Age of Mondays by Lopa Ghosh
My take on the book:
Vera Narois, ten-year-old pianist, who thought she had a friend problem, is the only child of Imon and Danish. On one rainy Monday she realised her mother(Mama-mon) left home abruptly, and that soon became a constant phenomenon of ‘Motherless Mondays’. While her Mama blamed her father of a double life, Narois is confused by her mother’s recurring disappearances; while she struggled to adjust to this new life, her father also silently suffered as their marriage slowly fell apart.
To escape the emotional trauma, Narois seeks refuge in the Jahanpanah forest where she encounters the Jugnus, a legendary community of healers and weather-workers. Narois is immediately drawn them and hopes to be one of them — the lack of belonging at home pushes her to try to belong elsewhere. What is the reason for Imon’s disappearances and how will Narois cope with it, forms the rest of the story.
The story has many fresh aspects — a ten-year-old narrating her life story along with her struggles and observations of people around her, with a maturity beyond her age; a magical forest in the middle of the country’s capital; and most importantly the metaphor drawn between Narois’s life, the forest and its inhabitants. The writing is unique and has a lyrical quality, as the prose and narrative flows effortlessly and the reader is left turning the pages.
The comparison of Narois struggling with her mother’s disappearances versus her best friend’s life is also portrayed subtly by the author. The whole world building by the author is as magical as the secret forest. There are multiple characters and each leaves their mark but I personally liked the author using a young girl’s emotions and voice for driving the narrative.
While we often see kids at Narois age portrayed as simple and innocent, the author brings forward the reality of how kids also experience trauma due to dys-functional families. The intrigue around Imon’s disappearance keeps the reader guessing.With a fresh backdrop, Age of Mondays is an immersive reading experience which is a must read for fans of literary fiction
My rating:
4/5.