Rebel: Short Stories

The stories in this anthology share a unique distinction: all navigate the different aspects of the Maoist insurgency in Nepal when the Himalayan country of Mount Everest was thrown chaotically into the Peoples War. Originally written in Nepali by police officers Maoist fighters and established authors the stories show different aspects of the war time era of Nepal during the decade starting 1996. Manu Brajakis Now Your Turn My Dear! offers an intimate look at the crippling fear and tragedy that befall a couple. Bhaupanthis The Senseless Killing of a Man focuses on the gratuitous killing of a government officer. Maya Thakuris The Descending Mountain explores the grim reality of rural life during the conflict and Padmavati Singhs The Silence of Violence centers on the plight of a displaced village woman. Bhagirathi Shresthas Execution mingles the disturbed mental state and execution of its main character with the questionable war-time values of society. Sharmila Khadkas Sukanya Alias Nilima presents an injured officers stream of consciousness during his hazy awakening after an attack and Roshan Thapas Unbearable follows a mans emotional return to his razed village. In Khagendra Sangraulas Harerams Mother we suffer through an old womans lamentation over the death of her son. Similarly we endure the plight of a poor farmer in Ghanashyam Dhakals Remorse. In both Homshankar Bastolas The Shadow of a Gun and Saral Sahayatris We Two Soldiers we are presented with both sides of the war and its destructive ability to divide close friends. Mahesh Bikram Shahs Buddha in the Slaughterhouse presents an eerie scene of death and depravity reminiscent of Hitlers concentration camps. A young soldier observes a pregnant womans murder in Nirmal Acharyas A Civil Servants Diary while Rajkumar Dikpals Liwang 2006 tells the harrowing tale of an old woman.Finally we accompany a captive soldier on his march to death in Nawa Silwals The Prisoner.