Review by hellocomputer -- Border Post 99 by Kedar Patankar

[hellocomputer]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Border Post 99" by Kedar Patankar.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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Kedar Patankar begins his short novel Border Post 99: No Man’s Land by clearly setting the scene for his readers. It is March of 2011, and Lieutenant Mangesh Sharma is on his way to his first post on the India-Pakistan border, which "runs for two thousand miles across deserts and icy mountaintops, through cotton and wheat fields and dense coniferous forests.” Patankar informs us that, although there are many large and carefully-fortified military posts manned by Indian and Pakistani soldiers on their respective sides of the border, Sharma is heading alone to a destination that should not exist. The title border post, Post 99, is in no man’s land, a place that is supposed to remain empty of soldiers, guns, and border posts. It is also a place where the slightest misstep could lead to disaster.

When Patankar describes the no man’s land that is Post 99, he makes it sound like a location that could come right out of a Grimm fairytale. Sharma arrives at his post to find himself in a dense forest, surrounded by nothing but tall pine trees. His first morning there, he is greeted by birdsong and a cool breeze. Although this seems like a calm, peaceful setting for a young soldier’s first mission, Sharma does not enjoy the solitude of the forest. He feels boredom and intense homesickness, and he fears the long nights spent alone in the dark.

From the time we first meet him traveling to his post, Sharma is tense. Even after he seems safe in his beautiful campsite, he is worried about the possibility of running into Pakistani soldiers who are also ignoring the unspoken rules of no man’s land. The novel itself becomes quite tense when Sharma’s fears are realized; he is not alone at Post 99. After Sharma’s terror-inducing discovery, Patankar switches from Sharma’s perspective to that of the object of his terror—the Pakistani soldier Captain Abid Khan. Unlike Sharma, Khan is an experienced officer who enjoys the quiet relaxation of his lonely border post. From this point forward, Patankar gives readers equal access to the thoughts and actions of Sharma and Khan. He does a wonderful job giving life to both characters, showing them in their roles as soldiers, family members, and human beings. While these two men differ greatly in their military experience, personalities, and of course their politics, they are connected not only by their position on the border but also by their deep love of their homes. Both characters receive letters from the people they love and dream of seeing these precious relatives again. Patankar’s greatest achievement in this novel is how he makes readers care deeply about the fates of both of his characters.

To avoid giving away important spoilers, I won’t offer any details about the several encounters between Sharma and Khan that take place throughout the novel. I think it is enough to say that they encounter each other in emotional ways: sometimes frightening, sometimes silly, and sometimes moving. One criticism I had reading through the novel was that the brief dialogue between Sharma and Khan, in which they basically just yell threats at each other, often seems a bit ridiculous. But then again, is it so crazy to assume that soldiers alone in the forest confronting an unknown enemy would scream “I’ll kill you” in rage and fear over and over again? The dialogue isn’t flashy, but it does feel real. Ultimately, I think this is a strength. Patankar is presenting his characters as actual humans caught in a terrifying and potentially deadly situation.

Overall, there is an interesting fairytale-like atmosphere to this novel that comes from more than just the lonely forest setting. Although I was constantly asking myself if Sharma and Khan would end up killing each other, ending the novel in the horror and bloodshed of war, this tension was combated by strange, beautiful moments where the characters read letters from home, imagine the people and places they love, and even listen to the terrible yet beautiful sound of leopards roaming in the night. So, I assert that this novel is an intense, wartime fairytale. But that doesn’t give anything away. After all, while some fairytales end with a “happily ever after,” others have much darker conclusions. I give Border Post 99, and its conclusion, 4 out of 4 stars. If you care to know whether I approve of the ending because it is happy or because it is tragic, you’ll just have to read the novel and see for yourself.

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Border Post 99
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[Ashley Simon]

I love this idea of showcasing two human beings on opposite ends of a conflict, and revealing their humanity. That's an idea I've played around with myself in some short stories - I'll have to check out this book. Great review!