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n her debut collection of stories titled A Woman and the Afternoon Sun, writer and publisher Shahbano Alvi employed a rich, unsentimental voice to fashion tales spanning multiple genres and experiences. A New Pigeon on the Block, Alvi’s second collection, is a comparatively slimmer volume, comprising fifteen stories that are vastly different from those in her previous book.
The blurb on the back cover, penned by author Aamer Hussein, reveals that Alvi has broadened the parameters of her creative canvas. Her new collection “examines the lives of migrants, expatriates and transients in Edinburgh, Oxford, London and elsewhere.”
Alvi’s stories have never been a prisoner to geographical locations. Her short fiction includes a heady mix of reflections on Karachi as well as some breath-taking reminiscences of the erstwhile East Pakistan. In the stories published in A New Pigeon on the Block, Alvi’s narrators are far more peripatetic and seem to carry the spirit of different worlds within themselves. A conversation or the whiff of a familiar fragrance is all it takes to steer them back to homes they’ve left behind.
Mercifully, the sophomore collection doesn’t depict the experiences of migrants in stereotypical hues. Alvi’s stories aren’t burdened with clichés about lost homelands and geopolitical events that compel migrants to develop a complicated relationship with the lives they build for themselves abroad. On the contrary, the author approaches the subject in an original and intriguing manner. Narrated from the perspective of a cat, The Black Cat Of Wimbledon reveals the multifaceted nature of the immigrant experience. Through this enriching tale, Alvi juxtaposes the dramatic realities of the elite Ansari family with the quiet struggles of Sunita, a domestic worker from India.
Kafir draws readers into the world of Sama, a second-generation immigrant who finds herself at home in both Western and Eastern cultures. She is, therefore, stunned when a domineering, narrow-minded aunt judges her harshly for deviating from her roots. A soul-stirring account, Kafir examines the internal conflicts faced by migrant communities as they struggle to navigate their conflicting, ever-evolving cultural identities.
Several stories in A New Pigeon on the Block draw their creative thrust from the meaningful yet unexpected bonds we create with others. In King Street, Aberdeen, two migrants from separate walks of life look for spiritual and emotional equilibrium in a foreign land by taking walks along a riverside. Abdul, who owns a meat shop, is reluctant to bring his family from Dhaka to live in Aberdeen with him as he fails to “understand these people, this society.” A wealthy, middle-aged woman, Rubina is struggling to escape an abusive marriage to a man grappling with his own “inner demons.” As they become unlikely confidantes to each other, Abdul and Rubina eventually summon the courage to alter the course of their lives.
Dereliction, loneliness and the shocking indifference of loved ones are dominant themes in Birds of Prey, a diptych about an ailing artist whose family disrupts his mental peace.
In most stories, death surfaces as a lethal enemy, interrupting the calm rhythm of friendship and other meaningful bonds.
A Quilt And A Thousand Books features an “eclectic mix” of people, scattered across the world, who are devastated by the news that their friend has been diagnosed with motor neurone disease. As Kamlesh Kumar Tyagi grapples with this cold, life-altering diagnosis, his loved ones have a patchwork quilt stitched for him, with all of their names embroidered on it. “Quilts,” one of his friends says, “are the textile pages of our shared history…it would be like a collective hug to him.” Filtered through multiple perspectives, this is a heart-breaking tale about anticipatory grief and the boundless spirit of friendship.
The lingering effects of grief also emerge in Kushtia, where a narrator attends a funeral service at the Regent’s Park Mosque. A chance encounter at a restaurant later in the day brings back memories of a childhood loss experienced in a distant land.
In most stories included in New Pigeon on the Block, death surfaces as a lethal enemy, interrupting the calm rhythm of friendships and other meaningful bonds. Bereft is one of the stronger stories that build on this motif. Written in the first and second-person perspectives, the story revolves around Donna, who recalls the warmth and kindness shown to her by a neighbour named Arif. His death leaves a gaping void in her life. In Scent Of Loneliness, the narrator refuses to throw out a host of half-dead chrysanthemums as they remind her of a companion who she has lost to death. Scent Of Loneliness, though poignant, leaves readers with many unanswered questions.
A similar effect is created in the two-page story Little Boys Of Karachi, leading some readers to conclude that Alvi’s strength lies in longer stories rather than flash fiction. The only exception is the drama-choked three-pager titled Acrimony, where a woman’s life comes to an unexpected, explosive end.
Not all the stories in A New Pigeon on the Block are coloured in the hues of foreign hinterlands. Some of the most effective stories are set in Karachi - Alvi’s city of residence. Even then, the characters appear to be in transit and are drawn to the city by the pull of friendship. In a three-part narrative titled My Friend In The City, a woman’s plans to meet her friend are interrupted by mundane household chores and crucial responsibilities. Written as a diary of sorts, the tale is a meditation on how we are all held captive by time and its exquisite cruelties.
The Covid-19 pandemic seeps into the title story as well as My Turn, a tale about sickness, mortality and the responsibilities we owe to one another in moments of crisis.
A sparse, courageous collection, A New Pigeon on the Block presents new perspectives on an oft-repeated theme. Alvi’s literal, functional prose makes it easier for readers to access her diverse creative realms and cherish the fascinating characters who inhabit them.
A New Pigeon on the Block
Author: Shahbano Alvi
Publisher: Liberty Publishing, 2025
Pages: 106
Price: Rs 930
The reviewer is a freelance journalist and the author of No Funeral for Nazia