Book Review: Cabbing All The Way
“Life is partly what we make it, and partly what is made by the friends we choose“- Tehyi Hsieh
Unconventional stories always pull me. They always get me excited. Cabbing All The Way is one such tale that talks about 12 different people coming together for a common purpose. As this was also different than the normal genres I prefer reading I almost instantly wanted to read it.
With Hyderabad as the backdrop, 12 people who work in the same place get together and start a car pool. Their office is apparently, extremely far. Day-to day difficulties in commuting unite them against this trial and they then, decide to travel together. 12 varied mindsets getting together is not a cakewalk. Yes there are new friendships but there are differences as well. Do they sort out these differences? Does the cab service continue or they decide to discontinue the same? Do they end up becoming the best of friends or do they end up not able to see eye to eye? This is what the book is about.
The book starts with the cab service starting immediately. Initially it is just people getting together with a common purpose. Slowly there is a camaraderie that builds. The relationship amongst all 12 is like a graph. They have their respective highs and lows. What I liked about the narrative is that the problems are relevant. They are obvious but they are written interestingly. However the problem with the book starts with the treatment of their solutions. The build up to the problem is done so well that one tends to get excited but the solutions just are a put off. They are solved, oh too easily. The bit about the appraisals, that come the second time, look a bit plain sailing. I wish practicality was matched to this.
One of the biggest flaws of this tale are the names of the characters. They are so confusing. One gets confused in the introduction only. You feels since it is the beginning, it will get better but it just doesnt!! After a point one just tends to ignore the names and start concentrating on the flow of the narrative. The only character that stands out is Sania; all other names are just wash away. Also the Hyderabadi lingo in the middle is completely uncalled for. I just do not relate to such writing, forming a big part of English novels these days.
A good climax can sometimes be the saving grace but a large part of the climax is spent solving an issue that had already happened and solved in the beginning!!
I will give it to the author’s skill in pacing the story; it sails fast. One gets to read a very different side of Hyderabad. The premise and the camaraderie has a lot of potential. I just wish the author would have spent a little more time in developing the solutions in a more interesting way. Also stronger characters would have been the cherry on the cake!!
Can be missed…
Title: Cabbing All The Way
Authors:
Publisher/ Imprint: Readomania
Pages: 165
Genre/ Sub-Genre: Fiction/ Drama
Rating: 1.25 of 5.00
Reviewed for: Author
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