Ammu (the mother of the twins) seemed quite vague to me up until this point. Although this description only describes her at times, I think it says a lot about her character.
"On days like this there was something restless and untamed about her. As though she had temporarily set aside the morality of motherhood and divorcee-hood. Even her walk changed from a safe mother-walk to another wilder sort of walk. She wore flowers in her hair and carried magic secrets in her eyes. She spoke to no one. She spent hours on the riverbank with her little plastic transistor shaped like a tangerine. She smoked cigarettes and had midnight swims" (43).
She has remained quite mysterious up to this point, and although some may say this passage could make her seem even more so, I think it tells rather than masks her. It gives me the impression that she wasn't ready to be a mother and that she still longs for that sort of fleeting lifestyle she could have if it weren't for her children. It is an alluring description because I think there is a part of each one of us that longs to simply wander aimlessly, having "midnight swims", not having to deal with socializing with others, and wearing "flowers in [our] hair". I foresee her indulging in some neglectful behavior toward her children as the events of this novel unfold. This has got to be foreshadowing of some sort.
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