Resilience.
That has been a word I have been coming back to in 2019 for many reasons. Once in a while a book I am reading resonates perfectly with how I am feeling and the events that are happening around me. Reading The Bridge of Little Jeremy was one of those experience that thematically aligned with my lived-experiences at the time of reading. Author Indrajit Garai’s new novel is centered on deep resilience, care and commitment to family, and the love and passion for art. And instead of leaving my final thoughts to the end, I want to be transparent at the beginning of my review: I very much enjoyed this novel and would highly recommend it to other readers.
I was first familiarized with Indrajit’s writing when I read and reviewed his short story collection, The Sacrifice – a highly thematic collection of well-written, engaging stories. The following year, he followed up his first short story collection with a second titled, The Eye Opener. When I learned Indrajit was releasing a novel, I was excited to experience his story telling in a longer format. Throughout reading Indrajit’s writing, one aspect is always consistent. As a reader, I am engrossed with his ability to unfold a story, develop his main characters over the period of the story, and infuse candid, honest human emotions and experiences into his characters.
The Bridge of Jeremy follows a young man, Jeremy, as he faces many challenges in his life – contending with his heart condition, supporting his family as they are pressured to pay an undue amount of inheritance tax, and dealing with a neighbor who at best can be described as misogynistic but more likely a perpetrator of violence against women. Jeremy is extremely optimistic in his experience and has an mazing, supportive best friend Leon, an intelligent, loving, and protective dog. Who is always by Jeremy’s side This novel is his journey of trying to save his family by restoring and selling a painting while pursuing his love of art and learning about his family history.
I think the story is meaningful for readers to discover themselves and do not want to write about how the story progresses. I will say that Ingrajit Garai touches on many different topics on interest that impact our modern world through this novel. This includes the role of social media in social movements, the morals and ethics of tax, particularly inheritance tax, discovering unflattering family histories, health care access, single parent households, and more! The amount of topics he chooses to put in his stories, the way he is able to weave them together, and the commentary on each through Jeremy’s journey is a testament to Ingrajit’s ability to write and tell stories.
Indrajit Garai is an independent author who writes stories that I have always enjoyed. His writing style disrupts the mainstream way of telling stories and I think worthwhile for readers to check out. While his style and stories might not be for everyone, his voice as a storyteller, along with other independent authors, is vital to the landscape of literature. Please take a bit of time to find out more about his book on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Bridge-Little-Jeremy-Indrajit-GARAI-ebook/dp/B07PT936PZ
Final Rating: 4.5/5
Discussion
No comments yet.