Sutanuka Ghosh Roy reviews Sohini Sen’s The Dandelions Have It (Penprints, 2025), observing how it is a ceremoniously innovative and thematically rich contribution to contemporary English literature.
- ISBN: 978-81-988004-8–0 (hardback)
- Price: Rs 2600| $ 85.
The Dandelions Have It weaves the threads of prose fiction with visual art to produce a unique ‘coffee-table illustrated literary fiction’. Sohini Sen crafts a text that is both aesthetically appealing and thought-provoking. The use of mixed-media collages is an avant-garde feature in literary fiction. The hybridization of the text and the image aligns the work with contemporary experiments in intermediality, blurring the boundaries between literary and visual arts. These visual elements do not merely illustrate but co-build meaning, offering a multifaceted reading experience. The collage technique used by Sen in the text—the juxtaposition of disparate materials—serves as a metaphor for the narrative itself: scrappy yet unified, messy yet meaningful. Its cross-generational appeal and experimental form locate it as a significant intervention in the evolving landscape of illustrated literary fiction. The Dandelions Have It is a heady concoction of philosophical inquiry, visual artistry and ecological consciousness.
Located in the serene Himalayan landscape, the ‘illustrated literary fiction’ narrates the existential journey of Quillo, a hedgehog, whose empirical growth unfolds through chance meetings with a whole badge of anthropomorphic animals. It can be dubbed a bildungsroman, which chronicles Quillo’s emotional and ethical evolution. However, Sen complicates this conventional framework through the amalgamation of magic realism, allowing the narrative to operate simultaneously on literal and symbolic planes. The manifestation of elements such as a “magic pebble” and thoughtfully eloquent animals enables a layered reading experience where realism is kneaded with allegory.
The title The Dandelions Have It is symbolic: the ‘dandelion’—often dismissed as a wild weed—becomes a metaphor for survival, adaptability and unrecognized beauty—“they grow where they are not meant to, yet refuse to be erased”, foregrounding a politics of perseverance. The image of “yellow heads bending but not breaking in the wind” encapsulates both vulnerability and resilience, a duality that makes the text unique. At its thematic core, the work interrogates structures of power and exclusion. The Dandelions Have It has a neat structure—augmented by sections aligned with elemental categories such as “Air”, “Earth”, “Water” and “Fire”—advocates a quasi-mythic movement. This elemental taxonomy not only binds the threads of the narrative but also creates a unique tapestry of a cosmological unity, reinforcing the ecological ethos of the text. The Himalayan setting is not merely a backdrop but an active epistemological force. The narrative foregrounds a deep ecological awareness, commending readers to review their relationship with nature. The animals—Himalayan Wolf, Hedgehog, Owl, Squirrel, chough, etc., embody modes of being that resist anthropocentric hierarchies, advocating instead for coexistence and mutual care. Quillo’s dilemmas— whether to step into shoes of others or remain true to himself—mirror existential questions of identity formation.
“Lonī helped the tiny hedgehog sit up. Quillo opened his eyes finally, coughed and said: ‘I was in the water. The water was in me.’
You should never let the water get into you, Q. You had me very worried,’ said Lonī, gruffly. ‘Quillo is sorry, Lonī. Quillo was only trying to see if he had grown some.’
You will grow all your life. Not all growth can be seen.”
The text honours self-acceptance over imitation, aligning with philosophical traditions that advocate “being” rather than “becoming” in a teleological sense. The narrative constructs a utopian yet fragile community where difference is not erased but harmonized. The unusual friendship between different species underscores the possibility of ethical relationality beyond normative frontiers. Sen unequivocally foregrounds the importance of emotional intelligence over technological advancement, signifying that literature can serve as a site of healing and introspection in a fragmented world.
Sen’s prose is marked by lyrical simplicity, often swerving into aphoristic reflection. The language is accessible yet morally resonant, enabling a twofold readership: younger audiences may engage with the narrative at a surface level, while adult readers encounter deeper existential and ethical inquiries. The dialogic exchanges between characters recurrently function as vehicles for philosophical discourse, sometimes bordering on didacticism. However, this tendency is allayed by humour and warmth.
The Dandelions Have It is a ceremoniously innovative and thematically rich contribution to contemporary English literature.
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Reviewer’s Bio
Sutanuka Ghosh Roy is an Associate Professor of English at Tarakeswar Degree College, The University of Burdwan.
About the Book
Somewhere in the Himalayas, Quillo, a baby hedgehog, crawls into the most beautiful story: that of his life. He is surrounded and loved by a motley crowd that has Lonī, a vegan wolf, Whoo, an owl who sees best with his eyes closed, Onj, an orange-beaked chough who always has fresh news to share, and Bushkit, a talkative squirrel. Quillo has crucial choices to make—should he grow into a wolf like Lonī? Should he learn to fly? What to have for dinner? While life in the forest is often raw, messy and imperfect, Quillo’s friends tell him that ‘Mess is a message, too: that this dusk’s rainclouds will cleanse tomorrow’s dawn.’ Little Quillo discovers the joys of connections, learns that the simple act of not holding back creates abundance. That the most precious things in life are often unseen. With some help from a magic pebble, he can even touch his core. A field of dandelions in bloom holds perhaps the toughest lesson of all. Nothing, just nothing, can prepare Quillo for the life-changing event in the pine groves. This is a tale for young adults, and adults forever young at heart. Over 40 mixed-media collages add texture—literally, and figuratively—and richness to the story. This is the first time such collages, with definite cross-generational appeal, have been used for literary fiction. Much of the author’s inspiration comes from her experiences as a travel writer, and her deep connection with nature. The majesty of the rugged Himalayas, and the hardships of travelling among them for decades, have taught her to treat her fellow beings with kindness, and her own self with quite a bit of irreverence. In The Dandelions Have It these influences bring an authentic sense of place, gentle wisdom and humour that will resonate with kindred souls. Some of Sohini Sen’s books that display her versatility across genre and formats, from visual storytelling to heartfelt narrative, are: Ladakh: A Photo Travelogue (2016), Zanskar to Ziro: No Stilettos in the Himalayas (2017), A Drop of Golden Sun: Re-presenting Tagore’s Gitanjali (2023), and the novella, A Sense of Magnolias (2024).