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The Night of Broken Glass
Over the last three decades, Kashmir has been ravaged by insurgency. While reams have been written on it - in human rights documents, academic theses, non-fiction accounts of the turmoil, and government and military reports - the effects of the violence on its inhabitants have rarely been rendered in fiction. Feroz Rather's The Night of Broken Glass corrects that anomaly. Through a series of interconnected stories, within which the same characters move in and out, the author weaves a tapestry of the horror Kashmir has come to represent. His visceral imagery explores the psychological impact of the turmoil on its natives - Showkat, who is made to wipe off graffiti on the wall of his shop with his tongue; Rosy, a progressive, jeans-wearing 'upper-caste' girl who is in love with 'lower-caste' Jamshid; Jamshid's father Gulam, a cobbler by profession who never finds his son's bullet-riddled body; the ineffectual Nadim 'Pasture', who proclaims himself a full-fledged rebel; even the barbaric and tyrannical Major S, who has to contend with his own nightmares. Grappling with a society brutalized by the oppression of the state, and fissured by the tensions of caste and gender, Feroz Rather's remarkable debut is as much a paean to the beauty of Kashmir and the courage of its people as it is a dirge to a paradise lost.
232 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 5, 2018
17 people are currently reading
450 people want to read
About the author
Feroz Rather
1 book14 followersFeroz Rather is currently a doctoral student of Creative Writing at Florida State University and his work has appeared in The Millions, The Rumpus, The Southeast Review, Caravan, Warscapes, Berfrois, and Himal. His most recent essay, 'Poet in Srinagar', appeared in the anthology Mad Heart, Be Brave: On the Poetry of Agha Shahid Ali. The Night of Broken Glass is his first book.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
September 6, 2018
Originally posted on my blog.
The Theater of Cruelty: The Night of Broken Glass by Feroz Rather
The Night of Broken Glass by Feroz Rather is a collection of thirteen interconnected short stories, in which the same set of characters move in and out, sometimes becoming central to the narrative, and at other times witnesses in the background.
The stories bring out the everyday-ness of Kashmir valley, an everyday-ness that might be unfamiliar to most of us. On the second page of the collection, for instance, you encounter a casual reference to the protagonist's time in prison:
"But while I had lost my loquacity during my time inside the prison, Gulzar was quiet by disposition."
If this line unsettles you in the slightest, then be prepared to be shaken by Rather's collection, which welcomes you into the theater of cruelty that is present-day Kashmir.
The Theater of Cruelty
In the nightmarish short story 'A Rebel's Return', the ghost of Ilham roams the city of Srinagar. By way of walking, he charts the geographical and moral landscape of the city, which is marked by particular structures that, when taken together, form the theater of cruelty.
The first of these structures is the Wall. In the story 'The Pheran', the Wall is seen soaring high into the sky, dividing Srinagar into two halves. What makes it especially terrifying is its sheer size and dimension, its colour and texture, and how it robs those who live on the eastern side of Srinagar of half the day by hiding the sun.
"In Safir's troubled imagination, the Wall, shielding the Cantonment in the east, swelled and extended out for miles, towards the northern and southern ends of Srinagar."
The references to the Wall are reminiscent of the walled town in Prayaag Akbar's Leila: A Novel, except that Akbar's novel presents a dystopia, and Rather's collection, a reality.
Besides the wall, there is the bunker, about which Rather has written some of the most beautiful and horrifying lines.
"As a motif in the startlingly natural landscape of one of the most beautiful cities in the world, the bunker was an eye sore. . . Within, like a Conrad short story, time was languid, uninterrupted and murderous; without, time was rushed and fractured, a prelude to a funeral."
Under the Wall there is something called the "Tunnel" and within the Tunnel is Café Barbarica: the haunt of the terror-inspiring Inspector Masoodi. Masoodi is known for the atrocities that he has inflicted on many, atrocities whose graphic descriptions are found in a number of stories in Rather's collection.
Together with Major S and Force 10, Masoodi is the usherer of "new militarized time" in the "depeest circle of hell", also known as military occupation in Kashmir.
Rather writes that each soldier is "a shadow of the sovereign in a castle of bones" and that it is difficult to imagine the moral landscape of such a soul, which "vacillated between fear of getting exterminated and the terrible duty of exterminating."
How Many Bodies Does a Pheran Wear?
For most of us, clothes are a part of our identities; they're the markers of our place in the social structure and they often hold cultural significance. For the characters in Rather's books, clothes, especially the pheran (the traditional outfit worn by both Kashmiri men and women), are integral to their sense of self.
There is Gulzar, the young cowherd of sixteen, of the story 'The Old Man in the Cottage', who never takes off his long woolen pheran, whatever the season. Then there is the fisherwoman of the story 'The Pheran' who, just like Gulzar, wears her pheran despite the heat of summer.
In The Ministry of Utmost Happiness, Arundhati Roy describes Kashmir as a place where "the dead will live forever; and the living are only dead people, pretending." The same thought is invoked as Rather's collection asks,
"What are the screams like when a dead body cries?"
These living-dead and dead-living are shrouded by their pherans. As Abdul Rashid takes out his son's (Shahid's) pheran at the end of the story 'The Pheran', Safir notices that it has three holes in the front, at each of the places where Shahid was shot. Rather writes,
"It had become Abdul Rashid's ritual each night to come into the room, take the pheran out of the trunk and hold it up to look at it so that the memory of his son's murder was freshly engraved in his mind."
Intersections: Gender and Caste
I have only one issue with Rather's book: women's voices are scarce in the collection, though (thankfully) not completely absent. In the short story 'Rosy', for instance, the protagonist says,
"I remembered the feeling of betrayal in Nuzhat's eyes, as though all of Kashmir had failed her. I am a woman and Nuzhat is my dearest friend. I felt her rage, her desperation, her hurt."
However, most of the time, the experiences of women characters in the stories are talked about, but you don't hear their voices directly. This is perhaps symptomatic of how women's narratives from conflict-torn regions are silenced.
What is especially significant about the collection, however, is that it takes into its folds the narrative of how Kashmiri society is sharply divided on the lines of caste. The protagonist in the story 'Rosy' says,
"The world is cruel; it ties us to the stanchions of caste. . . I want to burn down the edifice of the whole damn society who believe that your soul is black dirt because you are Sheikh while mine is made of white and gold feathers because I am a Syed."
Definite trigger warnings for graphic content. Otherwise a well-written and masterfully crafted collection.
One wonders if the title of the collection is inspired by Kristallnacht or the pogrom (an organized massacre of a particular ethnic group) against Jews throughout Nazi Germany in November 1938, carried out by paramilitary forces and German civilians.
___________________
The Night of Broken Glass by Feroz Rather, published by HarperCollins Publishers India, 2018.
The Theater of Cruelty: The Night of Broken Glass by Feroz Rather
The Night of Broken Glass by Feroz Rather is a collection of thirteen interconnected short stories, in which the same set of characters move in and out, sometimes becoming central to the narrative, and at other times witnesses in the background.
The stories bring out the everyday-ness of Kashmir valley, an everyday-ness that might be unfamiliar to most of us. On the second page of the collection, for instance, you encounter a casual reference to the protagonist's time in prison:
"But while I had lost my loquacity during my time inside the prison, Gulzar was quiet by disposition."
If this line unsettles you in the slightest, then be prepared to be shaken by Rather's collection, which welcomes you into the theater of cruelty that is present-day Kashmir.
The Theater of Cruelty
In the nightmarish short story 'A Rebel's Return', the ghost of Ilham roams the city of Srinagar. By way of walking, he charts the geographical and moral landscape of the city, which is marked by particular structures that, when taken together, form the theater of cruelty.
The first of these structures is the Wall. In the story 'The Pheran', the Wall is seen soaring high into the sky, dividing Srinagar into two halves. What makes it especially terrifying is its sheer size and dimension, its colour and texture, and how it robs those who live on the eastern side of Srinagar of half the day by hiding the sun.
"In Safir's troubled imagination, the Wall, shielding the Cantonment in the east, swelled and extended out for miles, towards the northern and southern ends of Srinagar."
The references to the Wall are reminiscent of the walled town in Prayaag Akbar's Leila: A Novel, except that Akbar's novel presents a dystopia, and Rather's collection, a reality.
Besides the wall, there is the bunker, about which Rather has written some of the most beautiful and horrifying lines.
"As a motif in the startlingly natural landscape of one of the most beautiful cities in the world, the bunker was an eye sore. . . Within, like a Conrad short story, time was languid, uninterrupted and murderous; without, time was rushed and fractured, a prelude to a funeral."
Under the Wall there is something called the "Tunnel" and within the Tunnel is Café Barbarica: the haunt of the terror-inspiring Inspector Masoodi. Masoodi is known for the atrocities that he has inflicted on many, atrocities whose graphic descriptions are found in a number of stories in Rather's collection.
Together with Major S and Force 10, Masoodi is the usherer of "new militarized time" in the "depeest circle of hell", also known as military occupation in Kashmir.
Rather writes that each soldier is "a shadow of the sovereign in a castle of bones" and that it is difficult to imagine the moral landscape of such a soul, which "vacillated between fear of getting exterminated and the terrible duty of exterminating."
How Many Bodies Does a Pheran Wear?
For most of us, clothes are a part of our identities; they're the markers of our place in the social structure and they often hold cultural significance. For the characters in Rather's books, clothes, especially the pheran (the traditional outfit worn by both Kashmiri men and women), are integral to their sense of self.
There is Gulzar, the young cowherd of sixteen, of the story 'The Old Man in the Cottage', who never takes off his long woolen pheran, whatever the season. Then there is the fisherwoman of the story 'The Pheran' who, just like Gulzar, wears her pheran despite the heat of summer.
In The Ministry of Utmost Happiness, Arundhati Roy describes Kashmir as a place where "the dead will live forever; and the living are only dead people, pretending." The same thought is invoked as Rather's collection asks,
"What are the screams like when a dead body cries?"
These living-dead and dead-living are shrouded by their pherans. As Abdul Rashid takes out his son's (Shahid's) pheran at the end of the story 'The Pheran', Safir notices that it has three holes in the front, at each of the places where Shahid was shot. Rather writes,
"It had become Abdul Rashid's ritual each night to come into the room, take the pheran out of the trunk and hold it up to look at it so that the memory of his son's murder was freshly engraved in his mind."
Intersections: Gender and Caste
I have only one issue with Rather's book: women's voices are scarce in the collection, though (thankfully) not completely absent. In the short story 'Rosy', for instance, the protagonist says,
"I remembered the feeling of betrayal in Nuzhat's eyes, as though all of Kashmir had failed her. I am a woman and Nuzhat is my dearest friend. I felt her rage, her desperation, her hurt."
However, most of the time, the experiences of women characters in the stories are talked about, but you don't hear their voices directly. This is perhaps symptomatic of how women's narratives from conflict-torn regions are silenced.
What is especially significant about the collection, however, is that it takes into its folds the narrative of how Kashmiri society is sharply divided on the lines of caste. The protagonist in the story 'Rosy' says,
"The world is cruel; it ties us to the stanchions of caste. . . I want to burn down the edifice of the whole damn society who believe that your soul is black dirt because you are Sheikh while mine is made of white and gold feathers because I am a Syed."
Definite trigger warnings for graphic content. Otherwise a well-written and masterfully crafted collection.
One wonders if the title of the collection is inspired by Kristallnacht or the pogrom (an organized massacre of a particular ethnic group) against Jews throughout Nazi Germany in November 1938, carried out by paramilitary forces and German civilians.
___________________
The Night of Broken Glass by Feroz Rather, published by HarperCollins Publishers India, 2018.
June 5, 2020
Set in Kashmir The Night of Broken Glass is a collection of thirteen interconnected short stories that 'reflect on the human waste and human cruelty' in the valley by rendering the psychological turmoil of a bunch of characters. These same set of characters appear throughout the whole book, sometimes taking the central stage sometimes becoming merely muted characters
Firoz Rather has successfully projected these atrocious brutality in his debut work. Though the book is a work of fiction, it is clear that the violence rendered in it is not fictitious. Every character is a representative of the valley in whole and thus everyone has a story to share. Showkat was forced to wipe off graffiti on the wall of his shop. Young Jamshid was elected the president of JKSF and whose bullet riddled body was never found. Rosy, the progressive 'upper caste' daughter of 'pir' Syed Anjar Shah decides to fight the whole society for her love of lower caste Jamshid. Jamshid's father Ghulam, a cobbler by profession looses his wife failing to feed her. Young car washer Mohsin was taken into custody and his bones were crushed for refusing to wash an Amry officer's car for free. Even the autocratic Major S has to suffer in his dreams.
Throughout the book the author has described the murder of innocence. His language is poetic, his nerrative is engaging and his images and symbols are extremely violence filled. The scenic beauty of Kashmir and Jhelum river has been placed side by side with the barbarism of Army to heighten the effect. The author has also given handful of space to highlight issues like caste system, poverty, gender, heads and tails of religion and faith, extra marital affairs, and conjugal life etc.
The book is recommended if you are ready to witness extreme human suffering and high dose of normalised violence. I would rate it 4.5 star and I'm eagerly waiting to read more of this extremely talented writer.
"And how dare you think of paradise when Kashmir still exists on earth. Why the fuck don't you understand that the occupation itself is the deepest circle of hell and there is no hell beyond it"Kashmir is a deeply debatable and sensitive topic. There are lot of controversies surrounding who is responsible for the problem. The government, or the Army or the neighbour country - it's difficult to tell who is saint and who is sinner. But one thing is certain that the valley has been ravaged for ages and it's inhabitants have been subjected to inhuman cruelty. Children have been booted out from their angelic mould and forced to witness the demonic acts of murder, rape and violence, Youths have been shackled and deprived of their human rights, and the older ones - the fathers, the mothers and the grandparents have been burdened by the premature loss of their near and dear ones.
Firoz Rather has successfully projected these atrocious brutality in his debut work. Though the book is a work of fiction, it is clear that the violence rendered in it is not fictitious. Every character is a representative of the valley in whole and thus everyone has a story to share. Showkat was forced to wipe off graffiti on the wall of his shop. Young Jamshid was elected the president of JKSF and whose bullet riddled body was never found. Rosy, the progressive 'upper caste' daughter of 'pir' Syed Anjar Shah decides to fight the whole society for her love of lower caste Jamshid. Jamshid's father Ghulam, a cobbler by profession looses his wife failing to feed her. Young car washer Mohsin was taken into custody and his bones were crushed for refusing to wash an Amry officer's car for free. Even the autocratic Major S has to suffer in his dreams.
Throughout the book the author has described the murder of innocence. His language is poetic, his nerrative is engaging and his images and symbols are extremely violence filled. The scenic beauty of Kashmir and Jhelum river has been placed side by side with the barbarism of Army to heighten the effect. The author has also given handful of space to highlight issues like caste system, poverty, gender, heads and tails of religion and faith, extra marital affairs, and conjugal life etc.
The book is recommended if you are ready to witness extreme human suffering and high dose of normalised violence. I would rate it 4.5 star and I'm eagerly waiting to read more of this extremely talented writer.
December 7, 2020
Beautifully written collection of short stories. One of the hardest things to do is to attempt to get into the mind of those who are carrying out violence on behalf of the state--the story on Major S, in particular, was extremely well written.
April 17, 2025
This is the painful account and bitter , harsh reality of the coldest region of the country and heaven on earth. The security forces are most vulnerable and insecure in the area due to attacks on them from various sides and the people who organised that crowds are cross-border terrorists.
But that doesn't mean it gave them licence to kill anyone just for their sadistic pleasure. In the valley it's difficult to be honest, and the right to speech is under siege because if you are an influencer in any kind of politics then most probably the voice of honesty is killed under criminal conspiracy. For a small reason you can be held and beaten up for the money which you deserve for the service you provided.
Although, it glorifies that due to people being through hard situation changes and choosing the wrong side of justice, it also puts light on how prejudice works in the valley and how people are killed, hurt, harrased by the public servants and army personnel. How rich influences the political stance and how small actions are impacting the life of many who want to live in peace in Kashmir but are under scrutiny for their stand in some matters and how their voices are lost in the crowd for being rightful and standing for true justice. People lost friends, loved ones , parents, closed ones, colleagues due to religious indifference, politics, influence and hold in the valley amongst rich people.
But that doesn't mean it gave them licence to kill anyone just for their sadistic pleasure. In the valley it's difficult to be honest, and the right to speech is under siege because if you are an influencer in any kind of politics then most probably the voice of honesty is killed under criminal conspiracy. For a small reason you can be held and beaten up for the money which you deserve for the service you provided.
Although, it glorifies that due to people being through hard situation changes and choosing the wrong side of justice, it also puts light on how prejudice works in the valley and how people are killed, hurt, harrased by the public servants and army personnel. How rich influences the political stance and how small actions are impacting the life of many who want to live in peace in Kashmir but are under scrutiny for their stand in some matters and how their voices are lost in the crowd for being rightful and standing for true justice. People lost friends, loved ones , parents, closed ones, colleagues due to religious indifference, politics, influence and hold in the valley amongst rich people.
August 4, 2018
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"I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review by the publishers."
The Night of Broken Glass by Feroz Rather is the story of a brutal and terror-filled Kashmir. Loosely combining a number of characters in different short stories and then forming a beautiful book with them, the novel is a fictitious tale of the things that a common person in Kashmir goes through. The book makes one question whether what the army does and how it works is right or wrong. Should people—common people like us—be subjected to such brutalities and atrocities for any reason at all. After all, what was the fault of the eighteen-year-old boy who was compelled to kill two pigeons? All that he wanted was to feed the pigeons near a particular shrine on behalf of his father! What was the fault of the young taxi driver whose car stopped at the wrong place at the wrong time, that too due to a mechanical error in the machine? Why did he have to be shot over such a thing?
What was the mistake of any one, actually, who was ripped off his/her house or family other than living in Kashmir?
Not being much of a history person, I'm not sure how much of what was written in the book was true and how much of it fiction. I mean, I know that it is a fictitious tale but these incidents would probably be based on some historical event, right? I'm not sure what incident that was and what impact that particular event had on the lives of people. Yet, even if one-third of what Rather wrote in his debut is true, even then the novel definitely reflects a bunch of atrocities inflicted upon the Kashmiris by the army in a hard time.
What I loved about the book was:
- The cover, title and the blurb. Each of these are beautiful in their own respect, but when they come together then the effect is simply enchanting.
- The beautiful way in which the stories were told. I mean, the way things formulated around each other and connected one story to the next was mind-blowing.
- How the stories were left incomplete by the end of it, leaving things to my imagination to decide. Not only did this add suspense to the ending, but also allowed my imagination to fly wild and take the ending that suits best for me—no matter how brutal.
- Rather's beautiful writing style, his magical story-telling, his enchanting descriptions and his poetic script.
- the pace with which the story ran. I mean, I wasn't bored at even a single point and wanted to continue reading until I was done. Everything went on smoothly and easily that I was a fan of Rather's work by the end of it.
What I didn't like, on the other hand, about the book was:
- How there wasn't a proper epilogue at the end of the book. I know! I know that this was the beauty of the novel because it makes the reader wonder of what happens to each character at the end and I loved this about the book. But that's exactly what is eating me up at the moment. What exactly happened to them?
- Some words and phrases that Rather used confused me. At one point, the narrator says something like "all five of my fingers broke off and fell off". Now they aren't the exact words but they are somewhat similar. And I'm not sure I understand the meaning of anything like that.
- The timelines were a little vague. I mean, it happened twice in the novel that at one place the narrator is remembering some incident from the past and right at the next place, he/she is back in the present and I don't understand when the shift happened.
- The sudden shift in the point-of-views. And this is perhaps the major reason why I'm taking away one star from the rating. Obviously, I agree with whatever I wrote about Rather's writing earlier but this sudden shift, without a break, is such a huge thing in itself!
Overall, I believe this novel was a rather amazing read. But it is also not something for the weak-hearted. I would suggest you to pick it up only when you know you can handle all the brutal things and incidents you might have to read inside!
"I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review by the publishers."
The Night of Broken Glass by Feroz Rather is the story of a brutal and terror-filled Kashmir. Loosely combining a number of characters in different short stories and then forming a beautiful book with them, the novel is a fictitious tale of the things that a common person in Kashmir goes through. The book makes one question whether what the army does and how it works is right or wrong. Should people—common people like us—be subjected to such brutalities and atrocities for any reason at all. After all, what was the fault of the eighteen-year-old boy who was compelled to kill two pigeons? All that he wanted was to feed the pigeons near a particular shrine on behalf of his father! What was the fault of the young taxi driver whose car stopped at the wrong place at the wrong time, that too due to a mechanical error in the machine? Why did he have to be shot over such a thing?
What was the mistake of any one, actually, who was ripped off his/her house or family other than living in Kashmir?
Not being much of a history person, I'm not sure how much of what was written in the book was true and how much of it fiction. I mean, I know that it is a fictitious tale but these incidents would probably be based on some historical event, right? I'm not sure what incident that was and what impact that particular event had on the lives of people. Yet, even if one-third of what Rather wrote in his debut is true, even then the novel definitely reflects a bunch of atrocities inflicted upon the Kashmiris by the army in a hard time.
What I loved about the book was:
- The cover, title and the blurb. Each of these are beautiful in their own respect, but when they come together then the effect is simply enchanting.
- The beautiful way in which the stories were told. I mean, the way things formulated around each other and connected one story to the next was mind-blowing.
- How the stories were left incomplete by the end of it, leaving things to my imagination to decide. Not only did this add suspense to the ending, but also allowed my imagination to fly wild and take the ending that suits best for me—no matter how brutal.
- Rather's beautiful writing style, his magical story-telling, his enchanting descriptions and his poetic script.
- the pace with which the story ran. I mean, I wasn't bored at even a single point and wanted to continue reading until I was done. Everything went on smoothly and easily that I was a fan of Rather's work by the end of it.
What I didn't like, on the other hand, about the book was:
- How there wasn't a proper epilogue at the end of the book. I know! I know that this was the beauty of the novel because it makes the reader wonder of what happens to each character at the end and I loved this about the book. But that's exactly what is eating me up at the moment. What exactly happened to them?
- Some words and phrases that Rather used confused me. At one point, the narrator says something like "all five of my fingers broke off and fell off". Now they aren't the exact words but they are somewhat similar. And I'm not sure I understand the meaning of anything like that.
- The timelines were a little vague. I mean, it happened twice in the novel that at one place the narrator is remembering some incident from the past and right at the next place, he/she is back in the present and I don't understand when the shift happened.
- The sudden shift in the point-of-views. And this is perhaps the major reason why I'm taking away one star from the rating. Obviously, I agree with whatever I wrote about Rather's writing earlier but this sudden shift, without a break, is such a huge thing in itself!
Overall, I believe this novel was a rather amazing read. But it is also not something for the weak-hearted. I would suggest you to pick it up only when you know you can handle all the brutal things and incidents you might have to read inside!
January 21, 2019
#2019 #YearInBooks Book 10
Kashmir in fiction. I was sure, when I bought this book, that this would be a book I'd read slowly. That I'd let the emotions sink in. But I was wrong. Be it because of the author's narration or because the emotions were too palpable, I read this book at a stretch. It offered just a glimpse, but that's enough.
Some stories felt intriguing. It made me turn page after page, wanting to know more. The Pheran, one of them. Another was The Rebel's Return. And it ended just as it got interesting. Kind of like life for many of the fictional characters in this story. And for many others for whom the events in this fiction might be reality, might have been reality. There's sadness, there's fear, there's horror and pain and cruelty, and it's a difficult read because I could feel those. I wanted to contemplate, but I couldn't. I hope that makes sense.
The stories in this collection are interconnected via characters and time. I applaud that effort. But there's no order. One story doesn't start where the previous leaves, perhaps not even in the similar times. It's confusing. To be frank, it's not a big deal at the beginning because as a reader, I was looking at what the story would tell, not if it was related to another, but looking at it after a while, when the characters start to feel familiar, that order starts to play on my mind.
I think that this book is good, worth reading. But if I don't know if I will read it again. It's a sad read, a painful read. If I do reread, I think I'll take it slow. A story at a time, and between books that might ease the emotions.
Kashmir in fiction. I was sure, when I bought this book, that this would be a book I'd read slowly. That I'd let the emotions sink in. But I was wrong. Be it because of the author's narration or because the emotions were too palpable, I read this book at a stretch. It offered just a glimpse, but that's enough.
Some stories felt intriguing. It made me turn page after page, wanting to know more. The Pheran, one of them. Another was The Rebel's Return. And it ended just as it got interesting. Kind of like life for many of the fictional characters in this story. And for many others for whom the events in this fiction might be reality, might have been reality. There's sadness, there's fear, there's horror and pain and cruelty, and it's a difficult read because I could feel those. I wanted to contemplate, but I couldn't. I hope that makes sense.
The stories in this collection are interconnected via characters and time. I applaud that effort. But there's no order. One story doesn't start where the previous leaves, perhaps not even in the similar times. It's confusing. To be frank, it's not a big deal at the beginning because as a reader, I was looking at what the story would tell, not if it was related to another, but looking at it after a while, when the characters start to feel familiar, that order starts to play on my mind.
I think that this book is good, worth reading. But if I don't know if I will read it again. It's a sad read, a painful read. If I do reread, I think I'll take it slow. A story at a time, and between books that might ease the emotions.
September 29, 2020
A lot of these stories were hits, though some were misses - which is why I've come to 3 stars.
Thought the lives of Kashmiris and their angst and trauma was very well represented. A more detailed review to come soon enough.
Thought the lives of Kashmiris and their angst and trauma was very well represented. A more detailed review to come soon enough.
May 15, 2021
' What are the screams like, when a dead body cries?'
Have you ever imagined? What if there are too many of them? Would you be able to distinguish those of your loved ones from those you seldom knew?
This heart-wrenching, soul churning book on the unfortunate events that take place in the state of Kashmir in India by Feroz Rather opened my mind to pain I never thought any human could ever go through and to think of the people like the characters Major S and Inspector Masoodi who inflicted them is beyond my humane imagination.
The plot reveals sadness in every breath that is inhaled and exhaled by the many victims portrayed in this tragic yet beautifully weaved book is rather profound. The youth laid waste to some very unreasonable acts and the elderly insulted and derogated to no end under the eternal state of emergency power which is abused by the police.
I never knew the torture people faced in my own country. The indifference I had before reading the poignant stories given in this book is completely gone now and I hope as more people read it, they become more aware of the real terrors.The Night of Broken GlassFeroz Rather
Have you ever imagined? What if there are too many of them? Would you be able to distinguish those of your loved ones from those you seldom knew?
This heart-wrenching, soul churning book on the unfortunate events that take place in the state of Kashmir in India by Feroz Rather opened my mind to pain I never thought any human could ever go through and to think of the people like the characters Major S and Inspector Masoodi who inflicted them is beyond my humane imagination.
The plot reveals sadness in every breath that is inhaled and exhaled by the many victims portrayed in this tragic yet beautifully weaved book is rather profound. The youth laid waste to some very unreasonable acts and the elderly insulted and derogated to no end under the eternal state of emergency power which is abused by the police.
I never knew the torture people faced in my own country. The indifference I had before reading the poignant stories given in this book is completely gone now and I hope as more people read it, they become more aware of the real terrors.The Night of Broken GlassFeroz Rather
Read
May 13, 2021Did Not Read !
The initial stories were good but later I lost the touch as I wanted a more continuous flow of stories. Will surely pick it up again !
The initial stories were good but later I lost the touch as I wanted a more continuous flow of stories. Will surely pick it up again !
February 13, 2022
Really wanted to be able to sit through this. Just wasn't for me I guess.
January 7, 2019
#BookReview: The Night of Broken Glass left me at unease in a good way. I got drawn to the book because of the tranquil cover design and the blurb on the cover by Basharat Peer. But between the covers the end words, I discovered a world that was alluring and haunting at the same time. Writer Feroz Rather weaved multiple stories with the elan of a master Craftsman. Here are why I loved it:
The poetic and atmospheric nature of the narrative is quite a fodder for imagination. I was transported to an era of turmoil, I could sense the claustrophobic walls, I could smell the stench, I was enthralled by the relationships, the motives were real and gradually it had started to feel like I know these characters and I deeply care for them. Their triumph widened my smile, their helplessness left me crippled. What more do you want from a book other than being invested in a world one has never belonged.
On a flipnote, I wish this was longer. The stories are disjointed, serving mainly as short stories weaved into a larger narrative where a time in history is the protagonist rather than these characters who seep in and out of multiple plot lines. Almot all of these plot lines deserve their own full length stories. Hence, when the tracks changed between the chapters, it took me a while to wrap my head around the new characters and the situations. There were just too many names to remember, also some of them sounded similar making it difficult to follow through.
Nevertheless, this is a book where the writing deserves the accolades. Also considering this is my very first read of 2019, I feel better for the reading year ahead. I certainly rate it as 4.5 stars and that is also the rating I had for last year's Best Read book of mine, hence, let's see if this one ranks by the year end and how. Highly recommended for those who like short stories, literary fiction and overall good literature, hence, it isn't for everyone considering the language quotient are quite sophisticated here. As for me, I am in love with this book already and I would love to re-read it sometime in future.
The poetic and atmospheric nature of the narrative is quite a fodder for imagination. I was transported to an era of turmoil, I could sense the claustrophobic walls, I could smell the stench, I was enthralled by the relationships, the motives were real and gradually it had started to feel like I know these characters and I deeply care for them. Their triumph widened my smile, their helplessness left me crippled. What more do you want from a book other than being invested in a world one has never belonged.
On a flipnote, I wish this was longer. The stories are disjointed, serving mainly as short stories weaved into a larger narrative where a time in history is the protagonist rather than these characters who seep in and out of multiple plot lines. Almot all of these plot lines deserve their own full length stories. Hence, when the tracks changed between the chapters, it took me a while to wrap my head around the new characters and the situations. There were just too many names to remember, also some of them sounded similar making it difficult to follow through.
Nevertheless, this is a book where the writing deserves the accolades. Also considering this is my very first read of 2019, I feel better for the reading year ahead. I certainly rate it as 4.5 stars and that is also the rating I had for last year's Best Read book of mine, hence, let's see if this one ranks by the year end and how. Highly recommended for those who like short stories, literary fiction and overall good literature, hence, it isn't for everyone considering the language quotient are quite sophisticated here. As for me, I am in love with this book already and I would love to re-read it sometime in future.
April 24, 2019
Interconnected stories, with characters moving in and out from one into the other, feature in Feroz Rather's debut, The Night of Broken Glass. Some stories are good, hard-hitting, portraying the picture of a troubled land. However, they are not evenly polished throughout. Some instances/situations are too descriptive, the author uses too lofty words/expressions, which take away the sheen from the story.
August 22, 2022
#FREEKASHMIR, that’s all i have to say
February 12, 2019
“The Night Of Broken Glass ‘’ by Feroz Rather who is currently a doctoral student of Creative Writing is his debutant novel. When you read you are amazed by the use of poetic words and creation of memories/nightmares created you are part of that story and you care for the suffering of characters
Book is a collection of 13 short intense stories, although the stories in the book are fictional but they present the real situation and trauma of Kashmir
It's a difficult book to read, it has that hauntingly lyrical prose, the poetic description of the dark and desolate background Book peeks into the dark heart of Kashmiri society revealing the larger issues of religion, caste and gender.
The violence which is ever present even in in the absence around the stories threatening to shatter the peace in an otherwise idyllic natural landscape.
Book will give you various perspectives
The innocent people how they are suffering and dealing with brutality on one hand and the internal contradictions of Kashmiri society on the other. In its examination of conflict, the book does not neglect that even internal conflict can tear people apart just as well as external forces. The Syed-Sheikh caste conflict, for example, is examined in detail
The Bad people how they have to deal with their restive subconscious book captures their internal chaos acutely
The soldiers on duty about their moral landscape, their sinister darkness and boredom in which they seemed irredeemable choked, imprisoned within the choking walls
Yet, despite the violence, one can see the “the light and the darkness” and book points towards hope.
Like for a character there is more humility and honesty in embroidery than in the sense of entitlement that journalists seem to have in the false sense of power.
The final story ends on a note of tenderness with the embrace of a little girl who was waiting to be taken out for a walk before nightfall. The innocence of a young life — the promise of a new generation that can see a new dawn after a long night.
I could have given 4 Stars but somehow I fell the author was biased and he has shared brutality only from one point of view not the complete picture
Book is a collection of 13 short intense stories, although the stories in the book are fictional but they present the real situation and trauma of Kashmir
It's a difficult book to read, it has that hauntingly lyrical prose, the poetic description of the dark and desolate background Book peeks into the dark heart of Kashmiri society revealing the larger issues of religion, caste and gender.
The violence which is ever present even in in the absence around the stories threatening to shatter the peace in an otherwise idyllic natural landscape.
Book will give you various perspectives
The innocent people how they are suffering and dealing with brutality on one hand and the internal contradictions of Kashmiri society on the other. In its examination of conflict, the book does not neglect that even internal conflict can tear people apart just as well as external forces. The Syed-Sheikh caste conflict, for example, is examined in detail
The Bad people how they have to deal with their restive subconscious book captures their internal chaos acutely
The soldiers on duty about their moral landscape, their sinister darkness and boredom in which they seemed irredeemable choked, imprisoned within the choking walls
Yet, despite the violence, one can see the “the light and the darkness” and book points towards hope.
Like for a character there is more humility and honesty in embroidery than in the sense of entitlement that journalists seem to have in the false sense of power.
The final story ends on a note of tenderness with the embrace of a little girl who was waiting to be taken out for a walk before nightfall. The innocence of a young life — the promise of a new generation that can see a new dawn after a long night.
I could have given 4 Stars but somehow I fell the author was biased and he has shared brutality only from one point of view not the complete picture
August 5, 2018
Rating: 3.5 stars
Thanks to HarperCollinsIndia for the review copy in exchange for an honest review.
Things I liked:
- The writing style: Feroz Rather's writing oozes sophistication and beauty. I loved the lyrical quality of the words, and the author's grip over the language was well established.
- The different styles of narrative: The book is a series of connected short stories, and some stories are in first person narrative, some in third, and one of them reads almost like a love letter. While it's slightly confusing, I really enjoyed reading these different styles, and thought the author used them all really well.
- The emotions: Writing about emotions is not very easy; it can easily seem forced. But the stories here generate emotions easily. While they rely a little too heavily on incidents, there were many parts where the author uses solely his words to make you feel something, and it's all very well written.
Things I didn't like:
- Timeline: It was very hard for me to keep track of the changing timelines. To connect each story, you also need to figure out the time when it is set. Even within the story, there are changes in timeline as the narrator thinks about past incidents.
- Characters: There were some stories where I loved some characters, but there were many where I didn't really form much of an opinion about them. I think many of the characters could be a little better fleshed out with just a few additional sentences.
Overall:
The Night of Broken Glass is a short and emotional read with tales that make you think. Definitely worth a read if this is your genre. It was interesting to read a book such as this. While the stories are sort of confusing at first, things more or less fall into place in this fast-paced and evocative read.
Thanks to HarperCollinsIndia for the review copy in exchange for an honest review.
Things I liked:
- The writing style: Feroz Rather's writing oozes sophistication and beauty. I loved the lyrical quality of the words, and the author's grip over the language was well established.
- The different styles of narrative: The book is a series of connected short stories, and some stories are in first person narrative, some in third, and one of them reads almost like a love letter. While it's slightly confusing, I really enjoyed reading these different styles, and thought the author used them all really well.
- The emotions: Writing about emotions is not very easy; it can easily seem forced. But the stories here generate emotions easily. While they rely a little too heavily on incidents, there were many parts where the author uses solely his words to make you feel something, and it's all very well written.
Things I didn't like:
- Timeline: It was very hard for me to keep track of the changing timelines. To connect each story, you also need to figure out the time when it is set. Even within the story, there are changes in timeline as the narrator thinks about past incidents.
- Characters: There were some stories where I loved some characters, but there were many where I didn't really form much of an opinion about them. I think many of the characters could be a little better fleshed out with just a few additional sentences.
Overall:
The Night of Broken Glass is a short and emotional read with tales that make you think. Definitely worth a read if this is your genre. It was interesting to read a book such as this. While the stories are sort of confusing at first, things more or less fall into place in this fast-paced and evocative read.
August 19, 2018
The Night of Broken Glass, Feroz Rather
It is a book that haunts you through its poetic diction. It is fictional in its own account. For many, who are trying to grapple with the ethics of violence in Kashmir, it reads as personal accounts of individuals. One can call it a collection of short stories. It can be read as a novel as well. But the readers are not offered this liberty when it comes to reading into the characters. The boys- Mohsin, Tariq, Amir, Imtiaz, Nadim, Jamshid, Showkat and others are mere names; each stand for a whole generation who has seen the violence unfold before their eyes and get amplified every other day. At times, one feels guilty while reading this book. Imagine yourself in your study, reading the painful, restless plight of individuals who embrace the reality that is penned in these 13 chapters. It offers no closure. It cannot offer any closure. Hence, the narrative has be to be poetic to compensate for the torment injected in the veins of the readers. And what about the soldiers? Do they all die equally painfully? They die each day. This knowledge makes them ruthless. Kashmir is not a paradise that has been lost. It is a patient caged in a wartime zone in the death row of civilisation. Fiction empowers a reader to change herself. The Night of Broken Glass is one such book. It keeps you at the edge. You beg for a positive change. You yearn to see Jamshid and Rosy together; at least, for a page. The two characters, though in love, never come together in the narrative. And then, there is religion, caste and gender—weapons to segregate individuals. But, does the bullet differentiate individuals on the basis of religion, caste and gender? It does not. It never will.
It is a book that haunts you through its poetic diction. It is fictional in its own account. For many, who are trying to grapple with the ethics of violence in Kashmir, it reads as personal accounts of individuals. One can call it a collection of short stories. It can be read as a novel as well. But the readers are not offered this liberty when it comes to reading into the characters. The boys- Mohsin, Tariq, Amir, Imtiaz, Nadim, Jamshid, Showkat and others are mere names; each stand for a whole generation who has seen the violence unfold before their eyes and get amplified every other day. At times, one feels guilty while reading this book. Imagine yourself in your study, reading the painful, restless plight of individuals who embrace the reality that is penned in these 13 chapters. It offers no closure. It cannot offer any closure. Hence, the narrative has be to be poetic to compensate for the torment injected in the veins of the readers. And what about the soldiers? Do they all die equally painfully? They die each day. This knowledge makes them ruthless. Kashmir is not a paradise that has been lost. It is a patient caged in a wartime zone in the death row of civilisation. Fiction empowers a reader to change herself. The Night of Broken Glass is one such book. It keeps you at the edge. You beg for a positive change. You yearn to see Jamshid and Rosy together; at least, for a page. The two characters, though in love, never come together in the narrative. And then, there is religion, caste and gender—weapons to segregate individuals. But, does the bullet differentiate individuals on the basis of religion, caste and gender? It does not. It never will.
July 30, 2018
Being a native of India, coming across this book was compelling. I wanted to dig into the psyche of the native of this war-torn land. I had heard of the horrors Indian politics had unfurled on the Kashmir, but had never witnessed it in the intensity this piece of fiction brought me to face.
Where it is a debatable topic whether Kashmir should be freed or not, I, for one, am no one to force my choices on someone. And so I think no one should.
The pain the natives of Kashmir go through could not be fathomed by one unless one has gone through the same. The book makes us question the way army operates in the land, even if it carries a fraction of the truth, it is too much. However, where book touches on the deeper issues of Bijbehara Massacre, it genuinely avoids talking about the burning of the BSF building in 1993 and termination of 25 residents following it. It doesn’t talk about the Exodus of Hindus and what impact it had on Kashmir, while it happened in the same timeframe. Author avoids getting into the sensitive matters which might speak against the notion represented in the book.
I, for one, believe that the truth should be represented from both sides. But this book is what Kashmir needs if it wants to be freed. Great empires are built on graves. You have to do wrongs to do a greater good.
It’s high time governments looked past their selfish motives and thought about the betterment of the valley and its people. No one wants to suffer, Neither the army nor Kashmiris. When people are murdered, it is humanity that loses.
Where it is a debatable topic whether Kashmir should be freed or not, I, for one, am no one to force my choices on someone. And so I think no one should.
The pain the natives of Kashmir go through could not be fathomed by one unless one has gone through the same. The book makes us question the way army operates in the land, even if it carries a fraction of the truth, it is too much. However, where book touches on the deeper issues of Bijbehara Massacre, it genuinely avoids talking about the burning of the BSF building in 1993 and termination of 25 residents following it. It doesn’t talk about the Exodus of Hindus and what impact it had on Kashmir, while it happened in the same timeframe. Author avoids getting into the sensitive matters which might speak against the notion represented in the book.
I, for one, believe that the truth should be represented from both sides. But this book is what Kashmir needs if it wants to be freed. Great empires are built on graves. You have to do wrongs to do a greater good.
It’s high time governments looked past their selfish motives and thought about the betterment of the valley and its people. No one wants to suffer, Neither the army nor Kashmiris. When people are murdered, it is humanity that loses.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 12, 2020
The Night of Broken Glass by Feroz Rather is a debut novel. It is a collection of inter – related short stories and a heart wrenching work of fiction.
The main concept of the book whirls around chain of stories that happens in the lives of Kashmir’s mankind. The book takes us on a terrific journey of 13 stories with characters that moves in and moves out throughout the tale.
One can sense a mix of love, lust, blood, bullet, hatred, revenge etc., that makes the reader engaging. Some stories are fast paced and some are bit dragging and yet a book filled with sorrow and death lurking in Kashmiri’s life.
“A living hell” what can be more described about the lives of these peoples. About the characters Inspector Masoodi a man of living danger, Major S a man of horror, Gulam a cobbler who craves for his son’s love faces insult from the Force 10, the army soldiers. Jamshid son of Gulam ought to be a scholar loves Rosy an upper caste girl who faces a miserable fate of death. And many more characters filled with emotions of remorse and revenge at each story level.
Even during the curfew times people still have faith, love and friendship are some of the best highlights in the book.
Now coming to certain aspect of the book, the cover looks beautiful and the title is intriguing. The language is good and crisp. A warning to readers, this book has a smell of death and sorrow; fragile heart’s please stay away.
My rating is 4 stars for this dark book.
The main concept of the book whirls around chain of stories that happens in the lives of Kashmir’s mankind. The book takes us on a terrific journey of 13 stories with characters that moves in and moves out throughout the tale.
One can sense a mix of love, lust, blood, bullet, hatred, revenge etc., that makes the reader engaging. Some stories are fast paced and some are bit dragging and yet a book filled with sorrow and death lurking in Kashmiri’s life.
“A living hell” what can be more described about the lives of these peoples. About the characters Inspector Masoodi a man of living danger, Major S a man of horror, Gulam a cobbler who craves for his son’s love faces insult from the Force 10, the army soldiers. Jamshid son of Gulam ought to be a scholar loves Rosy an upper caste girl who faces a miserable fate of death. And many more characters filled with emotions of remorse and revenge at each story level.
Even during the curfew times people still have faith, love and friendship are some of the best highlights in the book.
Now coming to certain aspect of the book, the cover looks beautiful and the title is intriguing. The language is good and crisp. A warning to readers, this book has a smell of death and sorrow; fragile heart’s please stay away.
My rating is 4 stars for this dark book.
September 2, 2020
TNOBG is a novel-in-stories set in Kashmir. (The novel-in-stories, as I have recently discovered, is the form of writing where a novel consists of series of interconnected short stories.) This particular one, is a tapestry of 13 different stories that share characters, plot and setting. We make our way through the book, meeting characters at important junctures in their life, walking by their side for a while before leaving them stranded in the middle of nowhere, and being pulled into yet another character's experiences.
A father who doesn't want his son to see bullet shells on the road of his hometown. A ghost haunting the basement of his murderer. A thirst for revenge on a man who tortured you and is now dying of cancer. Fathers arranging for the funeral of the other's son when the time comes. Yet another father who just cannot find his son's bullet-ridden body and suffices by holding on to his blood soaked clothes. A woman violated because her lover is a rebel sought by the officials. TNOBG additionally draws attention to poverty, caste and gender violence in Kashmir.
There's a lot that I am carrying on from this book. Some things new, others a fierce reminder. I will be coming back to this book, both for its stylistic storytelling and the nuanced experience of the Kashmiri experience.
A father who doesn't want his son to see bullet shells on the road of his hometown. A ghost haunting the basement of his murderer. A thirst for revenge on a man who tortured you and is now dying of cancer. Fathers arranging for the funeral of the other's son when the time comes. Yet another father who just cannot find his son's bullet-ridden body and suffices by holding on to his blood soaked clothes. A woman violated because her lover is a rebel sought by the officials. TNOBG additionally draws attention to poverty, caste and gender violence in Kashmir.
There's a lot that I am carrying on from this book. Some things new, others a fierce reminder. I will be coming back to this book, both for its stylistic storytelling and the nuanced experience of the Kashmiri experience.
February 18, 2022
After Agha Shahid Ali and Mirza Waheed, Feroz Rather is among the few writers who knows how to write fiction- mostly Kashmiri writers give us journalistic depictions. His stories qualify as a fictional short stories in an atmosphere where most writers do historical detailing in the name of fiction. In Kashmir every novel is not actually written in a novel form or in a short story form but are crass lamentations and accusations. Feroz Rather is a writer by training and that sets a good path for others to know the craft of a form called fiction. Stories like A Rebel's Return and others follow some of the characteristics of magic realism where fingers without a flesh walk and a human shadow emerge from a burrow. Rather poignantly creates images and symbols which are suffused with the history, culture and landscape of Kashmir- he doesn't fall into the trap of making images smelling of foreignness and imitation.
December 5, 2018
It was a little difficult to keep track of all the characters mentioned. Apart from that, the book has stories of different families suffering similar fates. Kashmir, where people live in terror and many are forced to anger. Although the stories in the book are fictional, it may very well be non-fiction. A generation now that has never known peace, children and young men tortured and killed for no reason. It's a difficult book to read because you know this and worse is still happening with very little hope of it ending soon.
January 29, 2023
Lives in Kashmir fading in and out of reality. Lives need the narration for them to exist. The ghosts speak to those that killed the body. Women do the running around in emergencies since the boys will surely be killed or are already on the killing inclines of the Himalayas. Bridges and cabins are all death markers. And yet these seem to be normal people, young boys and girls loving and falling out of love, couples fighting sickness, despots on sick beds. This is a collection of short stories, but might very well be chapters retrieved from a torn novel. Well written and hard hitting.
August 3, 2018
In the beginning, you wonder where all these different characters are doing, some chapters end abruptly. But one keeps going because of the beautiful language, the poetic description of the dark and desolate background, and the abject misery of the locals amongst the military. And then it unravels and joins the characters. The reader watches through the screen, sighs and finishes with an ache. Glad I read this book.
December 30, 2018
A well-written book that aptly encapsulates the struggles faced by Kashmir and its people. The first book by this author, it’s a series of interconnected stories with characters slipping in and out of the limelight, every now and then. Fluid language combined with emotion reflected the writer’s passion. Worth a read. Look forward to more from this author.
September 12, 2018
In 'The night of broken glass", horror, torture nd death which Kashmir people went through , beautifuly narrated by author with literary imagination.weaving a violence , Brutality, ferocity in fiction is commendable.
September 29, 2018
What an excellent debut, moving, poignant, brutal and never ever sentimental. This collection bis a must read on Kashmir up there with Shahid Ali, Basharat Peer, Frenny Manecksha, Malik Sajad, Huzaifa Pandit, et al.
January 6, 2026
Beautifully written. Seldom do we see English language fiction on Kashmir this grounded. If you are living in Kashmir, everything will look so familiar yet shaking. Feroz Rather has put his heart out in these so connected yet so disperse short stories. Loved it.
December 29, 2018
Awesome work by Feroz Rather. The stories in this book are very intense. Though they are fictious but they present the real situation and trauma of kashmir
September 7, 2019
Good writing but torture is gruesome.
Story goes round about characters get lost.
Left it mid way. Not my type but good to go in different genres of writing
Story goes round about characters get lost.
Left it mid way. Not my type but good to go in different genres of writing
September 13, 2019
In light of the events my book club decided to read something on Kashmir. Unfortunately this was not the best pick, the stories don't hold your attention and I gave up after 40%
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