Book Review: ‘Finding Belle’ by Reeta Chakrabarti

Book Title: Finding Belle
Author: Reeta Chakrabarti
Publisher: HarperCollins
Number of Pages: 368
ISBN: 978-0008777777
Date Published: May 16, 2025
Price: INR 337

Book Review

Reeta Chakrabarti’s “Finding Belle” doesn’t waste time with pleasantries—it plunges headfirst into the stormy heart of a family that never quite fits together. At the center is Belle, a spirited Indian woman raised in Kenya, whose romance with the charming yet evasive British man, Fairfax, takes her far from home and into the isolating grip of suburban England. Told through the watchful eyes of her daughter, Mivvi, and peppered with Belle’s own diary entries, the novel unspools a haunting tale of cultural dislocation, motherhood, and the slow unraveling of a once-bright soul.

As Mivvi grows up, she’s constantly wading through emotional quicksand. Her father is absent more often than not—emotionally and sometimes physically—and her mother teeters on the edge of sanity, suffocated by loneliness and unfulfilled dreams. But this is no bleak drama for drama’s sake. It’s also a tender, sometimes wryly funny coming-of-age story about a girl trying to make sense of her fragmented world. From England’s grey skies to a poignant journey back to Kolkata, Mivvi’s search for answers is as much about reclaiming Belle’s story as it is about finding herself.

The author’s prose is elegant and empathetic, offering not just observations but gut punches. Her experience as a journalist shows in the carefully crafted layers—nothing is overdone, but everything hits where it should. Racism, infidelity, displacement, depression—these aren’t just buzzwords here, they’re woven into the characters’ daily reality. The emotional depth is both exhausting and exhilarating, like standing in a storm that lets in sudden rays of light. There are no easy resolutions, but there is beauty in watching Mivvi piece things together, slowly, bravely.

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In the end, “Finding Belle” is a heartfelt reminder that families can be broken and beautiful in equal measure. It’s a book for those who love slow-burning stories rich with emotional complexity and cultural nuance. Reeta Chakrabarti doesn’t just write a novel—she opens a door into a world where identity is fragile, memories are both balm and burden, and love, even when messy, still matters.

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