Can we all stop for a moment here and call it the moment of the century/millennium?

I am sorry for the exaggeration but I can’t even begin to describe how long have I taken to write about this book. I am ashamed. I am going to give you the reasons for doing so in detail (just because I want to, you can skip that & move to how I feel about the book):

1. After I started reading it, I got admission in the B-School I was aspiring for, I left my job for that and trust me when I say this, B-Schools leave you with no time for anything other than work (till a point, eventually you learn how to chill, well, sometimes). Hence, I never got around to finish the book till November.
2. This book was sent to me for review purposes by one of the publishers I admire the most –  Tara India Research Press who are also the proud owners of one of the oldest & most famous bookshops in Delhi – Bahrisons (it has been there since 1953). I am a huge admirer of their passionate love with books, writing, Delhi & India. It meant a great deal to me that they sent the book over, I wanted to make sure that I am fully satisfied with what I write whenever I do so. Now, I have come to realize that I would probably never be fully satisfied with how this post turns up. So, let’s just move.

Why I am saying they are one of my most admired publishers is because they put a lot of emphasis on contemporary Indian writing. Most of my readers are fully aware how much I like reading that. My favourite kind of books always end up being the ones related to stories of India-Pakistan partition. I was already head over heels in love with their publications when they posted about this book on their Instagram – ‘East of Love, West of Desire’ and how it is a collection of short stories related to partition. Anybody who is close to me or even anybody who reads this blog can make out that they can gift this book to me and I would love the fact that they understand my likes so well. So, I simply took the plunge and asked them if they would like to send over the book for me to review  share about it on the blog. They very sweetly sent it. I am not exaggerating when I say that it is one of my favourite things to have received over courier so far.

The book is a gem, its a collection of heart-wrenching tales of partition by débutante author  Dinesh Prasad. The stories are about how circumstances and chain of events brought changes in the lives of people. Despite being fiction and few of the stories towards the end being wee bit film-y, the book has stories that warm the heart and bring a flood of emotions, one feels so absorbed by the story that it is difficult to describe in one word how one felt when the story ends.

What I especially liked about the book was that it has all sorts of stories. The book was fabulous in telling stories on all kinds of love – parent & child relationship, forbidden relationships, unexpected encounter with love, grandparent & child relationship and what not! The thing that I loved the most was how each story had a different setting. I hate giving spoilers so I’ll only tell you that there are stories set in Calcutta, Pakistan, Varanasi, England, Shimla, hospitals and, well, the list is endless.

Coming to my most loved part of this post, as I love asking, telling & knowing favourites from a group of things, I am going to tell you my favourite story from the collection. It was, without a doubt, the very first story – ‘Batti Sardar’. I don’t want to say even a word regarding what it is about, because I want to read it yourselves.

If you are anything like me or if you would want to read tales of partition that well up your heart with emotion, then I recommend this book to you, wholeheartedly. But please do one thing for sure, whenever you happen to read it, please leave a comment about which story you liked the most. 😀 I always, always love knowing favorites! 🙂