This book of seventeen stories, published by Li Fi Publications Delhi , based on seventeen different
themes, ranging from astrology, adultery, lesbianism, transgenderism,
murder, female infanticide and many more, is indeed a riveting read.
The story which really took my heart away was the last, but definitely not the least, ‘Siblings’. It was an absolutely fresh way of writing about female infanticide. The conversation between the two siblings was so poignant, and the last part of their conversation was so hard-hitting a punch, that it almost broke my heart. No, I am not going to reproduce the dialogues here, one needs to read them oneself to get an idea of what I am trying to say.
The twist in the tale in ‘Moksha’ intrigued me no end , the comeuppance that the debauch Thakur receives at the hands of Bula, in ‘Catapult’, warmed the cockles of my heart [wherever they be!], and in the satirical story , ‘Speed post’ , I almost started hoping that the wrong address that the book had inadvertently reached , were mine .
The writer has very sensitively handled issues, like lesbianism and transgenderism, talking about which is still taboo in our country.
The story which really took my heart away was the last, but definitely not the least, ‘Siblings’. It was an absolutely fresh way of writing about female infanticide. The conversation between the two siblings was so poignant, and the last part of their conversation was so hard-hitting a punch, that it almost broke my heart. No, I am not going to reproduce the dialogues here, one needs to read them oneself to get an idea of what I am trying to say.
The twist in the tale in ‘Moksha’ intrigued me no end , the comeuppance that the debauch Thakur receives at the hands of Bula, in ‘Catapult’, warmed the cockles of my heart [wherever they be!], and in the satirical story , ‘Speed post’ , I almost started hoping that the wrong address that the book had inadvertently reached , were mine .
The writer has very sensitively handled issues, like lesbianism and transgenderism, talking about which is still taboo in our country.
Finely nuanced stories, skillful handling of
well- delineated characters, and uncluttered language, are what make this book rise
above the run-of- the- mill stuff. The short and crisp dialogues are, at times,
reminiscent of Ernest Hemingway, one of my favourite writers.
I found nearly all the stories in this collection, intense, slick, compact, and marked by an amazing nicety of execution. In some of the stories, I felt as if the writer is craning his neck a little, and peering into the hearts of his characters, or peeling the layers of the psyches of his many characters, be it the nameless prostitute in ‘I have no name’, the mother in ‘Amma’, the estranged son in ‘Moksha’ or Bhera in ‘Catapult’.
Henry James [Notebook entry, February, 1891] says that a short story should be
“a little gem of bright, quick, vivid form ‘. Indeed, in the hands of this consummate wordsmith, these stories have turned into literary gems that leave you with a feel-good glow. Allow me to echo the words of George Saunders ,”when you read a short story , you come out a little more aware and a little more in love with the world around you”. Well , after reading the short stories in this collection, let me confess, that I am a little more in love with the world around me. All thanks to the writer.
This is a book that the shelves of every university and college library will feel proud to flaunt.
A must read.
Author ; Subhash chandra
Publisher ; LiFi Publishers , Delhi
Price Rs 225
PP 170
I found nearly all the stories in this collection, intense, slick, compact, and marked by an amazing nicety of execution. In some of the stories, I felt as if the writer is craning his neck a little, and peering into the hearts of his characters, or peeling the layers of the psyches of his many characters, be it the nameless prostitute in ‘I have no name’, the mother in ‘Amma’, the estranged son in ‘Moksha’ or Bhera in ‘Catapult’.
Henry James [Notebook entry, February, 1891] says that a short story should be
“a little gem of bright, quick, vivid form ‘. Indeed, in the hands of this consummate wordsmith, these stories have turned into literary gems that leave you with a feel-good glow. Allow me to echo the words of George Saunders ,”when you read a short story , you come out a little more aware and a little more in love with the world around you”. Well , after reading the short stories in this collection, let me confess, that I am a little more in love with the world around me. All thanks to the writer.
This is a book that the shelves of every university and college library will feel proud to flaunt.
A must read.
Author ; Subhash chandra
Publisher ; LiFi Publishers , Delhi
Price Rs 225
PP 170
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