Love across Borders: Stories of Love, Connection, and Friendship That Transcend the Physical Divide

Love Across Borders is a collection of 12 short stories that was a free e-book download from Indireads. Written by a number of contemporary South Asian writers from both sides of the India/. Pakistan border, the stories have a common theme: to show that the political and cultural divide between Pakistani and Indian nationalities, between Hindus and Muslims, is not divided by an impenetrable wall. Friendships, love and a common bond can develop between individuals from these different backgrounds. All of the stories, except for the one titled "One Stupid Comment" are set in our contemporary 'electronically borderless' times of Facebook, email and Twitter. Some of the friendships/ love interests are new. Others are ones that had been show more forgotten or lost over time after they were forged in South Asia or abroad (North America) before or just after 1971 and those turbulent political times.

The stories were interesting reading for me in that they brought forward in very simple, matter of fact terms, a number of cultural differences that a non South Asian may have difficulty grasping - strong, controlling familial ties, arranged marriages, as well as religious and cultural beliefs/stereotyping that exists between these two countries. The stories are short and while they appear to be geared towards a general South Asian audience - a glossary of terms would have been helpful when reading some of the stories - I was still able to enjoy the stories and appreciate what the editors hope to accomplish with this collection. An apt title, Love Across Borders, that is for sure. show less