The Book of Everlasting Things: A Novel

As someone who collects perfumes, stationery, and all things nostalgic, I was enthralled by Aanchal Malhotra’s The Book of Everlasting Things from the very first descriptions of scent and paper. Following Samir and Firdaus through their childhood in Lahore, Pakistan, in the midst of Partition, this debut novel leaves nothing unturned in its deep characterization of a subcontinent torn apart at the seams.

Malhotra’s background as a historian and textile expert is clear in the vibrant sensory details of her setting—from the dusty historic center of Lahore to the redolent fields of Grasse, France, the reader is enclosed in a world of love, color, and beauty. With a voice full of understanding and nostalgia, the author also introduces the reader to the human experience of Partition, when cities, neighborhoods, and friendships were uprooted suddenly and violently.

The Book of Everlasting Things is devastating but full of hope: a love letter to history, craft, and love itself.