Project Description

Saris and a Single Malt is a moving collection of poems written by a daughter for and about her mother. The book spans the time from when the poet receives a phone call in New York City that her mother is in a hospital in New Delhi to the time she carries out her mother’s last rites. The poems chronicle the author’s physical and emotional journey as she flies to India, tries to fight the inevitable, and succumbs to the grief of living in a motherless world. Divided into three sections, (Flight, Fire, and Grief), this collection will move you, astound you, and make you hug your loved ones.
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“Sweta’s words struck a chord with me, reminding me of how powerful our minds are, and how important our words are when it comes to health, wellness, and healing.” To read the full review, click here
“Sweta Vikram has beautifully expressed her time as she rushed to get to her mother before she passed, and the unfortunate time after her passing. She poignantly gives glimpses of what her mother meant to her. Each poem gives us insight into how she is coping with, and working through, her grief.” To read the full review, click here
“Sweta Srivastava Vikram is one of my favorite contemporary writers. I cherish her work. As always, Sweta puts everything into her work. Saris and a Single Malt is intensely personal, passionate, and profound.” To read the full review, click here
“This book was hard for me to read emotionally because I have not lost a parent and the thought of it terrifies me. One of our first relationships is that between parent and child and it’s disconcerting to think about no longer having that connection. So I read most of the book with tears in my eyes and a frog in my throat. I felt for the author very much because of her grief and sadness.” To read the full review, click here
“What is so beautiful about this book is that it expresses Sweta’s personal experiences and relationship with her Mom, but it also puts into words the emotions that so many of us feel but are unable to express when we are saying good-bye to our own mothers.” To read the full review, click here
“Saris and a Single Malt emphasizes the hole left behind after the loss of a parent, how the pain never goes away but just dulls over time. It’s not often that I find a collection of poems that truly speaks to me, but Saris and a Single Malt did, putting Vikram on my short list of favorite contemporary poets.” To read the full review, click here
“The language is easy to read and simple, but yet filled with a deep meaning, plus a great use of symbolism and metaphors, which makes the reader reflect – it’s as if I could almost feel her pain my own chest.” To read the full review, click here
“Like love, grief is an emotion that bonds us. Through these poems and mini essays, Vikram show us the entire grieving process and how it tears us down so we can rebuild ourselves. Saris and a Single Malt by Sweta Srivastava Vikram is a tribute to a wonderful woman, who may have lived differently than her daughter, and while it comes after her passing, it signals to us to cherish those we have.” To read the full review, click here
“The hope of light flickering at the tunneling end of grief is what keeps you moving forward but it’s the resolve to hold onto the memories where love flourished and thrived is what helps us heal our hearts.” To read the full review, click here
“The poems are like conversing with self, the anticipation of what awaits one at the end of the journey. The rituals are the means to an end…they help us cope. With grief, With oneself…and yes we also bond with our siblings…” To read the full review, click here
“Saris and a Single Malt is a beautiful and touching collection. One that allows the reader to feel the true soul of the poet and her precious relationship with her mother. Simply exquisite.” To read the full review, click here
“Saris and a Single Malt is a deeply effecting work, that will resonate with readers long after the last page is read. It is a gift to a mother who will always be in a daughters thoughts. A wonderful collection of poetry that is fitting on any daughter’s shelf. A collection that will help others deal with the loss of their own loved ones.” To read the full review, click here
“There are few books like Saris and a Single Malt in which the loss of a mother, a homeland, and the self come together in a sustained elegy.”
– Justen Ahren, Director Noepe Center, Author of A Strange Catechism
“In life, as in poetry, one must come from the heart. Sweta Vikram has done both with touching eloquence. Her work resonates deeply within one’s deepest emotional sacristy.”
– Sharon Kapp, Owner & Founder, Houston Yoga & Ayurvedic Wellness Center
“Saris and a Single Malt is a fitting and delightful tribute of a writer daughter to her affectionate mother which goes deep into the minds of all children who love their moms.”
– K. V. Dominic, English language poet, critic, short-story writer, and editor from Kerala, India