Writing a book on coming of age is not an easy task. In fact, it’s one of the hardest jobs in the world, right when writing comedy. And when a promising author tries out this genre so early in his career, it’s time for us to sit back and take notice. Here’s our review of Eighteen: The End of Innocence, written by Sudham.
Eighteen: The End of Innocence is set in the nineties in South India and tells the story of a group of teenage boys and girls whose life is as simple and complicated as it could be in India in the nineties.
So, prepare yourself for many lumpy throat moments that are a slice of anyone who had a typical childhood, adolescence and coming of age in the bright new India that was the period between the 1970s and 2000s. .
Then there is Holi, there are crushes, there are extraordinary experiences with the other gender, the initiation of people into the vices of smoking, drinking and all that. And all of this immortalized a warm and innocent time in which many of us grew up and few have forgotten.
This is the book the younger generation should read if they’re wondering if the “you had a good childhood if you remember these” memes really make any sense. Those memes make sense and yes, the decades between the 1970s and the late 1990s were that amazing.
While the book covers the mundane and the exciting on 200 odd-numbered pages, it does a successful job of portraying the lives and times of children growing up in that era, something many may not know today.
The characters are quite believable and so are the instances. Today’s teens should definitely read this book to get a sense of what life was like for teens just a decade ago. After all, wouldn’t it surprise you to learn that concepts like a ‘blank call’ were the norm back then? In the era of missed calls, Sudham decides to go back to blank calls.
What draws you to the book are the characters next door and I’m sure many will connect with or recognize those characters from their own slightly interesting past. What keeps you going is the dynamic and colorful writing style that deserves a place at the top.
You will love this book if you are a retro fan. Trust me this time.
