The Lady In The Mirror — by Charu Vashishtha Gulati
Publisher: StoryMirror Infotech Pvt. Ltd.
Pages: 130
Price: Rs. 135 INR(Paperback)
ISBN: 978–9388698177
Buy here: https://amzn.to/2VV9OxX
Do you know what you really are?
Or has life not tested you yet!
8 stories
8 situations
8 emotions
Lata is quintessential Indian housewife. How come her blissful life got disturbed by all but a gentle sermon?
The handsome Piyush had the world at his feet and yet his world was empty!
Meera, an IAS officer, was living her dream but why wasn’t she happy?
Centuries ago, Ila the Playwright, found happiness in pursuing her passion but why was this a bane to many?
What happens when your subconscious tries to pass on a message?
Hurt and pain helped Madhav become a millionaire. How would be come to terms when he realizes that it was not him that was wronged but it was he who was wrong.
Meera is a budding comedian, but a great tragedy befalls her. Would she be able to hold her own in adverse circumstances?
Kapil found liberation in his quest for knowledge, but would his daughter follow his lead ?
Explore Greed (via Manifestation of God), Unspoken words (via The Last Confession), Internal Conflict (via The Lost Meera), Self-Belief (via The Mysterious Playwright), Subconscious-self (via Three of Him), Love (via Madhav and Meera), Jealousy (via The Comic’s Tragedy) and Freedom (via Life goes in a circle).
About the Author:
“An architect by education, software engineer by profession and a writer by choice.” Charu is an IIT graduate and an award winning blogger. She is based out of Gurgaon.
My take on the book:
The Lady in the mirror is a collection of eight short stories, each dealing with and highlighting a particular human emotion. As the title suggests, each story is about individuals reflecting about themselves, as if watching themselves in a mirror. And the reflection is about their behavior, their character, their emotions and their reactions to people around them.
The Lost Meera is about a young woman struggling with her changing thoughts about faith. The Last Confession is about importance of communication in relationships and how sometimes a lost chance can be a loss of a lifetime. The Manifestation of God is the story of human greed and how such negative emotions can make humans blind to God’s presence.
The Mysterious Playwright is about how Ila chose her own path despite the patriarchal society and the restrictions women faced in the eighteenth century. Three of Him is about how our subconscious can cheat us into believe that our fears are bigger than the truth. Madhav and Meera is again about misunderstandings and how love can set all things right at the end.
The Comic’s Tragedy is about a standup comedian’s life turning tragic and if she can keep the smile amidst life’s tragedies. Life goes in a circle is how life is uncertain and at times indeed goes in circles and comes back to where it started.
The pencil illustrations at the start of each story depicting the summary of the story are tastefully done. All the stories are weaved around the theme of mirroring multiple facets of humans. The stories succeed in narrating each story within a few pages. The editing however could have been better in places, especially in the last story. The plots of the stories — Three of him and Life Goes in a circle could have been better developed. If the minor flaws can be overlooked, the stories are a perfect commentary about human behavior and make for a good onetime read.
My rating:
My rating:
4/5.
Charu
Thank you Kiranmayi for such a thoughtful and detailed review. As they say God lies in details. I will incorporate the feedback in my next set of stories.