book review
Nargis
Paromita Heems bright novel in a dark cover
By Arif Mahmud
The dark hue on the cover of Nargis seemed to hint at some tragedy. But once the journey began, it brought along a very different breeze, and quite refreshing, too. Young writer Paromita Heem has come up with an amazing first novel. As the reader begins to discover the two young girls portrayed in the novel Nargis and Roksana whishing past the mazes of their lives in unsuspecting ways, you will never feel bored or want to put down the book.
Almost polar opposites, the two main characters hold strikingly different views and attitudes towards life. In the first part of the novel, the two seem like split parts of the same image, complementing each other like shadow and light. Nargis faces life with vivacious zeal, trying to reach beyond the norms and explore its every nook and corner. She is unafraid, ready to challenge everything that comes before her, to bend and break every rule. Experiencing at an early age the futility of relations and social norms, she attempts to reject the traditional way of life and constantly craves to reach beyond. She flies like a fireball from place to place, unable to settle, and burns all on her path, including herself, in her discontent deep within.
The narrator, Roksana, is a completely different soul. She remains at distance, quite unperturbed by things and events around her. But the reader is nevertheless drawn to her because of her child-like crystalline view of life. Roksana embraces life with simplicity and her inner sense of completeness makes it unimportant to put a mark or reach any higher place. Nargis, on the other hand, drags her from one storm to another from losing money to beating up a school staff and getting caught by police while unwillingly dating a much older man, and even murder.
The novel moves at a great pace as the girls grow up from little frisky school children to grown-ups, splitting paths and trying to give a meaning to their lives in their very own ways. Nargis is less of a grand-saga and more a scintillating journey through ever-changing landscapes, a roller-coaster ride with plenty of excitement at every downhill and curves to make it enjoyable, worthwhile a read.
But the novel also harbors many failed promises. The lack of suspense is perhaps the biggest shortcoming. In addition, none of the characters seem to have been carved out in full. They change in form and shape in unconvincing ways _ a major let-down. The two girls also appeared way too mature for their age in the first part, defying teenagers natural affinity to get involved in serious love affairs.
The male characters in the novel seemed all mere fragments, as if the writer wasnt giving much importance to them. None of them gets any good exposure or manages to develop into a sizeable character.
The pace of the novel also suddenly drops when Nargis travels abroad and Roksana attempts to settle in an independent life. The story never picks up the pace from there and ends soon after. I certainly had grown a lot of expectations from the two girls, and felt disappointed with the ending.
The book is big, cleanly spaced and uncluttered, giving an easy feel to the eyes. There are not many spelling errors in the book _ a job well done in the first novel from Bratya Raisus publishing house, Bohiprokash.
The freshness of presentation, the writers eloquent style of storytelling and the two girls effortless trotting through life-space keeps the reader wholly entertained. The first novel of Heem, who works at Somoy TV, gives the feeling one gets after sipping a drink completely unknown, perhaps carrying hints of some fresh herbs and lemon, quite different from what we usually get. The novel, while not so perfect, is very original and stimulating. The last time I felt similarly refreshing was when I first read Murakami. n
The writer is a journalist with, The Independent newspaper.,
Photos: Courtesy
