Dr Vaidehi Nathan
SHE Writes: A Collection of Short Stories by 12 women, who were chosen from a competition by Random House is a good selection of contemporary writing. Three themes were given to the women to choose from. The themes were encapsulated in three famous quotes/lines: Woman in the city – ‘Frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn’ from Gone With the Wind; Growing up in India – ‘Experience is the name every one gives to their mistakes’ – Oscar Wilde; and The Man in my Life – ‘Being with him made her feel as though her soul had escaped from the narrow confines of her island country into the vast, extravagant spaces of his’ – The God of Small Things. The theme line had to be incorporated some how into the story.
What is interesting about the stories that the women have carried their regional flavour into the narration, urban or rural. And being woman-centric they are emotionally rich and hence the reading fulfilling. The story of Michelel (The Tourist) who gives her heart and body to a man only to learn that she was just a one-time fling for him, the story of a withered tree, intertwined with the story of the working girl who passes by it daily (Revelation), the sad married life of Noyona (A Tale of Destiny), each of the story is engaging and absorbing. Man-woman relationship dominates the narrations in various shades. And they are all identifiable personalities, who could have been in any of our lives. Simplicity is the hallmark of all stories. The volume is a definite valuable addition to the fiction section of the book shelf.
(Random House India, Windsor IT Park, 7th Floor, Tower-B, A-1, Sector 125, Noida 201301, UP)
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