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A review by spaces_and_solaces
An Unrestored Woman by Shobha Rao
5.0
Hindu and Muslim.
Words heavy with history, laden with complex emotions. Grief and anger rise within me, a lament for manipulated faith and a yearning for love's embrace. I recall past tolerance, but now, intolerance flares when narratives lack compassion. Perhaps soon, quietude will return, but for now, the fire burns.
The book's opening salvo, "largest peacetime migration," jarred me. Peace? This was anything but. And that's where the author delves, her collection of stories almost reads like a vignette, in a shared diary of trauma. A paired short story can be beautiful and cruel at the same time, when you see wisps of what the person could have been and what the person is. The weight of history hangs heavy in this collection that transcends mere storytelling to become a poignant exploration of identity, faith, and the enduring scars of forced migration. The title, referring to the millions of women "recovered" during the Partition, carries a bitter irony, visible throughout the book. Rao delves into themes rarely discussed, including the impact of migration on women, homosexuality, marital rape, and the lingering wounds of violence. These stories are unsettling, raw, and necessary. As the author reclaims their dignity, the characters take on a powerful prose, gripping their identity even more securely. They have been broken within and in so many places that it’s easier to see the shards of hope filling their cracks, but oh so powerful.
I loved this book, a collection of stories that were lyrical in their melancholy & i hope you do too.
Disclaimer - rape, marital rape, violence, abuse, infidelity..
Words heavy with history, laden with complex emotions. Grief and anger rise within me, a lament for manipulated faith and a yearning for love's embrace. I recall past tolerance, but now, intolerance flares when narratives lack compassion. Perhaps soon, quietude will return, but for now, the fire burns.
The book's opening salvo, "largest peacetime migration," jarred me. Peace? This was anything but. And that's where the author delves, her collection of stories almost reads like a vignette, in a shared diary of trauma. A paired short story can be beautiful and cruel at the same time, when you see wisps of what the person could have been and what the person is. The weight of history hangs heavy in this collection that transcends mere storytelling to become a poignant exploration of identity, faith, and the enduring scars of forced migration. The title, referring to the millions of women "recovered" during the Partition, carries a bitter irony, visible throughout the book. Rao delves into themes rarely discussed, including the impact of migration on women, homosexuality, marital rape, and the lingering wounds of violence. These stories are unsettling, raw, and necessary. As the author reclaims their dignity, the characters take on a powerful prose, gripping their identity even more securely. They have been broken within and in so many places that it’s easier to see the shards of hope filling their cracks, but oh so powerful.
I loved this book, a collection of stories that were lyrical in their melancholy & i hope you do too.
Disclaimer - rape, marital rape, violence, abuse, infidelity..