LUNCH FOR THE DEAD by Sapna Manoj
My take on the book:
Lunch for the Dead is a collection of fifteen short stories all set in or connected to the fictional small village Oozhimoola, referred to as the Corner of the Earth.
In Hangman’s Handkerchief Bala is waiting for the last hanging he will execute before retiring from the hangman profession, until his beloved handkerchief is misplaced.
When Lizard’s Speak is about a son coming back home for his mother’s funeral to find the buried secret behind a vintage wooden cabinet.
Unbegun is about the newborn who died before his life even began and how the kids who found his body had a permanent place for him in their lives.
House on the Hill narrates the fatal attraction Alakananda develops for the new house on the hill only to realize the bitter truth about it decades later.
Strings attached is about the siblings Mili and Manu and if Mili’s therapist succeeds in helping her overcome her trauma.
Icing on the cake is about Tilotama and her reaction to finding the reality of her adoption.
Thy will be done is about the friction between Miss Eliyamma Inasu, who struggles to speak English, and her student Kasturi Gowri C, who feels compelled to correct her along with the private burdens each of them carries.
Buffalo Girl is about the unconventional friendship between Sharmishta and Basheer, the Ostrich and the Zebra, and how Basheer figuratively gains height.
A Crow’s Nest is about the bond Appu shared with her uncle and her grandmother much like how a Koel’s babies shared nest with crows.
The Last Chapter is about Harini, a famous writer, whose novels carried raw truths about her friends and family and a day before the launch of her latest novel, she meets Anasuya, the girl her parents have adopted. As Anasuya shows her reality in a mirror, Harini may have to do the unthinkable.
End of a Prayer is about a couple who are struggling to save their only child and the final option as seen by the wife is Goddess Bhagavathy.
The Haunting Question is about Shirley who begged her mother about the truth of her birth all her life and when the answer is finally in her hands, is not sure about opening it.
Dancing God is about Chandra and Surya, best friends and cousins; both wanted to become the God who danced, Theyyam, but only one got the opportunity. And when the God professed destiny, one of them acted in haste to make it true.
Anon is about the local postman who after decades of service still remained Anonymous to the community. He was always known as the postman because no one around ever bothered to remember his name.
Lunch for the Dead is about Mahesh who has to continue the tradition of feeding his dead ancestors once a year, which he did out of compulsion, until he understood the real reason and purpose behind this tradition.
The beauty of short stories is how they convey a whole lot of meaning in a few pages and the author succeeds in spinning different kinds of stories with contrasting characters all set around the same place. Each story has a certain mystery and after the first few stories, the reader will understand that every story has more layers and mystery than the author let them know at the beginning. The backdrop of a remote village adds to the old world charm of the stories, a world that is slowly being forgotten in Indian fiction.
Each story leaves the reader with a moral dilemma or a message. The characters are all real and flawed and while some may have negative shades, others are victims of their circumstances. Most characters will stay long after the story ends and will haunt the reader’s conscience. It is also interesting how characters from one story repeat in the next one, giving it the feel that all stories are interconnected and happening in the same village. This includes even a crow that keeps appearing in multiple stories.
Overall, a fantastic collection of stories which will entertain the reader while leaving a social message about relationships and morals.
My rating:
4.5/5.