Eiliyah: Umme Pritam's debut novel has its heart in the right place

Eiliyah, aka Ellie, is a 21-year-old girl who experienced a childhood that nobody deserves. All her past traumas and nightmares return when she moves in with her father after her mother's demise. But she sees a silver lining, with her introduction to the charming boy next door (literally) – Raiyan. 

The only problem is: Raiyan keeps some secrets from Ellie; secrets that can change the entire dimension of their burgeoning intimacy. 

What does the future hold for Ellie – a happily ever after, or yet another heartbreak that will leave her in mourning and agony forever? 

At first glance, this is what Umme Pritam's self-published novel "Eiliyah" is all about. 

And that might give one a very constrict impression about the book; that it is only a new addition to an ever-increasing list of no-brainer young-adult love stories without any depth or thought-provoking elements whatsoever. 

But luckily enough, Eiliyah, despite all its shortcomings and callowness, does not fall into that category. 

The aforementioned synopsis is simply the tip of the iceberg. There remains a world full of empathy and social consciousness underneath it. 

Pritam, the author, herself also mentions in the afterword section of the book: "Initially, I intended to write a pure love story, but then I shelved it for another time. Though I narrated a love story in Eiliyah, it's so much more than that."

And rightfully so. 

In the Bangladeshi context, the book is a rare attempt at capturing the real-life emotional and psychological struggles of today's young generation, that too articulated from their own perspective. 

It never shies away from calling a spade a spade. The author makes sure that her writing addresses every issue – ranging from domestic violence to sexual harassment, as well as from parents' cruelty and favouritism to the overall misogyny that exists in the society –  directly and courageously.

In her debut novel, Pritam also dares to take up some very innovative formal experimentations, and in that she succeeds with flying colours.  

The narration progresses in three different timelines. The current timeline is aptly rendered in present tense, while the past events emerge at times in the form of nightmares, and on other occasions, as recollection of the protagonist to her future daughter. 

Still, thanks to the author's good command over the English language alongside a very simplistic approach, the story remains a thoroughly easy read. 

Of course, Eiliyah has its fair share of downsides as well. Of them, the most striking characteristic of the novel is its lack of humour. 

Granted, the author was determined to depict a very "intense" storyline, as reflected through her usage of words like "intently" over and over again. To add to that, she wrote this novel at a time when she was grieving her mother's death. 

Still, a book as such targeting the young-adult audience deserves some witty lines and dialogues to lighten up the atmosphere. Especially the absence of quality humour is significantly felt during the conversations between Ellie and her friends, who are all in their early twenties. 

Apart from humour, the lack of adequate descriptions throughout the novel also leaves a lot to be desired. Neither characters nor places are described properly to help readers with their visualisation. 

Just imagine, a story is taking you to the hills as well as the ocean, but there is hardly any prose written on the beauty of the surroundings! This unthinkable really takes place in Eiliyah. 

Meanwhile, that the author is an avid reader herself and read too many books in her teenage years can also be perceived through her mentions of worldwide famous titles in regular intervals. But that also highlights another problem. 

In spite of Pritam's earnest effort to deliver something quite original, rooted in the Bangladeshi society and culture, she cannot always mask the influence of numerous foreign young-adult fictions she is under.

Another complaint many readers might have is the sheer predictability of the entire storyline. Even before going halfway through the 260-page book, any reader with minimum intelligence quotient will be able to precisely foresee which direction the story is heading.

And hence, the remainder of the book will become a question of "how" instead of "what". 

But the thing is, when the subject-matter at hand is compelling while the writing style is also engrossing, a true bibliophile won't mind to keep reading till the last page. 

Eiliyah offers its readers a similar experience. If you pick up the book to read, more likely than not you will put it down only once it comes to an end. 

Overall, Eiliyah is a fresh novel that has its heart in the right place, and it will be really interesting to see what Umme Pritam comes up with as her second. 

Eiliyah is available in major book shops like Baatighar, Pathak Shamabesh as well as the author's own website ummepritam.com. Also the book's hardcopy and ebook versions are available on Amazon.