One of the most brutal, prolonged and widespread civil wars in recent history was one fought in the Indian subcontinent when India and Pakistan (along with then-East Pakistan) were granted freedom from British colonial rule. A lot has been written about the Partition, as it is called since it led to partitioning of pre-Independence India into two separate sovereign nations. Yet, not nearly enough. Most Indians alive today are probably two or at most three generations separated from an ancestor who was alive when the Partition took place, and yet many today haven't heard the stories, nor show interest in that most shocking and rather shameful episode in the collective history of India and Pakistan.

This book picks up that painful and delicate subject, along with another heavy-weight one - an Indian soldiers contingent in the First WW, as seen from an Indian soldier's PoV.

The book is ostensibly a love story, but it takes its own sweet time establishing social and historical roots, while drawing deep character sketches of a wide range of characters. The author has done a very impressive job - considering this is her debut novel - coming up with this cast of characters. There are times when the writing and the dialog seemed trite and slightly caticaturish to me, but those are easily overlooked by the mellifluous narrative, that flows slowly and gradually, yet assuredly - sort of like a wild stream.

Covering decades, the story begins early in the 20th century and allows ample time for readers alien to colonial life in British-India to familiarize and endear themselves with the characters, some of whom go on to play pivotal roles as the story progresses not just over time but across continents and spanning generations.

The depictions of war are harrowing, and the author painstakingly establishes the brutality and cruelty of war as the Western audience knows it so well, but is also able to add more than a touch of futility to the whole exercise. This is not their War, it is not in their backyard, nor does it affect them directly or indirectly (this is before the world grew hyper-connected!) so it is a fresh perspective to hear from an outsider who, by all logical reasoning, should have nothing to do with the war, yet is in the battlefield finding refuge across no-man's land, and barely escaping bombardment after bombardment. What does he owe them, if anything, and why?

Through some skillful storytelling, the soldier, Vivek, is depicted comparable to his nephew, Samir, who decades later is near those same battlefields, though in peacetime. However, by then memories of the Second WW are fresh in minds of locals, and that adds another layer of complexity to the emotional turmoil he must figure out a way through.

All in all, a very well-written story, that needs to be told and demands to be read.

I'd definitely watch out for more from the author, Ms. Malhotra.

Thanks to Ms. Malhotra, Flatiron Books and NetGalley for providing an eARC in exchange for this honest and original review.

An absolutely stunning success of a novel - everything from the plot to the characters is utterly gripping, and it's genuinely stayed with me days after reading it. I highly recommend that everyone check it out!

I had hoped to have finished reading and posting my review for Aanchal Malhotra’s recent novel, The Book of Everlasting Things before Christmas (and before its release), but the holidays and general end of the year busyness got in the way. Instead, finishing this novel turned out to be a satisfying note on which to end 2022 and is going to kick off my 2023 reviews. Telling the tale of several generations of two families whose trajectories are forever altered by the traumas of war, the mixture of pain and joy that comes with remembering, and the need to connect to our roots, The Book of Everlasting Things is full of emotion as it explores the essential role that beauty, art and tradition play in life’s darkest moments.

Born in Hindustan in the 1920s, Samir Raj has the vital talent he’ll need to succeed in his family’s perfumery. When he’s ten, his family befriends the family of a Muslim calligrapher and Samir first meets Firdaus, the man’s daughter and the girl Samir will love for the rest of his life. But in the wake of World War II, tensions rise as calls for a separate state for Muslims rise alongside those pushing for independence from British colonial rule. The city of Lahore where Samir and Firdaus have grown and loved together is torn by the conflict and the future they’ve always wanted with one another becomes one of many casualties of Partition as one land and people becomes two independent clashing nations. In the wake of his loss, Samir learns the truth behind how the family’s business came out of his uncle’s experiences serving during the first world war and in tracing that journey, finds a way of his own back to the home and the love that he lost.

I was a little surprised it took me so long to get through this novel but the pacing actually matches the extremely broad scope of the novel. It can’t be read or digested quickly, nor should it. Malhotra’s exploration of so much trauma and the different paths to living with it is done so effectively because it unfolds so gradually. While the tragic romance at the heart of the novel provides much of the structural shape the story takes, the trauma and loss extend so much further than that, delving deep into what we fail to realize we lose in the name of progress. The legacy of colonialism and the ripples of damage it caused is always so much more complicated than I anticipate, no matter how many times the knowledge is reinforced. The history of Partition is not one that I’ve ever had much exposure to but, as is pointed out in the novel, even in the history books that cover it, things get flattened and the true human impact gets lost. The Book of Everlasting Things does a great job of portraying the cost of Partition in a visceral and unforgettable way.

Though I appreciate the structure of the novel and Samir’s role as the central pillar supporting so much of it, I do wish there had been more narrative time spent with Firdaus, especially in the second half of the novel. I would have liked to see more of the immediate impacts of Partition upon those who stayed (especially through the eyes of those like Firdaus or her father who were less enamored by Partition in the first place). But at the same time, more of Firdaus’ side would have likely meant a much longer novel and part of me knows it was already starting to pushing it in terms of being too long. Still, I might check out some of Malhotra’s non-fiction work on Partition and I’ll be keeping an eye out for any future works of fiction she may publish.

I was provided a free advanced copy of this from @netgalley in exchange for my honest review.
This is a pretty epic story about family, grief, what we choose to keep secret, perfume, love, and memories. Samir Vij and Firdaus Khan first meet in 1938 at the Vij family perfumery in Lahore. Through the years their connection grows and blossoms into more despite their differences in religion. However, they quickly find themselves on different sides of the Indian independence and the Partition. With a few quick decisions their lives diverge and spiral away from each other. With each step they must decide what to hold on to, and what to let go of.
This was a really interesting story. I knew nothing of the time of the Partition separating India and Pakistan, nor much of any of the contribution of Indians in the first and second World Wars. My only complaint was that it didn't come with vials of perfumes so I could smell what was being described! 😂
I was behind on my reading, so lucky for you this one was published this past Tuesday, so you can go ahead and grab a copy!

REVIEW: The Book of Everlasting Things

"That day, two hearts broke, like the fragments of a newly divided land."

--------------------------

"The paper boat of your memory has drowned in the river of this heart."

--------------------------

"Like the stories in the book, this perfume struck the precise chords of history, legend, mythology, magic, poetry and delight."

--------------------------

"Lahore feels at a standstill, like we have paused on the plateau of some uncertain hope."

--------------------------

Samir's family are Hindu perfumers. Firdaus's family are Muslim calligraphers. Both families are living in Lahore in the late 1930s. Samir has been learning the art of perfuming under his uncle's direction. Firdaus's father is a bit progressive and is teaching his daughter calligraphy amongst other things. The two cross paths when Firdaus's mother wants a perfume and they offer custom labels. Samir's father thinks, better yet, let's have Samir learn this skill. He spends his time learning both arts and the two children fall for one another. They spend years exchanging secret letters and hope to be married despite their religious differences. Unfortunately, they are coming of age as India is gaining independence from Britain and their home city is partitioned into Pakistan. Firdaus's mother uses this to press her liberal husband to bring Firdaus back home and marry one of her Muslim cousins. At the same time, Samir's family's livelihood is destroyed and he must flee. He ends up in France where his uncle learned the art of perfumery in the war and spends years tracing his uncle's life.

I learned a ton about a piece of history that I had minimal previous knowledge about. This story balances the equal joy of independence and a true homeland balanced with the horror of not being able to live in a place you have always known due to an arbitrary line. You feel awful for Firdaus and Samir who bridged the gap of their differences and in another place or time may have lived happily ever after. There is lots of knowledge and emotion here for sure. The writing is beautiful, hence all the pull quotes. That said, this book was probably 100 pages too long. The beginning gives you far too much detail on perfuming and calligraphy. Those passages are beautiful but too much for the average person. If that were trimmed as well as some tightening of the uncle's journals and this would have been a much better reading experience.

Thanks to Flatiron books via Netgalley for the gifted access via Netgalley. All opinions above are my own.

🥀BOOK REVIEW🥀

Thank you @aanch_m and @flatiron_books for the gifted copy of THE BOOK OF EVERLASTING THINGS!
📅: December 27!

“Only humans must conform to borders. Even in freedom, they are never really free”

Thoughts 💭: This is oral historian Aanchal Malhotra’s debut novel and begins in the early 1930s in Pre-Partition Lahore. Being a scholar of the Partition, this past year I have been reading Malhotra’s non fiction books and started reading this novel early December. In this visceral and deeply moving novel, we meet two families - one Muslim and one Hindu. The Hindu family, known as the Vij, are perfume makers, while the Khan family specialize in calligraphy. Before the Partition, the family introduces Samir and Firdaus to each other. The young couple begins to develop feelings for each other as the socio-political and cultural tensions begin to seep into their lives.

Malthora’s sharpness in history becomes evident as she explores the story of Samir’s uncle, who joined and fought for the British, and is plagued by PTSD, while at the same time, magnifies how the nationalist fervor transforms Firdaus’s father who initially accepts their relationship, but then begins to question and doubt his values due to the sentiments and rising violence and riots that begin to shape their lives. Then, things turn as both are led to make unthinkable, unimaginable decisions.


The novel is divided into five parts and spans over time tracing the lives of Firdaus and Samir as they forge and adjust to their new lives in the aftermath of the Partition. As readers, we encounter their pain, their love, and their effort to make sense of what has passed, and how sentiments of nationalism has changed then humanity that existed in pre-Partition India. Ultimately, the metaphor of the perfume and the intensity of its smell remains a constant that connects the two of them as years pass.

The topic of Partition was recently explored in Ms Marvel, and it’s so refreshing to see new authors exploring the subject that I wasn’t aware of growing up.

A Hindu perfumer and a Muslim calligrapher are torn apart by Partition, but cannot forget each other.

Featured in the Winter 2023 issue of Fine Books & Collections, on the Editor's Shelf: Aanchal Malhotra’s "The Book of Everlasting Things" is a meditative tome about a Hindu perfumer and a Muslim calligrapher whose love is forbidden when their homeland is partitioned during the struggle for Indian independence at mid-century.

I really liked this book and I'm so glad I received an arc I couldn't put it down I loved the writing and all the characters so much I was hooked from page one

I thought this book was beautifully written but was somewhat hard for me to get through because it was almost too descriptive. Honestly just might not be for me.

A sweeping family saga centered around Partition and the arts of perfumery and calligraphy. Samir and Firdaus are separated by religion, their families, and time and yet their love had lasting effects on their lives. This book is very dense and covers a lot of difficult topics from World War I to the Partition to family strife. Very interesting, moreso for the historical aspects than the perfumery, but very relevant even today. "At the end, everyone was Punjabi with little obvious difference. It didn't matter so much, actually...until it did, and it did quite suddenly."

The Book of Everlasting Things is a phenomenal immersion into a heart-wrenchingly beautiful, literary pool of amazing writing, pure, unconditional love, and heartache. Definitely a MUST read!

I received this from Netgalley.com.

This book was not for me, I found it densely packed with info which made it tedious and long winded.

2☆

(Written for NPR's Books We Love series; please see the link.)

Aanchal Malhotra’s groundbreaking oral histories of the India-Pakistan Partition have already filled two door-stopper nonfiction books and won her much acclaim. With this first novel, she shapes some of her monumental research material into a far-reaching love story about two people who practice the ancient arts of Indian perfumery and Urdu calligraphy. Malhotra’s detailed world-building gives the narrative sensory layers and textured depths. Moving from the early 1900s to the present day, she explores how Partition continues to be a living, breathing catastrophe and how the violence and trauma have been inherited by later generations, no matter where they live now.

This is an extremely well-written book, full of lovely prose and vivid detail. Unfortunately, it just wasn’t for me. The descriptions of smells over and over again got to be too much for me, and it was all I could focus on. I understand that it’s a central part of Samir’s passion and experience, but it overwhelmed me. I stopped this story around the 35% mark. Maybe I’ll pick it up again, because I did find other parts of it beautiful!

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me a copy of this book for my honest review.

The book for me was difficult to read. Perhaps it at times became redundant with the smells. The book does have an interesting divide in the story. There are two cultures, one a Hindu perfumer and one a Muslim calligrapher. That information becomes difficult because the children of the two cultures fall In love.
In addition, there was a partition historically happening dividing india and Pakistan..

I am glad for one thing that the book left me with is that smells, including perfume is an escaping sanctuary which can lead to stories remembered and emotions to evolve.

It is an intensely written story which is not a quick read so just be prepared. In fact write down the names and who they are as you go, it helped me.

Having requested this book so long ago, I expected fantasy based on the cover but discovered a beautifully written work of historical fiction. I love Malhotra's writing. She certainly enjoys putting her characters through traumatic circumstances and tells it incredibly well. I almost discovered a new favorite but then Malhotra had her primary characters indulge in self-flagelation for over 15% of the end of the book which left a taste of frustration in my mouth.

This book was a captivating one, a sprawling, multi-generational tale of obsession and history, of the stories we hide and the ones we dare to tell. I know almost nothing about partition (the division of India which resulted in Pakistan) and reading “The Book of Everlasting Things” was an eye-opening experience as I followed Samir and Firsaud, a Hindu boy and a Muslim girl who fall in love over bottles of perfume and pages of calligraphy. I longed for them to defy the odds of their heritages but instinctively knew this would be a tale of suffering. But this book is a beautiful and necessary exploration of history and artistic passion, and I would encourage others to engage with this fascinating tale of everlasting things.

Beautifully written, with fully realized characters in a multigenerational tale of cultures, destinies, love and tragedy.

While I appreciated the immense talent of this incredible author, I failed to become immersed in the story. The heavy detail, while masterfully written, weighed the narrative down and made for a long read.

There's a lot to like here and for another reader I could see this being a beloved gem. Worth giving it a try to see if you enjoy it more than I did.

Thanks to NetGalley and Flatiron books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Firdaus and Samir meet when their parents begin a joint business venture. Living in Lahore, Hindustan, both families have prosperous businesses. Firdaus's father runs a calligraphy business, teaches calligraphy, and has his daughter as a student. Samir's family runs a perfumery where custom scents are created. Samir is an apprentice in the family business and has an acute sense of smell - the "nose". Samir begins attending calligraphy classes and begins falling in love. As time goes by, Lahore becomes the site for much of the rebellion separating India and Pakistan. At the peak of the rebellion, Samir leaves Lahore and Firdaus behind.

This is an epic story of love, loss, and rebellion set against the backdrop of a troubled country. We follow Firdaus and Samir through their lives watching each life event. The author does not shy away from death and explores the relationship death has to the trajectory of life. Samir's journey through life is mirrored by his perfume experiences. The author has done a tremendous amount of research and the steps of creating oils and perfumes are described in deep detail. Firdaus and Samir both share their experiences and leave a lasting legacy.

This is historical fiction that touches on WWI and WWII while illuminating the huge cultural impact the partition of India had on its citizens.