Sometimes you pick up a book not for any epic revelation, or soul-stirring emotion, or paradigm-shifting discovery… but just because you’re intrigued by the premise of a question that begins with “What if…?”
That’s also why I expected ‘The Gorgeous Dozen‘ to be a light, light-hearted read. Vivek Aiyyar’s debut novel was that – and more.
Ten pages into it, I knew I was going to enjoy the story.
But there was a problem. I had plenty of work planned for the day.
Someone recently asked how I manage to read so much. I replied, “I can read pretty fast. And I schedule time for it.”
So I tweaked my ‘to do’ list. Decided to speed up some tasks. Take fewer breaks. Focus better on my work, to get it done quickly. And, if needed, push back my bedtime by an hour or two.
That’s how it was that by 8 p.m. I was curled up again with this slim novel, joining Niharika ‘Ricky’ Sharma at Pop Tate’s in the story of her school tenth standard pass-outs’ reunion.
One of the Gorgeous Dozen gang remembers a promise from 20 years ago – to meet up again at their favorite haunt… and arrives there, only to find herself alone.
“We are different when happy but similar when sad.”
An hour later, as she’s preparing to leave, one of the friends arrives.
There Ricky begins a quest to revive long-lost friendships with the others in the gang – and determines to address a question…
How different would we be now?
After visiting five cities and meeting with most of them, she arrives at the surprising answer.
“One day you’re a carefree kid with all roads open; and then, suddenly, you’re a middle-aged woman praying for an open one.”
I quite enjoyed the lively first-person narration style, with its tiny literary flourishes, sprinkled with subtly powerful insights.
“Sometimes we smile for no reason and it’s those moments that define who we are… when happiness and peace is triggered not from outside but from deep inside you.”
In fact, there are quite a few of them in ‘The Gorgeous Dozen‘…
“You can tell so much about a person by looking at their bookshelf!”
.
“Cities never lie. The streets are filled with life and in some pockets the truth lies concealed, the essence of life.”
.
“A journey does not always mean taking a trip. Love, hate, mistakes, meditation… these are all journeys.”
My favorite of them all:
“She placed a finger on my forehead. ‘All this is noise.’ She moved the finger over my heart. ‘And this is the truth. It’s as simple as that.”
It is.
‘The Gorgeous Dozen‘, however, isn’t simple… It’s lovely!
