'Don't Tell Mama' by Nikolay Yordanov is the story of several people as they come to terms with their sexuality while trying to live as best they can. This is the story of love, fright, and acceptance as the characters navigate their place in the world where they can be themselves.
Luke, Miembre, Nae-il, Tamika, Iman, Alexander, Hakim, and Matias are all from different parts of the world, yet all of them have something in common. They all love and feel something for people they really shouldn’t. Society will not let them love who they want, but the heart wants what it wants, regardless of its repercussions. Some of them try to hold their feelings back, some try to make sense of it while some have accepted that love is not in the cards for them. Who deserves to live like this? Don’t they all have the right to love whoever they want?
'Don't Tell Mama' is told from the perspective of an entity observing all these characters from afar and telling their story. It is watching over them, feeling their pain and confusion. While people are now more open to love, there are still countries around the world not accepting of LGBTQ. Each character had a story to tell and each story was a little hard to read. There are many unnamed emotions, feelings, and desperation that you cannot help but feel. Author Nikolay Yordanov made me feel everything that his characters were going through. I felt Iman’s pain, Luke’s confusion, and how desperate Alexander was to live his life on his own terms but failing to do so. This is a beautiful yet emotional story, one that will open your eyes and make you realize love is beautiful in its essence. This is a powerful and incredibly well-written narrative that needs to be read by everyone.
Rabia Tanveer