Book description
On the shores of Lake Como a man and a woman talk about longing and
belongingl; a translator finds himself drawn into the personal and
political turmoil of the poet he translates; a woman's quiet world is
eroded by World War II and the division of her country. Charting the
geographies of leave-taking and homecoming, the consolations and
rivalries of friendship, adolescent yearnings and maturity's tentative
acceptance of longing, these exquisite stories engage with the grand
narratives of our time. 'Both disconcerting and alluring...the further
the reader travels into Hussein's landscape of erosion, the more
potent his capacity to find beauty becomes.' Times Literary Supplement
'Profound but low key; spiritual, but pragmatic; full of longing, but
also acceptance.' Independent on Sunday 'Emotionally as well as
intellectually charged.' New Statesman 'Hauntingly convincing.' The
Daily Telegraph 'Lovely short stories...sharp, bitter, subtle comedy.'
The Times 'Fresh, personal and profoundly moving.' Kamila Shamsie,
Literary Review 'Superbly written short fiction...the writing is both
delicate and powerful: these are very fine stories indeed.'
Independent 'A gem-like collection...Aamer Hussein is a consummate
stylist...His prose is restrained, precise and yet deeply moving. He
is a sensuous writer in whose stories nature acts as a balm on even
the most weary of sensibilities.' Moni Mohsin, Literary Review
'Profound, beautiful' Ruth Padel 'Wonderfully evocative and readable'
Kate Pullinger
'Both disconcerting and alluring...the further the reader travels
into Hussein's landscape of erosion, the more potent his capacity to
find beauty becomes.' Times Literary Supplement 'Profound but low key;
spiritual, but pragmatic; full of longing, but also acceptance.'
Independent on Sunday 'Emotionally as well as intellectually charged.'
New Statesman 'Hauntingly convincing.' The Daily Telegraph 'Lovely short
stories...sharp, bitter, subtle comedy.' The Times 'Fresh, personal and
profoundly moving.' Kamila Shamsie, Literary Review 'Superbly written
short fiction...the writing is both delicate and powerful: these are
very fine stories indeed.' Independent 'A gem-like collection...Aamer
Hussein is a consummate stylist...His prose is restrained, precise and
yet deeply moving. He is a sensuous writer in whose stories nature acts
as a balm on even the most weary of sensibilities.' Moni Mohsin,
Literary Review 'Profound, beautiful' Ruth Padel 'Wonderfully evocative
and readable' Kate Pullinger Aamer Hussein was born in Karachi in 1955
and moved to London in the 1970s. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of
Literature and reviews regularly for the Independent. Aamer has
published four collections of stories and a novella, Another Gulmohar
Tree, which was shortlisted for the Commonwealth Writers' Prize Europe
and South Asia in 2010.
