' A NEW PIGEON ON THE BLOCK ' : BOOK REVIEW

FICTION : A New Pigeon on the Block & Other Stories is the second of the two collections in English by Shahbano Alvi.

It is a slim volume, with 15 short stories. Some of the tales are only a couple of pages long but even the longest one does not encompass more than 16 pages.

The vocabulary used by Alvi is uncomplicated. She only chooses words which are in common use. Sometimes this engenders a false idea that the stories themselves are simple.

But the strength of Alvi's fiction lies in the clarity of her thoughts and the authenticity of the feelings she projects.

If there is a rationale in the order in which the stories are presented, it is not apparent. But they can be roughly divided into three types, according to their settings.

The first lot are set in Karachi. Many others are about the South Asian diaspora in the British Isles. In some of these stories, harking from the UK, the nostalgia that is evoked is of Karachi.

These form the second group of stories and in the third section, the memories called forth are of East Pakistan / Bangladesh.

But all in all, it is evident that Shahbano Alvi is at the peak of her craft. Her topics have relevance and her handling of the themes is masterly.

The World Students Society thanks Rehana Alam, a freelance writer and the author of The Tea Trolley.