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Transactions of Belongings

Jaya Padmanabham

3.79 · Rating details · 19 ratings · 11 reviews

The short stories in the collection blend emotion and introspection. Moments of urgency and sweetness are fully canvassed and explored. The stories draw out and examine the texture of emotional belonging. In "His Curls," a mother suffers the anguish of wondering if her son is a terrorist. The ending is left to interpretation and several possibilities. The reader is forced ...more

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Paperback, First, 197 pages

Published 2014 by Platinum Press

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· 19 ratings · 11 reviews

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Jun 28, 2014 Bhavya rated it really liked it

Recommended to Bhavya by: Publisher

Shelves: indian

The minute the book reaches your hand you think about the two eyes, wonder what secret might be lurking in them, wonder what questions they are raising and wonder why half the face is hidden.

When you start reading and finish each story, you realise why the face is not revealed. The face could be yours or mine, the story could be his or hers. The 12 stories are very humane and some of them very disturbing and hauntingly beautiful.

The language used is simple and straight, the South Indian touch is ...more

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Jan 29, 2020 Suyog Garg rated it really liked it

Shelves: books-owned

Ah! This book is really sensational. Especially the first three stories, they are emotionally intriguing. And the Neyyampans, the bitter sweet things that happen during the childhood.

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Aug 06, 2014 VaultOfBooks rated it really liked it

By JAYA PADMANABHAN. Grade A

Very few books can make their readers pick them up just using just their title. And out of these few, it is rare to find a book that stands up to the reason you chose it. This was one such book. What piqued my interest is how my mind interpreted the title. In one of her interviews, the AUTHOR says “Belonging represents the most valuable COMMODITY that is at the heart of every relationship. Belonging wraps into itself the concepts of give and take, adaptability, accept By JAYA PADMANABHAN. Grade A

Very few books can make their readers pick them up just using just their title. And out of these few, it is rare to find a book that stands up to the reason you chose it. This was one such book. What piqued my interest is how my mind interpreted the title. In one of her interviews, the AUTHOR says “Belonging represents the most valuable COMMODITY that is at the heart of every relationship. Belonging wraps into itself the concepts of give and take, adaptability, acceptance, rejection, inclusion, longing, yearning, hope as well as love. In this book, I examine the transactions we enter into, the compromises we make, the filters we use to justify our need to belong”. I found this a very simple yet a wonderful portrayal of the human mind. I fell for this book, right there – hook, line and sinker.

This book is a collection of 12 short stories of all varieties. Though this is her debut, the author easily manages to imprint in our minds her flair for evoking an epiphany at the end of every story. With extreme attention to detail, she intricately describes her scenes and characters that is a trademark of a good author. Similarly, her acute insights into the workings of the human mind are clearly evident in her characters and their development. The diversity in her characters and her narration makes each character different from one another. The best thing about author Jaya Padhmanabhan’s stories are the way they end. Most of them are left open for the reader’s to interpret, similar to her book’s title.

My favorites of these stories are: The Blue Arc that tells the story of a young sex worker who seeks the path of liberation, Neiappams – just the character Sankar made me love this story, His Curls – A story of how a mom sees her son’s growth from innocence to violence, helplessly, and Curtains Drawn – a somber story on how a child’s innocence can be destroyed by the thoughtless actions and ignorance of his parents.

One of the best books from Indian authors that I have read recently, put this book on your To-Read list without fail.

Originally reviewed at Vaultofbooks.com, a close-knit community of fanatical readers. We are looking for perceptive readers who can write well, and we are eager to provide lots of free books in exchange for reviews. Shoot us a mail at contact@vaultofbooks.com ...more

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Jun 15, 2014 Bookish Indulgenges with b00k r3vi3ws rated it really liked it

Shelves: review-copy, iwe-2014, books-i-own

http://www.b00kr3vi3ws.in/2014/06/Tra...

I have to admit that I picked up this book based solely on its title. ‘Transactions of Belonging’ sounded a bit ominous and it genuinely made me curious about this anthology of short stories by a single author.

This anthology contains twelve astonishingly daring and beautiful short stories that delve into human emotions thoroughly. From a mother daughter relationship to the life of an lonely old man to a mother anguishing over whether her son is a terroris ...more

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May 21, 2014 Natasha Borah Khan rated it it was amazing

Shelves: my-favs, requested-reviews

I found the cover very intriguing. A pair of eyes peering over a crumpled/worn out piece of paper promises that the stories would be different. And different they were.

The book consists of twelve short stories, all different and quite intense. But a sense of sadness and a lot of emotions are common to all. Here's a peek into the stories:

"The Blue Arc" is the story of a young girl who, given her background, had a promising future. But fate played a cruel joke on her family and she turned into a ...more

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Jun 05, 2014 Riz rated it really liked it

On instinct, read this collection starting with the last story first and working my way back to the first one and glad I did as each got better than the other. They are all dark, very dark, but bring to light that underbelly of human existence that we wish to brush aside but are forced to acknowledge in the stories.

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Jan 06, 2015 Vinay Leo rated it really liked it

Review on A Bookworm’s Musing: http://wp.me/p2J8yh-2MR

What I liked:
+ True to life, intense stories
+ Style of writing, attention to details
+ Wonderful memorable characters

These stories I know will remain with me for a long time. I liked each of them, and it was a different type of stories. A brilliant book, for sure.
...more

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Oct 03, 2014 Mithun rated it really liked it

4/5

Good writing, really brings out the emotions of the characters in the different short stories. Might be a bit on the broodier side though. The stories are nicely paced and are short enough to read in 15 minutes each, if you don't get sidetracked in between as I usually am. Overall a good read.

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