While most contemporary Indian books that I come across talk about love, friendship and romance, there are certain books that do much more; that delve deeper into the issues that really plague our society.
In a way, such books (because they enjoy mass readership) help change the social outlook towards the burning issues that still grasp our society in their medieval old clutches.
‘Give Your Heart a Break’ by Anuj Tiwari is one such book that helps break stereotypes and instils new age wisdom in the Indian psyche.
Read on to know more about my thoughts on the book.
What to expect
Expect a book that is easy to read and that talks about some very important and relevant social themes like mental health, depression, domestic abuse and harassment.
Expect a book that celebrates the bond between siblings and other familial relationships.
Expect a book that will surely give you some very important life lessons on the go.
Who can read
‘Give Your Heart a Break’ is written in a very easy to understand language and the focus is more on the story than vocabulary.
In short, it is a book meant for the masses and one that can be easily picked up by beginner-level readers.
What is the story all about
Addya is a young confident woman whose dreams would resonate with the dreams of any modern Indian girl. Her life is beautiful and she is loved by all.
The only thing that seems to be missing in her life is a man who will love her unconditionally and respect her for the woman that she is.
But all her dreams go down the drain after her marriage. She realizes that the man she once thought of as her knight in shining armour is actually a demon in disguise.
Before long, she is subjected to harassment and abuse – both physical and psychological but thankfully, there are people who care about her. Her brother, Agastya is one of the first persons to come to her rescue. His heart breaks on seeing the torments that her sister had been subjected too.
As Addya deals with an abusive husband and a painfully long divorce procedure, Agastya vows to never leave her side. But between handling his responsibilities at home and his commitments at work, somewhere Agastya is unable to dedicate time to his relationship with Tarjani.
As each one of them come to terms with their ever-changing future, they sometimes flounder and sometimes fail. But the important question is do they manage to persist? Do they manage to value their relationships?
What I absolutely loved
Like I mentioned before, I love the fact that for a change, a mass-market read talks predominantly about a subject other than love and friendship. Sure, it is about love (sibling love) but this love is a kind that is rarely spoken about and even lesser written about.
That the book also deals with some very relevant social themes like physical and mental abuse, anxiety and depression and the social stigma around divorce is something that adds to its many accomplishments as a voice of change.
How good are the characters
The characters of the book are realistic and relatable. But somehow, I can’t shed the notion that despite the title, all of them just could not seem to ‘give their heart a break’.
A sense of freewill and carefree abandon is missing in almost all of the major characters of the book. There are a few that manage to break the monotony but it is far from enough.
Let’s talk about the writing style
The thing that disenchants you about the book is that it sometimes tends to get too philosophical for its own good.
There are important life lessons to be learned but an overdose of anything is bad. It is this reason, that makes the book a little tiring and monotonous.
Is the climax good enough?
Give Your Heart a Break has a climax that is easy to predict and does little to surprise the reader. It all boils down to the entertainment quotient
In the end, ‘Give Your Heart a Break’ is a unique kind of read – one which is definitely different and much needed but one that takes some effort to pull through.
The philosophy and the life lessons are to look forward to but the reader in me gets quickly overwhelmed by the sheer repetitiveness of it all. It is a book that will surely find appeal albeit not in every kind of reader.
My final verdict
Can go for it!
