Monday, March 31, 2014

#Book Review: Days of Longing by Nirmal Verma Translated by Krishna Baldev Vaid

The beauty of my country is its colourful culture and diverse language which makes it so rich yet so different. I have always regretted not knowing to read all our languages and hence indulge in reading a lot of translations. This pick was one of them and I am glad I made a wise choice.
This book is timeless and quintessential. You can finish it in one sitting and would not even realise, that you have completed a novel. The translation is brilliant and very lyrical. The wonderful facet of this book is its multiple layers of emotions, which adds to its lushness.
This is a book by Padma Bhushan recipient Nirmal Verma, translated by Krishna Baldev Vaid about an Indian student who lives in Prague for over two years and is spending the Christmas holidays in the city, instead of returning home, with a few friends who are still around. A Burmese student Than Thun (TT), a restless German cinematography student Franz and his girlfriend Maria are his points of salvation in this frigid city. Much of their time is spent visiting pubs, lolling about in their gloomy hostel and spending the whole day drinking vodka or beer according to their capability to spend; not just for the sake of getting drunk but to keep themselves warm.
Life takes a turn for this unnamed India student, when he is assigned an interpreter’s job for an Austrian lady named Raina who comes for a holiday in Prague. The professional meeting explodes into an intense, passionate relationship. Prague in winter with its beautiful and moody setting makes this love-affair more viral.
This could be an essentially sad story disguised as something brighter; or the converse, a breezy, slice –of-life tale narrating a tragic love story. The complicated and inevitably short-lived romance is poignant and deeply moving.
This is one of the most moving novels I have read in a while and among the most unusual.

Genre : Fiction

Publisher – Penguin Modern Classics


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