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A review by ladybookamore
Kintsugi: A Novel by Anukrti Upadhyay
3.0
Kintsugi is a beautiful book. And like beautiful things, it has its flaws too.
Kintsugi, like the Japanese form of art, connects all the six stories with the help of memory, an abstract thing as priceless as gold. Each of the characters are associated with one another in one way or another, direct or indirect. Every story is focused on one particular protagonist, exploring his or her thoughts and life experiences while observing how he or she adjusts with the world like a round peg in a square hole. While the philosophical depth of Kintsugi is unfathomably profound, there were some visible p(l)otholes that made the narration illogical and distorted. One, the accent. While one characters is Japanese, two others are Japanese-Americans, two are Indians belonging to a financially stable family, and another Indian character survives in poverty. Now, it is expected that, considering the kind of detailing with which the author presents us the story, the writer will certainly pay equal attention to the accent and mannerisms of the cast. And this is where Kintsugi faltered badly. It seemed that all the characters, except Leela, shared almost the same syntax and vocabulary in their speech. This point was really odd to me. Moreover, the multiple narrative techniques employed in the novel have been executed in a manner of disarray. Instead of looking at the individual stories from a first or third-person point of view, the story tends to continue with the same technique used in the previous story. For instance, the narrative technique used in Meena's story is similar to that of Yuri's. In short, the structure of Kintsugi is not as beautiful as the art form. The idea of "perfection in imperfection" barely surfaces in the novel, because of the convoluted style of narration.
Yet, I will be looking forward to more writings by the author. I convey my best wishes for her future endeavours.
Kintsugi, like the Japanese form of art, connects all the six stories with the help of memory, an abstract thing as priceless as gold. Each of the characters are associated with one another in one way or another, direct or indirect. Every story is focused on one particular protagonist, exploring his or her thoughts and life experiences while observing how he or she adjusts with the world like a round peg in a square hole. While the philosophical depth of Kintsugi is unfathomably profound, there were some visible p(l)otholes that made the narration illogical and distorted. One, the accent. While one characters is Japanese, two others are Japanese-Americans, two are Indians belonging to a financially stable family, and another Indian character survives in poverty. Now, it is expected that, considering the kind of detailing with which the author presents us the story, the writer will certainly pay equal attention to the accent and mannerisms of the cast. And this is where Kintsugi faltered badly. It seemed that all the characters, except Leela, shared almost the same syntax and vocabulary in their speech. This point was really odd to me. Moreover, the multiple narrative techniques employed in the novel have been executed in a manner of disarray. Instead of looking at the individual stories from a first or third-person point of view, the story tends to continue with the same technique used in the previous story. For instance, the narrative technique used in Meena's story is similar to that of Yuri's. In short, the structure of Kintsugi is not as beautiful as the art form. The idea of "perfection in imperfection" barely surfaces in the novel, because of the convoluted style of narration.
Yet, I will be looking forward to more writings by the author. I convey my best wishes for her future endeavours.