Book Review: When Arya Fell Through the Fault
To begin with, the cover page is funky and vibrant at the same time. It has a boy who is caught between Lord Rama and the scary Ravana surrounded with things that is dear to him. The title is a little long, yet apt considering the plot. The book blurb is brief and would surely grab your attention.
The characterisation is simple & interesting:
Arya, the protagonist, is in his early teens. He lives as an Indian, brought up in San Fracisco. He studies in a school where he is the only Indian. He faces racial remarks and is always teased for the kind of food he eats. He goes through identity crisis as he struggles to lives up to the cultural values imbibed by his mother through the glorious stories of Ramayana and with the way-of-life he is exposed to at school.
Arya’s mother, an Ayurveda doctor, carries Indian values at heart and tries her best to retain her Indianness in the truest spirit. The stories of Ramayana and the evils of Ravana acts as a bridge that connects her with her son.
Arya’s father, a taxi driver, has only one goal in his life – to provide the best for his son. He works day and night and tries to make his son’s dreams come true.
It is a really small book that would not demand more than a couple of hours of your time. The narrative is simple and lucid that you may as well finish reading it in one go.
As the blurb suggests, the story is all about what happens when Arya falls through the fault. Although the book can slip into fantasy genre, it is can also be called as a book with a message – A message that comes as the solution to tackle mundane problems that one faces in life. This story also relates to how Arya grows up, how he evolves from being a child cocooned within the shelters of his family to how he shapes into a careless teenager and finally, how he transforms into a responsible and a understanding young boy.
In short, this is a book that re-emphasizes that Ramayana is still valid…. That we can let ourselves become Rama or Ravana in life – a choice available to all… That we all fight Ravana – hurdles – in life… And life is all about conquering the Ravana (hurdles) that we come across in day-to-day life triumphantly.
These days we find less books that can also be enjoyed by children. This is one such rare book that can be enjoyed by children, young adults as well as adults equally. Try it!
Title: When Arya Fell Through the Fault
Author:
Publisher/ Imprint: Om Books International
Pages: 207
Genre/ Sub-Genre: Fiction/ YA
Rating: 3.00 of 5
Reviewed for: Publisher
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