Formulating a unique style and
rhythm is the key for success with the audience. When you are starting out as a
writer and coming up with a short stories collection, then this is also the
most difficult thing to achieve. Anupam Patra's short story collection,
"Promises of a firefly" comes out with flying colors in this litmus
test.
A violent event like a murder
or accident takes just a split second to happen. But it takes a full lifetime,
or sometimes many lifetimes to comprehend and overcome the impact of the
violence. The emotional affect is not only for the victim, but also for the
perpetuator of the violence. Anupam's stories are all about the web of emotions
like anger, shame, guilt and grief of those affected by these incidents. Anupam
Patra spends more words conveying the pain of victims the violent incidents and
has the talent to bring out the resonance and evoke the emotions in the reader.
The stories are more emotion driven than plot driven, just like Chekov's short
stories.
Most of the stories revolve
around motor-related accidents which are follies that would have been easily
avoided. Yet people keeping committing them so frequently throughout the world.
The inexcusable impatience of the guilty and split-second slip of caution on
the part of victim weighs heavily on the minds of the characters in these
short-stories as unbearably heavy. The rush of the ego is the root of tragedy
is a recurring theme in these short stories. It is very well brought out in
romance story, "Games we never forget", when the lovers breakup over
a scrabble game..
My Personal Favourite is the
story, "A Temporary Promise". it's a love story in the circumstances
when people can't afford to trust and also discourage to trust. The swift
plot-twists that are bound to happen makes it a page turner. Another good story
is "Swans" which revolves around a convict trapped in a jail and his
yearning for forgiveness by his family.
Promises of a Firefly indeed
shows the promise of Anupam Patra's writing talent. A very good debut indeed to
start with.
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