Tag: bookshelf

  • Frank Notes on Life in Khushwant Style

    Frank Notes on Life in Khushwant Style

    I remembered picking up this book from a newly opened crossword. Till that date, I had only heard name and fame of Khushwant Singh, a grand old man of letters. This was the first of his books I picked up. Though cover with a photograph of this old yet confidant man enticed me to buy, the book actually landed in my over-increasing pile of TBRs.

    His work is far from a light read and just for this reason, I had left the book once only after getting in just a few pages. But I picked it up once again after some years. This time, I decided to give it a serious read and man, I was blown away! His writing is so raw and true to his believes that some people will be turned away with it.

    What to expect from this?

    When he wrote this one, he was at the age of 96. He opens the book with this topic, about being old! In the later pages, he opens up about his views on sex, love and marriages. He talks about his relationship with his wife Kaval and the rough patch in their marriage. He also writes about his worries, insecurities and much more.

    Next he moves on to the people he came across in his life, few he liked, he respected and some whom he trashed with his pen. He had trashed the religious fundoos (his word for fundamentalists) from all the religions including his own with harsh strokes of his pen. Khushwant took a strong stand against Bhindranwale for which he was on their hit list for years. He shares his views about politics, terrorism and the riots of 1984.

    Even being agnostic himself, he writes elaborately on various religious scriptures and what he finds good in them. There is a long piece on Sikh community in the book along with one on the city of Delhi. Khushwant shares his love for Urdu language and especially for Urdu poetry, where he tells us how he enjoyed translating works of great poets in English and his favorites amongst those legends.

    From the blurb

    In Absolute Khushwant, India’s grand old man of letters tells us about his life, his loves and his work. He writes on happiness, faith and honesty. And, for the first time, about his successes and failures, his strengths and weaknesses, his highs and lows. He tells us what makes him tick and the secret of his longevity; he confesses his deepest fears and what he holds dear. He writes about sex, marriage, worship and death; the people he’s admired and detested. With personal anecdotes and rare photographs, Absolute Khushwant is uncompromising, moving, and straight from the heart.

    About the book

    • Title: Absolute Khushwant
    • Publisher: India Penguin
    • Published: Feb/2019
    • ISBN: 9780143068716
    • Length : 212 Pages
    • MRP : ₹250.00

    My Rating

    Content: 3.5/5
    Cover Design: 3.5/5
    Ease of reading: 2.5/5

    Overall: 3/5

    Where to get your copy

    Should you read it?

    Does a social commentary catches your attention? If the firm views don’t bother you, you are in for a treat. Just take up the book with open heart and give it a go. Not every one will enjoy this one.

    This post is a part of #BlogchatterA2Z 2023. For more about my views on books, click here.

  • नदीसाठी नादखुळा असलेल्या एका नदीष्टाची गोष्ट

    नदीसाठी नादखुळा असलेल्या एका नदीष्टाची गोष्ट

    एखादं पुस्तक वाचण्यापुरते कोणाकडून उसने घ्यावे आणि वाचून झाल्यावर हे पुस्तक संग्रही असायलाच हवे असे फार फार दिवसांनी आज मनोज बोरगावकर यांचे नदीष्ट वाचताना झाले. तसे पाहिले तर हे पुस्तक वाचायला तसा ४ वर्ष उशीरच झाला. अगदी प्रकाशनच्या दिवशी विकत घेऊन वाचण्यासारखे हे पुस्तक आहे यात अजिबात शंका नाही. आमच्या नाशकाच्या वरच्या बाजूला उगम पावणारी नदी पुढे जात जात नांदेडच्या बोरगावकरांना इतकी माया लावते, हे वाचताना केवळ गोदेच्या पाण्यावर पोसलेला अजून एक पिंड म्हणून की काय माझे एक वेगळेच नाते या पुस्तकाशी जोडले गेले आहे.

    विनायक पाटील यांनी पुस्तकाला अभिप्राय देताना म्हटल तशीच पुस्तकाची शैली अगदीच वेगळी आहे. पण पुस्तक खाली ठेवावे वाटत नाही इतकी मनाची घट्ट पकड घेणारी आहे. निवडून काढावे आणि मधून मधून वाचत राहावे असे खूप सारे विचारधन या संपूर्ण पुस्तकात पानापानावर विखुरले आहे.

    मलपृष्ठावरून

    विषय चाकोरी बाहेरचा आहे. शैली पहिल्या धारेची आहे. थेट कोंडूरा किंवा बनगरवाडीची आठवण करून देणारे लिखाण आहे. ‘नदीष्ट’ ही मनोज बोरगावकर यांची केवळ कादंबरी नाही, तो आहे त्यांच्या प्रत्यक्षदर्शी आणि अनुभवसिद्ध घटनांचा कसदार ललित गद्य हुंकार. ‘नदीष्ट’ ही मराठी कादंबरीविश्वातील अकरावी दिशा आहे.
    —
    विनायक पाटील, नाशिक

    पुस्तकाविषयी

    नांव: नदीष्ट
    लेखक: मनोज बोरगावकर
    पृष्ठ संख्या: १६८
    प्रकाशक: ग्रंथाली प्रकाशन
    आयएसबीएन-१०: 9357950702
    आयएसबीएन-१३: 978-9357950701

    माझे रेटिंग

    कथा: ५/५
    लेखनशैली: ५/५
    मुखपृष्ठ: ५/५

    एकूण रेटिंग: ५/५

    कुठे मिळेल?

    तुम्ही वाचायला हवे?

    आजवर जर तुम्ही ही कादंबरी वाचली नसेल तर मग पहिल्यांदा जवळच्या दुकानात जा, तुमची प्रत घेऊन या. आणि अगदीच घरबसल्या हवं असेल तर ऑनलाईन मागवा पण हे पुस्तक वाचायला विसरू नका, टाळू नका. वाचून झालं की नक्की सांगाल, अगदी उत्तम आहे म्हणून….

    माझ्या आवडीच्या पुस्तकांबद्दल अजून माहिती हवी असेल तर इथे क्लिक करा.

  • 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.

  • One when you miss the bus – Review of The Demons of Jaitraya

    One when you miss the bus – Review of The Demons of Jaitraya

    Indian mythologies have such a strong characters and folklore surrounding it, that any fiction author will get enticed to work on them. Some try to retell the story from different character’s perspective or some try to take the characters to entirely different era and see what will happen to them. Shubira tried the second thing.

    Review

    Plus point of The Demons of Jaitraya is a very strong plot to work with. However, I find the book an okay read for one time read. Her book couldn’t keep my eyes glued to words she has written. But i would not attribute this to her writing or storytelling. I think this book could have been more crisp and enticing with a better editing. There was a lot of repetition. Some things were told again and again which almost felt like copy paste of earlier paragraphs. I hope other books of this series have taken care of this. Cause I don’t want to lose out on this wonderful plot of events happening when Demons escaped from past wreaking havoc in today’s time and age.

    Blurb

    The epics say, in the great War of Ramayana, a number of rakshasas escaped. They hid in the bowels of the Earth, in the water and in space and remained dormant for eons. In the 20th century of the Christian era, however, some of them reappeared in different forms to plague the Earth with Wars and illnesses. At the end of his war with Ravana, Rama had asked Hanuman to raise and train a contingent of warriors who would take birth multiple times on Earth, to contain the demons. Aishani and adheesh are two such warriors, blessed with divine weapons and powers to fight the world’s evils at present times. Read this exciting story to know who finally wins. The good or the evil? The demons of jaitraya is the first book of the trilogy of the war between demons and humans.

    About the book

    Title: The Demons of Jaitraya
    Author: Shubira Prasad
    Publisher: Vitasta Publishing Pvt Ltd
    Pages: 242

    Where to Buy

    My review

    Story: 3/5
    Editing: 1/5
    Writing style: 3/5
    Cover Design: 2/5

    Overall rating: 2.25/5

    Should you read it?

    Personally, I think book has missed the mark and is ok to read once if you are into mythological fictions. Overall, strong story, poor editing, ok cover. Pick up at your own risk.

    If you want more book recommendations, click here.

  • Lahore – Poignant and rattling story of 1947 partition

    Lahore – Poignant and rattling story of 1947 partition

    The Partition of India is a saddest time in the whole Indian history. India was about to get her independence after paying a huge sacrifice of blood sweat and tears of her sons and daughters, many of whom remained unsung. And at the same time, Jinnah’s direct action plan was creating a mayhem in areas which were going to be East and West Pakistan. Stories around Lahore particularly were distressing. Jinnah’s plan disrupted life in the region. During this time, young ones lost their parents, youth lost their job and love interests. Many families left their home behind and took the leap of faith to reach safety from the massacres happening around. Undivided Punjab was a thing of past. Lahore, was on the other side of the border. Those were the dark days indeed with a tiniest silver lining of Indian independence.

    Magnificent characters from history and her mind

    Writing anything about this period needs to be researched with the highest possible depth. There are so many movers and shakers of the Indian subcontinent’s history involved.  Manreet Sodhi Someshwar had taken up that herculean task to enter into the labyrinth of historical events. And she emerged triumphant out of it. Her research about facts and stalwart figures like Sardar Vallabhbhai, Pandit Nehru, Jinnah, etc. is thorough. 

    But, this is not a history book. Lahor, Book 1 of the partition trilogy, is a novel. It’s a story of people whom Manreet has conjured. She had done such a wonderful job of making them equally real as these historical giants. Manreet is a master storyteller. Her story is engaging. It keeps you reading through its pages until you feel burdened by the emotions her characters are going through.

    Cover is so colourful – Just like Lahor

    I just loved the colourful cover of this book. Vibrant red with yellow flowers and the iconic building of Badshahi mosque on the cover catches your eye at a first glance. I have heard stories about how colourful and lively Lahor and other historical cities have been. This cover design has done justice to those glorious tales.

    If you like historical fiction, you should not miss this book. I am so much looking forward to Kashmir and Hyderabad, the next two books Manreet has planned for this partition trilogy.

    Blurb

    In the months leading up to Independence, in Delhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and Vallabhbhai Patel are engaged in deliberations with British Viceroy Dickie Mountbatten over the fate of the country. In Lahore, Sepoy Malik returns home from the Great War hoping to win his sweetheart Tara’s hand in marriage, only to find divide-and-rule holding sway, and love, friendships, and familial bonds being tested.

    Set in parallel threads across these two cities, Lahore is a behind-the-scenes look into the negotiations and the political skulduggery that gave India its freedom, the price for which was batwara. As the men make the decisions and wield the swords, the women bear the brunt of the carnage that tears through India in the sticky hot months of its cruellest summer ever.

    Backed by astute research, The Partition Trilogy captures the frenzy of Indian independence, the Partition and the accession of the states, and takes readers back to a time of great upheaval and churn.

    About the book

    Title: Lahor

    Author: Manreet Sodhi Someshwar

    Publisher: Harper Collins

    Pages: 313

    Where to buy

    This review is powered by the Blogchatter Book Review Program. Also read more book reviews penned by me here.

  • Nice to be acquainted with A to Z’s of Tilottama

    Nice to be acquainted with A to Z’s of Tilottama

    Jibanananda Das, a Bengali Poet once said, কোলকাতা কোনোদিন তিলোত্তমা হবে meaning, Kolkata will one day be Tilottama. Kolkata, our own city of joy, music, art and culture has always fascinated me. It is still very illusive for me as yet I haven’t set my foot on her soil. It keeps intriguing me through the references I see in movies, and read in stories. Recently, I got an opportunity to get acquainted with the A to Zs of this Tilottama through the lens of a book called Tilottama at a glance, written by Sreeparna Sen.

    Unique way to introduce Tilottama

    When you pick up a book which started as a part of a blogging project, you kind of go in with the preconceived notion about the book. However, this particular book will break your assumptions and will make you read it through and know about this wonderful city in one go. It has been a really long time that I have finished a book in one sitting. This short read of just 68 pages, takes you on a journey through the streets of Kolkata taking you to meet its people and their quirk.

    I really appreciate the author for not making it a typical A to Z about a city. It’s not a list of famous places and tourist attractions. There are a couple of iconic locations like Howrah Bridge and Victoria memorial that are part of this book. However, I loved the way Sen has introduced the culture of Kolkata and habits of her citizens as quintessential parts of the identity of the city. The strong passion for food, music and art shared by the people of Kolkata is evident in many pages of this book. 

    My Rating

    I will definitely recommend this book if you want to get acquainted with Kolkata and the people of the city of joy before going in for your maiden visit to the city. Sreeparna Sen has done a great job in introducing her readers to the quirks of her city.

    Content: 4/5

    Writing style: 4/5

    Cover Design: 4/5

    Blurb

    Tilottama At A Glance is not merely the A B C’s of Kolkata for a casual traveller. This book allows you to acquaint yourself with the heart and soul of a rather unusual Indian city with loads of quirks. It is a journey through the culture, history, architecture, idiosyncrasies and other endearing or astonishing traits of Kolkata, that make this city unique.

    About Author

    Sreeparna Sen is a banker and finds her solace in writing. She has authored the book Tales of Wizardencil. Sen is a part of 10 anthologies including an international project Until Dawn.

    About the book

    Title: Tilottama at a glance

    Author: Sreeparna Sen

    Publisher: Ukiyoto Publishing

    Pages: 68

    Where to buy

    This review is powered by the Blogchatter Book Review Program. Also read more book reviews penned by me here.

error: Content is protected !!