Review of Just Another Day by Piyusha Purnima Vir
Piyusha Purnima Vir is not just a skilful writer, she is an astute jeweler. Her anthology Just Another Day, is a string of gems of disparate wealth. When I read the book, I was enraptured in my appreciation of three valuable pearls; creamy white, tender pink and lustrous black. Each one of them is different. Each one of them delves into an unique human aspect. Each one of them makes the reader introspect. Yet the title is perfect, each of the tales have the apparent casualness of an ordinary day…just another day’s happenings.
What I found extremely refreshing was the author’s conversational style of storytelling. Piyusha draws the reader into a magical circle by creating a bond…a bond that is distinctive and exclusive. Each reader feels that a private dialogue has been initiated with the author. It is a difficult ambience to develop where the writer can bring this personal note into the telling yet Piyusha does it easily and with aplomb.
All three first person narratives have been handled by the author thoughtfully and with great expertise. Despite being a debut work, Piyusha reveals an innate intuitive skill of exhibiting the mind of protagonist against the backdrop of succinct comments on the other characters.
I cannot say enough about how I enjoyed the gripping momentum of her stories, the inner and outer conflicts, the twists and turns. Yet each of the tales leave you with something substantial to chew on besides the awareness that a thread of pathos runs through the racy telling.
Piyusha has given a new dimension to the short story. In her hands, it has turned into a form that doesn’t end with the resolution. The storytelling affects the reader so powerfully that the tales leave behind a lingering redolence of what remained unsaid between the lines.
I would like to certainly recommend Just Another Day for a delightful yet meaningful read and eagerly await more such epistles from Piyusha’s pen.
All Rights Reserved. Copyright@Sutapa Basu 2018
