The Night Diary: Veera Hiranandani

"Sometimes I think about why we get to be alive when so many others died for no reason walking the same walk, crossing the same border. All that suffering, all that death, for nothing. I will never understand, as long as I live, how a country could change overnight from only a line drawn."

                                           - The Night Diary

Title: The Night Diary

Author : Veera Hiranandani

Publisher: Penguin India

Genre: Historical Fiction

Book description and thoughts:

Nisha is a 12 year old girl residing in Mirpur Khas with her twin brother Amil, grandmother and father. Being born to a Muslim mother and a Hindu father she has learned to accept people of all the religions as equals. But her family has always been an outcast sighting the interfaith marriage of her parents. The Night Diary is a saga of Nisha and her journey across the India- Pakistan border in the wake of newly independent India. The communal tension arising from the partition scars her lively childhood leading her to question the sanity of adults and their biases on religion. Written in the form of letters by Nisha to her dead mother at the time of crisis, it reflects a child's quest for identity and thirst for a peaceful home. At times when elders were busy pursuing 'an eye for an eye', our protagonist triumphs our hearts with her letters filled with wisdom and belief in 'love over hatred'. Her letters question the unwanted violence and loss that can never be justified. 

The story is set in the historical backdrop of Partion of India in 1947. Though the family is fictional the happenings written are etched in the Indian history with blood. Veera Hiranandani has brilliantly narrated the plight of innocents. Her simple and hearty narration through the perspective of a young child draws you into the scene instantly. It is easy to grasp and understand. 

Would surely recommend reading this book, specially for the beginners who want to get started with stories set on Partition of India.

Bonus reading: The book comes with a brilliant author's note and a glossary that will help you understand better.

Rating: 5⭐/ 5⭐

Content Trigger Warning: Death, Violence, Assault.

"Everyone blames one another. Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, they have all done awful things. But what have I done? What has Papa, or Dadi, or Amil done? What has Kazi done? I want to know who I can blame, Mama, for the nightmares that wake me up every night now. It must be someone's fault. Maybe I'll blame everyone."

- The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani