Book Review: ‘Echoes From The Vortex” by Monika Pant

This is one book that I enjoyed reading, especially her soul-stirring poems and snippets of the flashback stories told in italics.

There is deep insight and philosophy discussed as the author writes her memoirs during the days she spent fighting the life threatening disease of Ovarian cancer. She writes:

 “My suffering has given me an opportunity to rise above it and make me value life as never before, of making it into a triumph. It’s a chance rarely given to humans.” 

She further adds: “Tears are necessary to become strong. It washes the heart of the pain and makes one accept it better. It makes space for hope and strength. It is not a sign of weakness but one of coming in terms with one’s lot.”

She is particularly offended by people who come and mouth concern and talk about her suffering as though it were fireside tale. She feels the least one can do is to 'keep quiet' and give respect to the suffering individual instead of making light of their situation.

In between her narration there are poems. I enjoyed reading all her poems that are written with great sensitivity; her poems have a soul and deep meaning.

 In a poem on ‘Springtime Fancies’, she writes:

“The bleakness does not end

With the chill of winter

Nor does the heat of summer

Make the passion simmer

The rain does not quench any more

The thirst of man

Spring does not reconstruct

But we still reap what we sow”

The book is quite interesting. We learn to know her more intimately through her relationship with family members closer to her, her moments of bliss, her fears and her inner struggle to cope with her disease with optimism and hope.

As I flip through the pages, one by one, my heart reaches out to the author and I begin to respect her even more for what she is.