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People Want to Live
Set primarily in Pakistan, these award-winning stories follow people living on the brink of abandonment - in their personal relationships and their place in the world. A mother, coping with the sudden death of her son, uncovers long buried secrets in his absence. An anguished girl grabs a chance for a life beyond the orphanage walls where she lives and discovers the price of freedom. A young couple tries to keep their fraught relationship steady as a heat wave engulfs their city. A son returns to visit his ageing parents while beset with memories of a troubled childhood. And two thieves find themselves in a situation more precarious by the minute, and more dangerous than their original mission. Farah Ali's debut collection of thirteen stories, People Want to Live features stories of togetherness and reckless faith in the face of a world that's built to break us. Her characters mount battle with loneliness and in their fight reveal surprising vulnerabilities and an astonishing measure of hope.
222 pages, Hardcover
Published October 26, 2021
15 people are currently reading
619 people want to read
About the author
Farah Ali
2 books5 followersFarah Ali grew up in Karachi, Pakistan, and currently lives in London. Her work has been anthologized in the 2020 Pushcart Prize and received special mention in the 2018 Pushcart anthology. Her debut story collection PEOPLE WANT TO LIVE published with McSweeney's Books, and includes new stories and some previously published in VQR, Shenandoah, The Arkansas International, MQR, The Southern Review, Kenyon Review, Copper Nickel, and others.
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
August 13, 2022
Enjoyable stories set in contemporary Pakistan. Psychological stress, man-woman relationships and children out of country play important roles
An accomplished debut bundle of short stories that subvert expectations one could have surrounding Pakistan.
Heroes - 4 stars
Mourning a dead son, through the perspective of a mom. Questions on drugs and memory for a dead person being embellished. Complex and interesting, with a keen eye for both the complexity of humans and mourning.
Bullet proof bus - 3 stars
Corruption and relationships are vital to get a special bus driver job, bullet proof for tourists.
Relationships can go two ways is clear in this story.
Tourism: a hidden gem - 2.5 stars
A travel guide starts to get more personal after some facts on mountains are given. Bit short to have a real impact
Beautiful - 4 stars
An orphanage is the setting of this story. A girl helps a rat catcher, and thinks of her bad marriage prospects.
Foreigners - 3 stars
American consulate proceedings
Presumptive, passive aggressive friendliness from an overbearing officer who recites all kind of stereotypical assumptions on Pakistan.
Loved Ones - 4 stars
Expectations of motherhood and mental health clash in this story. Reminds me of The Hours 50s timeline
Believers - 4 stars
Destiny in a car crash
Informal economy plays an important role again
Ethics versus the economic advancement
The effect of heat on poor people - 3.5 stars
A bad marriage breakdowns even more due to the sweltering heat in the slums
Appreciate what is lost
Together - 4.5 stars
Moms coming together and dealing with live, the shock of growing up and the loss of certainty that everything can be fixed
Present tense - 4 stars
The tug of war between parents makes a boy only reluctantly return to Karachi
Transactions - 3 stars
Food, relationships and emigration play an important role in this story about a chemistry teacher pressed for cash.
An act of charity - 3.5 stars
Ideals clashing with reality, burnout/anxiety being described in a non-Western context is very interesting.
The leavers - 2.5 stars
Caretaker in a psychiatric hospital has it hard to deal with the relationships his patients have.
Bit vague.
What’s fair? - 2.5 stars
Dickensian thiefs are the main characters of this story. Maybe the story that is most like what you expect from Pakistan in a sense.
An accomplished debut bundle of short stories that subvert expectations one could have surrounding Pakistan.
Heroes - 4 stars
Mourning a dead son, through the perspective of a mom. Questions on drugs and memory for a dead person being embellished. Complex and interesting, with a keen eye for both the complexity of humans and mourning.
Bullet proof bus - 3 stars
Corruption and relationships are vital to get a special bus driver job, bullet proof for tourists.
Relationships can go two ways is clear in this story.
Tourism: a hidden gem - 2.5 stars
A travel guide starts to get more personal after some facts on mountains are given. Bit short to have a real impact
Beautiful - 4 stars
An orphanage is the setting of this story. A girl helps a rat catcher, and thinks of her bad marriage prospects.
Foreigners - 3 stars
American consulate proceedings
Presumptive, passive aggressive friendliness from an overbearing officer who recites all kind of stereotypical assumptions on Pakistan.
Loved Ones - 4 stars
Expectations of motherhood and mental health clash in this story. Reminds me of The Hours 50s timeline
Believers - 4 stars
Destiny in a car crash
Informal economy plays an important role again
Ethics versus the economic advancement
The effect of heat on poor people - 3.5 stars
A bad marriage breakdowns even more due to the sweltering heat in the slums
Appreciate what is lost
Together - 4.5 stars
Moms coming together and dealing with live, the shock of growing up and the loss of certainty that everything can be fixed
Present tense - 4 stars
The tug of war between parents makes a boy only reluctantly return to Karachi
Transactions - 3 stars
Food, relationships and emigration play an important role in this story about a chemistry teacher pressed for cash.
An act of charity - 3.5 stars
Ideals clashing with reality, burnout/anxiety being described in a non-Western context is very interesting.
The leavers - 2.5 stars
Caretaker in a psychiatric hospital has it hard to deal with the relationships his patients have.
Bit vague.
What’s fair? - 2.5 stars
Dickensian thiefs are the main characters of this story. Maybe the story that is most like what you expect from Pakistan in a sense.
December 20, 2022
A kaleidoscope of the misery and small victories that make up everyday life. The title is extremely appropriate, we see firsthand the struggles of those who want to live, beyond just surviving. To have more, to worry less, and to break away from the mundane routine. The prose was intimate and compelling, you feel a connection to each of the stories. A lovely example of the short story genre.
December 26, 2021
3.5 stars
People Want to Live is a collection that's defined, I think, by its psychological acuity. Farah Ali writes about all manner of characters--bereaved, estranged, alienated, unsettled--in a sparse, measured way, her style deftly communicating a sense that every word in these stories has been carefully considered and chosen, is purposeful in what it is meant to convey and how it is meant to convey it.
It's always hard to find a common thread that runs through all the stories of a collection, but I think what ties together Ali's is her interest in the dissonance between and within characters: in "Heroes," a bereaved mother tries to reconcile the media's depictions of her dead son with the reality of what her son was like; in "Believers," a young man grapples with the push and pull between faith and self-sufficiency; in "An Act of Charity," a dissatisfied couple intervenes in the life of their friends' maid. In all of these stories there is a sense of disquietude, and though a few do skew more dramatic in terms of their plot, Ali depicts them all in her keen-eyed, carefully controlled way. They are not "quiet" stories so much as they are precise, honed because they have been sharpened to their most essential parts, lean because any excess has been trimmed out.
As for which stories were my favourites, I think the absolute standout of this collection is "Present Tense," a remarkably unsettling story about the often traumatic ways in which family impresses itself upon the past, and so also the present and the future. It's just the kind of short story that I love, the kind that tells you a lot without actually telling you a lot, the kind that is able to use its narrative surface to gesture at an immense depth. Another favourite was "Foreigners," a story where a couple is interviewed (read: interrogated) by a man at the American Consulate in Pakistan. And oof, this one is just cutthroat in its depiction of how otherness becomes instated in a context like that, and the almost tangible sense of power that those doing the othering wield in those situations. (Other favourites also include "Believers" and "An Act of Charity," which I've already mentioned.)
Though I loved a lot of this collection's stories, though, there were a few that didn't quite work for me: namely, "Tourism," "The Effect of Heat on Poor People," "Together," and "What's Fair?" (especially sad I didn't like that last one because it was the one that ended the collection, and I wanted the collection to end with a bang). These are the stories I just didn't "get"--not in the sense that they were challenging or confusing to understand, but rather that I just had no idea what they were narratively trying to do.
Overall, though, this was a really enjoyable and deftly written short story collection, with a lot of standouts, and with a psychological focus that I especially appreciated. If you love literary fiction and you love short stories, then you really can't go wrong with this collection.
Thank you so much to McSweeney's for sending me a review copy of this in exchange for an honest review!
"Sometimes a new underpass or a flyover or a shiny mall distracts me and that is good, but then I see a piece of wall I often passed when I was little and I am again pulled thinly, painfully, through that narrow corridor between the past and the future, between that which we can never change and that which gives us a chance to escape."
People Want to Live is a collection that's defined, I think, by its psychological acuity. Farah Ali writes about all manner of characters--bereaved, estranged, alienated, unsettled--in a sparse, measured way, her style deftly communicating a sense that every word in these stories has been carefully considered and chosen, is purposeful in what it is meant to convey and how it is meant to convey it.
It's always hard to find a common thread that runs through all the stories of a collection, but I think what ties together Ali's is her interest in the dissonance between and within characters: in "Heroes," a bereaved mother tries to reconcile the media's depictions of her dead son with the reality of what her son was like; in "Believers," a young man grapples with the push and pull between faith and self-sufficiency; in "An Act of Charity," a dissatisfied couple intervenes in the life of their friends' maid. In all of these stories there is a sense of disquietude, and though a few do skew more dramatic in terms of their plot, Ali depicts them all in her keen-eyed, carefully controlled way. They are not "quiet" stories so much as they are precise, honed because they have been sharpened to their most essential parts, lean because any excess has been trimmed out.
As for which stories were my favourites, I think the absolute standout of this collection is "Present Tense," a remarkably unsettling story about the often traumatic ways in which family impresses itself upon the past, and so also the present and the future. It's just the kind of short story that I love, the kind that tells you a lot without actually telling you a lot, the kind that is able to use its narrative surface to gesture at an immense depth. Another favourite was "Foreigners," a story where a couple is interviewed (read: interrogated) by a man at the American Consulate in Pakistan. And oof, this one is just cutthroat in its depiction of how otherness becomes instated in a context like that, and the almost tangible sense of power that those doing the othering wield in those situations. (Other favourites also include "Believers" and "An Act of Charity," which I've already mentioned.)
Though I loved a lot of this collection's stories, though, there were a few that didn't quite work for me: namely, "Tourism," "The Effect of Heat on Poor People," "Together," and "What's Fair?" (especially sad I didn't like that last one because it was the one that ended the collection, and I wanted the collection to end with a bang). These are the stories I just didn't "get"--not in the sense that they were challenging or confusing to understand, but rather that I just had no idea what they were narratively trying to do.
Overall, though, this was a really enjoyable and deftly written short story collection, with a lot of standouts, and with a psychological focus that I especially appreciated. If you love literary fiction and you love short stories, then you really can't go wrong with this collection.
Thank you so much to McSweeney's for sending me a review copy of this in exchange for an honest review!
September 21, 2024
3.75 ⭐️ enjoyed it. the writing style was very fresh and experimental. however , some of the stories were a little confusing and boring. but all in all, it was a good collection. definitely a lot better than most that i have read.
February 25, 2022
This collection of short stories was excellent. Farah Ali’s writing is beyond words, well maybe spectacular, remarkable, just simply put, wonderful. I picked this book up at my local Indie bookstore when I was there, to look for and buy other books, but saw this one on a shelf, and decided to buy it as well. I tell this story to say how important local bookstores are to their reading communities, or people like me, voracious readers. Back to Farah Ali’s writing. The title of the collection is People Want To Live and in each story the characters in different ways try to understand the meaning of life. All the stories take place in Karachi. Many of the characters struggle to make sense of their particular situation, whether it’s a mother grieving over her recently murdered teenage son, to a young husband trying to find a job driving the Bulletproof Bus. All the stories are sad and quite depressing, BUT the beauty of these stories is the way Ms.Ali navigates their situations, jobs, families. each story reads like a novella, so much is packed into so few pages, it’s quite breathtaking to read. The writing is so incredible, I read it slowly to savor every word.
Here is one example of her writing, “You must get up early to see how the rising sun spreads butter on the snowcapped peaks,” from the story Tourism.
I highly recommend this collection to ALL readers of fiction, even if you’re not a huge fan of short stories, these stories sing.
Here is one example of her writing, “You must get up early to see how the rising sun spreads butter on the snowcapped peaks,” from the story Tourism.
I highly recommend this collection to ALL readers of fiction, even if you’re not a huge fan of short stories, these stories sing.
August 1, 2022
Well, this is definitely about people wanting to live. I loved the blend of desolation and bliss that made up each of the stories, and how the underlying theme was just simply people wanting to both stay alive and truly live. My only qualm is that the chapters were confusing and choppy at times
“𝐛𝐮𝐲 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞.”
“𝐈𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐈 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝, 𝐢𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐡𝐢𝐭 𝐛𝐲 𝐚 𝐛𝐮𝐬.”
“𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐰𝐚𝐥𝐤𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐛𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐞𝐲𝐞𝐬”
“𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐓𝐎 𝐃𝐎 𝐎𝐍 𝐃𝐀𝐘𝐒 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐂𝐀𝐍𝐍𝐎𝐓 𝐆𝐄𝐓 𝐎𝐔𝐓 𝐎𝐅 𝐁𝐄𝐃: 𝐓𝐮𝐫𝐧 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐓𝐕 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡 𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐦𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐬. 𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐚 𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐥 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐮𝐚𝐠𝐞. 𝐈𝐟, 𝐛𝐲 𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐚𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐨𝐨𝐧, 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐰 𝐨𝐟𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐛𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐤𝐞𝐭, 𝐬𝐡𝐮𝐟𝐟𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐨𝐰 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐮𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬. 𝐖𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡 𝐧𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐨𝐰𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐯𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐮𝐩𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬. 𝐖𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡 𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧 𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐟𝐚𝐫 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐰. 𝐖𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲. 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐝𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐨𝐟? 𝐋𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭-𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐧𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐝𝐫𝐚𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐫𝐮𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞𝐝. 𝐓𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐢𝐭, 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐛𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐲. 𝐖𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐩, 𝐢𝐟 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐦𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐬, 𝐢𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐥 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐫 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞. 𝐀𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐞𝐲𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐝𝐬 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐲, 𝐰𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐥𝐚𝐤𝐞, 𝐢𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐤𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐡 𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠.”
“𝐖𝐞 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐬𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐬𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐭𝐨 𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐭. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲, 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐦𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐰𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫. 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝐚𝐟𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐦𝐚𝐲 𝐬𝐚𝐲. 𝐒𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐤 𝐢𝐧 𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐩𝐮𝐬𝐡 𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧- 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐞- 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐟𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐞𝐬: 𝐖𝐡𝐨 𝐝𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐫𝐞? 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐖𝐡𝐨 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐧𝐨𝐰?”
“𝐃𝐨 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐞; 𝐝𝐨 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤.”
“𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐳𝐳𝐥𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐲 𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐮𝐦𝐩𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐬𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐛𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐧𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭. 𝐈𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐨𝐨 𝐛𝐚𝐝 𝐧𝐨 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐫𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐦𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭.”
“𝐈𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐰𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐟𝐮𝐥𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬. 𝐖𝐞 𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐬 𝐠𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐟𝐟 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞, 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐨 𝐟𝐢𝐱 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐱𝐢𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐧. 𝐈𝐟 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲, 𝐰𝐞 𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤. 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐰, 𝐬𝐨 𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐠𝐧𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐝 𝐮𝐬.”
“𝐈 𝐚𝐦 𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞, 𝐈 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐞.”
“𝐈𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐜𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐝𝐮𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐚 𝐟𝐞𝐰 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐠𝐨, 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐦𝐬 𝐟𝐮𝐥𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐭, 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐩𝐢𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐟𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞, 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐜𝐪𝐮𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬, 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐞'𝐬 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐭 𝐮𝐩 𝐛𝐲 𝐬𝐨𝐟𝐭 𝐲𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰 𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐡𝐢𝐝 𝐟𝐞𝐥𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐦 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐲, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐚 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐞. 𝐇𝐞 𝐟𝐞𝐥𝐭 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐦𝐛𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬.”
“𝐑𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐦𝐬 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐨𝐝𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞.”
“𝐛𝐮𝐲 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞.”
“𝐈𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐈 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝, 𝐢𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐡𝐢𝐭 𝐛𝐲 𝐚 𝐛𝐮𝐬.”
“𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐰𝐚𝐥𝐤𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐛𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐞𝐲𝐞𝐬”
“𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐓𝐎 𝐃𝐎 𝐎𝐍 𝐃𝐀𝐘𝐒 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐂𝐀𝐍𝐍𝐎𝐓 𝐆𝐄𝐓 𝐎𝐔𝐓 𝐎𝐅 𝐁𝐄𝐃: 𝐓𝐮𝐫𝐧 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐓𝐕 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡 𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐦𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐬. 𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐚 𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐥 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐮𝐚𝐠𝐞. 𝐈𝐟, 𝐛𝐲 𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐚𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐨𝐨𝐧, 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐰 𝐨𝐟𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐛𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐤𝐞𝐭, 𝐬𝐡𝐮𝐟𝐟𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐨𝐰 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐮𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬. 𝐖𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡 𝐧𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐨𝐰𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐯𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐮𝐩𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬. 𝐖𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡 𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧 𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐟𝐚𝐫 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐰. 𝐖𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲. 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐝𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐨𝐟? 𝐋𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭-𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐧𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐝𝐫𝐚𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐫𝐮𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞𝐝. 𝐓𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐢𝐭, 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐛𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐲. 𝐖𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐩, 𝐢𝐟 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐦𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐬, 𝐢𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐥 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐫 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞. 𝐀𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐞𝐲𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐝𝐬 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐲, 𝐰𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐥𝐚𝐤𝐞, 𝐢𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐤𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐡 𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠.”
“𝐖𝐞 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐬𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐬𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐭𝐨 𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐭. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲, 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐦𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐰𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫. 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝐚𝐟𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐦𝐚𝐲 𝐬𝐚𝐲. 𝐒𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐤 𝐢𝐧 𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐩𝐮𝐬𝐡 𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧- 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐞- 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐟𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐞𝐬: 𝐖𝐡𝐨 𝐝𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐫𝐞? 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐖𝐡𝐨 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐧𝐨𝐰?”
“𝐃𝐨 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐞; 𝐝𝐨 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤.”
“𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐳𝐳𝐥𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐲 𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐮𝐦𝐩𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐬𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐛𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐧𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭. 𝐈𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐨𝐨 𝐛𝐚𝐝 𝐧𝐨 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐫𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐦𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭.”
“𝐈𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐰𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐟𝐮𝐥𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬. 𝐖𝐞 𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐬 𝐠𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐟𝐟 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞, 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐨 𝐟𝐢𝐱 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐱𝐢𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐧. 𝐈𝐟 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲, 𝐰𝐞 𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤. 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐰, 𝐬𝐨 𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐠𝐧𝐢𝐳𝐞𝐝 𝐮𝐬.”
“𝐈 𝐚𝐦 𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞, 𝐈 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐞.”
“𝐈𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐜𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐝𝐮𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐚 𝐟𝐞𝐰 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐠𝐨, 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐦𝐬 𝐟𝐮𝐥𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐭, 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐩𝐢𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐟𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞, 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐜𝐪𝐮𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬, 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐞'𝐬 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐭 𝐮𝐩 𝐛𝐲 𝐬𝐨𝐟𝐭 𝐲𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰 𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐡𝐢𝐝 𝐟𝐞𝐥𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐦 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐲, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐚 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐞. 𝐇𝐞 𝐟𝐞𝐥𝐭 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐦𝐛𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬.”
“𝐑𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐦𝐬 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐨𝐝𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞.”
August 16, 2022
3.5 stars RTC
January 8, 2022
My qualm with short story collections is typically that they tend to be very slow and you have to wade through story after average story to find just the one or two pearls that exist within the whole. This book was not that. Each story was excellent, the characters felt fully real, and I didn’t find issue with really anything. Among the standouts for me were Tourism, Foreigners, Bulletproof Bus, and The Effect of Heat on Poor People.
I wholeheartedly recommend this book!
I wholeheartedly recommend this book!
December 31, 2021
Visceral depiction of characters, they are hard to forget. I've visited Karachi myself several times and this collection seemed to evoke both familiar settings as well as inviting me to see the city with new eyes.
November 9, 2023
the stories in this collection are eloquently written and depict pakistani culture and day to day being so well. there are perspectives from varying genders, ages and relations but at the core of each story, i felt connected, regardless of whether i related or not. the writing was so captivating, and the descriptions of cultural nuances were not so 'in your face' and cringey, they were just mentioned casually and added layers to the stories. genuinely a really great collection and i'm looking forward to reading more from this author!
Read
August 5, 2022I was pleasantly surprised by this collection of stories set in Pakistan. For example, one story had an unexpected happy ending and I thought, "Whoa. A literary short story with a happy ending? What is this?!" Overall enjoyable reading experience.
November 25, 2023
Excellent storytelling- horrible narration.
Horrible narration because of horrible pronunciation of Urdu words and the names of people and places in Pakistan.
Horrible narration because of horrible pronunciation of Urdu words and the names of people and places in Pakistan.
September 6, 2022
3.5 stars rounded up
In this collection of short stories, Farah Ali captures the intensity and experiences of a multitude of people in her native Pakistan. This work tackles multiple subjects including: mental illness, drug abuse, grief process and class division. While, the stories differ in subject matter, the common theme amongst these 14stories is survival. The people are often on the brink of calamity, whether emotionally or financially, yet despite their struggles they are still attempting to live. These reviews are going to be chronologically assigned.
Heroes: 4 stars
The opener, of this collection, details the struggle of the grief process. Salma is coming to terms with the death of her son, Jamaal, who in death has risen to a status that he did not accomplish in life. Instead of a C level student with many warts, including a temper and drugs stashed in his bed, Jamaal is accorded a role as a leader and gentle soul. This story shows not on the grieving of a lost love one’s life but also the inevitable lies that spring up in the grieving process.
Bulletproof Bus: 3 stars
This is a story of a man who is struggling to find employment and sees an opportunity of his lifetime as a humble bus driver. He is forced to pay favors and to make a series of phone calls just to get in touch with the right people. In a nepotistic move, he falters and is left in the same predicament of unemployment with time and money wasted in the process.
Tourism: 2.5 stars
This story takes the form of a travel brochure, with saccharine descriptions of various tourist sites juxtaposed with the reality of the people living there. Though I tend to enjoy satire, this felt heavy handed and did not leave much of an impression, other than indifference.
Beautiful: 4 stars
This story takes place at an orphanage and is based on the realization of a charge, Khajista, that her options are limited in finding a peaceful life. At 19, she is at a stage where she will be conscribed to a life as a helper in the orphanage or to an equally harsh life as the wife of a menial worker. She decides to make the best of a bad situation and tries to woe, Babar, a rat catcher. In one of the more hopeful tales, she has a fairly happy conclusion.
Foreigners: 3 stars
The action of this story takes place during a customs meeting/interrogation. A customs officer is asking a couple various questions and is in the process, describing his own issues. There is a dichotomy of perspectives as it is not quite clear if the agent and couple are entering the US from Pakistan or if they going to Pakistan from the US. Either way, humor is spliced in as the rat-a-tat of the awkward conversation continues apace, as the agent asks more and more intrusive questions.
Loved Ones: 4 stars
This story dealt with mental illness. Zara is coming back to her home after spending time in a mental institution and her husband Hassan is treating her with kid gloves. He is attentive and quite understanding, if perhaps a little condescending. They have two children and a new live-in maid. Zara is also overcompensating for the guilt she feels about her illness. She and a friend organize a clothing drive for victims of an earthquake and instead of feeling pride or gratitude for all of her blessings she feels sadness. I thought this story did a commendable job in dealing with mental illness
Believers: 4 stars
Gul, a young man who does not have a father figure, is recruited by a mysterious man named Hasan to drive a truck with contraband. Gul, considers Hasan to be a man of generosity and honor. After, crushing a smaller vehicle, Gul has a crisis of conscience, in regards to the dying man in the vehicle. Hasan intervenes and tells Gul he will take care of the situation and to continue with his delivery. Gul decides to come back to the scene and an incident that shakes his belief occurs.
The Effect of Heat on Poor People: 2 stars
Kamil and Saba are a newly married couple with little in common. They communicate in a passive aggressive manner throughout but find some sort of rapprochement after a violent incident. Though they may have never found true love, they start to build a bond but it is taken away by the end of the story.
Together: 3 stars
This is about a group of female friends who have grown up together and are now in their 50s. Sara, though not the narrator acts as the hub of activity. She is the wealthiest and has the best home. Her son is a troubled young man who has been institutionalized. Her friends try to support with empty words and phrases. Instead of support, they are primarily relieved that their family situations are simpler.
Present Tense: 3.5 stars
This was the most mysterious of the stories. Two sons attempt to find their father after he splits from their mother. They search and search and he comes him one night and resumes living in their home. Not surprising, there is a gulf between the sons and the father. Strangely, the couple is still going strong despite the disappearance and they seem to be more content than ever. It is fascinating what exile can do in regards to perspective.
Transactions: 4 stars
This story stars a chemistry teacher/tutor named Ruth who is stuck between caring for her ailing husband Patrick and making ends meet. She has to deal with indifferent students and parents who are neglectful with their payments. While, she can describe the chemical properties of various tinctures she gives her husband, the treatment ends up being worse than the initial problem. In a scheme to get money from one of her delinquent parents, she gives them a red clock. Her scheme fails and now she is out of a clock for her worries. She is a busybody who seems to make things worse than better.
An Act of Charity: 3.5 stars
A married couple, decide to do the morally correct thing and “liberate” a maid from the home of one of their friends. Shahid is going through a bit of crisis at work and he begins the story in a sewer to feel a bit of humanity due to his unfulfilling work. His wife, Mira is a social worker who is very conscious of those in the pain of poverty, maybe too much. Though dealing with the same dark themes as the previous stories, this one is probably the zaniest in its woebegone style. They have an odd savior complex which does not seem financially sustainable.
The Leavers: 3 stars
A nurse has formed a strong attachment to a 38 year old patient named Raza. Raza is in this convalescent home and has had no previous visitors for the last 8 months. His sister, who brought him in, is scheduled to visit him. The nurse is reluctant to get Raza’s hopes up. The sister shows up and begins reconnecting with him through small gestures. Eventually, she decides to take him back home. The nurse is left with bitter resentment that the person he has spent nearly a year of his life with is going to be gone. He has been more like a family than his own flesh and blood and he is getting taken away.
What’s Fair: 4.5 stars
The final story is also the longest, at 24 pages and my favorite. I hope that Ms. Ali decides to write either a novel or longer stories. She has a knack for creating interesting characters and her previous stories did not flesh them out like this one. Two characters work for a crime syndicate led by a man of mystery, Munnoo. They take part in petty theft, such as wallet nabbing and stickups with toy guns. They are hoping for a big score. They finally convince Munnoo to give an opportunity to further their vocation and he sets them up with a home invasion. Using, an older female, Samar Aunty as a lookout/gateway, a freakish event happens. Munnoo is nowhere to be found and they take over as head of the syndicate. They diversify their market and after much consternation bring on a 26 year old female associate. They find some success and the story ends on a cliffhanger without a clear resolution.
Farah Ali’s collection of short stories oftentimes draw their inspiration from the dusty corners of society. She has created an eclectic mixture that focuses on topics and people that are on the margins. While some stories worked better than others, I am excited to see how her career progresses.
In this collection of short stories, Farah Ali captures the intensity and experiences of a multitude of people in her native Pakistan. This work tackles multiple subjects including: mental illness, drug abuse, grief process and class division. While, the stories differ in subject matter, the common theme amongst these 14stories is survival. The people are often on the brink of calamity, whether emotionally or financially, yet despite their struggles they are still attempting to live. These reviews are going to be chronologically assigned.
Heroes: 4 stars
The opener, of this collection, details the struggle of the grief process. Salma is coming to terms with the death of her son, Jamaal, who in death has risen to a status that he did not accomplish in life. Instead of a C level student with many warts, including a temper and drugs stashed in his bed, Jamaal is accorded a role as a leader and gentle soul. This story shows not on the grieving of a lost love one’s life but also the inevitable lies that spring up in the grieving process.
Bulletproof Bus: 3 stars
This is a story of a man who is struggling to find employment and sees an opportunity of his lifetime as a humble bus driver. He is forced to pay favors and to make a series of phone calls just to get in touch with the right people. In a nepotistic move, he falters and is left in the same predicament of unemployment with time and money wasted in the process.
Tourism: 2.5 stars
This story takes the form of a travel brochure, with saccharine descriptions of various tourist sites juxtaposed with the reality of the people living there. Though I tend to enjoy satire, this felt heavy handed and did not leave much of an impression, other than indifference.
Beautiful: 4 stars
This story takes place at an orphanage and is based on the realization of a charge, Khajista, that her options are limited in finding a peaceful life. At 19, she is at a stage where she will be conscribed to a life as a helper in the orphanage or to an equally harsh life as the wife of a menial worker. She decides to make the best of a bad situation and tries to woe, Babar, a rat catcher. In one of the more hopeful tales, she has a fairly happy conclusion.
Foreigners: 3 stars
The action of this story takes place during a customs meeting/interrogation. A customs officer is asking a couple various questions and is in the process, describing his own issues. There is a dichotomy of perspectives as it is not quite clear if the agent and couple are entering the US from Pakistan or if they going to Pakistan from the US. Either way, humor is spliced in as the rat-a-tat of the awkward conversation continues apace, as the agent asks more and more intrusive questions.
Loved Ones: 4 stars
This story dealt with mental illness. Zara is coming back to her home after spending time in a mental institution and her husband Hassan is treating her with kid gloves. He is attentive and quite understanding, if perhaps a little condescending. They have two children and a new live-in maid. Zara is also overcompensating for the guilt she feels about her illness. She and a friend organize a clothing drive for victims of an earthquake and instead of feeling pride or gratitude for all of her blessings she feels sadness. I thought this story did a commendable job in dealing with mental illness
Believers: 4 stars
Gul, a young man who does not have a father figure, is recruited by a mysterious man named Hasan to drive a truck with contraband. Gul, considers Hasan to be a man of generosity and honor. After, crushing a smaller vehicle, Gul has a crisis of conscience, in regards to the dying man in the vehicle. Hasan intervenes and tells Gul he will take care of the situation and to continue with his delivery. Gul decides to come back to the scene and an incident that shakes his belief occurs.
The Effect of Heat on Poor People: 2 stars
Kamil and Saba are a newly married couple with little in common. They communicate in a passive aggressive manner throughout but find some sort of rapprochement after a violent incident. Though they may have never found true love, they start to build a bond but it is taken away by the end of the story.
Together: 3 stars
This is about a group of female friends who have grown up together and are now in their 50s. Sara, though not the narrator acts as the hub of activity. She is the wealthiest and has the best home. Her son is a troubled young man who has been institutionalized. Her friends try to support with empty words and phrases. Instead of support, they are primarily relieved that their family situations are simpler.
Present Tense: 3.5 stars
This was the most mysterious of the stories. Two sons attempt to find their father after he splits from their mother. They search and search and he comes him one night and resumes living in their home. Not surprising, there is a gulf between the sons and the father. Strangely, the couple is still going strong despite the disappearance and they seem to be more content than ever. It is fascinating what exile can do in regards to perspective.
Transactions: 4 stars
This story stars a chemistry teacher/tutor named Ruth who is stuck between caring for her ailing husband Patrick and making ends meet. She has to deal with indifferent students and parents who are neglectful with their payments. While, she can describe the chemical properties of various tinctures she gives her husband, the treatment ends up being worse than the initial problem. In a scheme to get money from one of her delinquent parents, she gives them a red clock. Her scheme fails and now she is out of a clock for her worries. She is a busybody who seems to make things worse than better.
An Act of Charity: 3.5 stars
A married couple, decide to do the morally correct thing and “liberate” a maid from the home of one of their friends. Shahid is going through a bit of crisis at work and he begins the story in a sewer to feel a bit of humanity due to his unfulfilling work. His wife, Mira is a social worker who is very conscious of those in the pain of poverty, maybe too much. Though dealing with the same dark themes as the previous stories, this one is probably the zaniest in its woebegone style. They have an odd savior complex which does not seem financially sustainable.
The Leavers: 3 stars
A nurse has formed a strong attachment to a 38 year old patient named Raza. Raza is in this convalescent home and has had no previous visitors for the last 8 months. His sister, who brought him in, is scheduled to visit him. The nurse is reluctant to get Raza’s hopes up. The sister shows up and begins reconnecting with him through small gestures. Eventually, she decides to take him back home. The nurse is left with bitter resentment that the person he has spent nearly a year of his life with is going to be gone. He has been more like a family than his own flesh and blood and he is getting taken away.
What’s Fair: 4.5 stars
The final story is also the longest, at 24 pages and my favorite. I hope that Ms. Ali decides to write either a novel or longer stories. She has a knack for creating interesting characters and her previous stories did not flesh them out like this one. Two characters work for a crime syndicate led by a man of mystery, Munnoo. They take part in petty theft, such as wallet nabbing and stickups with toy guns. They are hoping for a big score. They finally convince Munnoo to give an opportunity to further their vocation and he sets them up with a home invasion. Using, an older female, Samar Aunty as a lookout/gateway, a freakish event happens. Munnoo is nowhere to be found and they take over as head of the syndicate. They diversify their market and after much consternation bring on a 26 year old female associate. They find some success and the story ends on a cliffhanger without a clear resolution.
Farah Ali’s collection of short stories oftentimes draw their inspiration from the dusty corners of society. She has created an eclectic mixture that focuses on topics and people that are on the margins. While some stories worked better than others, I am excited to see how her career progresses.
June 28, 2023
So, this keeps happening and i keep accidentally getting books that are a collection of short stories, though i am not mad about it. This book focused on the diverse lives and stories in Pakistan. Some were traumatic, some were lighthearted, some were very sad, some were scary, some where funny, but they were all very raw and real. I felt as if I had glimpses into all these peoples lives and learned a lot about communities i did not know much about.
May 25, 2022
Vivid pictures of people's daily turmoil, moral ambiguities, and gut-wrenching societal norms. Very well written. The characters live in front of you - they are real and you feel what they feel. Though the stories are set in Pakistan and I am from India, the characters and their struggles are familiar.
January 10, 2024
A dark and exciting anthology of short stories that put me into another world, in the minds of characters and egos who are just doing their best to survive. As an outsider, I got glimpses into the struggles of Pakistan, through the daily interactions of people doing their honest and dishonest jobs, through people accepting their place in society and those who dared to dream but fails to escape their circumstances. I love the very real characters with intense emotions: pain, ambition, loss, love - characters who don’t always get their way, because they get in their own way. Reading these stories, I get to question who I am with respect to the society that I live in, and whose dreams that are waiting for me to pursue. The author’s writing is haunting and real and beautiful and moving - I hope I could someday communicate emotions so strongly with sparingly few words. Some of my favourite stories are: Bulletproof Bus, The Effect of Heat on Poor People, Together, An Act of Charity. The most powerful stories like these are the ones that made me rethink who I want to become.
January 30, 2025
Very solid anthology of short stories with a strong narrative voice amongst each one. It does feel a little bit repetitive after a while but some of the short stories, especially in the first half, really moved me, like Believers. Overall quite good.
March 21, 2022
Loved the messages/meanings, the real emotions and connections, and the variety among the short stories. The writing really flowed, and I was drawn in to each character.
January 3, 2023
compelling storytelling, but no memorable moments
April 28, 2023
I wrote about People Want to Live and the way a seemingly simple description comes to life through the layering of contradiction.
https://bit.ly/PeopleLiveAlive
https://bit.ly/PeopleLiveAlive
December 17, 2023
Ehhh, didn't love or hate this. I appreciated the glimpses into everyday life in Pakistan though.
Read
July 10, 2024Got to second story, not for me
July 31, 2025
i really enjoyed half the stories then the others weren’t my favorite, but what a wonderfully unique book! i appreciate how each individual story brought out her different writing styles 💃🏼
November 9, 2023
Heroes 3.5/5
Bulletproof Bus 3/5
Tourism 4/5
Beautiful 3.5/5
Foreigners 4/5
Loved Ones 3.5/5
Believers 4/5
The Effect of Heat on Poor People 4/5
Together 2/5
Present Tense 3/5
Transactions 3.5/5
An Act of Charity 3/5
The Leavers 3/5
What’s Fair? 3.5/5
Average 3.39 rounded
Bulletproof Bus 3/5
Tourism 4/5
Beautiful 3.5/5
Foreigners 4/5
Loved Ones 3.5/5
Believers 4/5
The Effect of Heat on Poor People 4/5
Together 2/5
Present Tense 3/5
Transactions 3.5/5
An Act of Charity 3/5
The Leavers 3/5
What’s Fair? 3.5/5
Average 3.39 rounded
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews