One Amazing Thing is a beautifully rendered book taking you through the vast debris of an annihilating earthquake at the Indian embassy in the United States. The 9 people that are trapped realize that they have more in common in death than in life. In order to pass the long tumultuous hours as they wait to be rescued, they each share “One Amazing Thing” that has affected their lives. Stories of love lost and found, relationships acidulated over time ,longings to be with their beloved, childhood memories and innate talents.

The literary style is so effortless, still powerful. As the author takes you from one story to another, the characters come live. Totally enthralled by the book, I shared a space among the characters, listening to their stories, being transported to the different lands that they took me to. I tasted every morsel of the scarce food that they ate, felt every drop of the depleting supply of water satiate my parched throat, every burn of the throbbing pain , Uma felt in her broken arm. Divakurni’s writing is so seamless in the way that she weaves a beautiful mesh of individual stories taking the reader from old time calcutta to the United States in a matter of seconds.

Its hard to miss the parallels of Chaucer’s The Canterbury tales as  Uma a very observant graduate student, inspired by the book suggests that the small group of 9 share one amazing story from their lifetime. You can smell the leather and the tanneries as grandma Jiang talks about her life as a little girl and feel the love between her and Mohit. As Lily renders her story one can hear her play the flute in the most melodious of tunes, you can feel the coolness of the herbal face packs Lola would use in her Ladies Salon, you can feel every bit of heart break as Mrs Pritchett talks about her attempted suicide, the betrayal Tariq feels when he says “This was my country. I was an American. The thought of being driven from my home filled me with rage.” You hear every crack in the plaster, you feel the cold water tickle Uma’s calf, the exhaustion in Cameron’s voice as he dreams of meeting Seva. Mangalam’s deep hatred for his wife and equally deep love for Lathika, the utter guilt that Mr Pritchett felt when he found his little kitten dead in the ice box, Uma’s fears and Malathi’s pride at her one and only most courageous deed, the collective eerie feeling when someone touches the arm of a corpse.

The book gives you glimpses of each person’s life,  taking you through a journey of  stories from people different in character,personality and experience but tied together in their tragedy. A beautifully written book that leaves you just a little drained because you moved through so many lives, but isnt that exactly what a book should do?