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lyndsayreads's review
4.0
This is a collection of short stories all about Partition in India and Pakistan in the 1940s. The collection focuses mainly on women and the stories of their struggles during this time. The stories are paired, so each set of 2 stories are connected somehow either by content or characters.
An Unrestored Woman (5 stars): Starting off with this story, I think, is really going to set the tone for the rest of the collection. There’s a hopelessness to this story that immediately breaks your heart. I wanted to reach through the pages and give the main character a hug. It’s all about a woman stuck in a marriage that she didn’t want and then what happens when she suddenly and unexpectedly becomes a widow. I truly felt her despair in her circumstances and the story broke my heart. If the rest of the stories are this sad, I’m not sure I’m prepared for the collection as a whole.
The Merchant’s Mistress (5 stars): Another kind of heartbreaking story that also feels a little hopeful. This one follows a woman (a minor character in the first story) who decides to take her fate into her own hands and it’s all about what happens when she falls in love unexpectedly. This story felt empowering and hopeful but also a little bleak. I really liked it though and I liked how the first two stories paired together.
The Imperial Police (4 stars): This story follows a policeman who has been forced to hide his true self for all of his life for fear of shame and persecution. When another officer in his station is killed, the policeman is tasked with speaking to the officer’s wife. Through this interaction, he realizes that you don’t always know the truth of someone based solely on small interactions with them. I liked this story but not as much as the first two. It definitely has the same feel of hopelessness that the first two stories had, but in a bit of a different way. The writing is still beautiful though and I can’t wait to read the paired story.
Unleashed (5 stars): Another incredibly powerful story about who you truly are, trying to figure out what past events shaped the person you’ve become. Major trigger warning for sexual assault in this story. But there was something so heartbreaking about the main character’s story that I felt so much sympathy and empathy for her. This collection is turning into a real winner. Fingers crossed that stays true.
Blindfold (4 stars): It’s hard to feel sympathy for a woman who is so obviously the villain of the story. But that’s what the author sets out to do in this story. However, this story also really showcases the resilience of people, especially women. I liked this one a lot even though the narrator is not a nice lady. Trigger warning for sexual assault in this story as well.
The Lost Ribbon (5 stars): The most heartbreaking short story I think I’ve ever read. For a mother to do whatever is necessary to keep her child safe, knowing it means she must do the unthinkable? I cannot even imagine. If this was common during that time, I’m so heartbroken for all of the mothers out there who endured this.
The Opposite of Sex (4 stars): Men think they deserve everything but actually deserve nothing and are a source of trouble for a lot of people. That’s the takeaway from this story, really. This is turning into one of the strongest short story collections I’ve ever read and I’m not complaining at all. I wish I’d read it sooner.
Such a Mighty River (3.5 stars): This was a very sad story about a man who is suffering some form of dementia and is just trying to find his way home. Simultaneously, we flash back several decades to just after he and his wife were married when he went looking for her one night after working late. The two timelines jump back and forth and, at times, almost mirror each other. It was really sad to see that the man just didn’t understand who and where he was. But it was probably my least favorite story in the collection so far.
The Road to Mirpur Khas (4 stars): People are so resilient. But they are still people. And even though many will go to great lengths to survive, it does not mean that those experiences don’t leave scars. This story was tragic and it made me want to cry.
The Memsahib (4 stars): Another story about resilience and survival. This one is told from the POV of a male servant in a wealthy white family. This one also illustrates the cruelty that humans can have against each other and that race, class, and gender don’t always necessarily have that much to do with it. I liked it, as I’ve liked all the stories in the collection.
Kavita and Mustafa (4 stars): I enjoyed this story as well! A husband and wife trapped in an impossible situation trying to find a way to survive. I can only imagine the horrors that people going through these situations lived through each day and it’s incredibly heartbreaking.
Curfew (5 stars): Another story that just completely broke my heart. The author did a really good job in this story (and throughout the entire collection) of making the characters feel like real people going through real emotions. This definitely ended up being one of my favorite stories in the collection. And the last two stories were probably my favorite pair of stories in the whole book.
Overall, I really enjoyed this short story collection. It’s probably my favorite collection I’ve ever read because each story felt complete. Sometimes, I don’t love short stories because they don’t always feel fleshed out and sometimes they don’t always give me enough. But this collection really gave me enough. Each story, each character, each moment felt completely fleshed out. And while yes, there are a few stories in this collection that I would love to read as full-length novels, I was completely satisfied with what we got. I cannot wait to read more from this author in the future because she is clearly so incredibly talented. Her debut full-length novel is on my TBR and I just know that it will deliver.
An Unrestored Woman (5 stars): Starting off with this story, I think, is really going to set the tone for the rest of the collection. There’s a hopelessness to this story that immediately breaks your heart. I wanted to reach through the pages and give the main character a hug. It’s all about a woman stuck in a marriage that she didn’t want and then what happens when she suddenly and unexpectedly becomes a widow. I truly felt her despair in her circumstances and the story broke my heart. If the rest of the stories are this sad, I’m not sure I’m prepared for the collection as a whole.
The Merchant’s Mistress (5 stars): Another kind of heartbreaking story that also feels a little hopeful. This one follows a woman (a minor character in the first story) who decides to take her fate into her own hands and it’s all about what happens when she falls in love unexpectedly. This story felt empowering and hopeful but also a little bleak. I really liked it though and I liked how the first two stories paired together.
The Imperial Police (4 stars): This story follows a policeman who has been forced to hide his true self for all of his life for fear of shame and persecution. When another officer in his station is killed, the policeman is tasked with speaking to the officer’s wife. Through this interaction, he realizes that you don’t always know the truth of someone based solely on small interactions with them. I liked this story but not as much as the first two. It definitely has the same feel of hopelessness that the first two stories had, but in a bit of a different way. The writing is still beautiful though and I can’t wait to read the paired story.
Unleashed (5 stars): Another incredibly powerful story about who you truly are, trying to figure out what past events shaped the person you’ve become. Major trigger warning for sexual assault in this story. But there was something so heartbreaking about the main character’s story that I felt so much sympathy and empathy for her. This collection is turning into a real winner. Fingers crossed that stays true.
Blindfold (4 stars): It’s hard to feel sympathy for a woman who is so obviously the villain of the story. But that’s what the author sets out to do in this story. However, this story also really showcases the resilience of people, especially women. I liked this one a lot even though the narrator is not a nice lady. Trigger warning for sexual assault in this story as well.
The Lost Ribbon (5 stars): The most heartbreaking short story I think I’ve ever read. For a mother to do whatever is necessary to keep her child safe, knowing it means she must do the unthinkable? I cannot even imagine. If this was common during that time, I’m so heartbroken for all of the mothers out there who endured this.
The Opposite of Sex (4 stars): Men think they deserve everything but actually deserve nothing and are a source of trouble for a lot of people. That’s the takeaway from this story, really. This is turning into one of the strongest short story collections I’ve ever read and I’m not complaining at all. I wish I’d read it sooner.
Such a Mighty River (3.5 stars): This was a very sad story about a man who is suffering some form of dementia and is just trying to find his way home. Simultaneously, we flash back several decades to just after he and his wife were married when he went looking for her one night after working late. The two timelines jump back and forth and, at times, almost mirror each other. It was really sad to see that the man just didn’t understand who and where he was. But it was probably my least favorite story in the collection so far.
The Road to Mirpur Khas (4 stars): People are so resilient. But they are still people. And even though many will go to great lengths to survive, it does not mean that those experiences don’t leave scars. This story was tragic and it made me want to cry.
The Memsahib (4 stars): Another story about resilience and survival. This one is told from the POV of a male servant in a wealthy white family. This one also illustrates the cruelty that humans can have against each other and that race, class, and gender don’t always necessarily have that much to do with it. I liked it, as I’ve liked all the stories in the collection.
Kavita and Mustafa (4 stars): I enjoyed this story as well! A husband and wife trapped in an impossible situation trying to find a way to survive. I can only imagine the horrors that people going through these situations lived through each day and it’s incredibly heartbreaking.
Curfew (5 stars): Another story that just completely broke my heart. The author did a really good job in this story (and throughout the entire collection) of making the characters feel like real people going through real emotions. This definitely ended up being one of my favorite stories in the collection. And the last two stories were probably my favorite pair of stories in the whole book.
Overall, I really enjoyed this short story collection. It’s probably my favorite collection I’ve ever read because each story felt complete. Sometimes, I don’t love short stories because they don’t always feel fleshed out and sometimes they don’t always give me enough. But this collection really gave me enough. Each story, each character, each moment felt completely fleshed out. And while yes, there are a few stories in this collection that I would love to read as full-length novels, I was completely satisfied with what we got. I cannot wait to read more from this author in the future because she is clearly so incredibly talented. Her debut full-length novel is on my TBR and I just know that it will deliver.
vanlyn87's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual violence, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, and Colonisation
yaizaps's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Content Warnings
Minor: Rape and Sexual assault
wendys_lit's review
4.0
Shobha Rao does an amazing job of weaving together all these stories into a remarkable, heart-wrenching journey through the eyes of men and women of Pakistan and India. You really a get a sense of how harsh the patriarchal society is, how poverty is so terribly rooted in millions of lives, and how one's culture can both embarrass and empower you. There is also great perspective on the religious conflicts between Hindu, Sikh and Muslim people, most of which were often targeted women and children and were fatal in their processes. Where this collection shines is its female narrative; women adjusting to terrible conditions, surviving assault, tending to your children while in poverty, escaping life-or-death situations, even coming to terms with the fact that you never really belonged in your own country, nor do you belong in your parent's country.
This collection was so brilliant and I loved all the stories. I will say that this book does contain lots of trigger warnings, such as heavy violence, assault, child murder. However, I think these topics are essential, and Rao included them because these are issues that so many women faced in their homeland when they were just trying to get by, truly taking life day by day. I do feel that some of these stories were cut just a bit too short, but nonetheless, 4 stars. Breathtaking.
This collection was so brilliant and I loved all the stories. I will say that this book does contain lots of trigger warnings, such as heavy violence, assault, child murder. However, I think these topics are essential, and Rao included them because these are issues that so many women faced in their homeland when they were just trying to get by, truly taking life day by day. I do feel that some of these stories were cut just a bit too short, but nonetheless, 4 stars. Breathtaking.
sierramcguire's review
5.0
So good. Beautifully written and so poetic. Every story will bring out a new emotion. This book will open your heart and tear is apart and you’ll love every moment of it
hollyevaallen's review
5.0
Honestly one of the most beautiful short story collections I’ve ever read. The writing is poetic without coming off as cheesy or too purple. The topics are varied but gently intertwined and the characters’ emotions are raw and vivid. It helps to have a basic knowledge of Pakistani/ Indian culture or history. It also helps to know basic words like saree, roti, dal, etc. If you’re even moderately interested in topics in India, Pakistan, marriage, intimacy, childbirth, gender, etc it’s an excellent choice. As a general warning- the topics are heavy and there’s mention of violence, rape, and death.
caitlancole's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
calster's review
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.5
answertherairai's review against another edition
3.0
Inevitably, as with a collection of short stories can do, some feel powerful, others don't do it so much for you and just pass you by.
3.5 stars, rounding down.
3.5 stars, rounding down.
zainub_reads's review
3.0
This book is composed of twelve short stories of people affected by the India-Pakistan partition in 1947.
But not all the stories are exactly about the partition rather they are in essence about being uprooted from ‘home’ and the lost sense of belonging somewhere.
.
..
But not all the stories are exactly about the partition rather they are in essence about being uprooted from ‘home’ and the lost sense of belonging somewhere.
.
..