Remnants of a Separation: Book Review


Book Review

Title: Remnants of a Separation
Author: Aanchal Malhotra
Genre: Non Fiction/History/Memoir

“Objects have a way of inspiring the mind to remember things that it might have forgotten”. This powerful line from this book sets the tone and precedent of what readers can expect from this riveting historical read. 

Remnants of a separation is the author's way of revisiting partition and history through certain objects carried by refugees while crossing the border.  The objects range from a pearl necklace, utensils for survival, Maang Tikka, books and  a pashmina shawl.  The book chronicles 21 individuals from India, Pakistan and England who remember their families, journeys and history through these objects. As they narrate their stories, they delve both on happy and horrific memories. While the happy moments melts the cockles of the heart, the horrific moments elicit pain, unthinkable horrors, instances of war, bloodshed, massacre and inhumanity, families separated from one another, communalism, hatred amidst mankind, trains filled with corpses, the air of fear and uncertainty lurking around every corner. At the same time, there are incidents where humanity supersedes religion. 

Clearly well researched, Remnants of a Separation is a crossover between History and Anthropology. The author archives the chapters in first person while interviewing these 21 individuals. The narrative tone is emotional and descriptive, travelling across the passage of time. 

Grief, pain, loss form a major portion of the theme in the book. The aspect of change is touched upon here. It showcases how people are reduced to rags from riches and compelled to start life all over again. Besides this,  the individuals narrate what the concept of home means to them. This book is no means an easy read. It captures the pain and hardships endured by people and the price one had to pay for Independence. 

Powerful, emotive and thought provoking, this book makes one feel that along with these objects, there have been remnants of emotions and memories!

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