Book Review: Left from the Nameless Shop by Adithi Rao.

Book: Left from the Nameless Shop

Author: Adithi Rao

Pages: 328

Publisher: Harper Collins

Read On: Paperback

How Long it Took Me To Read: 2 days

Plot Summary: A boy communes with the gods by talking to a pillar. The 'hibiscus girl' has her head in the clouds and feet gently planted in her husband's home. Two women, married to the same man, find a strange camaraderie binding them together. The whole town gathers to save the friendly neighbourhood shopkeeper's ice cream from spoiling in the heat. Short-tempered Seshadri hides a terrible shame in his outbursts. A grandfather passes on the magic of self-belief to his grandson. Reminiscent of Malgudi Days, Adithi Rao's debut Left from the Nameless Shop is a charming collection of interconnected stories set in the 1980s featuring the residents of Rudrapura, a small, fictitious town in Karnataka. This is a place bubbling with energy and the sense of community - one you probably lived in and loved while growing up. These are stories of the life you have left behind. One that you hope to return to.

Things I Loved: 

1. Guys, go get this book right now. It is such an amazing book. Seriously, just go get it. If you've read or watched Malgudi Days- this book will rekindle some of the same memories. It is nostalgic and wonderful and warm. So good. This is hands down one of the best things I've read all year. I also made my sister read it and she loved it too. 

2. I love a book with interconnected short stories. To see the same characters pop up in other stories and get more to know them better throughout is such a treat. 

3. I adore books with kind, good, gentle characters. People who I would love to meet in real life. The people in this book was gems. Simple and good and every single one of them deserves good things coming to them. I loved, loved, loved spending time with them. They were a delight to get to know and spend time with. 

4. The setting of this book Rudrapura, a small town in Karnataka came alive in these stories. It sounds like such idyllic place to live and raise your family. The small town ethos and the sense of community was portrayed so well. 

5. Even in terms of themes, Left from the Nameless Shop offers a variety of them. We have stories of a widow making it on her own terms, of the bond between a grandfather and his grandson, of a love that stood the test of time and adverse circumstances, of the gentle, everyday kind of love, of complicated marriages, of complicated family dynamics, of everyday kindness, of little charities, of little acts of kindness.. Basically, there is something that will resonate with you from the many short stories in this book. 

6. The many characters and their stories come together in a beautiful and meaningful way in the last two short stories. You will feel like cheering, crying and just being happy to see what the not-so-educated but very determined people of this little town achieve for themselves! Such joy! 

Rating: 5/5 
Highly recommend this book! Very reminiscent of Malgudi Days and, perhaps, of your own childhood and the times when life was so much less complicated!