Bhumi: A Collection of Short Stories - Tina Sequeira - ★★★.¼

AUTHOR: Tina Sequeira

GENRE: Short Story Collection

PUBLICATION DATE: June 1, 2020

RATING: 3.25 stars.

Bhumi is an anthology of 16 stories revolving around the idea of the contemporary woman. Unlike what you'll assume when I say women's fiction, not all the stories have women as their protagonists, at least not in the traditional way. The book covers a whole gamut of female characters, from feminists to traditionalists, from the underprivileged to the elite, from the meek to the bitchy, from a child to an old lady. It's fun to guess what "slots" the woman from the next short story will fit into. There are a couple of stories with male leads too and I loved both of them for their uniqueness.

The stories in the book evoke a range of feelings in you. Some of the narratives are sweet and heartwarming while others will make you cringe with their hard-hitting portrayal of reality. Amma, Stark Illusions, Third Time Lucky, Grey, First Lady, Fire and Ice, Pound of Flesh, and Switch were some of the best stories in the book for me.

Actually idea-wise, all the stories were quite good. But I prefer short stories to avoid philosophical ramblings or rants about society and its close-minded mentality. The story must speak for itself without the author's voice being heard in the background. This is just my preference and not a shortcoming of the book per se.

I'd have enjoyed the book even more had it had a crisper editing and better formatting, especially when the stories move between time frames. My Kindle copy moved without any indication between the past and present timelines in some stories, thereby creating some confusion until I could find my bearings again.

Overall though, the stories definitely will make you rethink how you look at the modern woman. It is not a book for the softhearted but hey, when is reality completely positive! You can try the book if you like reading women-oriented stories with a philosophical or moralistic bent. Every story is a strong comment on modern thinking about women and by women.

Trigger warnings: rape, sexual abuse, domestic abuse