The Stationery Shop of Tehran

The Stationery Shop of Tehran by Marjan Kamali was on my "to be read" list for a long time. This novel deals with love, loss and characters that fill your thoughts long after you have finished reading the book.

The story is about Roya and Bahman Aslan who meet in a stationery shop for the first time and fall in love. The shop run by Mr. Fakhri has translated books of literature from all over the world. While their relationship blossoms, Tehran is in turmoil. Soon violence erupts in the country, and Roya rushes to meet Bahman at a place where in a letter he had asked her to meet. When Roya reaches the place,  violence erupts and gun shots are heard. While she looks for Bahman in the crowd, Mr. Fakhri rushes to meet Roy in a bid to rectify his mistake in miscommunicating their meeting place. In a twist of fate Mr. Fakri dies as he comes in the way of a gun shot.  

When she is unable to meet Bahman and is depressed over it, Roya's father decides to send his daughters abroad for higher studies. Did Roya get over her love for Bahman? Did they meet in the end? Did they marry somebody else and move on in life, makes up the rest of the story.

The story is beautifully written with a few twists and with a bitter sweet ending.

Kitchen

"Kitchen" by Banana Yoshimoto is a book about mothers, grief, love and tragedy and Kitchens. The protagonist of this novel uses the kitchen in times of grief and loneliness.

Satsuki is taken by a friend's family when she faces grief due to the death of her grandmother. How she tackles her grief, does she recover from remorse to lead a better life, makes up the rest of the story.

Overall a well written novel.

Alias Grace

When I picked up The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood, I thought it was a little slow moving and I gave up reading after 50 pages. So it was with great trepidation I picked Alias Grace by the same author and it was unputdownable. It's a fictionalised true story that happened in the 1800s.

Grace the protagonist of the story is somehow involved in a double murder and her partner in crime is hanged for it. Grace due to behavioural disorders is sent to a lunatic asylum. She is then shunted to the penitentiary and serves time. She also works as a maid in the governor's house. Twenty years into her imprisonment, a doctor arrives and listens to her tale at the behest of the Reverend of the church.

Dr. Simon Jordan arrives daily at the governor's house and tries to understand Grace and her story. He meticulously writes down her story, hoping that he would be able to get her a pardon and release from the penitentiary.

Does Simon succeed, did Grace get out of the penitentiary, makes up the rest of the story. Atwood's writing is outstanding, with a deep understanding of human behaviour. Each character is well etched that it  will remain in memory for a long time. 

I am glad I read the book before watching the series of the same name on Netflix.

Now I have to read The Handmaid's Tale next.