Remember, Mr Sharma
A BBC2 Between the Covers Book Club Pick
by A. P. Firdaus
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Pub Date 6 Jul 2023 | Archive Date 6 Jul 2023
Hodder & Stoughton | Sceptre
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Description
Featuring on BBC2's Between the Covers TV Book Club presented by Sara Cox
'Thoroughly accomplished, beautifully written'
Adam Kay, BBC 'Between the Covers'
'A magical tale of a troubled family'
Daily Telegraph
Delhi, 1997: It is India's fiftieth year of independence, the year of Hindu nationalists and atomic bombs. But twelve-year-old Adi has a bigger problem: his Ma has gone missing - again. Left with an ailing grandmother, a raging father and no answers, he finds an unlikely ally: a talking vulture who reveals itself to be a bureaucrat from the 'Department of Historical Adjustment'. The Department holds Adi's family files, which will take him on a journey through time and memory, through fifty years of India's history, uncovering the darkest secrets of his Ma's past. But first, he must unlock them by facing his greatest fears.
As bright and hopeful as it is devastating, Remember, Mr Sharma explores the ways in which we view the past, its inescapable hold over us and the stories we tell to set ourselves free.
Available Editions
| EDITION | Ebook |
| ISBN | 9781399714457 |
| PRICE | £9.99 (GBP) |
| PAGES | 320 |
Available on NetGalley
Featured Reviews
Reviewer 946948
I went into this book blind and I was very much surprised by how much I enjoyed it. The concept of the Department of Historical Adjustment was so unique but it worked well in aiding with moving the plot forward.
Full review will be posted on June 12th 2023 with link to bookstagram.
Librarian 201634
Remember, Mr Sharma is a thought-provoking book that takes the reader on a journey through 50 years of India’s history, starting in 1997 and looking back at the 50 years since India became independent. Adi is a 12-year-old boy whose mother disappears at the start of the story leaving him alone to care for his elderly grandmother with no help from his father who is either absent or silent. He has a lot of questions and no one to ask but he is eventually helped by a talking vulture who happens to be an official from the Ministry of Historical Adjustment, who can show him his mother’s past and in doing so reveals long buried secrets along with the past of his home country. The story weaves beautifully between past and present, showing a history of conflict, brutal at times but also enlightening. Firdaus explores the way in which memories work, what is forgotten, lost or suppressed over time, how memories can be altered when they are shared, how they can teach and enrich and how history and memory are vitally important to understanding ourselves, our families and our countries.
Librarian 431790
It started as a sad story and it became a paradoxal, thought provoking, darkly humour story that I thoroughly enjoyed.
I can say that this book had me at "a talking vulture who reveals itself to be a bureaucrat from the 'Department of Historical Adjustment" and I must read a book featuring a talking vulture.
That said it's a well written story with more than one layer and the author is a talented storyteller.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine
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