Review by MsTri -- Border Post 99 by Kedar Patankar

[MsTri]

[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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Your biggest enemy is within your grasp. You're ordered not to engage. Are you able to obey? Such is the quandary for Lieutenant Mangesh Sharma and Captain Abid Khan in Kedar Patankar's book, Border Post 99. The two soldiers have been sent to the border between India and Pakistan in order to keep an eye on things in the secluded area known as “No Man's Land”. The task is easy enough as long as they each think they're alone at their posts, but once they spot each other, they have trouble obeying their superiors' orders. The problem is that even though they're both aware of the agreement, neither trusts the other to uphold their end of the deal. There are only so many ways such a setup could end - with one or both soldiers dead, with the soldiers remaining enemies, or with the soldiers ending up as friends - and you'll have to read the story to see which ending comes to pass.

This normally isn't my type of book, but I'm glad I took a chance and read it. While I wouldn't exactly call either man “likable”, I was able to put myself in their shoes and empathize with them. Twenty-five-year-old Indian Mangesh, referred to by his last name throughout the book, was a freshly commissioned officer right out of the Indian Military Academy at Dehradun who had no battle experience and had never fired a gun at anything but dummy targets. When he spotted Captain Khan a few days into his duty, he was understandably shaken and concerned about his welfare. Pakistani Abid, on the other hand, had served in the army for the last nine years and seen plenty of skirmishes. Upon spotting Sharma, he was more than a little perturbed and ready to disobey orders; he felt he could not “rely on Indians”, so he didn't want to be caught unguarded.

Such a scenario made for a very tense read, and I was constantly on the edge of my seat, waiting for either of them to forget their orders and kill the other. As it was, they soon started playing little “pranks” on each other with each successive prank upping the ante in terms of danger and possible outcome. Unfortunately, after the first few pranks, I was tired of the childish behavior and ready for more to happen. Thankfully, the story soon took a turn with a surprising twist.

When the soldiers weren't making their rounds or playing pranks on each other, they spent their time bathing, cooking, eating, or reading letters from home. I love how the author used the last activity in particular to humanize the soldiers. Too often, when we think of war or soldiers, we forget that they have families that they love and that love them back. Author Patankar did a splendid job with each character's background story, and I smiled with Sharma when he read letters from his parents and cried with Khan as he wrote to his beloved wife, Soha. Khan's many thoughts about his grandfather, Dadajaan, also tugged at my heartstrings.

There were a handful of other characters, including each soldier's commanding officer and the villagers who brought the men their weekly deliveries of food and mail, and I felt they all played vital roles in the tale. Additionally, there were a few scenes with a leopard which served to heighten the suspense even more.

The book started off with lengthy descriptions, so I had no trouble picturing the two-mile stretch of land and forest where the story takes place. As the soldiers made their rounds, I was right there with them, smelling the forest and hearing the water.

Patankar's writing was straightforward, which I thought was perfect for this type of book, and I found no grammatical or syntax errors. I will note, however, that the book had no chapter breaks, and it often switched point of view without warning. Neither of these made the reading difficult for me, but I could see how it may be off-putting for others.

I don't want to give the ending away, but I will say that I walked away from the book with a newfound appreciation for people in general. No matter our nationality or heritage, at the end of the day, we're all human, and I think this book did an excellent job reminding me of that. With that being said, the ending wasn't completely clear-cut, so I'd love for there to be a sequel (or two) at some point, perhaps following Sharma and/or Khan at some point in their lives.

In my final analysis, I think Border Post 99 was an excellent story with thought-provoking themes of acceptance, tolerance, and forgiveness. I therefore give this book 4 out of 4 stars and recommend it for readers interested in historical fiction, the military, and war.

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Border Post 99
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Like MsTri's review? Post a comment saying so!

[bookowlie]

What an interesting review for what sounds like a great book! I like your comment that the story took a surprising turn right around the time you started getting tired of the childish pranks. I've read books like that where there is a nice plot twist right when I am starting to get bored.

[Arushi Singh]

I am really intrigued by your review. I'm going to read this one.