Playing the critic

With every turn of a page, the expectations build. A reader wants to be treated to an amazing story. From the beginning to the end, it’s the writer’s job to keep them riveted. The task certainly isn’t an easy one. In fact sometimes even though it looks like a writer is going to deliver, there are instances when they drop the ball right at the end. We have all at a point or other, closed a book and experienced disappointment. So we asked Kathmandu to name a book that they wish had an alternate ending. (Brace yourself for some spoilers.)

Bibek Adhikari
Engineering student

The Buddha of Suburbia by Hanif Kureishi

My brother had recommended this book and reading it was a lot of fun. It chronicles the teenage years and the early 20’s of Karim Amir with a lot of good humor. Karim lives with his English mother and Indian Father in the comforts of suburban London. He is on the lookout for adventure as well as sexual possibilities and his life certainly gets interesting as his father is soon anointed, the Buddha of suburbia. The story that unravels after is original, provocative and a bit of a laugh riot. So when it ended on a rather disjointed note with Amir on the stoop, feeling rather depressed consoling himself that the future may bring better days, it just didn’t feel right. It fell flat. I couldn’t help but feel that the author lost the flow of the story at the end. If the book had ended with the same vibrancy that it had begun with or if the last scene had encapsulated the sense of humor prevalent throughout the book, it would have been a more fitting end.

Smita Magar
Freelance journalist

1Q84 by Haruki Murakami

I had an amazing time reading the previous parts of this trilogy. Murakami was true to his style and delivered the suspense, the thrill and dose of supernatural that he is famous for. I was at the edge of my seat as I read the book and couldn’t wait to find out how the story would end i.e until it really ended. “That’s it?” was my first thought. After all the buildup, the trilogy fell short in spectacular fashion.

1Q84 is a mysterious love story where the main male and female leads find themselves seperated. They overcome many obstacles in a parallel world to come together. But the thing throughout the book it is stated that their union would put the other in imminent danger. So when the main characters do eventually re unite, I was expecting something very dramatic to happen. But there was nothing. The trilogy ended. It was annoying. After becoming so invested in the characters, I wasn’t expecting to shelf the book with a grimace.

Manoj Kumar (Samay)
Program Coordinator of Capital FM

Fakeer by Bachchy B.K.

I am actually presenting an audio version of Fakeer for one of our shows. It hasn’t been long since this book written by Bachchu B.K was released. In fact it’s yet to go to the masses. The story is told through the experiences and perspective of Gorus, the researcher and traveler as he wonders around the far western region of Nepal and encounters various stories of HIV patients. The essence of the story is the disease and its influence on the characters that Gorus comes across in his journeys.

So for me, it didn’t make sense that the last scene did not touch on the subject of HIV as much as it could have. As the scene is set at 11:30 pm, with one of the characters shivering in sweat, reminiscing about the past, I think it would have been an ideal moment to reflect on the profoundness of the disease. However, there is little to no mention of HIV when it has had such an impact on the journey. The book is a great read but I feel like the author missed a great opportunity in the end.

Kritika Lamsal
Student

Harry Potter by J.K Rowling

I am afraid that this will sound like a generic choice because I know for a fact that, I am not the only one unhappy about the way Harry Potter ended. Obviously I don’t deny that the series is a legacy in itself. The imaginary world of JK Rowling is very close to many readers’s heart. The way Rowling had us engrossed with her writing, wit and characters is amazing.

Having said that though, I have a bone to pick with her. I believe that it was unnecessary to fast forward so many decades. There was no need to reveal how Harry grew up into being a father and marrying Ginny. It was unnecessary to show Ron and Hermione domesticated with their own kids. I wish she would have left the character’s future to the reader’s imagination. That would have kept the magic of the series alive. I would have liked to envision Harry and his friends in my own way. After the epic fight and all that they had been through, I had a different fate in mind for them all but JK Rowling stole that from me.

Rubina Chitrakar
Freelance Writer

And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini

As much as I love as Khaled Hosseini for his work, I feel that his third novel didn’t quite measure up to his previous efforts. This time around his book does not only revolve around lovers but the relationship between parents and children, brothers and sisters, cousins and caretakers.

It’s an interesting angle to write from but reading it you feel that there are too many story lines. It’d be better if the writer had found a center. Even though it is clear that the separated brother and sister Pari and Abdula are the protagonists, he dedicates just as much time narrating stories of the relatives which proves to be tedious, especially at the end.

Then when Pari and Abdula do reunite, the fact that he has Alzheimer and she can’t even probably speak English is such a big bummer. A different scenario would have made a more satisfying ending because this one just leaves you with a niggling feeling that something is missing.