LITERATI: REVIEW OF THE DOVE'S LAMENT BY KIRTHI JAYAKUMAR.

The Dove's Lament

Kirthi Jayakumar

The Blurb

The Dove's Lament is a journey that takes you around the world, bringing to life the human side of conflicts that tear people apart. From the genocide in Rwanda, to war-stricken Bosnia, from child marriages in India to prostitution and drug trafficking in Colombia, these stories traverse a microcosm of reality. Be it the manifestation of Bacha Baazi in Afghanistan, or the fight for paradise on Earth, Kashmir, the repertoire of stories lend a soul to what otherwise remain a muddle of news reports and statistics. Through these stories, Kirthi embroiders a tapestry of the unvanquished human spirit in varied shades, and shakes you up to the reality that surrounds you.

MY THOUGHTS:

Gory, stark, dark, chilling, blood curdling…this is the reason I don’t like to read books written about wars. I couldn’t go beyond of few chapters of the book The Almond Tree because I felt so sad and depressed that I started feeling guilty for leading a comfortable and happy life!

Not that I like the ‘happily ever after’ kind of books or the diabetic inducing sweet and romantic ones…but these stories…the ‘Real’ ones are too much for my not-so-strong psyche.

I thought it would not be possible for me to read beyond the first chapter, but I was gripped. The reason being, these stories are short. They do not exaggerate or drag beyond the necessary. And each story is different even though the underlying emotions and feelings are the same. And they are REAL.

The pain and the suffering in these stories are enough to stir your mind and change your perception about the victims of war. Innocent people caught in the line of fire and brutally killed for no apparent reason of theirs. Politics and power has taken the humane out of the ‘human.’

As I read through the first chapter, I couldn’t help but think that the author has used up all the words and adjectives that describe the suffering, the pain, the hurt and the helplessness of the people in this chapter itself…what else will be there in the consecutive chapters?

Well, each story is different in the way it is presented, the characterization, the situation and the outcome of it. You will become the father in the story – Fire In A Ring of Ice; you are the young orphaned boy whose love for his sister makes him stand up against his adopted father in –For The Love of A Motherland; you are Amal whose love for her home makes her return to her homeland after many years; you are the little girl who died in Peshawar school while saving her brother; you are that young boy who knows he is the next sacrificial lamb of the family to be sold in the story Baccha Bazi of Afghanistan; you are that father whose agony rips you apart when he is manipulated in the name of religion killing his friend who saves his baby girl; you are the young mother who is raped and impregnated only to see the same thing happen to your daughter......

You will live each of these story and every character…you will cry with them and die with them.

A well researched compilation of stories covering almost all the regions of the world. The explanation of the conflict situation after every story helps us in understanding the people and the events that led to war around the world.

Definitely not a light read.

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Meet the Author

Kirthi Jayakumar is a Lawyer, specialised in Public International Law and Human Rights. She has diversified into Research and Writing in Public International Law, Arbitration and Human Rights, besides Freelance Journalism. Working as a UN Volunteer, specializing in Human Rights issues in Africa, India and Central Asia and the Middle East, Kirthi has worked extensively with grass root organizations that focus on women's rights, and also run a journal, academy and consultancy that focuses on International Law, called A38. Kirthi is also the founder of the Red Elephant Foundation, an organisation that works for the empowerment of women.

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