Eliade met Devi in 1930 when he was working for Devi's father in Calcutta. Eliade, a Christian European who became a religion scholar, was invited to live in Devi's Hindu upper-caste household in order to experience the true India. The two young people, both well educated but separated by seven chronological years and many cultural lightyears, fell in love. Her parents intervened to break up the relationship, which persisted in their hearts. Bengal Nights, originally published in 1933, is Eliade's fictionalized, somewhat erotic version of the affair. Devi, who did not read it until 40 years later, responded with It Does Not Die. The stories, which must be read together, provide a wonderful study in contrasting cultures as well as an engaging love story. Recommended for academic and large public libraries.
Ann Irvine, Montgomery, Ct.
