Download Text
The
novel starts with a signature line by Shamsie, “we live in “mortal fear” of
“not-quite-twin”. And this “mortal fear” runs throughout the novel cementing
the plot together more firmly. We see Aliya, the narrator and the main
character of the novel is travelling from America to London, her childhood home
and further to Pakistan i.e. her homeland. The chain of the story usually….. we
see Aliya telling stories to others as she believes herself “a good
Storyteller” and she has a gallery full of her family stories about relatives
whom she hasn’t seen for many years even. During her flight to London, she has
attracted the attention of all fellow travellers including a crew member and
especially of the “aisle seat” who knows all her family stories, “except the most
important one”. She is telling the story about her family who, “ of the royal
family of Dad e Dil have always held true to their fears” as per Dadi’s staunch
propagations.
The
rude remarks of the cab driver trigger Aliya’s traditional family arrogance to
respond with a silence, extra tips and, “an upward tilt of head” the way her
Dadi does while dealing with Mariam Apa. Maryam Apa is another main character
we are introduced to at the very onset of the novel. And we also come across
the tone of Aliya’s feeling towards her when she is taking shower after
reaching home in Landon, in remembrance to follow the legacy of Mariam Apa.
Aliya
reaches flat-77, which is a family property and where Aliya’s maternal cousin
Samia is waiting for her. Samia is a historian and she is here for a few months
for her research purpose. The age difference between both is of four years.
Another topic is about yalk's milk production and its colour. We are introduced with Aliya, the protagonist and the narrator, Dadi, Mariam Apa, Samia and the ‘aisle seat’. The events are unfolding either through dialogues or through storytelling. The vocabulary is simple, however, there is an amalgamation of jargon from the Urdu language as well like, ‘bugaboo’, ‘Aloo’ etc. which shows the writer’s connection with her indigenous language and culture.
Chapter 2 |
Chapter 3 |
Chapter 4 |
Chapter 5 |
Chapter 6| Chapter 7| |
|
