Review
Nonet, as the name suggests, is a collection of nine stories unlike each other,up connected together with a prose that is consistent, immersive and enthralling.
Sonali’s understanding of human emotions is tender- a father’s love for his son, the basic human desire to escape the reality, a couple trying to spice up their married life, the venom that revenge stirs in one’s blood or the ‘crossroads’ we find ourselves in.
In each of these stories, she builds her characters delicately, shaping them with firm hands and adding layers to support the story. The stories in itself are elementary, helping you settle into a familiar zone as you imbibe and absorb the prose.
I have a few favourites stories. Zero– A father who comes back home on his son’s birthday only to discover a brutal truth but also a sweet lesson. Dine and Dash– a couple who go out for dinner on their 10th anniversary, only to rekindle their lost love and do something they hadn’t done in years. Crossroads– a story of friendship and love, that is devastating and hopeful.
As with any other collection, there are minute obstacles and one of them is, it’s sometimes difficult to follow the train of thoughts and the prose in general feels fuddled with information that goes nowhere. That said, Nonet is definitely wonderful and cozy, spanning across genres. You’ll find something for yourself among these pages.
Rating
Blurb (as on Goodreads):
Sonali Dabade’s ‘Nonet’ (nonet: a group of nine) is a collection of 9 original short stories, each of a different genre, and each capable of either sending goosebumps down your spine or making you feel warm and fuzzy. You will love certain characters, you will hate some, you will find some annoying, you will want to shake sense into some. But no matter what, you will want to tap, tap, tap to the next page to find out what they are about to do!
‘Nonet’ is not about one city or one character. It’s about every city and every one of us. No matter how different we all are, you just might find one character or character quirk in here that you will relate with. This is no Monet – far from it; they don’t even rhyme – but this eclectic mixed bag of stories has something in it for everyone.
An e-ARC was provided by the author. The opinions in this post are solely my own.
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