Driftwood - Book Review

Driftwood – Stories Washed Ashore is a collection of short stories penned by Beestok Chatterjee. The author is a ship's captain by profession and has been more than forty years at sea. What is unique about this collection of stories is that they are about ships, seafarers and of course the sea. The author says that there are no modern sea stories and he has written this collection to fill that void.

I really liked the story Sapphire Blue which is a psychological thriller. The Piano man is another wonderful story from the book and highlights how appearances are deceptive. The language is lucid and simple and the stories are adroitly weaved. There is an element of surprise, a twist in every story and that makes the stories even more interesting. These stories are not only about sea, they are about humans and all the emotions – love, hate, jealousy and longing.

The writer says that his purpose of writing the book is to give the readers a glimpse of sea life. He wants the readers to feel what it is like to be at sea, to empathise with the trials and tribulations of a seaman. I feel that the author has succeeded in achieving this goal for he transported me into a completely new world, which was new to me. These stories are a ticket to voyage at the sea and help you live the life of seafarers vicariously. Seldom does one come across a collection as unique as this one. Read this book, you will repent not reading it.