A review by annaeap
Bombay Stories by Saadat Hasan Manto

4.0

My Pakistani friends recommended Manto to me. My favorite stories from this collection were "Ten Rupees, "The Insult," and "Smell." His stories explore society's more sordid facets, featuring prostitutes and the people they encounter of questionable moral character, yet I found myself sympathetic to many of them (particularly the women, often prostitutes, who were usually the ones with true hearts). Manto writes beautifully and vividly--in "The Insult," I felt that I was right in the prostitute's filthy room where the story takes place (he described her dog as having "fur...so patchy that if someone saw him from a distance, they would mistake him for the folded piece of sacking used to wipe the floor"). A beautiful scene description in "Smell": "When he looked through the window, he saw the leaves of the peepal tree trembling in the rain, rustling and fluttering in the breeze. It was dark and yet the night gave off a faint glow, as though the raindrops had stolen some of the stars' radiance." Some stories are autobiographical, with writer characters who have some variation of the name "Manto." By the end, I felt like I'd outstayed my welcome at a raunchy party filled with drunken, absurd, and sometimes dangerous guests, but a memorable party I nevertheless did not regret attending. Grateful for this glimpse into Manto's world!