Intertwines tragedy with threads of hope

RATING:  ★★★★ (4/5)

Intertwining wisps of tragedy with the thread of hope, “The Fragile Thread of Hope” by Pankaj Giri is a book that instigates your emotions like never before. It is a gentle reminder that all losses of our lives can indeed be overcome if we look out for the bright fireflies in the darkest of nights.

Starting amidst a tragic crisis, the book simultaneously carries the stories of two separate characters—Fiona and Soham, until they meet in the hilly landscape of Gangtok. Soham lives with his parents and his sibling Vikas, getting along with his life with no concern. Then one day, tragedy strikes—his elder brother, the one who he had held so dear to his heart and had looked up to, gets killed brutally in a car accident. Soon plunged into a plethora of indecipherable feelings sprouting out of grief, guilt and remorse; Soham feels bewildered and dazed.

On the other side of the same landscape, Fiona’s father turns into a violent alcoholic. He dismisses his responsibility towards his wife Sharon and his daughter, and his condition worsens day by day. Soon enough, he dies—leaving Sharon and the five-year-old Fiona fending for themselves.

The plot, which commences from these two starting points—now advances to portray the childhood and teenage years of both Soham and Fiona, as they combat the void left behind by the people who they’d lost. Fiona and Sharon align their lives with a church, whereas Soham takes up a software job in Bangalore. Within no time, they are drawn to their individual promising love interests—but before they can reap the solace out of it, tragedy in the form of death intervenes once again. Bereaved and broken, and reluctant to trudge forward, Soham and Fiona resort to their hometown of Gangtok. But what has fate kept in store for them? Will their battered souls allow them to excavate peace further in their lives?

Carrying mesmerizing descriptions of the scenic beauty of Sikkim and strewing the essence of Nepali culture in the form of food habits, traditions, faiths and beliefs—this book never fails to capture the readers with its well-versed and sensitive style of narration. Originating out of a backdrop that talks of the unpredictability of life and the faith in destiny, the overall plot can be termed to be a roller-coaster ride of a wide variety of emotions. The characters urge us to hold on to fleeting happy moments a little longer, so that we aren’t burdened with regret later. It also offers the readers a kaleidoscopic view of various important issues--- be it social ones like alcoholism, domestic violence, miscarriage or spiritual ones like faith in religion and inner peace.

The author constructs the storyline spanning through a huge time-frame, pushing the story towards a multi-generational and multi-locational outlook. Starting from the tender years of Soham and Fiona, and culminating at a time when both of them are old enough, several shifts of personalities and mood transitions have been portrayed. Since the book appears to prove that clinging to the ‘fragile thread of hope’ can provide us with the necessary resilience that is needed to face the adversities of life, the main construct of the plot comes about to be very character-driven.

There are a lot of events, big or small, that are fighting to exist among themselves in the main storyline—but the numerous characters which populate it, have been given enough space to grow and develop. Soham’s character seems to be lacking any special attributes that might make his emotions a bit relatable, and the over-sensitivity that he gets associated with, seems very unrealistic. The whole segment where he finally understands the importance of his parents and vouches for their unconditional affection—appears to be stretched and dragged. Moreover, his jealousy towards his beloved elder brother that he attempts to hide from his parents; never comes to light ever again in the book. Similarly, we are never allowed to clearly witness the gradual shift of Fiona’s enormous masculine hatred transform into pure, untainted love for her husband Joseph. The whole Fiona-Joseph love story episode could have had more depth, which also applies for the denouement part of the book where Soham and Fiona finally cross paths. It appears as though too much importance was given to cite the trajectory of Fiona and Soham’s tragic past, as a consequence of which the episode where fate brings them together, gets abandoned with very less insight. Soham’s and Fiona’s relationship is very hastily executed and I longed for some more highlight of their personal feelings in this regard.

Although the characters in the book are sketched with sympathy, multi-dimensionality lacked in some of them, especially in Soham’s mother and Fiona’s mother. I personally felt that if their dominance to the plot could have been more striking, then the story would have got a dash of freshness. In contrast to Soham’s part of the story where sufficient pages have been allocated to portray his fight with depression and loneliness, Fiona’s story seemed to be over-spiced with melancholy and grief. Due to this, other sides of her personality are never really put to light. 

Having analyzed all this, I must say that my reading experience with this book was indeed very emotional and enticing. The author’s play of words creates a mist of magic and haze at times, which often heightened certain descriptive elements of the story. Coupled with an intricately woven, broad eventfulness and meticulously crafted character sentiments, “The Fragile Thread of Hope” deserves a hearty recommendation from my side!

➦Want to grab a copy? Buy the book here!

Disclaimer: This review is in lieu of a review copy. 

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