Chronicling Shame-Veiled Sensual Realities: 'Cockatoo's' Liberating Echo | Cockatoo by Yashraj Goswami

           

"Chronicling Shame-Veiled Sensual Realities: 'Cockatoo's' Liberating Echo"

Cockatoo by Yashraj Goswami

Book Review by Dhiraj Sindhi

Cockatoo by Yashraj Goswami

Author: Yashraj Goswami

ISBN: 978-9389109955

Genre: Collection of Short Stories

Length: 216 Pages

Publication Date: 18^th July 2023

Publisher: Pan

Cover Illustration and Design: Devangana Dash | Website: https://www.devanganadash.com/

Order your copy right now: https://amzn.to/3Rrmc6Y

About the Author:

Yashraj Goswami is a writer, poet and teacher based in Delhi. His words have appeared in various publications, including the Indian Express, Huffington Post, Scroll.in, and DNA. His poems and short stories have been widely anthologized. His writing gently probes the varied shades and expressions of masculinity in modern India. Cockatoo is his first book.

Yashraj Goswami (PC: Youth Ki Awaaz)

Instagram: @mubble.fubbles

Twitter: @aviDSays

Disclaimer: This review is only intended for initiating discussions. The opinions and views presented in this article are my own and do not reflect anything about the book's author. 

REVIEW

I finished reading this gem a few days ago, yet I found myself at a loss for words to convey my thoughts immediately after finishing it. I took time to let this paperback sink in. Cockatoo, seemingly a collection of short stories, goes beyond the concept of a novel. It features diverse characters and narratives, all set in ordinary Indian surroundings. It highlights the profound spectrum of emotions and experiences that characterize everyday life.

It's remarkable how authentically the author portrays these themes, given that our society tends to sweep anything unconventional under the rug. A significant part of society, including anxious and conservative Indian youth, remains closed to discussing or destigmatizing natural aspects of life, like desire, sex, sexuality, dating, non-binary gender identity, mental health, and the stigma surrounding infertility. While acknowledging that change is underway, I feel that the pace of this transformation is not ideal, and any halt in progress could regress us to where we began. Goswami also sheds light on critical issues like divorce, barriers to quality healthcare for trans people, domestic violence, and police brutality.

These subjects aren't superficially tackled; Goswami has crafted finely detailed stories with well-fleshed-out characters, intricately woven and nested structures, and brilliant storytelling from various perspectives, utilizing irony and other literary devices to engage with readers on an open canvas that says, "you may see it coming, but I'm going to surprise you anyway." I found myself laughing, shedding literal tears, and experiencing numerous jaw-dropping moments throughout my reading journey.

Despite the episodic and stand-alone nature of the stories, akin to the structure of Arabian Nights, the book culminates in a cohesive whole. Upon finishing the book, readers can piece together a completed puzzle—a comprehensive novel with a clear beginning, middle, and closure. And since this work of joining the dots is upon readers, or you can say because of its open-endedness, readers get a huge enough canvas to make the best out of their reading experience. You can't get enough of it.

Goswami, in this debut masterpiece, demonstrates exceptional storytelling skills and accomplishes a commendable feat in stirring the depths of the reader's mind with thought-provoking narratives. These stories deserve to be read and retold, for they carry significant impact and offer validation to the diverse and queer experiences they portray.

Happy Reading!

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Numair Encapsulated Many Shades of Bangladesh in Bare Minimum Words Using Hair-raising, Allusive—His ‘Trademark' Narration

 

In His Short Stories, Numair had Encapsulated Many Shades of Bangladesh in Bare Minimum Words Using Hair-raising, Allusive—His ‘Trademark’ Narration 

Book Review by Dhiraj Sindhi

Taxi Wallah and Other Stories by Numair Atif Choudhury

Taxi Wallah and Other Stories by Numair Atif Choudhury

Author: Numair Atif Choudhury

ISBN: 978-9354892134

Genre: Collection of Short Stories

Length: 132 Pages

Publication Date: 17^th September 2021

Publisher: Fourth Estate India – An imprint of HarperCollins Publishers

Cover Art: Sarnath Banerjee

Cover Designer: Website: arts.mit.edu/ | Instagram: @sarnathbanerjee

Order your copy right now: https://amzn.to/3wxYOIX

About the author:

After studying creative writing at Oberlin College and the University of East Anglia, Dr. Numair Atif Choudhury did a Ph.D. from the University of Texas, Dallas. He had been working on Babu Bangladesh!, his epic first novel, for nearly fifteen years. Soon after completing the final draft, he passed away in an accident in 2018.

Numair Atif Choudhury

Disclaimer: This review is only intended for initiating discussions. The opinions and views presented in this article are my own and do not reflect anything about the book's author. 

REVIEW

Taxi Wallah and Other Stories is a collection of eleven short stories written by Late Numair Atif Choudhury that were published in different anthologies, print media and online forums throughout his writing career. The short stories are preceded by an introduction by his friend and another Bangladeshi-origin author—Nadeem Zaman. This introduction tells you how Numair’s first and only novel—Babu Bangladesh!—came to be published and a lot of other information about the author’s voice, language, the issues he chose to address and in which way, etc. The introduction also contains a sort of summary and a glimpse; a brief look into the study or the standard reading of each short story, which, in my opinion, was the best decision for the reasons you will come to know in the latter part of this review.

The introduction serves as the best review (not a critique) each story can have—what each story is trying to convey, what elements and devices are used, what characters are going through, why is it written, everything you could think of. That’s why I need not give you a summary of each story and review them separately for you. Instead, I will share my experience of reading this collection of short stories rather than a standard examination of different elements. 

(Note: You can read the Introduction by downloading the sample on your Kindle app or device. Introduction in the sample will introduce you to many of these short stories. Six out of eleven, to be precise.)

First of all, the writing style. The writing style for each story is unique with different narrators, language and narrative techniques. But there is something common in the output, which is—rubbing out paintings of day-to-day landscapes our eyes have become accustomed to and exposing the darkness of despairing and wretched reality behind those customary sights; faintly splattering the brightness of hope on this blackened canvas. This strand of hope can easily be seen in the stories titled ‘Crumble’ and ‘Chokra’. 

The second feature of his writing that I recognised is—dropping bombs of menace which creates a threatening effect amidst the serene and composed flow of writing, not breaking the flow, rather further paralysing the senses and stripping off readers of their beliefs and demystifying the crooked patterns of actual-world hidden behind the world of make-believe. Basically, the writer blurs the line between surrealism and realism to reveal a darker shade of reality as calmly as he could. ‘Different Eyes’ and ‘Asking Why’ are two such stories that epitomize this idea. 

The third and the last feature that we will be discussing in this review is—several stories in this collection are abstract on the face of it. You couldn’t start to imagine what message or moral this story is trying to implicitly convey, what is being concealed underneath all the devices, characters and conversations that we are reading. That is why I needed the help of the introduction to see the conclusion or the conceptualization that a particular story carries with it. ‘The Truth’ and ‘On the Way’ are those stories for which I had to get back to the introduction part. This is not bad at all, in fact, I propose every collection of short stories should start with such insightful an introduction.

Happy Reading!

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Book Review: Afsaane by Ameya Bondre | Short Stories

Book Review

Afsaane by Ameya Bondre

Afsaane by Ameya Bondre | Collection of Short Stories

Author: Ameya Bondre

ISBN: 978-9389763072

Genre: Short Stories

Length: 191 Pages

Publisher: BlueRose Publishers (27 December 2019)

My Ratings: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌠

Order your copy right now: https://amzn.to/2TcHVR9

About the author: 

Ameya is a physician and public health researcher, currently working with a healthcare technology start-up associated with IIT-Bombay. Born and raised in Mumbai, he studied at KEM Hospital, and later at Johns Hopkins University in the United States. Ameya’s professional life has been rewarding with honours from Johns Hopkins, MIT, Yale and TEDx, and several research publications. Creative writing has been a constant companion over the years, with multiple rounds of writing and editing back and forth, periodic workshops, and continued learning from editors and readers alike. He formally started writing short stories in the winter of 2017, to put them into ‘Afsaane’, his first book.

Ameya Bondre

Follow him on Instagram: @authorameya

Facebook: Author-Ameya-Bondre

REVIEW

Narration

Afsaane is a collection of short stories narrated in a very unique way, represents the intricacy of human relationships combined with a bunch of other subjects that challenge millennials’ anxieties in current dating culture. The writing style is comprehensive and mysterious at the same time accompanied by analogies and the soul of the book I believe, expositions that intensify the feelings. All the stories are narrated in first-person POV except for one. One of the stories is narrated by a drug, fascinating right?

Setting and Characters

All stories take place at different premises, cities, and countries. As I mentioned before, Ameya Bondre has succeeded in creating reliable settings for each story with well-written expositions. For example, in ‘Distances’ author has created a paradise of memories using wooden shelves which helped brilliantly to bring forth reminiscence. There are a good amount of pivotal and critical scenes, executed not perfectly but effective enough; scenes that remain vivid for a lifetime in your memories. There are weddings, break-ups, divorces, child adoption, meetings, and dates. The evocative narration makes them striking and astounding.

What make these stories unique, are the unconventional characters who all stand for reality and connect with young readers. At this time, when a celibate chief of right-wing organization projects divorce as something shameful, it is noticeable that Ameya’s characters are fearless in a way, putting the welfare of their loved ones before sanctions of the society; proves that the newness and uncertainty of the matter don’t make it shameful.

Theme

Firstly, it is necessary to understand that human relations have always been intricate, no matter the time, but times have changed since the last few years. Times and circumstances always offered a choice so unconventional for the society, but now the idea of ‘acceptance’ has made society less intolerant (although there are places where it is exactly opposite for some reasons). There is one story about divorce after many years of togetherness, for better of course and the reasons fair enough. Ameya Bondre has covered all the aspects and perspectives that matter in each story. There is adoption of a child, one attending marriage of his ex, getting over the death of your loved one and moving on, a tale of infidelity that sows the seed for newfound love and reunion of a long lost pair. A few of these stories are incredible and stand out from the others.

My Opinion

Now it’s time for my favorites. I loved how Ameya came up with perspectives of both, the parents and the grandparents regarding adoption. Sensing the gravity of the subject, it is great, how the big picture is compacted in a short story ‘Blinkers on’. ‘Trapped’ is an exceptional story, for its narration through the drug itself about its addict. It gets a bit comical when you realize that. However, it tells not to lose hope that it will be fine. Meanwhile, for drugs, they hope that one snort them soon. After reading ‘A Healthy Home’ one realizes how difficult it would be for Dalit women to raise cranky and physically weak children. In a detached village and home rooted in restricted beliefs, far from newer ideas. Here author sharply remarks and I quote ‘No one had impacted her. Not her family. Not those relatives who got excited about the birth of a male child. Not the health worker.’

I think this review is not enough for what all the book contains. If you will try to look for a meaning, you’ll surely find a few which will fascinate you.

Happy Reading!

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Book Review: Temple Classroom & Other Stories by Puja Roy | Short Stories

Book Review

Temple Classroom & Other Stories by Puja Roy

Temple Classroom & Other Stories by Puja Roy

Author: Puja Roy

ISBN: 978-8194182634

Genre: Short Stories

Length: 117 Pages

Publisher:  Rubric Publishing (19 September 2019)

My Ratings: 🌟🌟🌟

Order your copy right now: https://amzn.to/358g09g

About the author: 

A Comparative Literature graduate from Jadavpur University and a Diploma in Film Studies, Puja is also the founder of the digital book club The Book Buzz'. She holds a Master's degree in Advertising and Public Relations and is currently employed with an education foundation that works for children from the underprivileged sections of the society. An avid reader and a translator, Puja loves to research on history, cinema, art and culture.

Puja Roy

Instagram: @roy.puja03

Twitter: @ROYaltyPuja
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/puja.roy.900

REVIEW

Temple Classroom & Other Stories is the collection of sixteen distinct stories, which have nothing specific in common and are addressing a variety of subjects. Talking about the writing style, the foreword is written by Koral Dasgupta and it was so wonderful that my expectations became very high for the book. After reading the stories I can say the overall experience was a bit disappointing. I'll expand on that later. Some stories are set in villages and some in cities like Vadodara and Mumbai.

Well, the positive side of the book. I felt that these three stories were unique and brilliant. 'The Root', 'Silver Anklets' and 'The Tea Story'. These all stories elaborate on the feelings of characters very well and shows how these characters are struggling in their own mind. It literally shows the change of perspective in the end and how these characters develop, be it a very little change. I loved them. These characters. Emotions and feelings surrounding them. Other than these, there is a story about a girl who wishes to bring quality education to her village where girls are not allowed to study after certain age. There is an inspiring story of a housewife who finds her true calling and has to go against her family, for the better. One story talks about the acid attack and another story about child sexual abuse and another about an underprivileged child who has to go through so much in life at an early age. This 'Phulo' story has a unique lesson in it.

Some of them are inspiring but mostly these stories are ordinary. Let me clear this first, what I mean by ordinary is, we all have come across these stories (most of them) in various forms, in news, social media, I mean these stories are found everywhere. Also if these weren't extraordinary (tales of struggle, fulfilling dreams, lasting hope and courage and more) then it wouldn't have made to these pages. Considering that, I didn't find anything new in these stories. Stories lacked of emotions and the perspective that could have narrated the stories better, although the characters were well defined. Another thing that I didn't like was the purpose of these stories. Fine, some are inspiring and others are addressing the issues we're struggling through but other than that I found few of them very idle. And the endings were unsatisfactory.

This collection might not be one of the best, but I really appreciate the efforts put in this work and talking about these issues. As Suzanne says and I repeat every now and then, 'The least we can do is call it what it is and talk about it.'

Happy Reading!

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Book Review : Tales from Bengal by Sourish Roy | Short Stories

Book Review

Tales from Bengal by Sourish Roy

Tales from Bengal by Sourish Roy

Author: Sourish Roy

ISBN: 978-8193963982

Genre: Short Stories

Length: 103 Pages

Publisher:  BIGFOOTPUBLICATIONS PVT. LTD. (2019)

My Ratings: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Order your copy right now: https://amzn.to/2ngloH5

About the author: 

Sourish Roy, an M.A. in English with distinction in Linguistics from Burdwan University and B.Ed. with specialization in Teaching Methodology from North Bengal University, has been serving as an Assistant Teacher in High Secondary school since 2005. With degrees in Classical Art from Nikhil Bharat Sangeet Parishad, he has also been a frequent practitioner in painting. Having earned professional training in Lead Guitar under the tutelage of Sri. Kaushik Bhattacharya besides being a vocalist himself, he also takes time out to musical ceremonies.

He is also a certificate holder of National Science Society. Alongside enjoying serenity in his multi-faceted life he has had experiences of trekking under the supervision of Himalayan Nature & Adventure Foundation, Siliguri.

From the very beginning, he has been a fond reader of good literary books. He took to writing at an early stage of his life with writing for the wall magazines and annual magazines in school and college. Now, as a writer, he has earned the renown of being dedicated to the daily life problems of the underprivileged class. His stories have been previously published in local English and Bangla magazines and pamphlets. His critical essays have also been provided space in some academic books.

Sourish Roy (right) receiving award for Best Short Story Collection Prize

Follow him on Instagram: @sourishjal

Twitter Handle: @sourishjal
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sourishjal and @sourishjal.TalesFromBengal

REVIEW

Narration

Tales from Bengal is a compilation of nine short stories depicting the serious transformation in the lives of villagers of Bengal in the last few decades of the twentieth century. Some of these short stories are narrated in first person point of view and some in third person point of view. This is the work of fine literature and Sourish Roy has put life in this book. Author narrates these significant stories using profound language and creative writing style. Each and every line says something, holds a meaning. One of the major trait of this book is, the voice which keeps you curious throughout the entire book.

Location and Setting

All stories are set in different lands of Indian state West Bengal. As I mentioned above, these stories take place in the most transformative decades of the twentieth century. Everything was changing in the sense of science, technology, entertainment and politically also. Sourish Roy has portrayed this picture in context of Bengal. All stories have major influence of Bengal and its culture and anything you could imagine. Author has tried to include as many topics as possible and made this book nothing less than a carnival of a sort.

Theme

While these stories are all distinct, they really seemed to me somewhat related but actually, they are not. The first story ‘Absolution’ is about accepting one’s limitations. ‘Anomaly’ is about the flaws come with evolution. ‘Iron irony’ depicts the story of a blacksmith going through the sudden development of marketing strategies. ‘Ratan’s Maa’ shows how, healthcare was made available to a commoner, which once they were deprived of. ‘The abstainer’ sketches the picture of a young, an incompetent descent to the family heritage. ‘The Handyman' tells a story, where a man was robbed of everything because of government’s empty pocket. ‘The Magician’s Plight’ is a story of a magician (a migrant from another country), who discovers the light after a huge loss. ‘The Mail-bearer’ is indeed a story of a mail-bearer and story which serves the message of ‘Perseverance never goes unpaid.’ And the last ‘The Quack’ is the story of a doctor who was denied the dream he had given his all away for, not once but twice.

My Views

If I have to retitle these stories with an adjective, it would be shattering, devastating and what not. While urbanization brought massive transformation, it wasn’t good for everyone. As the author says, these villagers are still waiting for elevation in their wretched living, which would probably take more time and until then would undergo numerous changes as depicted in the book. I really loved each story and devoured them again and again to re-ingest those feelings of pain and acceptance. It also made me reminisce the stories my grandma used to tell and this book had similar vibes, Sourish Roy made each story unforgettable by his literary skills.

Happy Reading!

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Chamaeleonaire by Dhiraj Sindhi | Fantasy Fiction Story

Hello, readers fam, friends and fiction lovers! I am back with another endeavor and to practice storytelling via this blog. Thank you so much for your support all the way here.

FOR MORE CONTENT PLEASE FOLLOW MY BLOG (Click the button here somewhere👉)

Featuring

The Art of Animation

Picture credits: The Art of Animation

Email: theartofanimationtumblr@gmail.com

DISCLAIMER

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

Chamaeleonaire

A Fantasy Fiction by Dhiraj Sindhi

Book Review: Still Loved...Still Missed! (The Myriad Hues of Souls) by Mridula | Dhiraj Sindhi

Book Review

Still Loved...Still Missed! : The Myriad Hues of Souls

by

Mridula

Author: Mridula

ISBN: 978-1645466635

Genre: Short-Stories

Length: 78 pages

Publisher: Notion Press (15th March 2019)

My Ratings: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Order your copy right now: https://amzn.to/2DIp49v

About the author:

Mridula enjoys reading and writing short stories on subtle feelings. She was bestowed with the Most Popular Writer Award of short story publisher Your Story Club in 2012. She is a nemophilist (A hunter of the woods) and possesses a doctorate in agricultural sciences. She works as a government official and lives with her family in Kerala.

She can be reached at the email – trailblazer11.22.44@gmail.com

Check out her website: https://stilllovedstillmissed.wordpress.com

Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/trailblazer11.22.44/

REVIEW

Still Loved…Still Missed! is a collection of 14 short stories and a poem. The writing style is awesome that each sentence will make you think twice before moving ahead, although it is an easy read. Each one of these stories holds a deeper meaning to it and bring your attention to the values that we forget to notice. Some of the stories are written in third-person POV and some in first-person, that of humans and non-humans too.

First thing attracted me, was the subtitle of this book ‘The Myriad Hues of Souls’. And it suits perfectly to the book. Like its cover, stories are dark, some heart-warming and rest heart-wrenching. Stories would keep you to the edge, lost in the world of emotions. The theme of these stories differ but the common element was the diverse range of sentiments, be it a human soul or any other.

Let’s talk about stories. Stories cover different settings, from Californian forest to Ganga. Seasons from fall to winter. Characters from a petal of the flower to a spider to an environmentalist. There can be no depth to the characters in short stories, however, you will connect to them easily. They will drag you into melancholic hole of their sentiments. Stories, in a way depicts the author’s love for the environment and animals.

The words she has used are precise and profound, for example- “The same silence of visiting a dead person.” That would surely catch your attention. Also, the author has described parent-child relationship in many of them and seems to be connected to each other. Relations are complex and so is the love between them.

We are born to perform our destined roles in a delightful but unconditional way.

One more thing I would like to mention is, the way each story unfolds. It is fantastic and unpredictable. The stories take unexpected turns when you least expect it or reveal something that makes you halt and makes you think about it. Each one of it leaves a strong impression that you would not like to forget it for long.

My Favorite-Five stories I loved:

5. Still Loved…Still Missed!

4. Fly…Flew…Flown!

3. My Little Child

2. And Quite Flew the Little Birds

1. Bluebells in the Woods ❤️

I would like to quote two more lines because nothing else can make you happier than seeing your dreams coming true and only you would know what it took from you.

As a child, the verb ‘fly’ lured her. To say “I flew” was her desire, and to boast, “I have flown over the clouds,” was her dream.

I would recommend this book to everyone out there. This magnificent piece deserves all your attention.

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