Rave review

This is almost unbelievable - 'Drizzle....' has received a rave review in Armchair Interviews, one of the most respected review publications in the world!!

Here is the full review by Yuka Mizushima:

Drizzle of Yesteryears
by M K Ajay Frog Books

Reviewed by Yuka Mizushima, Armchair Interviews

If you have ever been the newcomer or felt like an outsider, this is a book for you! The short stories in this book focus on identity, belonging and memories (both good and bad).

The book is divided into two parts: At Home and In Exile.

In At Home, the theme is belonging. The characters are people living in Pambunkavu, a fictional twenty-first century village in the Malabar region of Kerala. The stories include a sleepwalking priest, a reunion of old friends, as well as learning that it is never too late to reclaim the artist within oneself.

In Exile, the themes are travel and immigration. As one character reminds us, most of us are displaced at one time or another. The characters are learning to adjust to foreign cultures and homesickness. These stories include connecting through cyber space, finding out what happened to an old boyfriend, plus there is an institute for the mentally ill. One of my favorite stories from this section is Departures which shows the lasting love parents have for their children.

Ajay previously wrote poetry and his short stories are filled with vivid imagery. I could smell the hibiscus flower and almost taste the ripe mangoes. This book also has wonderful storytelling. In a few short pages, there is a lot about character, plot and setting. Many stories have a twist at the end and although the stories are short, you will find yourself thinking about the meaning long after you've finished the book.

His stories reflect his observations of human relationships and how we interact with each other. The characters we meet are quietly eccentric; everyone has something extraordinary about them. These stories remind us to take notice and delight in every-day surprises.
I highly recommend this book that transports the reader to different worlds and cultures, and I look forward to reading more from this author!

Armchair Interviews says a question posed to one of the characters is: to be or to have? Read this book to see what different characters discover.

(You can also read the review by following this url: http://www.armchairinterviews.com/reviews/categories/short_stories/drizzle_of_yesteryears.php)

From Deccan Herald, Oct 1, 2006

BROWSER’S NOOK
Good, not great

Drizzle of yesteryears and other stories; M K Ajay, Frog Books, 2006, pp 113, Rs 195.

What is home? Is it the place you now live or is it elsewhere; where you once lived? That is perhaps what author M K Ajay sets out to explore in the Drizzle of Yesteryears and Other Stories.

The stories are neatly segregated into ‘At Home’ and ‘In Exile’ and are about the people of Pambunkavu, a fictional village set in Kerala. But Pambunkavu weaves no magic as does Malgudi, or a Khasak for instance. Ajay is no R K Narayan, nor is he the masterly O V Vijayan. Flashes of brilliance, yes, but he fails to sustain the same quality throughout the book.

Ajay’s strength probably comes out best in the ‘In Exile’ section, where he narrates stories of life outside of Pambunkavu, a life where one is an outsider.

The ‘In Exile’ section starts with the story ‘Spam Again’ which is an interesting tale, that of a stray email sent to the central character, indeed the only character, Sudarshan. The email has only one sentence: “Like sunset, we too must pass gracefully into the night.” This is followed by a series of emails which helps Sudarshan cope with the conflicts of his life, mainly the death of his younger brother. It could be that the sender of the mail is only a metaphor for Sudarshan’s own inner voice, his conscience or a power beyond the physical.

Another story that catches attention is ‘Alpine Miracles’. A software engineer boards a tour coach, and a co-passenger chats him up. It is only after alighting that he realises she is a Nobel Prize winner and a Polish poet. The other stories that draw attention are ‘Rebirth’ and ‘Drizzle of Yesteryears’, which have a haunting, brooding quality to them. The ‘Temple of Snakes’ makes for interesting reading. This passage: “Somehow, it was as if he was waiting— a bored waiting for the moments to pass and create an extraordinary crisis to catch his imagination by surprise,” holds promise.

Somehow, this passage holds good for the writer and his craft too. A waiting for that one extraordinary story of great quality that would catch the reader by surprise.

Savitha G R, Deccan Herald