer!" says her mother.

A fast-paced potboiler? Certainly. But details of Bombay weddings, arranged marriages, Indian family dynamics, and Indian matrimonial Web sites give this romp an added dimension. The author comes from the modern urban Indian background described in the story and has been a fashion writer for CNN, Women's Wear Daily, and other publications in the US and Hong Kong. Narrator Flosnik marches the narrative along crisply and energetically. She gives Anju a mildly British accent, renders the parents' voices in Indian tones, and does American and Cockney accents as well. For entertainment purposes, the production delivers the goods. Helen E. Woodman, Andover, NH

S--Recommended for senior high school students.

A--Recommended for advanced students and adults. This code will help librarians and teachers working in high schools where there are honors and advanced placement students. This also will help extend KLIATT's usefulness in public libraries.