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A review by theobviousmystery
Undertow by Jahnavi Barua
4.0
Starting the #readingindia project with @every.turn.a.story and @deepthi.m__ is one of the best things that I have done in 2020. Four months in and I have already been exposed to a number of books that have taken their rightful spots on my tbr! Undertow is one such book that I might not have picked up if it weren't for the project and I am really glad I did.
Undertow is the story of a young girl named Loya who returns to Assam in an attempt to reunite with her grandfather. A tale filled with emotion, Undertow tells their story in two perspectives, and their struggles to understand each other while the generation gap between them looms significantly.
The narration was almost poetic, the prose lyrical. I liked how the words pulled on my emotions and kept it at a level where I needed to know more. It was a strong story about family and how the longing between blood never fades. The grandfather Romen, reminded me of Ove. His interactions with Loya were short bursts of happiness like pop rocks in your mouth. The story in its rawest form, adopts an 'I will dictate life the way it is. get ready for it' attitude and pushes forward.
With a brilliant plot converging to an almost superior ending, Jahnavi paints a masterpiece in just 180 pages. In addition to the plot, the vivid descriptions of Assam, its culture, the political landscape and the food (always the food) created a longing to visit the place.
The ending, contrary to popular belief, left me deeply satisfied. I cannot explain it, whether it was the openness (at least to me) or the structure in which it was framed made me go into a state of deep thought and later emerge with the satisfaction of having read a beautiful book. I will be visiting Jahnavi's other works soon!
I highly recommend this book!
Undertow is the story of a young girl named Loya who returns to Assam in an attempt to reunite with her grandfather. A tale filled with emotion, Undertow tells their story in two perspectives, and their struggles to understand each other while the generation gap between them looms significantly.
The narration was almost poetic, the prose lyrical. I liked how the words pulled on my emotions and kept it at a level where I needed to know more. It was a strong story about family and how the longing between blood never fades. The grandfather Romen, reminded me of Ove. His interactions with Loya were short bursts of happiness like pop rocks in your mouth. The story in its rawest form, adopts an 'I will dictate life the way it is. get ready for it' attitude and pushes forward.
With a brilliant plot converging to an almost superior ending, Jahnavi paints a masterpiece in just 180 pages. In addition to the plot, the vivid descriptions of Assam, its culture, the political landscape and the food (always the food) created a longing to visit the place.
The ending, contrary to popular belief, left me deeply satisfied. I cannot explain it, whether it was the openness (at least to me) or the structure in which it was framed made me go into a state of deep thought and later emerge with the satisfaction of having read a beautiful book. I will be visiting Jahnavi's other works soon!
I highly recommend this book!