Author: Sopna Nair
Genre: Self discovery
Year Published: 2022
Nerdection Rating: Nerdection Must read
Oftentimes, we are so engrossed in our daily hustles and activities that we truly forget what we were before all of these responsibilities. Some people find their true selves in fortunate times when they start living in the present. They understand that by being “here and nowhere else”, one finds the missing parts of themselves.
Here and nowhere else is a fiction novella written by Sopna Nair. It was published on 26 November 2022.
The book focuses on the journey of self-growth and reclamation of a young lady with a busy schedule. The book is written in 1st person and the young lady tells several of her experiences and thoughts to the readers. The book leaves a long-lasting impact on the readers’ minds.
Spoiler-Free Plot:
A young lady went from her hometown to Serbia on a solo trip. She was exhausted and missed her true identity which became non-existent after her children and husband.
In Serbia, she starts living in a rental home that belonged to an old lady, Seira. When Seira and the young lady meet, the young lady is impressed by their gracefulness and elegance of Seira. She thinks that she will also age gracefully.
Seira asks the young lady about her journey to the rental home and apologizes and asks the young lady to give her permission to live with her for the next two days due to unfortunate circumstances.
The young lady thinks about this situation as odd but gives Seira permission to live with her for the next two days. Seira is delighted.
The young lady notices that the rental home has dozens of glass birds scattered at random places. She finds the house peaceful and positive. She asks Seira about the glass birds and Seira tells her about her daughter, and how Seira and her daughter used to watch birds many years ago.
Seira then asks the young lady to freshen herself and eat some dinner. The young lady discovers that all of her clothes have been soaked in shampoo in her suitcase. She goes downstairs to Seira and sees that she is making rosemary tomato soup.
The young lady also notices how Seira is an absolute fan of art, classical music, and a great cook. Whenever the young lady starts talking with her, she is reminded of her mother. She also becomes childish in front of Seira and asks for her favorite foods and becomes so happy living there with Seira.
They both go on a trip to Belgrade and meet four best friends going on a University trip. The four girls, named Ella, Noel, Zima, and Nina join the young lady and Seira on their way to Belgrade. All of them enjoy the trip very much.
During this time, the young lady reminisces about her life and how she and her mother used to watch birds, ponder over small concerns, how her mother taught her optimism and how she missed her mother.
The young lady then compares how delightful, free and happy she is now. She misses her husband and children but she deserved this solo trip. She was exhausted from being the primary caregiver for her family.
Along this journey, she starts overcoming her fears and experiences events that leave a long-lasting effect on her personality.
“I am here. In this fleeting moment, I am here. Here and nowhere else.“
My Take On The Book:
Here and nowhere else takes you on a journey of pondering the existence of life and how some events unleash your inner self. The book focuses on living in the present without being too engrossed in the past or about being too Machiavellian for the future.
“Life has its funny ways of reminding us of the little things that truly matter.”
The scenes were depicted clearly and all the descriptions made splashy scenes in the mind of the reader. The book takes the reader on a journey with the young lady.
Here and nowhere else by Sopna Nair is an easy read without any major plots and offers tranquility to its readers. The book does justice to its topic and theme of living in the present. Because by living in the present, one can find and understand the small moments that make up the entirety of life.
The main characters in the book were Seira and the young lady. Both the characters were amazing. While the young lady was not extroverted, her thoughts suited her calm personality. Seira, on the other hand, was energetic and brought positivity to the book.
The book gives some valuable lessons to the reader regarding life. Because life, after all, is a collection of small moments that go by fastly leaving a person with only memories from the past.
“Living life to its entire capacity, tiny moments with yourself are what truly set you free.”
The thing I liked the most about the book was the quotes written at the start of each chapter. These quotes added more value to the story and were the epitome of perfection!
Although the book does not have much plot, the narrations, quotes, and the end leave an imprint on the mind of the readers.
We highly recommend this book to all the readers out there because books like these are written once in a lifetime!
My rating: 5/5 and an absolute delight to read!
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About the Author of Here And Nowhere Else
Dr. Sopna Nair is a Senior Structural Engineer and Lead Sustainability Consultant by day but loves to pen down her raw thoughts and emotions in form of stories in the night.
She grew up in India, a land of art and culture. Before a decade ago she moved to Abu Dhabi and found acceptance in this land for herself and for her loving husband, daughter and son.
Sopna is passionate about books, enough to make her write the first one and many more to come!
She is a self-driven woman of today, passionate about giving back to society, especially
to underprivileged women.
Along with her engineering profession, Dance, Travel and Friends are what fuels her lust for life.
Sopna is also a great teller of stories- Following those in this book. [Linkedin]
