#BookReview: Afsaane by Ameya Bondre
About the Book:
About the Author:
In spite of a rewarding professional life with honours from Johns Hopkins, MIT, Yale, TEDx, and several research publications, it is creative writing, which has been his constant companion over the years, with multiple rounds of writing and editing back and forth, periodic workshops, and continued learning from editors and readers alike.
He formally started writing short stories in the winter of 2017, to put them into ‘Afsaane’, his first book. BlueRose Publishers recently unveiled ‘Afsaane‘ at the World Book Fair 2020 in Delhi.
The Review:
I don’t know about you,
but the last time so many feels had
hit me was when I was sitting on a co-worker’s desk – devouring the last few
pages of What If It’s Us? Ameya
Bondre’s Afsaane is a collection of
short stories: on the surface about regular, every day, and ordinary people. What
makes it special is the fact all eleven stories touch upon emotions that are
very true, and very real. That even after starting a fresh story – you cannot
help but wonder what happened to the characters from the previous one.
Let me just say this:
every story in the collection felt like two arms had reached out and dragged me
into witnessing the events unfold before my eyes. Some stories gave me the
happy, fuzzy feel, some gave me the chills, and some served as painful reminders
of experiences that I had suffered – but I realized shouldn’t feel alienated
by. Because we all have that one relationship we wanted desperately to work and
it failed. We all have that one phone call that we can place, no matter the
time of the day. And most importantly, we have that one friend who makes it
easy for us to weave in and out of our present and our past, and who would help
us make sense of the future.
Bondre does an amazing
job of opening windows to the lives of the characters that he wants to tell us
stories of. Their names are so common too. It feels as though he’s sitting next
to you, with a cup of chai, telling
you about the young couple’s shelf of memories, or about the woman wondering if
divorce is really the right option,
or the woman too afraid to chase her dreams. Of the guy who placed realized
love really isn’t selfish or the couple who are overwhelmed by the sudden arrival
of their new baby.
While all eleven
stories had something unique to offer, my absolutely favourites were ‘Deaf’, ‘Not
in the Dark’, and ‘Trapped’. ‘Deaf’ felt deeply personal and hit too close to
home for my comfort. Not in the Dark had the most unexpected plot twist, and
Trapped had one of the best narrators I’ve come across in a long time.
If you are wondering
what to read over this weekend, Afsaane
is highly recommended.
Buy Afsaane on Amazon | Check it out on GoodReads