Page 24 - Delaware Medical Journal - November 2017

Book Review: The Place of Cold Water Stephen A. Pearlman, MD, MS
The Place of Cold Water
Anand Panwalker, 2017, 381 pages, $19.99
Many of us think we’ve had an interesting life, but in reality very few of us actually have.
Even fewer have the interest or ability to memorialize our life story for others to read. Anand Panwalker has not only had a fascinating life that spans many decades and several continents, but has written a beautiful and poignant tome to commemorate it.
His family’s tale begins with the author’s great uncle Dr. Panavalkar (later anglicized to Panwalker) setting up his medical practice in Moshi, Tanzania. In 1938, at
the age of 24, the writer’s father, whom he called Baba, journeyed 2,400 miles by ship from India to Mombasa, Kenya and then on to Moshi. Baba arrived at his uncle’s house unannounced and with little more than the shirt on his back motivated by his desire to leave behind a life of unhappiness. Soon after, he got a job as a manager on a coffee plantation. Indians frequently got the better positions due to their mathematical skills, whereas Africans did hard labor. Three years later, Baba moved to Nairobi, Kenya, also known as “The Place of Cold Water.”
The descriptions that follow of Kenya’s landscape and wildlife take on a mystical quality. Baba ends up marrying the eldest daughter of his host family in 1942, a marriage her parents viewed as a gift from heaven. One year later Anand was
born. His father served in the British army and then opened several successful businesses. Sadly, his partner committed fraud and Baba lost his fortune. These events contributed to what became his lifelong struggle with alcoholism.
This family story is eloquently interwoven with important historical facts from
that part of the world. We learn of the construct the railway system in 1895
and the second migration in the 1930s. Indians were treated as second class citizens in Kenya as demonstrated by signs stating “Indians and Dogs not Allowed” reminiscent of “Whites Only” signs seen in the southern US many years ago. The system of apartheid in Kenya was known as the “color bar.” The British colonialists treated the Black Africans even worse than Indians, who were generally educated. While Baba accepted the racism he encountered, this prejudice becomes a recurrent negative theme at different stages of the author’s life.
We are the fortunate benefactors of the fact that the Panwalker family passed down many stories to the next generation. The writer’s maternal grandparents in prison because of their activities. Later they moved to Zanzibar to get
a better education for their children, but left Anand’s mother behind with relatives. Ultimately, his mother was educated and became a teacher.
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Del Med J | November 2017 | Vol. 89 | No. 11