Author: Adi Sathe

  • गारूड देसाईंच्या “श्रीमान योगी”चं

    गारूड देसाईंच्या “श्रीमान योगी”चं

    तेव्हा मी चवथी पाचवीत असेन कदाचित. तोवर आजीच्या कपाटातली पुस्तकं कधी कधी ओझरतीच दिसायची. कधी कधी नाशिकच्या सार्वजनिक वाचनालयातून आणलेले पुस्तक पण डोळ्यासमोर यायचे . पण कधी हातात घेऊन वाचायची इच्छा झाली नाही. बहुतेक, उन्हाळी सुट्टी होती. कधी नव्हे ते आजीच्या कपाटातील पुस्तकांचा खजिना धुंडाळत होतो. पुस्तकांच्या कडेला लिहिलेली पुस्तकाची आणि साहित्यिकांची नावे वाचता वाचता एका वेगळ्याच पुस्तकाशी माझी नजर थांबली.

    पुस्तक चांगल जाडजूड होतं. वेगळ्याच पिवळसर रंगाच्या कडक बांधणीच्या पुस्तकावर कोणतीच नोंद नव्हती. पुस्तकाचं नांव नाही, कोणी लिहिलं माहिती नाही. पण त्या रंगाने मला चांगलेच पकडुन ठेवले. आपसूक हात पुढे गेला आणि पुस्तक बाहेर काढले. त्या वेळी बरेच जड वाटले ते. हजार एक पाने सहज असतील असा विचार करत पुस्तकाचं मुखपृष्ठ उलटले आणि ठळक केशरी अक्षरे डोळ्यापुढे आली.

    “श्रीमान योगी”. अर्थ, अर्थातच कळला नाहीच. पण वाचायला सुरुवात केली आणि आयुष्यात पहिल्यांदा पुस्तक वाचण्यात काय मजा असते हे रणजित देसाई या माणसाच्या एका पुस्तकाने पहिल्या फटक्यात दाखवून दिले. रणजित देसाई किती थोर साहित्यिक आहेत याची जाणीव तेव्हा असण्याचे काहीच कारण नव्हते पण त्या पुस्तकातले शब्द जणू माझ्या मानगुटीवर बसले आणि चक्क ३ दिवसात मी त्या पुस्तकाचा फडशा पाडला…

    पुढे याची अनेक पारायणे झाली. देसाईंची अजून काही पुस्तके मधल्या काळात वाचली पण ती विस्मरणात गेली आहेत. आता नव्याने देसाईंची पुस्तके हाती घेतो आहे. “बाबुलमोरा” या कथासंग्रहापासून पुनश्च हरिओम…

    माझ्या वाचनात आलेल्या इतर पुस्तकांबद्दल जाणून घेण्यासाठी येथे क्लिक करा. प्रोज प्रकाशनाने प्रकाशित केलेला माझा ऑडिओ कविता संग्रह “चिमुकली स्वप्ने” तुम्हाला इथे ऐकता येईल.

  • One of the finest Poirot story by Agatha

    One of the finest Poirot story by Agatha

    No wonder Agatha Christie is called the queen of mysteries. Even though my earlier book from this series didn’t meet the expectations swt by Agatha’s earlier work, Cards on the Table has lived upto the mark. Infact, i would go a step further and say this is by far the best Poirot story I have read.

    The way story plot is woven to make it a thick fabric with finer design with plot twists and unexpected turns, it has taken the book to the new height.

    I don’t think I am worthy of commenting the narration of Hugh Fraser. I am his fan and have skipped picking up any other audio-book of Poirot series if it’s not narrated by Mr. Hugh.

    Blurb

    Mr Shaitana was famous as a flamboyant party host. Nevertheless, he was a man of whom everybody was a little afraid. So, when he boasted to Poirot that he considered murder an art form, the detective had some reservations about accepting a party invitation to view Shaitana’s private collection.

    About the book

    Title: Cards on the Table
    Author: Agatha Christie, Narrator: Hugh Fraser
    Length:
    Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Ltd

    Where to Buy

    My rating

    Story: 4/5
    Narration: 4/5

    Overall rating: 4/5

    Should you read it?

    You should not miss this one if you are a fan of Agatha Christie’s work.

    If you want more book recommendations, click here.

  • Not the best of Hercules Poirot

    Not the best of Hercules Poirot

    Three Act Tragedy – a book review

    I am a fan of Agatha Christie’s writing and love her Poirot stories. However, this particular one felt missing the usual mark of her fantastic crime fiction writing. I am not able to put my finger on a thing which is missing, but there’s something which is not quite right about this book.

    I read it in a form of Audio book. So for this particular book, the narration done by Hugh Fraser was the thing which kept me going till the end.

    Blurb

    Thirteen guests arrived at dinner at the actor’s house. It was to be a particularly unlucky evening for the mild-mannered Reverend Stephen Babbington, who choked on his cocktail, went into convulsions and died. But when his martini glass was sent for chemical analysis, there was no trace of poison, just as Poirot had predicted. Even more troubling for the great detective, there was absolutely no motive.

    About the book

    Title: Three Act Tragedy
    Author: Agatha Christie, Narrator: Hugh Fraser
    Length:
    Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Ltd

    Where to Buy

    My rating

    Story: 2.5/5
    Narration: 3.5/5

    Overall rating: 3/5

    Should you read it?

    It’s not bad that you should steer clear from this one. Do read it.

    If you want more book recommendations, click here.

  • That’s life for you, in rhymes and rhythm! – Book Review

    That’s life for you, in rhymes and rhythm! – Book Review

    If you are into poetry and want to have a nice short package describing our day-to-day life, go and fetch this book titled “Whimsical Poetry: Fiction and Reality”.

    I really loved the way Syeda Javeria Fatima has added small small anecdotes about the poems she put in this short collection. The snippets of the comments she received when she talked about her alma matter, the way she see and feel proud about her mother! It all makes these poems very relatable.

    Only thing i would have loved in this is more poems!

    Blurb

    “Whimsical Poetry” is a poetry compilation penned by a young author Javeria. This book contains fragments of fiction as well as reality. She is certain that this book will take the reader on a rollercoaster ride. Be it happiness, grief, peace, admiration, or sorrow, she will make you feel it all!

    About the book

    Title: WHIMSICAL POETRY Fiction and Reality
    Author: Syeda Javeria Fatima
    Pages: 52
    Publisher: Notion Press

    My review

    Poetry: 4/5
    Cover Design: 3.5/5

    Overall rating: 3.75/5

    Where to Buy

    Should you read it?

    If you like poetry and want to see a reflection of our day-to-day life in one, definitely pick this book.

    If you want more book recommendations, click here.

  • Life is beautiful with a seasoning of salt – Book Review

    Life is beautiful with a seasoning of salt – Book Review

    Every day we witness so many instances which are part of a story unfolding around us. It is really a difficult thing to pick those instances up and look at them as a third person and narrate a story. Storytelling is indeed a difficult task. You have to know how to build it up to give one of a kind experience to reader or listener of your story. After reading this book, I can safely and happily say Asfiya Rahman has a knack to keep you engaged in her stories.

    Life With a Pinch of Salt is her latest collection published in Blogchatter’s Ebook Carnival. I am thankful for them to put it in reader’s hands. Stories included in this very short collection are woven around tiny instances of everyday life which we all experience. This relatability made me finish this tiny collection in one sitting.

    Things which I enjoyed

    First of all, I can’t stop myself from praising the gorgeous cover design with simple salt and paper shakers. Life is really bland without seasoning of fun, quirk and bizarre. Asfiya has story for everything above and some extra. Even though stories are very short flash fictions, they are complete in itself. I am eagerly waiting for more stories from her. Hope she bring out more and more such books!

    Blurb

    Life is a wonderful gift that each one of us has been given. We often get bogged down by the mundane routine of life and the weight of our expectations and forget this. This collection of short stories and flash fiction is a small attempt to remind us that life is messy and adventurous and full of surprises.

    Life isn’t meant to be perfect, it’s meant to be lived.

    About the book

    Title: Life With a Pinch of Salt
    Author: Asfiya Rahman
    Pages: 38

    My review

    Story: 4/5
    Cover Design: 4.5/5

    Overall rating: 4.25/5

    You can grab your copy of Life With a Pinch of Saltby Asfiya Rahman here.

    Should you read it?

    I enjoyed this little book and I hope it has picked me up from my reading slump. I hope this will pick you up from yours too if you are having one.

    This is a part of Blogchatter’s Ebook Carnival. If you want more book recommendations, click here.

  • Dharma Artha Kama Moksha – Poetry by Seethalakshmi Suraj

    Dharma Artha Kama Moksha – Poetry by Seethalakshmi Suraj

    My journey in the world of poetry began quite late. I hardly enjoyed them during my school days. However, when I was in college, something came to me spontaneously and my journey started. My lines were not polished, nor they had a particular form. So I started to read about poetry. After a decade or so, I can dare to say that I write a decent poetry in Marathi with one audiobook under my belt. “चिमुकली स्वप्ने” my first and only poetry collection is available on storytel for you all to enjoy.

    However, my understanding of English poetry is that of a beginner’s level. I sometime fail to comprehend if a particular piece is a poetry or just a paragraph. I found Seethalakshmi’s “Dharma Artha Kama Moksha” in Blogchatter’s E-book librabry. This particular book is a part of their Ebook carnival where I have also put up my book ओंजळभर प्रेम.

    Who did I like this one?

    Let me tell you very frankly that I fail to understand quite a few poems in this book due to my lack of understanding. Yet there are few pieces which grabbed my attention and one of them is “I See a Monster from My Window”. I just loved the way she has created this imagery of continuously growing plastic eating monster which one day will eat us all. My most favorite lines from the poem are

    Who feeds the monster, you ask?
    Oh, to remember every name, is a task
    It’s definitely me, it’s definitely you,
    It’s our every neighbour, old & new

    I see a monster from my window | Harita (Dharma Artha Kama Moksha by Seethalakshmi)

    She has penned poems covering four aspects of human life and I am sure every poet atleast once have written about Moksh / Mukti in one form or the other. Even I couldn’t stop myself from writing

    लागे मज आस, सायुज्य मुक्तीची,
    तोड बेडी आता, कर्मचक्र… ||

    I liked the way she has designed the book. Yet only think which is missing in the copy of ebook is the cover used in other graphics. Use of the same cover would have improved the appearance a bit. I am enjoying my this learning experience and am sure people who are ahead of me on this path will enjoy this collection for sure.

    You can grab your copy of Dharma Artha Kama Moksha by Seethalakshmi here.

    This is a part of Blogchatter’s Ebook Carnival. You can read more of my book recommendations here.