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The moving shadow
Disappearing corpses. Scientists who are spies.
Maniacal murderers. Brooding, remorseless detectives. Love triangles and murders. A robot that falls in love. Secrets of the dead and the departed. Sex, romance and betrayal. All these and more are to be found in these eight novellas and stories featuring spies, criminals, ghosts, black-magic practitioners and, of course, femmes fatales. These are the finest examples of a long tradition of pulp fiction that has always lurked in dark corners within the hallowed precincts of Bengali literature.
Written by brilliant mainstream as well as pulp fiction writers from India and Bangladesh, including Premendra Mitra, Satyajit Ray, Muhammed Zafar Iqbal, Gobindolal Bandyopadhyay and the redoubtable Swapan Kumar, the stories in The Moving Shadow: Electrifying Bengali Pulp Fiction give the reader a dazzling introduction to noir from the land of the bhodrolok.
Maniacal murderers. Brooding, remorseless detectives. Love triangles and murders. A robot that falls in love. Secrets of the dead and the departed. Sex, romance and betrayal. All these and more are to be found in these eight novellas and stories featuring spies, criminals, ghosts, black-magic practitioners and, of course, femmes fatales. These are the finest examples of a long tradition of pulp fiction that has always lurked in dark corners within the hallowed precincts of Bengali literature.
Written by brilliant mainstream as well as pulp fiction writers from India and Bangladesh, including Premendra Mitra, Satyajit Ray, Muhammed Zafar Iqbal, Gobindolal Bandyopadhyay and the redoubtable Swapan Kumar, the stories in The Moving Shadow: Electrifying Bengali Pulp Fiction give the reader a dazzling introduction to noir from the land of the bhodrolok.
- GenresFictionShort Stories
244 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2018
4 people are currently reading
120 people want to read
About the author
Arunava Sinha
98Ìýbooks224ÌýfollowersArunava Sinha translates classic, modern and contemporary Bengali fiction and nonfiction into English.
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
April 12, 2020
A few days ago, I realised that I do not read Indian literature as much as I should read. There are a number of writers I have been wanting to read but somehow, I never got around to reading them. Hence, I picked up The Moving Shadow: Electrifying Bengali Pulp Fiction which is selected and translated by Arunava Sinha. I choose this book because I have been reading a series of some heavy books and my mind wanted a break. After finishing this book, I can only admire myself since I choose to read just the perfect one. This collection of pulp fiction was a gentle nudge of ease and comfort that I was yearning for. It covered me up with anxiousness and willingness to keep turning the pages because I did not want to put this book aside even for a minute. This book is divided into two parts - crime stories and horror stories. Each part consisted of four short stories out of which one was not short at all.
Parashar Barma Makes a Bid by Premendra Mitra was a great start to the collection. Whenever one talks about crime stories, the first image that comes to my mind is of Sherlock Holmes and his partner, John Watson. The first short story in this collection set the mood for me by including a story which was quite reminiscent of the duo. The entire story revolves around a bidri bowl which upturns all the elements of this story.
Afrer the magnificence of the first story, the titular short story of this collection, The Moving Shadow by Swapan Kumar, deals with the preposterousness of the societal norms and emphasises why mindless pursuit for knowledge is dangerous. The Secret Agent by Vikramaditya is the short story which is not short at all. Although this story made me curious about who the secret agent was, it was mindlessly long because of which I often lost my concentration. As is usually the case with many Sherlock Holmes cases, I hated that all the suspense of this story was revealed in one go and it disconcerted the flow. The last story in Crime Stories is titled Capotronic LoveÌýby Muhammed Zafar Iqbal. It deals with a robot whose creator develops emotions in it which ultimately leads to its downfall. Although I enjoyed reading all the short stories (including one which was not short) in Crime Stories, it was the section on Horror Stories which I loved reading in a true sense. All the stories in this collection were top-notch and even though I used to think that crime stories are really my genre and not horror, this section proved me wrong.
The first story in this section was titled BhutoÌýby Satyajit Ray which deals with a ventriloquist's career and his downfall because of an element which he could have avoided. The Moon is BackÌýby Adrish Bardha reminded me of the futility of human beings' pride in scientific discoveries and this is the one short story in this entire collection which hit me really hard. Saradindu and This BodyÌýbyÌýGobindolal Bandyopadhyay was about a psychiatrist who becomes his patient and thus, does something he should not have done. ForeshadowedÌýbyÌýBhabani Mukhopadhyay is the one short story in this collection which is really close to my heart because of the way things unfold in this one.
Although the stories in Crime Stories are guided by greed and curiousity, it is the Horror Stories which really shine brightly because of how none of the stories (except one) directly relates to the supernatural. This book is so readable and flawless that I think I would be recommending it to everyone who is looking for a lighter read or just want to kickstart his/her reading habit.
Parashar Barma Makes a Bid by Premendra Mitra was a great start to the collection. Whenever one talks about crime stories, the first image that comes to my mind is of Sherlock Holmes and his partner, John Watson. The first short story in this collection set the mood for me by including a story which was quite reminiscent of the duo. The entire story revolves around a bidri bowl which upturns all the elements of this story.
Afrer the magnificence of the first story, the titular short story of this collection, The Moving Shadow by Swapan Kumar, deals with the preposterousness of the societal norms and emphasises why mindless pursuit for knowledge is dangerous. The Secret Agent by Vikramaditya is the short story which is not short at all. Although this story made me curious about who the secret agent was, it was mindlessly long because of which I often lost my concentration. As is usually the case with many Sherlock Holmes cases, I hated that all the suspense of this story was revealed in one go and it disconcerted the flow. The last story in Crime Stories is titled Capotronic LoveÌýby Muhammed Zafar Iqbal. It deals with a robot whose creator develops emotions in it which ultimately leads to its downfall. Although I enjoyed reading all the short stories (including one which was not short) in Crime Stories, it was the section on Horror Stories which I loved reading in a true sense. All the stories in this collection were top-notch and even though I used to think that crime stories are really my genre and not horror, this section proved me wrong.
The first story in this section was titled BhutoÌýby Satyajit Ray which deals with a ventriloquist's career and his downfall because of an element which he could have avoided. The Moon is BackÌýby Adrish Bardha reminded me of the futility of human beings' pride in scientific discoveries and this is the one short story in this entire collection which hit me really hard. Saradindu and This BodyÌýbyÌýGobindolal Bandyopadhyay was about a psychiatrist who becomes his patient and thus, does something he should not have done. ForeshadowedÌýbyÌýBhabani Mukhopadhyay is the one short story in this collection which is really close to my heart because of the way things unfold in this one.
Although the stories in Crime Stories are guided by greed and curiousity, it is the Horror Stories which really shine brightly because of how none of the stories (except one) directly relates to the supernatural. This book is so readable and flawless that I think I would be recommending it to everyone who is looking for a lighter read or just want to kickstart his/her reading habit.
September 24, 2018
This book is pure magic!! I had never enjoyed reading crime and horror stories this much. This book is easily one of my favourite reads of 2018.
It’s an anthology of crime and horror stories written by prolific writers like Satyajit Ray, Premendra Mitra, Muhammad Zafar Iqbal and Gobindolal Bandopadhyay to name a few. The stories are selected and translated by Arunava Sinha.
This book has everything you need to fill in your quota on crime and horror. Corpses who disappear, seductive women (intelligent femme fatale) implacable detectives, betrayal and human desires are beautifully blended in this book. My favourite story has to be ‘The Secret Agent� by Vikramaditya. The twists and turns in this story are difficult to guess and I was making notes while reading to see if my guess is true or not, but alas, I was proved wrong. The titular story, The moving shadow, packs a punch and I was like, ‘I didn’t see this coming!�
Just like the title, ‘electrifying Bengali pulp fiction�, the stories did have an electric pull on me. I was glued to the book like a moth to a flame. I have lost count of the number of times I have gasped and shouted ‘Oh my god�, which included shouting in public as well, did I tell you that I disrupted a badminton match while reading this one? All of the stories kept me on the edge of my seat and I am so happy I could read this anthology. I finally read a story by Satyajit Ray and now I want to explore his works more. The translation is done with brilliance and never did I once feel that it was missing something. India has such talented authors and now that these clever stories are translated, read this book will you? The cover is so bold! It reminded me of the 70s for some reason!
Thank you Aleph Book co for the review copy.
It’s an anthology of crime and horror stories written by prolific writers like Satyajit Ray, Premendra Mitra, Muhammad Zafar Iqbal and Gobindolal Bandopadhyay to name a few. The stories are selected and translated by Arunava Sinha.
This book has everything you need to fill in your quota on crime and horror. Corpses who disappear, seductive women (intelligent femme fatale) implacable detectives, betrayal and human desires are beautifully blended in this book. My favourite story has to be ‘The Secret Agent� by Vikramaditya. The twists and turns in this story are difficult to guess and I was making notes while reading to see if my guess is true or not, but alas, I was proved wrong. The titular story, The moving shadow, packs a punch and I was like, ‘I didn’t see this coming!�
Just like the title, ‘electrifying Bengali pulp fiction�, the stories did have an electric pull on me. I was glued to the book like a moth to a flame. I have lost count of the number of times I have gasped and shouted ‘Oh my god�, which included shouting in public as well, did I tell you that I disrupted a badminton match while reading this one? All of the stories kept me on the edge of my seat and I am so happy I could read this anthology. I finally read a story by Satyajit Ray and now I want to explore his works more. The translation is done with brilliance and never did I once feel that it was missing something. India has such talented authors and now that these clever stories are translated, read this book will you? The cover is so bold! It reminded me of the 70s for some reason!
Thank you Aleph Book co for the review copy.
June 3, 2019
Read it for pure entertainment. Pulp fiction, so exect scandalous stories, twists, surprises, all that.
4.5 stars
4.5 stars
February 5, 2019
I must confess that before I read this collection, I had no idea that the entry of Bengali pulp fiction precedes the writings of Tagore and others. The Moving Shadow: Electrifying Bengali Pulp Fiction is an anthology of eight short stories and novellas, selected and translated by Arunava Sinha. There are two sections in the anthology � with four stories each under ‘Crime Stories� and ‘Horror Stories� and I must say it was a rollicking read as is deserving of good pulp fiction. This anthology has a gamut of themes and plots that will give any racy and fast paced writing into shade: spies and double spies, scientists and robots.
I really liked the tone set by the first story ‘Parashar Barma makes a bid� written by Premendra Mitra that looks like it has a bit of the mysteries of the occult and supernatural elements and features a detective and a journalist (whose work mainly consists of being a side kick to the detective). It had every twist and turn possible in the narrative and also managed to fit in the detective playing cupid for two characters which I didn’t see coming at all. The title story sets out on a thrilling note and had all the lements of thrill but I felt that the ending felt a bit hastened. Vikramaditya’s The Secret Agent with its many characters intersecting each other, the cross affairs and associations was a dizzy crazy read that comes across like a desi version of James Bond in terms of the twists and turns and Poirot in terms of the explanation of the drama in the story.
The shorter stories in the ‘horror stories� section stand out with their themes: a robot who develops feelings and knowledge and goes rogue; a twist of dark magic that connects two ventriloquists with a personal history written by acclaimed film maker Satyajit Ray; a psychologist with a personal tragedy in his past who develops feelings for his assistant.
If you are willing to try different genres, I will say that pulp fiction is worth trying: they are a guilty pleasure where you don’t have to ponder and reflect but just get carried away by the flow of things. If you have not read the genre yet and want to try it out, The Moving Shadow: Electrifying Bengali Pulp Fiction Selected and Translated by Arunava Sinha is a good peg to start out with.
I really liked the tone set by the first story ‘Parashar Barma makes a bid� written by Premendra Mitra that looks like it has a bit of the mysteries of the occult and supernatural elements and features a detective and a journalist (whose work mainly consists of being a side kick to the detective). It had every twist and turn possible in the narrative and also managed to fit in the detective playing cupid for two characters which I didn’t see coming at all. The title story sets out on a thrilling note and had all the lements of thrill but I felt that the ending felt a bit hastened. Vikramaditya’s The Secret Agent with its many characters intersecting each other, the cross affairs and associations was a dizzy crazy read that comes across like a desi version of James Bond in terms of the twists and turns and Poirot in terms of the explanation of the drama in the story.
The shorter stories in the ‘horror stories� section stand out with their themes: a robot who develops feelings and knowledge and goes rogue; a twist of dark magic that connects two ventriloquists with a personal history written by acclaimed film maker Satyajit Ray; a psychologist with a personal tragedy in his past who develops feelings for his assistant.
If you are willing to try different genres, I will say that pulp fiction is worth trying: they are a guilty pleasure where you don’t have to ponder and reflect but just get carried away by the flow of things. If you have not read the genre yet and want to try it out, The Moving Shadow: Electrifying Bengali Pulp Fiction Selected and Translated by Arunava Sinha is a good peg to start out with.
October 3, 2018
From robot with emotions to a Bidri bowl that everybody was after, to missing blood, stolen corpses, and the moon that’s fast approaching earth, the stories in The Moving Shadow: Electrifying Bengali Pulp Fiction showcase the long lineage of pulp fiction in Bengali literature. The book contains eight novellas and stories pertaining to genres of crime and horror, with four stories in each, featuring detectives, spies, femme fatales, casanovas, and much more. Selected and translated by Arunava Sinha, the book consists of stories from some of the best writers from India and Bangladesh including Satyajit Ray, Premendra Mitra, Gobindolal Bandyopadhyay, Swapan Kumar and Bhabani Mukhopadhyay.
The Moving Shadow: Electrifying Bengali Pulp Fiction marks my foray into Bengali literature and I regret not doing this much earlier. The book came out at a time when I was looking for diverse Indian reads, and the timing could not have been better! I had no idea that we had such diverse pulp fictions to our credit, that too from some master storytellers like Ray. While some of the stories impressed me, I was thoroughly disappointed with a few.
Crime Stories
The first story, Parashar Barma Makes a Bid by Premendra Mitra was very engaging, witty and maintained the suspense throughout. However, it was too similar to Sherlock Holmes-the whole famous detective whose story is narrated by a friend he always takes around with him during his detective escapades and the constant failed efforts by the narrator to solve the clues firsthand and impress the detective himself. The Moving Shadow by Swapan Kumar had detective Dipak Chatterjee solving the mystery of ‘The Moving Shadow,� a criminal (or group of criminals) engaged in some mysterious activities in the city. It was well-written, had a well-constructed story and was brimming with suspense, but it did not have anything new to offer and had a very predictable ending.
I was absolutely disappointed with The Secret Agent by Vikramaditya, as for starters, it was way too long for a short story and dragged on meaninglessly that I was forced to skip a few paragraphs. It covered the theme of spies and had too many unnecessary characters, the plot was poorly constructed and the story failed to strike a chord with me. More of a science fiction, Capotronic Love by Muhammed Zafar Iqbal told the story of a robot and was a much-needed relief from its predecessor. It was crisp, charming, and connected well with me.
Horror Stories
This entire section was an absolute delight that had me hooked throughout. The first story in this section, Bhuto by Satyajit Ray is my favourite story from the book. It told the story of an established ventriloquist and an aspiring one and was spooky, brilliantly written, and the suspense level was top-notch. I have to appreciate Sinha for maintaining the magnificence of Ray’s writing in the translation.
The Moon is Back by Adrish Bardhan was more of a science fiction and talked about a strange phenomenon associated with the moon. The story had me baffled, hooked to it from the beginning, and the ending rendered me speechless. Coupled with such great writing, the whole idea put forth in the story just made it such a pleasant read.
The story of a psychologist and his patient, Saradindu and This Body by Gobindolal Bandyopadhyay was terrifying. Though it was not too engaging and had poorly constructed dialogues, the story was great. I loved Foreshadowed by Bhabani Mukhopadhyay!! The story of a married couple, it was creepy, filled with suspense and had such an unpredictable ending.
Conclusion
The Moving Shadow: Electrifying Bengali Pulp Fiction selected and translated by Arunava Singha has something for everyone. The book was such an eye-opener for me regarding Bengali literature and each story was so diverse that I was eagerly awaiting what came next. I am not in a position to comment on Singha’s translation of these works, but I absolutely loved his idea of bringing together Bengali pulp fiction in such a fine compilation. I highly recommend this book to everyone, and is a must read if you are a fan of pulp fiction.
The Moving Shadow: Electrifying Bengali Pulp Fiction marks my foray into Bengali literature and I regret not doing this much earlier. The book came out at a time when I was looking for diverse Indian reads, and the timing could not have been better! I had no idea that we had such diverse pulp fictions to our credit, that too from some master storytellers like Ray. While some of the stories impressed me, I was thoroughly disappointed with a few.
Crime Stories
The first story, Parashar Barma Makes a Bid by Premendra Mitra was very engaging, witty and maintained the suspense throughout. However, it was too similar to Sherlock Holmes-the whole famous detective whose story is narrated by a friend he always takes around with him during his detective escapades and the constant failed efforts by the narrator to solve the clues firsthand and impress the detective himself. The Moving Shadow by Swapan Kumar had detective Dipak Chatterjee solving the mystery of ‘The Moving Shadow,� a criminal (or group of criminals) engaged in some mysterious activities in the city. It was well-written, had a well-constructed story and was brimming with suspense, but it did not have anything new to offer and had a very predictable ending.
I was absolutely disappointed with The Secret Agent by Vikramaditya, as for starters, it was way too long for a short story and dragged on meaninglessly that I was forced to skip a few paragraphs. It covered the theme of spies and had too many unnecessary characters, the plot was poorly constructed and the story failed to strike a chord with me. More of a science fiction, Capotronic Love by Muhammed Zafar Iqbal told the story of a robot and was a much-needed relief from its predecessor. It was crisp, charming, and connected well with me.
Horror Stories
This entire section was an absolute delight that had me hooked throughout. The first story in this section, Bhuto by Satyajit Ray is my favourite story from the book. It told the story of an established ventriloquist and an aspiring one and was spooky, brilliantly written, and the suspense level was top-notch. I have to appreciate Sinha for maintaining the magnificence of Ray’s writing in the translation.
The Moon is Back by Adrish Bardhan was more of a science fiction and talked about a strange phenomenon associated with the moon. The story had me baffled, hooked to it from the beginning, and the ending rendered me speechless. Coupled with such great writing, the whole idea put forth in the story just made it such a pleasant read.
The story of a psychologist and his patient, Saradindu and This Body by Gobindolal Bandyopadhyay was terrifying. Though it was not too engaging and had poorly constructed dialogues, the story was great. I loved Foreshadowed by Bhabani Mukhopadhyay!! The story of a married couple, it was creepy, filled with suspense and had such an unpredictable ending.
Conclusion
The Moving Shadow: Electrifying Bengali Pulp Fiction selected and translated by Arunava Singha has something for everyone. The book was such an eye-opener for me regarding Bengali literature and each story was so diverse that I was eagerly awaiting what came next. I am not in a position to comment on Singha’s translation of these works, but I absolutely loved his idea of bringing together Bengali pulp fiction in such a fine compilation. I highly recommend this book to everyone, and is a must read if you are a fan of pulp fiction.
April 17, 2019
As the tagline of the book says, “Electrifying Bengali Pulp Fiction� this book consists of verity of stories which will keep you hooked till you finish them. Stories covered in the crime genre make a thrilling aura as you read them, several mysteries are interlocked & as you think you have figured them all out, there’s a twist that will knock your socks off. The stories in horror genre will indeed scare you but at the same time intrigue you to the core.
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December 9, 2019
Absolutely delightful. I am particularly fond of Indian writing being an Indian, its like a home spice you cant live without. This book gave me the taste i needed. Multiple thanks to the translator that we have been able to read these stories .
April 24, 2020
The Moving Shadow by Arunava Sinha
The Electrifying Bengali Pulp Fiction
@alephbookco
This book is a collection of 4 crime stories and 4 horror stories.All stories are inspired from Bengali literature and based around mid 80's so the feel of book is really takes you back in time and all scenes are vivid and descriptive and in first story I felt like I'm watching Byomkesh vakshi a Bengali detective series. All stories are short except one The Secret Agent which I really liked it and it covers almost half book, talked about spy in army headquarters ,and the characters specifically about Maqbool Who is a drunked and a hardcore womanizer and the way story progressed was maintaining my curiosity to read further. Other stories is quite good but not very appealing. Language is also very simple and lucid so overall if you love reading thriller then this book is definitely for you .
The Electrifying Bengali Pulp Fiction
@alephbookco
This book is a collection of 4 crime stories and 4 horror stories.All stories are inspired from Bengali literature and based around mid 80's so the feel of book is really takes you back in time and all scenes are vivid and descriptive and in first story I felt like I'm watching Byomkesh vakshi a Bengali detective series. All stories are short except one The Secret Agent which I really liked it and it covers almost half book, talked about spy in army headquarters ,and the characters specifically about Maqbool Who is a drunked and a hardcore womanizer and the way story progressed was maintaining my curiosity to read further. Other stories is quite good but not very appealing. Language is also very simple and lucid so overall if you love reading thriller then this book is definitely for you .
April 8, 2020
Fun, time pass - like an pulp fiction should be. Surprised that I liked the horror more than the crime stories. They were smart and not the jump scare kinds. :)
June 20, 2019
I haven’t come across a lot of Bengali pulp fiction. The Moving Shadow was a great book to start. As the tagline suggests, the stories in this collection are truly electrifying and they’ll keep you hooked till the end. The Moving Shadow has eight tales of crime and horror, written by prolific Bengali writers. I had already read a few stories by Premendra Mitra and Satyajit Ray, but this book introduced some new authors like Swapan Kumar and Muhammed Zafar Iqbal to me.
The tales are divided into two categories: crime and horror. The crime stories feature a plethora of characters and were very intriguing. Maniacal murderers, spies, a mysterious Bidri bowl and a robot who falls in love are the main themes of the crime stories. I loved the pace and characterizations in these stories. I loved the eponymous story by Swapan Kumar, which is a thrilling battle of wits between a detective and a shadowy organisation. Another story which I enjoyed reading was Muhammed Zafar Iqbal’s Copotronic Love. It’s a different take on ‘Frankenstein� where a scientist creates the world’s first ’emotional� robot.
The horror stories in The Moving Shadow are spooky rather than gruesome. They are more like psychological thrillers than actual ghost stories so readers who are not keen on the horror genre can also enjoy them. My favorite story was Bhuto by Satyajit Ray, where a ventriloquist’s dummy goes rogue. Another spooky tale was Saradindu and This Body by Gobindolal Bandopadhyay, where a psychiatrist has schizophrenia.
There is a certain high quality to Bengali literature and it often overshadows stories like ones in The Moving Shadow. Pulp fiction is often considered ‘light and frivolous� but one can’t deny how entertaining it is. The stories are fast paced with earthy characters. However I found the categories some what unnecessary. Some of the stories cannot be categorised in Crime or Horror. For instance, Copotronic Love is more science fiction than crime or horror. The same case is with Adhrish Bardhan’s The Moon is Back.
I think The Moving Shadow is a great introduction to modern Bengali pulp fiction. I was surprised to know that it predates modern Bengali Literature as well. Translations often loose the essence of the original content but Arunava Sinha has done a stellar job in capturing the tone and essence of each story in The Moving Shadow.
If you want to explore more of India’s regional literature, than I urge you to pick this book. The Moving Shadow is a great book to spend those long, rainy evenings as well. In whichever way you want to read, The Moving Shadow will surely keep you intrigued till the end.
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The tales are divided into two categories: crime and horror. The crime stories feature a plethora of characters and were very intriguing. Maniacal murderers, spies, a mysterious Bidri bowl and a robot who falls in love are the main themes of the crime stories. I loved the pace and characterizations in these stories. I loved the eponymous story by Swapan Kumar, which is a thrilling battle of wits between a detective and a shadowy organisation. Another story which I enjoyed reading was Muhammed Zafar Iqbal’s Copotronic Love. It’s a different take on ‘Frankenstein� where a scientist creates the world’s first ’emotional� robot.
The horror stories in The Moving Shadow are spooky rather than gruesome. They are more like psychological thrillers than actual ghost stories so readers who are not keen on the horror genre can also enjoy them. My favorite story was Bhuto by Satyajit Ray, where a ventriloquist’s dummy goes rogue. Another spooky tale was Saradindu and This Body by Gobindolal Bandopadhyay, where a psychiatrist has schizophrenia.
There is a certain high quality to Bengali literature and it often overshadows stories like ones in The Moving Shadow. Pulp fiction is often considered ‘light and frivolous� but one can’t deny how entertaining it is. The stories are fast paced with earthy characters. However I found the categories some what unnecessary. Some of the stories cannot be categorised in Crime or Horror. For instance, Copotronic Love is more science fiction than crime or horror. The same case is with Adhrish Bardhan’s The Moon is Back.
I think The Moving Shadow is a great introduction to modern Bengali pulp fiction. I was surprised to know that it predates modern Bengali Literature as well. Translations often loose the essence of the original content but Arunava Sinha has done a stellar job in capturing the tone and essence of each story in The Moving Shadow.
If you want to explore more of India’s regional literature, than I urge you to pick this book. The Moving Shadow is a great book to spend those long, rainy evenings as well. In whichever way you want to read, The Moving Shadow will surely keep you intrigued till the end.
to read more such reviews click on
December 30, 2019
I think the best way to review / rate this collection of short stories is to rate and review the individual stories.
CRIME STORIES
Parashar Barma Makes a Bid - 4/5, the best story of this book. Keeps you hooked sufficiently and good plot and narration.
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The Moving Shadow - 1/5, The least appealing story of the book. With very loose and predictable plot and very dry and choppy narration. I believe the source itself was like that and the blame rests not on translation since rest of the stories in the book weren't choppy.
I felt like that not only did the story failed to evoke any sort of feeling but also the narrative simply failed to do its job. To give you an example this is text towards the end of the story by when we are supposed to relate or feel for some of the characters of the story. (spoiler free quotations):
---
The Secret Agent - 3/5, decent story, gripping narrative. You can't stop it once you start, despite it being the longest story of the book. Saucy, gripping and well kept suspense. Although suspense is maintained not because audience fail to see some things like the best whodunit stories, but rather because of a back story that's only revealed towards the end. This is the most easiest way to maintain a suspense, as one can always put a back story towards the end. Stars just because the narrative was good enough that you won't feel too cheated because of the back story that comes at the end.
----
Copotronic Love - 2/5 Okay-ish story. Nothing much to write about. The evolution of the story and the characters were very limited. Okay-ish. You can tell someone else this story maybe in a couple of sentences. Feels more like a plot than a story.
HORROR STORIES
Bhuto - 3/5 Good story. Feels better when read at night and in dim light. One of those horror stories which don't deign to explain stuff. Good narrative.
---
The Moon is Back - 2/5 Okay-ish story. Again feels more like a plot than a story.
---
Saradindu and This Body - 3.5/5 Good psychological story. Well written and author keeps giving subtle hints throughout as to what is happening.
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Foreshadowed - 3/5 Decent story. Smooth story. The twist towards the end doesn't happen because of a back story. The outcome is almost told in the beginning itself, the narrative is about how the prophecy is fulfilled.
Can't call it must read. If you have read it or wanna read it, cool; if not no worries.
CRIME STORIES
Parashar Barma Makes a Bid - 4/5, the best story of this book. Keeps you hooked sufficiently and good plot and narration.
---
The Moving Shadow - 1/5, The least appealing story of the book. With very loose and predictable plot and very dry and choppy narration. I believe the source itself was like that and the blame rests not on translation since rest of the stories in the book weren't choppy.
I felt like that not only did the story failed to evoke any sort of feeling but also the narrative simply failed to do its job. To give you an example this is text towards the end of the story by when we are supposed to relate or feel for some of the characters of the story. (spoiler free quotations):
Dipak’s voice was heavy with emotion.
Ratanlal was nonplussed.
Mr Morrison was silent.
---
The Secret Agent - 3/5, decent story, gripping narrative. You can't stop it once you start, despite it being the longest story of the book. Saucy, gripping and well kept suspense. Although suspense is maintained not because audience fail to see some things like the best whodunit stories, but rather because of a back story that's only revealed towards the end. This is the most easiest way to maintain a suspense, as one can always put a back story towards the end. Stars just because the narrative was good enough that you won't feel too cheated because of the back story that comes at the end.
----
Copotronic Love - 2/5 Okay-ish story. Nothing much to write about. The evolution of the story and the characters were very limited. Okay-ish. You can tell someone else this story maybe in a couple of sentences. Feels more like a plot than a story.
HORROR STORIES
Bhuto - 3/5 Good story. Feels better when read at night and in dim light. One of those horror stories which don't deign to explain stuff. Good narrative.
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The Moon is Back - 2/5 Okay-ish story. Again feels more like a plot than a story.
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Saradindu and This Body - 3.5/5 Good psychological story. Well written and author keeps giving subtle hints throughout as to what is happening.
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Foreshadowed - 3/5 Decent story. Smooth story. The twist towards the end doesn't happen because of a back story. The outcome is almost told in the beginning itself, the narrative is about how the prophecy is fulfilled.
Can't call it must read. If you have read it or wanna read it, cool; if not no worries.
November 22, 2018
Mysterious Murders, An out of the blue Affair and Romance, an intriguing heroine with witty troublemaking character...This book is really on the Rocks hehe. I used to read this kind of stories in Bengali magazine like Anandamala, Shuktara. But trust me i didn’t expect for it to be one of my favourite Mystery novel of this year! It was really giving me vibes of my childhood, as if i am curled up with a blanket at a chilly night and listening to my Grandpa tell the great mystery stories by great authors from this book. This book is really a treat for Crime and Thriller fan. Highly recommending to everyone. READ IT. This is one of my best 5 Star read...
February 19, 2019
This book is a collection of short stories, although one of them is much longer than the others and occupies about about 40% of the book. The stories are grouped into 'crime' and 'horror', but the horror is more spooky than gruesome, so no need to brace yourself or anything. This was my first experience with South Asian literature, and I enjoyed it quite a bit. Some of the stories do require you to suspend your disbelief a little, but that didn't make it any less fun. I would read another volume like this if it were available.
January 17, 2020
This collection of stories is definitely enjoyable and a very fitting introduction to the Bengali pulp fiction. A heady mix of spies, scientists, detectives, femme fatales, robots and supernatural elements, this has something for everything. It gives its readers the taste of tge various sub genres of pulp fiction at one place. The stories and a novella that have found place in the anthology are all very different from each other and as such the reader never gets a sense of repetition.
October 16, 2018
The book is divided into two parts - Crime Stories and Horror Stories. The book consists of eight stories by prominent Bengali authors. What caught my attention from the word go was the impeccable translation. It is a winning factor for me. The ease with which it is translated makes it appealing. Most importantly the translation doesn't tamper the effect of the stories one bit!
April 8, 2019
Pulp fiction would be frowned upon by the Bhadralok of Bengal but I found the stories to be engrossing with a proverbial twist towards the end. Go for it.
August 29, 2020
There are eight stories in all in this book of nearly 240 pages. The story "The Secret Agent" takes up nearly 110 pages. The stories involve criminals, ghosts, black magic etc, but provide no glimpse of Bengali culture. None of the story holds your attention or rouse your curiosity to make you finish it.
December 9, 2020
I’m a sucker for mysteries and thrillers and this was a good mix. The stories themselves were mostly kind of average but the translation was excellent and they gave me my fair share of fun because I did not want to stop reading once I began. At the end of the day it’s pulp fiction and it’s my guilty pleasure
July 27, 2020
Great entertainment. I loved most of the stories. You will definitely find a few favourites.
For those who love thriller and horror short stories and pulp fiction.
For those who love thriller and horror short stories and pulp fiction.
August 22, 2023
Interesting stories
June 13, 2020
Of these stories, Copotronic Love stood out as great science fiction and Saradindu was great horror.
Secret agent by Vikramaditya was a bewildering story that made me puzzled, not curious and brings down the overall rating of the book.
The others stories, both mystery and horror, were somewhere in between these two in quality.
I am using the median rating of the stories here.
Secret agent by Vikramaditya was a bewildering story that made me puzzled, not curious and brings down the overall rating of the book.
The others stories, both mystery and horror, were somewhere in between these two in quality.
I am using the median rating of the stories here.
February 17, 2020
A good translation of Bengali classic thrillers to English. I wish it hadn't ended so soon.
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