20 June 2016

Review #462: The Book of Gold Leaves by Mirza Waheed



My rating: 4 of 5 stars



“We accept the love we think we deserve.”


----Stephen Chbosky



Mirza Waheed, an India author, has penned an enthralling tale of forbidden love in a state which is disrupted by war, blood and politics in his book, The Book of Gold Leaves where the author weaves a painful yet enlightening love story where two young souls meet and fall for the very first time in a war-torn Kashmir. But the politics and the blood-thirsty agenda of then Kashmir threatens to strip away the happiness of these two souls found in each other.



Synopsis:

Two lovers are destined to meet in the city of Srinagar. Roohi is a beautiful, spirited girl who is haunted by dreams of a mysterious man she believes is her true love. Faiz is a young papier-mâché artist on the cusp of painting his masterpiece, the Falaknuma. When fate conspires to bring them together one windswept evening, both fall irrevocably in love.
But it is the 1990s. Kashmir is simmering with political strife and rebellion, and it is only a matter of time before Srinagar is engulfed in the gathering storm. Before they know it, the city they call home is besieged and erupts in violence, threatening everything the two lovers hold dear.



Faiz, the young Shia papier-mâché artist meets the beautiful and educated Sunni young girl, Roohi, one evening in the courtyards of their local shrine in the heart of Srinagar. They immediately fall for one another as Roohi was wishing for a love story to the Lord Almighty for a very long time. But the time is ripe with bloodshed curfew, murder and abductions, hence in an Indian army ruled state, Kashmir, Faiz and Roohi's love story begins but soon Faiz too crosses the boundary of LoC to be trained as a militant just like every other common Kashmiri man and thus begins Roohi's long wait for her love to come back to her. But will Faiz come back to her and give an happy ending to his love story with Roohi?

After reading the synopsis, I was very much compelled to purchase this book before my trip to Kashmir, and what can I tell you about it, the book simply made me accustomed with Kashmir's sorrowful history. The book was so absorbing from the very first page itself, that I had no idea when I lost myself into the story of Faiz and Roohi completely. The book's cover image is, no doubt, very much attractive and the art too made me purchase a lot of papier-mâché products like pen stand, shikara (traditional Kashmiri house boats), eggs, bowl and many such little things from Kashmiri handicrafts shops. The author has strikingly captured the art and the intricate detailings contained in a papier-mâché product through the book's cover image.

The author's writing style is incredibly lyrical and exquisite just like any delicate and intricate papier-mâché artist's handi work. The writing is also laced with some emotions that are sometimes quite vulnerable and sometimes extremely heart-felt and at times a bit overwhelming. The narrative is not only inspired by the local Kashmiri dialect but is also real, engaging and evocative that will only make the readers turn the pages of this book frantically. The pacing is swift as there are so much vivid details and descriptions about the history, the back stories, the landscape and everything that only adds a Kashmiri flair into the story line.

The backdrop that the author arrested into the pages of this book is not only striking but also extremely lively which will only act as a time machine for the readers that will transport them not only back in a forgotten and deadly era in Kashmir's history but also to this very paradise, where Persian poet Amir-e-Khusru Dehluvi once quoted,

Agar firdaus bar roo-e zameen ast,
Hameen ast-o hameen ast-o hameen ast.

Meaning, If there is paradise on earth, It is here, it is here, it is here.

And the author have managed to captured the words of this famous poet while painting the picturesque backdrop of Kashmir with its green valleys and meadows and clear blue stream flowing amidst the snow-white-capped mountains into the heart of the city, Srinagar. The timeline aptly syncs with the projection of the then Kashmir when the war not only changed the lives of the common and innocent Kashmiri folks but also changed the whole ecology of this paradise.

The characters, may not be the strongest aspect of this book, but the author has developed them strongly and strikingly by bringing out their Kashmiri charm and their patriotism while penning this story. Faiz is an intense and hard-working man who provides for his very large family although at his free time, he loses himself secretly into the canvas and colors of his own creation of a painting. Faiz is a common man and unrest and injustice done upon his family easily wakes up the sleeping patriotism within him, when he joins the Pakistan-trained militant group across the borders of Kashmir. Faiz's story captures the everyday struggle of a common and innocent Kashmiri man during the 90s, when abduction of local youth by the militants haunted each and everyone, and not to mention the fear of finding out the news of the death of a family member who have been abducted. Roohi, on the other hand, is a cliched character, who is extremely beautiful, educated, loyal and obedient, someone almost with no flaws, hence I found myself hard to connect with Roohi's feelings. The rest of the supporting cast of distinct and interesting characters will easily keep the readers hooked into the story.

The romance is painted with innocence, passion and so much charm that it will easily melt the readers' hearts for these two love birds. The romance developed gradually with the correct feelings that will not only move the readers but will also fill the readers hearts with a sense of longing and nostalgia. Although the romance between them evolves from something compassionate to something as painful as separation awaits them midway into the story.

Overall, this love story so well sways in the backdrop of brutal Kashmiri violence during the 90s, when the local Kashmiri youth joined hands with the militants to fight with the Indian Army. From the historical point of view, the story is realistic and really intriguing, but from the love affair's point of view, the story could have been much more enchanting and little less predictable.

Verdict: If you want to read about the long forgotten history of Kashmir and if you want to experience the author's poetic prose, then do read this book.
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Author Info:
Mirza Waheed was born and brought up in Kashmir. His debut novel, The Collaborator, was an international bestseller, was a finalist for the Guardian First Book Award and the Shakti Bhat Prize, and longlisted for the Desmond Elliott Prize. It was selected by Waterstones as part of its big literary debut promotion, ‘Waterstones 11’. It was also book of the year for The Telegraph, New Statesman, Financial Times, Business Standard and Telegraph India, among others. His latest novel, The Book of Gold Leaves, was published in 2014 to critical acclaim.
The Book of Gold Leaves was longlisted for the Folio Prize and is on the shortlist for the DSC Prize for South Asian Literature 2016.
Mirza has written for the BBC, the Guardian, Granta, Guernica, Al Jazeera English and The New York Times.
Visit him here


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