Title: Armories and Arsenals
Author: Devarya Singhania
ISBN: 9789354462962
Publisher: Evincepub Publishing

Book Review by Antara Bhattacharya

Mental health is one of the most important topics to be addressed, especially in the current times. The number of patients suffering from various mental health issues has taken a surge and at a very alarming rate. People are suffocated with the troubles going on. Some address it, take help, and some cannot. But, have you ever thought about how it feels? Feeling depressed? No energy? Lots of pain in heart, but unable to express it? How does it all feel? Also, it’s not just about the inner conflicts. But when you see the world suffering, when you see the inhumane practices among humans, when you see people betraying each other, when you see our leaders misusing the support they have, what thoughts come to your mind? Do you think of solutions, or ignore them like most of us? Or do you pen them down somewhere, weaving them into painful, yet beautiful pieces to read, just like this book?

The book, Armories, and Arsenals, penned down by Devarya Singhania talks about the same pain, same feeling, and same helplessness through beautiful pieces of poetry. The book also talks about patriarchy, the crimes going on, wars and democracy using alluring lines weaved into deep, engaging poems. The purpose of the poet is to express the pain and sadness, revolving around us and, within us. The poems in the book will arouse various emotions in you, some shocking, some sad, some surprised, and lots more. The book revolves around many themes like mental health, crime, etc. to make people feel what all is going around them and how brutal the actions are.

The book is written in the context of ongoing times of covid-19 pandemic, wars, corruption, domestic violence, caste discrimination, exploitation, hatred among people, protests, struggles, depression, anxieties, etc. All the topics may sound negative, but look around you, they are all the harsh reality penned down beautifully by the author.

First of all, the poems are classic with wonderful usage of vocabulary and expression of emotions. From the first poem itself, The reader will feel the emotions and pain expressed by the author. The poems on topics like democracy, wars, farmers, rich-poor gap, assaults, patriarchy, exploitations are given on point. The reader would feel the anger and melancholy expressed in each of the poems, which will force the reader to think about the contributions and what are we all doing to stop it all? The way the author has shown how power, misogyny, patriarchy, money, etc are used as weapons by people to dominate others for their gains is amazing. Topics like mental health issues, how one feels suffocated, and what they feel while suffering it all are written in a very realistic and relatable way. If you want to feel the pain and want to become more empathetic towards others and the ongoing issues, make sure you pick up this book.

Now, the writing style is classic and doesn’t feel like some new-age poetry. The poems are painful, yet so engaging and addicting that once you start reading, the book becomes undownputable. The vocabulary used by the author is rich and helpful if you are looking for some fantastic words to learn and use. Poems like Beauty and the Beast, Memories will make you go through various kinds of emotions, and you will surely be impressed by the masterpieces. The usage of commas, spacing, and full stops seems to be perfect in the poems. Punctuation plays a major role in poetry, and in this book, everything has fallen into place perfectly.

The book is worth giving a try. Remember, this one won’t be a regular style poetry book, but a thought-provoking classic that will force you to think about where we are going and what is happening around the world. The book will also make you empathetic towards others, as inner conflicts among people are also shown aptly and realistically. So, if you are a poetry lover and want to read something extremely engaging, entertaining, and thought-provoking, this one will be the best one for you.