I
ordered the book while browsing books on Flipkart as I was intrigued by its
cover. It arrived within three days with the usual clinical efficiency of Flipkart. And I read it in one sitting. I am
a fan of short stories and a big supporter of free independent writing. The
book did not disappoint me in any manner. An eclectic collection of short
stories from a diverse group of relatively unknown names, the book comes as a
whiff of fresh air. The tales are short and snappy, and they straddle a vast
canvas from mythology to virtual reality. Some are so extra-ordinary that they
leave you spellbound. Some are average but then, that is true for every anthology (
It is impossible to maintain a uniform standard / level of readability.)
The
best of the lot? I am hard pressed to choose between Sym-World ( Aditi Chincholi), a stunning tale of virtual reality
and The Martyr ( Mainak Dhar), the
story of a teenage soldier set in war ravaged Afghanistan. Farming
on Facebook( Sushant Dharwadkar) and The
night of the Wokambee ( Rishabh Chaturvedi) are remarkable for the twists in the tail. Puppet Show( Aditi Chincholi), I’ll be back (Shawn Pereira), Mortified ( Jeevan Varma)Mists of Time ( Niharika Puri) and Travel Through the Night( Rishabh
Chaturvedi) are other stories that I found intriguing.
Bagheera Log Huts did not make much sense to
me. (Maybe I missed something there!)
But
all said and done, this is a marvelous effort and a must read for all short
story fans.
My
rating - 7/10
Recommendation
- Go for it!
To order
it online, click here.
