Sunshine Town by Maniissh Aroraa

The Blurb: 

Shlok, a lanky teenager and a daydreamer, doesn’t want much from his life. He dreams about making his parents happy and winning the affection of a neighborhood sweetheart, Natasha. Though both are poles apart, their interests bring them close. Together, they experience new emotions. But, just when they are ready to acknowledge their feelings, it is too late.

The rapids of life set Shlok on an unexpected journey, where he realizes that one can’t always be in control of one’s own circumstances. Unable to crack an important entrance exam and because of the geographical difficulties affecting his love life, Shlok’s life goes through turbulent times.

All the while, his faith in God ebbs and flows, but like a wave, it ends up breaking on the shore before returning to the sea. He is confronted with a perennial question—am I good enough for anything? Holding a mirror to himself, he is faced with the decision to give up on everything he thought was right for him.

Set in Varanasi, a city in North India, during the late 90s, before the pervasiveness of technology, Sunshine Town is about the aspirations and emotional turmoil of being a teenager. The story deals with the themes of love, career, and personal fulfillment.

The Story: 

The story starts with Shlok meets Yana after a long time at the airport and coincidently they are both boarding the same flight to Boston. Shlok was more than happy to travel with an old friend and to catch up with life and Yana seemed pleased too.

So the story continues with Shlok and Yana remembering old college days, where after graduation Shlok focused more on his career and lost the touch with all his friends including Yana. Being traveling for hours and hours Shlok rests on the plant and drifts into the past memories. 

Later the story continues from present or past, from school mischief to exam preparation, from hard work to complications, from school to college, from friendship to love, from career to life-changing decisions, from love and support to surprises, the story turns into an amazing story. A journey of a boy that will fascinate you.

My Take: 

Sunshine Town is the debut novel written by Maniissh Aroraa and it’s a delightful read. 

The story starts with a pleasant meet of two friends after years,  and the author Maniissh Aroraa has expressed it gracefully. I liked how the author has thought of everything, from talking to ourselves to overthinking. I liked how it shows the deep meaning behind it and how with time we accept things even if it's beyond our control. 

The highlight of the book is that the author Maniissh Aroraa has portrayed each character with care and in detail. The Bonds and relationship between the characters are expressed with emotions that I love reading. The dialogues shared between them is also done impressively.

While reading I felt this story was moving on a slow phase but by the end of the book it was clear that every part of the book is important. The plot is simple and yet intriguing that will make you curious to know what happened next. 

Overall an interesting book. I will recommend others to read as well and if you want to read the journey of a boy then click here and read now the book Sunshine Town by Maniissh Aroraa.