The Peripheral

Travelling home on the 5.39 from Wynyard, Sydney based solicitor Rene freezes in her seat as she glances at the cover of a book another passenger is holding. Why does the title of the book spark off a series of nightmares and strange memories for her? Rene, troubled, opens an old suitcase of her father's, left untouched since his death.Inside, Rene finds photographs of a young boy holding her as a baby, along with a poem, a half-knitted scarf, some toys, and a birth certificate.To discover the truth behind what has so obviously been kept a secret, Rene must travel to India, the country of her birth, despite the distressing experiences she had during her last visit there. Far away Nimesh has been living a lie, a life met with fear, hostility, often violence. Two seekers are on their own voyage of discovery. Will they find what they are looking for?A migrant herself, author Meena Mahanty Kumar provides us endearing and thought-provoking glimpses of migrant life with its culture shock and the challenges that come from straddling two worlds.