The first set of books which I held in my hand to read were collection of Brothers Grimm: Hansel and Gretel, The Frog Prince, The Elves and the Shoemaker, The Wolf and the Seven Young Goats and of course Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs to name a few. As I grew older and became a bibliophile; Isaac Babel, John Cheever, Rudyard Kipling, and Gabriel Garcia Marquez became my best mates. Many a times, I juggled between science fiction, mystery, romance and humor but the fascination and delight of holding a short story book always had a special place. Why? Basically, simple theme, uncomplicated plots, few characters and few pages are an epitome of quick relaxation.
The ardent short story lovers owe a great deal of gratitude to James Joyce, Guy de Maupassant, Roald Dahl, Ray Bradbury, and Ian Fleming who contributed immensely to the modernist avant-garde of this literati world and also for infusing their minds with food for thought as per their taste for science fiction, mystery and spiritual wakening.
Well aware of my addiction for short story reading, a friend of mine mailed me a book recently, authored by UAE-based writer Sanober H Irshad. The anthology titled “Our Idiosyncrasies” is basically a collection of cultural criticism penned in flash fiction and essay form, based on author’s personal experiences over the years. The book carries 12 different stories, pregnant with the same plot but with different treatment and taste. Our Idiosyncrasies channels the narrative momentum of social fabric weaved well in our culture and social class. Stories are nested in stories and crack open to reveal rumor, anecdotes and myths encompassing our society. The good thing about Sanober’s compilation is that it feels less like a prose and more like a drawing room conversation.
The first story in the book ‘The Perfect Match’ gives the readers a bird’s eye view, picking on the societal norms where a girl’s marriage, her proposals, and suitable match is part of the gossip and discussion in the kitty parties, wedding events and even formal invitations to say the least. It is a kind of satire that induces winces rather than laughs, but that does not make it any less entertaining. The irony which the author rightly points the finger at is on the group of so called well wishers, friends and neighbors who do not lose any opportunity to poke nose in the personal affairs of others and give sleepless nights to the family in general and the girl in particular. “It all started with her turning 28. Not married yet and 28! It is like a curse in our culture.” Taking a jibe on the opposite gender, Sanober writes, “on the other hand, boys have a grace period of around five years to tie the knot after turning 30.” Sad but true.
“This book has been written in a very casual style during Covid-19. It’s more of a conversation than a serious plot with no drama. You will not find stories with usual openings, endings and punch lines but rather very simple narrations based on my personal experiences,” informs the author as she sits down to chat. Sanober disagreed with me on the point that the book is more appealing to the high society which can relate to it more aptly. “I am getting a lot of feedback from university going girls, and women from middle class families as well. I believe that these stories are not related to certain segments of the society or income strata but just experiences which every girl or mother living in South East Asia comes across with. Yes, I have to confess that till date, I have not received any feedback from a male reader, which means it’s not popular amongst the opposite gender,” she explains.
Flash fiction in her view is supposed to be short, as she believes that a writer cannot build characters in 300 to 1,500 words. “It’s short, it’s very fast, it’s not something where you talk about details. They can’t be stretched because it’s not a novel,” she confines.
The ‘Totka Factory’ is yet another story whose main character is quintessential and we all have to deal with it. The author begins by writing, “Every household comes equipped with a totka giving aunty – one who carries a plethora of knowledge, the art of intruding into everyone’s life and a magic potion for every problem in the world.”
Sanober exhibits an admirable restrain throughout this story, never giving in to tired clichés or overwrought sermonizing. “I wanted the reader to relax and relate as it’s not my position to lecture these totka women,” she explains.
Living in UAE, for a long time, the author has dedicated one story on the lifestyle of expats calling her story “The Expat Bug.” The opening lines: “Just like any place, there are two types of desi expats: The ones who go “Haww hai” over everything which is a little out of their comfort zone, and those who forget their roots and traditions entirely and start emulating whatever they see as if freed from a cage. Very few fall in between,” says it all. The story’s incessant hedging between the two divides, their social circle, body language, and their roots adds nothing but nauseam. Sanober is an established freelance journalist who has been contributing in Pakistan as well as UAE lifestyle magazines for long. She has many articles, reviews and interviews under her belt including that of Nobel Prize winners. Her favorite authors’ list is quite long but Dan Brown, Khalid Hussani, and Moni Mohsin come in the top order.
In “Our Idiosyncrasies” Sonober is an epiphany which gives the reader tons of information without seeming like she is giving any at all. She buries the expository parts and makes them agents of character rather than pure exposition in many out of the 12 stories in the book.
In her debut, the author has pulled no punches in her assessment. There is absolutely no interpolation of style or of insight which resonates stridently on the social fabric of our society. The book is brilliantly discursive as well as eloquent. It is absorbing and a well-crafted work of fiction capable of standing on its own and can be termed as an audacious book with afresh take on both, the social norms and what apocalypse they bring.