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An iota of City
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A pocketful of city
Imagine you're taking a cab ride through the city, now picture the landscapes, the buildings, shops, street vendors, pedestrians, stray dogs, school kids in uniforms trying to cross the streets, glimpses of everyday life passing by like film strips. Now take this exact same feeling and carefully fold them into bite sized pieces and now you have An Iota of a City. I've had the privilege of reading most of Monami's work in the past so when I came to know that she had finally compiled her poems, reading it was the only sensible thing to do.
An Iota of City is basically everything you've missed in your day to day life, simple and ordinary incidents with much deeper implications. Things you generally fail to notice or completely ignore because you were too busy trying to catch a bus or complaining about the traffic. Monami's keen and curious sense of observation coupled with her distinct and dynamic writing style makes this book a sheer delight for the reader. Her diction is explicit and precise, and there is a sense of maturity in the way she describes the incidents she encounters. In terms of imagery this book couldn't be any better. There is a perfect balance between vision and sight and her use of poetic devices gives An Iota of City a rich and lifelike feel. Each poem is riveting and it leaves you wanting for more. There is a perceptible evolution in Monami's writing style if you compare An Iota of City to her previous book Prelude to the Horizon which she co-authored.
But if one were to ask me whether I should read this book? My answer would be, don't read this book if you're simply in need of a 3 a.m. poetry fix. Don't read it if you just want to relish a few fresh metaphors, you wouldn't be able to understand and absorb the true essence of this book with that mindset. There is an unexplainable warmth to An Iota of City, a certain tenderness which reminds you of home. It will welcome you with open arms and take you on a journey through the streets and synapses inside Monami's mind and her understanding of Calcutta and by the time you're done reading the last page you'll feel like you've lived in this city long enough to have the right to bargain with the street vendors and complain about the traffic or the weather.
Re: An iota of City
Delightful read! Everything breathes life even bylanes and terraces. It s like a collecton of watercolors where images play its stories for you and they don't stop even when you move to another one . Some metaphors catch you and you are blessed with beauty..
It s a fairy tale where reality and magic are entwined. They might be stories told by rain as it ends with pitter-patter. Stories come out of and disappear in the rain. The taste of mystery on the lips.