I feel as though Arjun Basu writes down the internal monologue in each of our heads. By sharing the way they look out at the world, we get to know his characters well. He is able to turn a five-minute subway ride into a fascinating commentary about city life and how it makes people react to one another. Basu’s characters are similar throughout the stories. Most are men listing toward middle age with a vague but growing sense of discontent. They love their children, those that have them, but have grown bored or disillusioned with careers and wives, with houses and offices and even the jet-setting lifestyle of a travel writer. They look at other women and imagine fulfillment, a taste of what they lack, yet they don’t make a move. Everyone in Basu’s stories is blatantly, unremarkably, spellbindingly human. He has an easy way of writing that anyone can relate to and that will turn your thoughts to introspective contemplation. No one strives to be like the people in these stories. These are the people we already are. (Sarah Nelson)
by Arjun Basu, 131 pgs, DC Books, P.O. Box 666, Station Saint-Laurent, Montréal, QC, H4L 4V9