A BOOK REVIEW: “STRINGS ATTACHED: A Visit To A Series of Short Rom-coms” in “LIFE IN THE TIMES OF CORONA: On A Mass Exile”

As someone who’s romantically challenged, I never thought that I could enjoy this anthology of flash fiction. Written by Firnita Taufick, “Strings Attached” brings me back to my teenage years.

To many people, the teenage years are when we still believe in love. It’s the time for teen romantic stories, soap operas, and rom-coms (romantic comedies.) It’s when we’re more concerned with whether our crush feels the same way too about us the way we do about them.

These are the years when heartbreaks almost feel like the end of the world … at least at first. You know what people say: there is still plenty of fish in the sea. It doesn’t matter if you say you’re a vegetarian. (Just kidding!)

Anyway, there are plenty of stories here that I could also relate to. In “Chapter I: Hope”, we still know how it feels to have such jitters. You know, those dancing butterflies in our stomachs – at the sight of our high school/college crushes before us. We can remember – or perhaps imagine – running into them – in the library or the coffee shop.

In “Chapter II: The Bliss”, I was reminded of all the magic, the exciting and scary possibilities all at once. Is this real? Does that person really feel the same way that I do?

How long will this last? Will I be heartbroken once this whole fantasy is over? Will I be able to get over that person soon enough? Will I find someone else again if that ever happens?

“Chapter III: The Despair” was probably the hardest part to read for me. No one in their right minds would ever want to deal with this. Relationships may end. People can still break up. Sometimes you’re forced to say goodbye to whatever or whoever you wish to stay with. Forever love is such a childish, abstract, and impossible concept. We realize and learn that as we grow up.

Still, when it comes to teenage romance, these are the possible phases we may all go through. There’s no bargaining to that. It’s just part of the risk.

Reading “Strings Attached” will leave you feeling bittersweet. Even a romantically challenged reader like me finished reading it with a smile on her face. Who knows? Maybe that good, old magic called love still exists, even when we still want to make sure that our grip on reality is still strong and solid …

Check out Firnita Taufick’s second book – “The Shorter Stories” in Gramedia now.
R.