Never Never Land

by Namita Gokhale

Lonely, middle-aged, at a personal and professional dead-end, Iti Arya flees the towers and bright lights of Gurgaon for The Dacha, a remote cottage in the Kumaon Himalayas where she had spent perhaps the happiest years of her childhood. Over the course of that single monsoon in the hills, in the company of two grandmothers—ninety-something Badi Amma and Rosinka Paul Singh, aged one hundred and two—and a mysterious girl who may be her sister, Iti will make peace with her approximate life and quiet desolation. She will witness the vanity of youth, but also its vulnerability and tenderness; the indignities of age, and also its courage and consolations. She will submit to life and the eternal spirit of the mountains.

With Never Never Land, Namita Gokhale shows, again, why she is one of India’s most original and daring writers, with an extraordinary understanding of the human condition.

Genres: Indian Literature, Fiction

176 pages, Paperback

Published February 20, 2024

Reviews

[Krutika · Rating 5 out of 5]

Never Never Land by Namita Gokhale reads as beautiful as it looks. It’s books like these that I usually tend to carry with me on vacations, to simply unwind and stretch my mind like a lazy cat. Set in the Kumaon Himalayas, this story revolves around four women, about their past that keeps flitting into the periphery like a moth around a candle. It’s about their desires, their manner of introspection and also a fine thread that ties them all together. I finished this in one sitting , something that I haven’t been able to do in a very long time. The complexity of friendship, the many facets of it, both good and ugly and the extent to which we at times go to protect and defend it; all these have been beautifully captured in the writing. It shocks me that I hadn’t read a single book by Gokhale before this, something I regret about. But I’m also glad that this happened to be the first novel by her that I read. Couldn’t have chosen a better one.

When Iti, a middle aged woman revisits her grandmother’s Dacha after many years, she is instantly reminded of her growing up years, her rickety relationship with her own mother and of her grandmother’s friendship with her mistress. Badi Amma has worked for Rosinka all her life and at some point, a friendship is formed between the two women. While Rosinka is flamboyant, with a history as rich as her words, Badi Amma is a shy woman who grew up in the mountains. And keeping them company is a young mysterious girl whom Iti is instantly wary of. As she spends weeks with the three women, Iti discovers certain secrets that makes her ponder over many aspects of her own life. Her stay at The Dacha is both riveting and relieving.

It becomes quite hard to describe books like Never Never Land. It truly baffles me how a book can be both simple yet incredibly profound in the way it makes me feel. Both Gokhale and Iti take us on a journey that is filled with a sense of belonging and mostly, of forgiveness.

I can’t recommend this enough. Big thanks to @speakingtiger x @tanudogra for sending this one over 🤍

[Kartik Chauhan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read the novel on a vacation in Kumaon, while staying in a pahadi house over 114 years old.
A smart, sensitive and often also funny novel about the passing of time, and growing old. Interestingly, I also turned a year older while I was reading the book in the hills. A memorable experience.

[Sayari Debnath · Rating 5 out of 5]

marvellous. such a tender, whimsical novel about women and their desires. please read it.

[Gayathiri Rajendran · Rating 4 out of 5]

Never Never Land by Namita Gokhale is a short novel set high in the mountains of Kumaon. It’s very introspective and reflective and about relationships between people, confronting difficult truths and accepting them.

I loved the tenderness and sensitivity brought out in this novel and the atmospheric setting of the mountains provided another much needed layer to the story. Quite a short read but leaves a lot for thoughts!

[Bhavya · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a daring attempt for sure and reflects a deep understanding of life, relationships and the various forms in which love can manifest. The story is set in the Kumaon region and is about discovering and making peace with some uncomfortable truths and complicated relationships; the kind of truth that can be haunting, complex and found in forbidden zones. It takes guts to tell a tale of this kind, which is a short read but leaves you with a lot to mull over.

“There was a pattern to life, in recurrence and circularity, in seashells, in poetry, in the Fibonacci sequence. And yet it was arbitrary and unpredictable.”

[Gayathri Sarvepalli · Rating 5 out of 5]

Namita Gokhale never disappoints.

[Aashita · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was transported to the never never lands while relishing this literary marvel.
It had a calming effect on me!!
What else to say, it’s a different kind of beauty!

[Ashwini Mandal · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book will make you want to leave your current 9-5 life and go to such a place as described so beautifully in the book.

[Archana Nair · Rating 3 out of 5]

Iti, a 40 something woman, escapes Gurgaon and Internet to the quiet mountains of her childhood, where she spends time with Badi Amma and Rosinka (absolute star women). Though the premise was interesting, I felt the book just fleetingly touched upon the lives of these women and left me wanting more backstories. Iti remained a mystery to me till the end.

[Aruna Kumar Gadepalli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fiction that takes the reader to mountains, and the Himalayas and brings the idea that the mountains help humans to respect nature and what the mountains do bring in humans. A well-written book.

[Rakhi Dalal · Rating 4 out of 5]

At the outset, Namita Gokhle’s Never Never Land seems conventional, centering on the protagonist’s quest for meaning amidst loneliness in a bustling city life, where relationships and even “monsoon is a betrayal”. What sets this book apart is the imperative nostalgia of both lived and unlived experiences that permeate through the narrative. The author captures the nostalgia well with her style which skilfully moves between a first and third person narrative, navigating between the past and the present, with the principal character embarking upon a journey back to her roots.

The protagonist, Iti Arya, is a single, middle-aged freelance editor/ writer struggling to find a footing in her life. Undetermined about her writing which doesn’t seem to take off, she decides to return to The Dacha, a place of her childhood, in the hilly Kumaon region, where life for her had been beautiful if not downright perfect. It was a place she had longed for while living in dusty Gurgaon surrounded by a concrete forest, a place she hoped to return to find herself, a place where she could find meaning in relationships, a place where validation for who she was and what she strove for ceased to exist. ‘Never Never Land’ seems to be for her, both a literal and symbolic place of return.

Iti returns to her grandmother with whom she has spent the happiest days of her school life, her Badi Amma who used to tell her that when mountains speak, one must listen carefully. She returns to find out the stories that she can only find in the mountains. At Dacha, the cottage owned by a hundred and two years old Rosinka (her amma’s erstwhile employer), she also comes across Nina, around whom an aura of secrecy hovers. The course of the novel then ripples with their interactions providing contexts for Iti’s quest forth. At times, she is awash by the unspoken love of her Badi Amma and Rosinka, feeling secure in their presence and in the knowledge of their affection for her and for each other, an unlikely friendship that is stronger than any relationship she has known. Her stay there makes her re-examine her life to find the missing pieces that lead her to feel lonely and uncomfortable.

An inheritance, a theft, a strange recovery in a deluge, and an unfolding of a truth later, make Iti come face to face with her reality. She makes peace with memories of her now departed mother whom she did not love but wished to be seen by. She holds onto her Badi Amma and Rosinka whom she dreads to lose. She holds onto the place that makes her feel protected. A place she belongs.

The essence of the book lies in the warm relationship shared by the women whose stories are uncovered layer by layer. Women, who lonely in their own ways in life, find comfort with each other and stand guard of each other’s happiness. Reading the book reminds one of the likes of Little Women by Louisa May Alcott, only that here women are not bound by blood but by an understanding that has come with years of living together for one reason or another.

The cover page of the book, inspired by Nicholas Roerich’s painting ‘Himalayas — the Abode of Light’, resonates with Iti’s journey towards clarity and finding a meaning that illuminates her life. At the end of the monsoon, as the sun comes out, she feels revived and willing to carry on, with herself, her grandmothers and the mountains.


The review first appeared here:
https://borderlessjournal.com/2024/08...

[Chitrranshi · Rating 3 out of 5]

The beautiful lavender cover of Namita Gokhale's "Never, Never Land" depicts mountains and the sun, drawing readers into its captivating world. Gokhale, known for her daring and original writing, offers a tale that delves into the human condition with sensitivity and depth.
In this short novel, Iti, a middle-aged woman at a personal and professional impasse, seeks solace in the remote cottage of The Dacha in the Kumaon Himalayas. Here, she reunites with two grandmothers—ninety-something Badi Amma and one-hundred-and-two-year-old Rosinka Paul Singh—and encounters a mysterious girl who may be her sister. Through the monsoon season, Iti confronts the complexities of her life and relationships, finding solace and understanding in the company of these unique characters.
The four central characters—Iti, Badi Amma, Rosinka, and the mysterious girl—bring depth and complexity to the narrative. Iti's name, meaning "end," reflects her sense of being at a standstill in life, yet it also carries the promise of a new beginning. Thinking of which below lines come to my mind-“Is start the beginning, or beginning the end.”
Her journey at The Dacha becomes both an ending and a fresh start as she grapples with her past and discovers new insights about herself and her relationships. The dynamics between Rosinka and Lily, resembling that of master and slave, hint at a deeper, more nuanced relationship that is haunted by unspoken truths and past scandals. Book beautifully captures how time humbles you and makes you recall the incidents which are still fresh in memory.
Namita's writing captivates from the first page and holds the reader's attention until the end. The narrative is rich with meaningful silences and poignant moments that explore themes of youth, aging, and the search for meaning. The story's setting in the Himalayas adds another layer of atmosphere, emphasizing the characters' introspective journeys against the backdrop of nature's beauty and brutality.
"Never, Never Land" is ultimately a story about finding peace and acceptance amidst life's uncertainties. Gokhale's prose delicately balances the complexities of human relationships and the quiet courage of facing one's own truths. It's a book that lingers in the mind long after the final page is turned, leaving readers with a profound sense of introspection and understanding.

[Sarada Choudary · Rating 4 out of 5]

This felt more like a short story than a novel, but it was the perfect book to get me over my reading hiatus! It read quickly and I was very eager to learn more about the three main characters. I enjoyed the author’s descriptions of the settings also. I felt like the younger character wasn’t developed enough though. I feel like she could do a spin off/prequel to this book based on her story since we weren’t left with much revealed.