Of Love and Other Monsters by Vandana Singh

In Vandana Singh’s novella, Of Love and Other Monsters, Arun begins life where his memory begins, after the fire his rescuer, Janani, pulled him from. Capable of indolence in his recovery, Arun discovers that he is wildly different from his peers and neighbors. His mind has a reach, a dimension, beyond itself. He can play at creating metaminds, a ruling social network comprised of the minds of his fellows, though they are not aware of it.

Of course, this ability is not without its pitfalls. For one thing, it makes him susceptible to natural metaminds, those that form in the world around him from strong emotions in large groups of people. It also makes him the target of one Rahul Moghe, another possessor of Arun’s unusual mental capability. Rahul, however, is infinitely stronger. Frightened by dire warnings from Janani and Rahul’s great power, Arun is set upon a journey of flight and discovery. It is only fitting, even expected, that Arun’s journey eventually leads him back to Rahul. Any trip of self-discovery eventually leads one back to the things one fears the most.

Of Love and Other Monsters recalls for me Samuel R. Delany’s Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand. One of the central themes in Arun’s self-discovery is the realization of how he is affected by his gender and desire. Moreover, Arun runs headlong into the barrier of his own willingness to pursue his desire. How far will he go, and what will be the consequences? Likewise, he butts against the wall of societal limits. As the disintegrating society in Delany’s story threatens Marq and Korga, society limits Arun in sometimes harmful fashions, leaving us to see how he will respond, as well as how strongly.

Singh writes with a beautiful clarity. Each character is sharply drawn, and the inevitability of the story pulls the reader headlong with it—helped by a compelling sparseness of prose. Nothing unneeded is written, leaving Of Love and Other Monsters with an incredible tightness that is rarely seen even in the best of today’s modern short fiction. Of Love and Other Monsters is an engrossing, though somewhat melancholy, story. The reader is quickly carried away by Arun’s story and journey, and Arun is a character who subtly challenges our perceptions of what it means to love and be loved. Singh also uses him to show us how we often harm ourselves with our own limits.

I certainly recommend this to any reader. It is the best short fiction, and possibly the best fiction, I have read this year.

Publisher: Aqueduct Press (2007)
Paperback price: $9.00
ISBN: 1933500166