Book review : Homeless - Growing Up Lesbian and Dyslexic in India

The title of the book is sure to catch anybody’s attention and that’s what happened to me. As a society, we are always challenged by the idea of people being different from us and this is a true global issue. Someone looks different, behaves differently, likes different things  – we get guarded and the first instinct in many is to harm the other person. The conditioning is such that rarely do people stop to prioritise what is actually important to them – relationships or conditioned ‘values’?

And that brings up to one of the root causes that probably led Vaishali to write this book. Sadly, Indian readers don’t have access to such raw and open first hand accounts of lives of people, which in turn does not help sensitising the population. 

Vaishali is dyslexic and she is a lesbian. Add to that living in hostile environments that not only didn’t accept her, but did not provide her a safe space either. There are struggles that a lot of allies also might not be aware of, that Vaishali talks about in her book and renders them like a punch in the stomach.

Growing up lesbian in middle class Indian is still not a thing of comfort in India. Top dyslexia and the struggles that come with it, while living with Indian parents who all expect their own children to be Einsteins and Zuckerbergs is a challenge many of us cannot even begin to imagine.

Also read : Book Review: Prelude to a Riot

The thing about Vaishali’s style of writing is that she isn’t lamenting. She isn’t whining. She is telling how it is and even for cis het allies this book can be disturbing. Writing has healed so many of us, and we see Vaishali go through the process. Homeless is an open diary, a window into the life of a young girl understanding and coming to terms with life in her own way, fighting homophobia, generational trauma, and living with invisible disabilities.