Official Review: Let the Buds Bloom by Arya

[candaceward]

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Let the Buds Bloom" by Arya.]

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"Let the Buds Bloom" by Arya is a short story, possibly nonfiction, that discusses several cultural and social factors. The author condemns the societal custom of suicide pacts, and details her family's experience with academic failure. Through a series of short anecdotes, the author touches briefly on several topics and attempts to persuade the reader of her family's struggles with academics. The narrator's brother had severe difficulties with learning, and the child's father would beat him in order to force him to study harder. When the brother failed to pass an exam that would admit him to a local school, his mother threatened to force the family into a suicide pact to spite the admissions officer.

While short, this nonfiction work tries to criticize a variety of customs and societal failures. The collection of anecdotes is loosely connected by a few lines of persuasive writing, but the author seems to jump from topic to topic with little real explanation or support. The anecdotes are evocatively written, but their seeming lack of connection makes this work difficult to read. The author was somewhat persuasive in her arguments against suicide and poor parental techniques but failed to provide an in-depth analysis of her main points. At times, she seemed to lose track of her arguments and would then switch to a new topic. As a reader, this is confusing and gave the entire piece a sense that the author could not select a solid thesis and so chose to address many different issues.

Some of the anecdotes were irrelevant to the main narrative; the narrator describes an episode with the younger brother in which he ate too much ice cream and accidentally polluted the common drinking water. Another story that distracts from the author's main point is one in which the narrator discovers decayed flowers in her desk and hopes they came from her crush. Such irrelevant material takes up space and detracts from the main purpose of the story, which is to criticize harsh expectations of Indian parents.

Another issue with the story is that of a forced metaphor. The title indicates that children are scarred in youth and subsequently grow up with damage; the author beseeches parents to protect their children and "let the buds bloom", a metaphor for maintaining childlike innocence. While I liked the idea, the author began with this metaphor, failed to develop it throughout the piece, then referenced it again in her conclusion, causing this reader to become confused.

In all, this story has potential, but I am rating it with two stars because of a lack of true development. Some of the anecdotes are very emotional and moving, but the distractions of irrelevant tangents and, at times, poor writing make the author's true point unclear. Even at this point, I am unsure whether the author intended to condemn suicide pacts as her main point or argue for more understanding in Indian families.

I rate this book 2 out of 4 stars.

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Buy "Let the Buds Bloom" on Barnes and Noble

[Megan Young]

Great review!