Why a Booktrail?
2000s: A man leaves his home in the USA to return to see his mum in India
The Museum of Failures
What you need to know before your trail
Remy Wadia left India for the United States long ago, carrying his resentment of his mother with him. He has now returned to Bombay to adopt a baby from a young pregnant girl―and to see his elderly mother for the first time in several years. Discovering that his mother is in the hospital, has stopped talking, and seems to have given up on life, he is struck with guilt for not realizing just how sick she has become.
His unexpected appearance and assiduous attention revives her and enables her to return to her home. But when Remy stumbles on an old photograph, shocking long-held family secrets surface. As the secrets unravel and Remy’s mother begins communicating again, he finds himself reevaluating his entire childhood, his relationship to his parents, and his harsh judgment of the decisions and events long hidden from him, just as he is on the cusp of becoming a parent himself. But most of all, he must learn to forgive others for their failures and human frailties.
Travel Guide
Bombay
The Museum of Failures is the nickname that the protagonist, Remy, has given to Bombay for many reasons such as this one:
“India always disappointed. He had often thought of Bombay as the museum of failures, an exhibit hall filled with thwarted dreams and broken promises.”
The city is evoked in style via the noises, streets, smells and memories that come flooding back to Remy as he visits his ailing mother.
The real Museum of Failure
However, at the start of the novel, there is a mention of a Museum of Failure in Helsingborg, Sweden! The Museum of Failure in Sweden was a museum exhibit that featured a collection of failed products and services. The touring exhibition provided visitors with a learning experience about the critical role of failure in innovation and encouraged organizations to become better at learning from failure. The Swedish Innovation Authority (Vinnova) partially funded the museum. The exhibition opened on June 7, 2017, in Helsingborg, Sweden. The exhibit reopened at Dunkers Kulturhus on June 2, 2018, before closing in January 2019.
BookTrail Boarding Pass: The Museum of Failures
Destination/Location: Bombay, Navsari Author/guide: Thrity Umrigar Departure Time: 2000s
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