Vaayanasaala

Anniversary Reading

2012-01-25T23:40:00.000-08:00

It is the 4th anniversary of my blogs this month and I am honored to have received an award from reflections at the same time! See here for award details and I would love all readers of my blogs to take it up and follow the steps as outlined.

So what have I been reading amidst all the rumble? Wait, wait,wait. First things first! Hope everyone is having a good stable New Year so far and wishes for it to remain so for the rest of it.

I have finished quite a few books and I will add them here in a few posts as always.

The Zahir

It took me a while to realize that Pauolo Coelho is a household name to the reading public of the Indian subcontinent (and the rest of the world of course) through his famous novel The Alchemist. I saw it on the library shelf but my hands went for The Zahir instead. Some critics think this is not up to his usual standards. I liked the book partly due to the integrity with which Pauolo handled the pitfalls of married life. Looks like the work is very much autobiographical.

Not sure if a marriage can survive that many affairs but Coelho's honest prose makes it a possibility to read on for more. As Coelho so painstakingly points out, most of us have encountered living with a zahir. Be it human, an inanimate object or a goal of one kind or another, it is there. Unless we find a way to disarm the zahir so that it won't overwhelm our lives, we may never chart the true and free path that our lives should take. The narrator is an author and he talks about the books that he could write only after his wife came into his life. He realized this rather late. From their description the books are essentially The Alchemist and The Pilgrimage. The zahir here is the author's wife who left him to look for the presence of true love in this world. This presence is addressed as a Lady and the book has a prayer to Mother Mary in the beginning pages but not sure if a connection is intended.. It is dedicated with a loving tribute to his wife and muse Christina. Like Odysseus's journey to Ithaca all of Coelho's books appear to be about a journey to somewhere. Here our author's journey starts off as a search for his wife because he thinks he loves her and because of that cannot live without her. He sinks in the realization that she'd been his muse all along and gets so obsessed in finding her that she becomes his zahir.

The trip eventually teaches him universal love and turns his journey into a search to find himself before anything else. This helps him to make the discovery that he loves his wife for who she is rather than what she is to him. This is a very important message and it is a learning process. Some people are born into this world with love as their anchor which enables them to love without reservation. Some others are not like this but it is in them to be discovered. If they are lucky enough to recognize the chances, they will be able to take that journey to find the true love of the world and through it contentment. I feel all of us are on this journey in one way or another. Some find it earlier, some find it later, some may find it and enjoy it without being aware and yet some other may never find it. The book is thought provoking and is a great, expanding your heart kind of read.

Vinegar hill

This is a grim novel and therefore not for the airports I'd say. Take it up when you really need a serious read. I wouldn't have braved it after the first chapter if I wasn't so relaxed when I started it. No, it is not a gory, ghost story. Just raw lives of a family through the eyes of the young tired mother of two school going kids and her husband. It is his family that makes the grim so depressing. A. Manette Ansay's strong, unwavering language tells the events of the story with the panache that it deserves. So read it definitely and you will find that it was not a wasted effort.

Hugo: The Movie and The Book

So we were all set to watch TinTin over a November weekend when we came across the little fine print that said it will be released in the US of A only towards the end of Dec. So what do we do? Like any law abiding citizens we picked the next available children's movie which was Hugo. Plans were made and time was available and we simply had to watch something on the silver screen. And what a movie it was! I knew it had my husband at the clock and gears. It had me at the view of the panoramic old train station, my son with the automaton and my daughter with the girl who read a lot like the avid reader she's turning into. Directed by that maker of grand movies Martin Scorsese, this gem of a movie stars Ben Kingsley which should seal the deal for anyone sitting on z fence:-) I can't believe we would have missed this had it not been for TinTin being released late. The boy reporter was not forgotten and we watched him later on during the holiday trip to visit relatives in the east. In the middle of writing this note I heard over the radio that Hugo captured the most Oscar movie nominations. Go Scorsese!

After watching this epic movie that has two important crowd pleasers we came home and discussed it for a while. The first half had this majestic and crowded Paris train station full of old time monster clocks that ran on gears and levers that needed winding.This was done by Hugo, the young boy who is the movie's namesake and the last half was a treatise on silent movies based mainly on the life of Georges Meliez. The next day my son brought home the book from his school library! I thought I wouldn't read it but curiosity got the best of me and it was all for the good. Brain Selznick's book is an instant classic on its precise and large scale illustrations alone. As you will see from the book, Selznick is first an illustrator and then a story writer. Whether you read the book or watch the movie, don;t forget to go to his web site for a unique experience.

In Hovering Flight By Joyce Hinnefeld

2011-12-19T13:09:00.000-08:00

Lets us say, only hypothetically, that you are not into historical fiction and would rather read something else. I have just the book for you. This is it my friends, it is bird fiction:-)

I'd grown up reading about the foibles of the great Indian ornithologist , Salim Ali. I should say that some of the inspiration in watching birds that flitted around our farmland came from these readings. The rest of course was from the inexplicable tie that bound me to the fertile green land itself. The other day my Mom was telling me about two "bhoomikulukki" (wagtail) birds that visit our front yard (muttam) everyday and how she thinks of it as a visit from me to her... My Mom loves watching birds which is second only to planting stuff and making things grow. I cannot grow a thing if I tried but I love them birdies just like my Mom. My daughter too enjoys watching the many birds that visit our backyard thanks to our neighbors who are great gardeners.

That this book came with Ursula Hegi's recommendation is what made me pick it up in the first place. A few pages into all that the book was unraveling and I just couldn't put it down. Be forewarned that you may not like it of you don't like birds since the book is sprinkled all over with bird watching facts and fiction. It revolves around Addie, Tom and their daughter Scarlet who was named after the Scarlet Tanager. It also includes John James Audubon's depiction of the cuvier's kinglet which no one has really seen except for Audubon and his illustrations. That was, until Adie's claimed to have seen it. At the end of the novel one is not sure if Adie has seen it or not but it truly does not matter. If Adie and Tom's passion for nature is not enough, then the bare truths of their familial existence and how it binds with their love of nature will keep you rooted in this on-the-way-to-be-a classic book. I find a strage reluctance to discuss their story here, it is almost as if it is personal and must be read in peace and quite. Adies's love of birds takes the form of activism while Tom's is the balancing act of the quiet yet unstinting support. Joyce Hinnefeld is to be read and absorbed, period.

The romantic and doting pair in the above pic set up home in the palm tree behind our house and it was a pleasure to have them around. And no, it is not the camera but the setting sun that provided the flash! Heading into the holidays I hope everyone will have a Very Merry Christmas and a jolly good time!

A Moment Of Prayer And A Book

2011-11-16T21:03:00.000-08:00

I knew kochuthressiamma pj (kpj) of pareltank only through her blogs and some exchanged comments. I'd been a faithful reader and an admirer of her courageous, thought provoking, spiritual and sometimes hilarious posts. Offering a moment of prayer in memory of this beloved blogger here.

The Four Seasons
Today's post is in honor of kpj as I am sure she would have loved knowing this angle of Vivaldi's Venice and of the orphan girls who were wards of the state as well as one time students of the Maestro. As made clear from interviews with the author, the book is not really centered around Vivaldi but rather around the lives of the girls. Laurel Corona hit the nail on the spot when she decided to do the book this way. Her interest in the lives of the figlie (wards) is genuine and paves the way for a very interesting and rewarding story. Fact and fiction are intertwined in this book and Corona differentiates relevant events/chronology at the end of the book.

I first heard Vivaldi from a CD of the Four Seasons my husband had. The name cannot fail to gather one's interest and the outstanding music cinches the deal. So when I got this book I assumed it to be all about Vivaldi. I was both right and wrong. You do get a good picture of the famous composer who was also an accomplished violinist. What you really love is the heartfelt portrayal of the figlie del coro who were trained from childhood to master music and perform mostly in churches and private parties in eighteenth century Venice. They were held in high esteem and the public enjoyed their music. Despite a natural sympathy you feel for the girls, I was truly amazed at how the Venetian setup managed to do so well by the orphaned girls. Many of the abandoned kids were a result of the strange system of allowable marriages in families which is made more complicated by the presence of courtesans and convents alike.

Corona's book starts with two sisters named Chiaretta and Maddalena who were given to the Pietà,one of four such institutions (ospedalis) in Venice. They were given up by their mother who could not take care of them anymore. The Pietà took care of them by teaching them arts and crafts including lace making, and learning one or many instruments and singing. If anyone was good at any of the arts they would go up the systemic ladder to finally perform as part of the coro (choir). They were allowed to marry and were given a dowry if the alliance was seen fit. After a certain age the ones who did not make it were asked to enter the convent. Before you raise your eyebrows, you must know that the social system in Venice was in such a way that even the wealthiest, noblest families could not afford to marry off more than one girl or one boy. The remainder entered convents or courted courtesans without being able to have real families. Corona did a fine job of mixing the calm, musical and organized lives of the girls of the Pietà with that of the rollicking, fun loving Venetians in the book. Chiaretta became an accomplished singer and Maddalena an accomplished violinist who presumably was also Vivaldi's muse. As in real life Vivaldi started out as a violin teacher and composer to the acclaimed choir of the Pietà. I was surprised to find that he was a priest though he was allowed to absolve himself from saying the mass due to problems related to asthma. He became famous while at the Pietà and moved to better patronage later in life. But his most accomplished music is said to have occurred while writing for the female performers of the figlie de coro. Maddalena is shown as the inspiration for Four Seasons which apparently is quite different from his earlier music. In real life a singer named Anna Giro and her half sister who played the violin were said to have closely associated with Vivaldi. I like Corona's story better where Vivaldi had strong feelings for Maddalena which were never brought out of fear for her future as well as his own since he was a priest. In time Vivaldi went on to produce magic through his operas and Maddalena became the Maestra de violin at the Pietà giving wonderful performances and achieving a great sense of the self through her music. Loved the way the author introduced the idea of Four Seasons from Vivaldi when he figured out that the then adolescent and underling violinist Maddalena was the only person who could understand/feel the 'bird flying' or 'the dog barking' that he played on the violin.

I feel that I have written more about Vivaldi than the girls here but the novel does complete justice to both. Maddalena is the thinker and musician who slowly figures out her life and achieves satisfaction on a higher plane and Chiaretta is the vivacious singer of the golden voice who marries the scion of a noble family and lives a full family life but never really sings again according to the rules for girls married off from the Pietà. A beautiful book to read, this will not disappoint you. For my part I'll be looking out for books by this author for sure. Visit here and here for a rendition of the Four Seasons.

Delivering Happiness by Tony Hsieh

2011-11-08T18:45:00.000-08:00

I read this book a few months back and was so enthralled that I sat down right then to write my impressions. I am glad to be able to post it at least now.

Tony Hsieh is an Evangelist. Not the kind that your are familiar with though. He is an Evangelist who wants you to find happiness in life. He is well qualified to do the job because he is proving it through his own life. Granted, I first heard about Tony Hsieh's book as a rebuttal to Tiger Mom's book. I haven't read Chua's book but had read a lot about what people had to say on it. One of the articles suggested to read this book to get an opposing view.

Once you get hold of this book, the first few pages are enough to tell you that you cannot really claim Tony to a specific category. His message is universal and his life seems dedicated to make this happen. Although I finished the book I have placed an order for it in Amazon as a keeper and for my husband and kids to read and for me to keep reading as a reference. Some of the things he is doing in his company may not be applicable to you and that is not what he wants. In the end he just wants you to be happy. What appeals to me is that I wholeheartedly agree with his premise that 'if you always do the right thing, then everything else will fall into place". I say this to my kids and try to do follow as much as I can. At work I had seen that things improved 100% and made me a much happier person when I just focussed on doing the right thing without worrying about who does what or who gets what. This strategy makes good soul out of everyone at work where you do spend a majority of the hours in any given day. This in turn makes workplace less stressful and life easier to live. Being humans we have our faults, but once we know them and do our best, nothing can really bring us down in spirit. So while Tony may never know this I am excited to find someone who is in a position to practice what he preaches and does it.

Tiger Mom's part in this is that apparently Tony was raised by his Chinese parents in a more relaxed manner and yet he went on to become an achiever. This was point the rebuttal wanted to make. Rebuttal or not I was glad to have come into Tony Hsieh's amazing story. After graduating from Harvard, Tony founded Link Exchange with a friend which he later sold to Microsoft. He had enough experience running his own small food business while in Harvard. Before that he did a profitable penny souvenir type of business from home! Come to think of it, the man was destined to succeed I guess. After selling Link Exchange he did his time as a venture capitalist and ended up as the CEO of zappos which eventually was bought by Amazon. Since Amazon agreed to keep the Zappos spirit as is, Tony is still the life and soul of this well run company geared towards the perennial formula of success that many still somehow forget. Customer satisfaction is the missing word here. The book is a joy to read and Tony Hsieh's enthusiasm and love for people can be quite catching.

A Bunch Of Books

2011-10-23T21:24:00.000-07:00

My husband presented me with that latest of the omnipresent gadgets meant for staying in touch. Steve Jobs's iPhone. I was completely happy with my good old phone but even I thought I could use a new one since one of the buttons came off of it. So here he (my husband, not Mr. Jobs) goes adeptly turning off my old phone and connecting the new one and depositing it in my bag all in a good evening's work. Then he calls me as I was driving to work and I was totally surprised and happy to find it in my purse! At first I couldn't find much use for its many features but now I am a complete convert and am a fan of Jobs for a job well done. This is a quality product where every little detail was thought about and implemented to the satisfaction of a critical eye. The only complaint - and I think it a valid one - is that it should have had a good GPS installed. Something along the lines of what the androids sport so well as evidenced by my husband's 2 year old and still going strong google phone. Why am I blabbering out all this here? I would not have been able to capture this beautiful swan if it wasn't for the excellent camera on this phone so readily available in my jeans pocket. It was on a visit to our local park. I had not noticed him there before but apparently he is a regular visitor!

So nance asks if have stopped reading books. Without nance this blog will wither and die and so this post is for nance. I never stopped reading and they are what keeps me sane when things get on a never ending roller coaster or life throws its lemons around. Though I read I didn't have time to sit down and write'em impressions I have of the book and then I feel the soul of it is lost and that I cannot put what I felt on reading it. These are a bunch of books I read the past week. I am writing down a few lines here on each of them. There is not much in common except that they are all about women.

Little Bee By Chris Cleave (Published as The Other Hand in Britain)

With an eye catching byline on the back cover that claims in uncertain terms that they don't want to give out too much about this special story, the book easily came home with me. Yes, it indeed is a special story and one of the narrators is what makes it so. The girl who calls herself Little Bee is an illegal immigrant to UK from Nigeria and the story begins when she is about to be released from the Immigration Detention Center. It goes onto get her story combined with that of a British couple. The second narrator is the wife who is also a magazine editor. The story revolves around what happened one day at one of the beaches in Nigeria where Little Bee's world collided with that of the British couple as a byproduct of the oil conflict in Nigeria. What was most interesting about this book was Little Bee's narration in first person. Refreshingly worded and told from a different angle, it attracts you immediately. The author draws deeply from his own experience in West Africa and his connection is evident in how well he is able to bring out this female voice. The book has snagged a few awards and will be made into a movie with Nicole Kidman as the second narrator.

The Wednesday Sisters By Meg Waite Clayton

At first glance the urge is to dismiss The Wednesday Sisters as a run-of-the-mil chick flick er.. book. In addition to being a satisfying chick read, it incorporates so many other elements that ultimately it becomes a flick for everyone. Granted, being set in Silicon Valley Bay Area may have twisted my hand a bit but who can resist a bunch of wives meeting regularly in the park in the late sixties eventually evolving into a group of writers and publishers through mutual support and encouragement? I'd like to be a part of that myself. The birth of Intel/silicon valley is a quiet presence all throughout since that is where one of the husbands worked! The venerable Robert Noyce is presented as a distant yet familiar figure. Clayton had her own version of Wednesday Sisters and this could be written in tribute which makes it all the more endearing.

The Dovekeepers By Alice Hoffman

There's been a flurry of various type of keepers lately. Memory keeper, bee keeper, bear keeper, you name it we have it. Something about it makes me not want to touch it and yet when I read one it is always better than expected. So it is with Hoffman's Dovekeeper. It is about four Jewish women from around the time of the Roman occupation of Judea who keeps the doves for a dessert settlement of the diaspora. It is based on the ancient settlement called Masada built on the ramparts of King Herod's Fortress overlooking the Dead Sea. Masada is second only to Jerusalem as a tourist destination. It was appropriated by a violent sect of Jewish fighters against Rome. The book is replete with magic and mysticism, gained and lost love as well as mothers, daughters and war. Each of the artifacts used in the book to perform magic or war was based on an actual such object found in the Museums around Masada and elsewhere according to the author. I found that very intriguing. It is almost as if those objects came to life and told their stories! It takes talent to bring such a story together with that of four different women and make it as interesting as it is. Hoffman has succeeded very well in doing this.

Elizabeth Berg's Books

2011-05-30T07:32:00.000-07:00

High BP invaded the house quite unawares and its medications had the most uncommon but listed side effects, and life's been in the doldrums. The ongoing remodeling came to a halt and priorities changed overnight. Having a doctor for a brother only a call away (and willing to listen for any lengths of time) in this country where the doctors mostly diagnose you for the 5 minutes you are in their office helped more than I can say. Family support from both ends held us together and friends in need were great too. Finally it looks like we are past the nightmare and can relax a bit. When life seems to take the carpet from under your feet, prayers give you strength. Childhood prayers that lolled though the house every morning and evening came to our aid in time of need. Taking heart from this we hope to impart some of it to the kiddos. Hope they will be able to channel this candle in the water that will burn for you in times of trouble - to paraphrase a famous Disney song. Setting aside the dutiful and conveniently short prayers, we have started what we hope to be the beginning of a long history of family prayers. Needless to say the novelty of a structured prayer is holding the kids up through the longer time for the moment. I remember my own impatience as the rosaries stretched long every day with no end in sight and yet how comforting it always is! It is a ritual that anchors you in familial love and in devotion to a higher power that keeps you secure.

I didn't mean to go that much off the subject but guess it had to be. Since books are my major form of relaxation I couldn't wait to get a bunch at the the first chance in a long time. Lucky for me I chanced upon Elizabeth Berg again. This writer as I knew then is just what you need in such times. She is an ultimate woman's writer and instead of fishing for angst and rage she manages to bind her characters with love, empathy and kindness while not being overly so. Her sensible characters go through life with real experiences and come to the most amicable conclusions after facing plausible soul searching episodes. An aphrodisiac if you are looking for something gentle and engaging. I wish her the best and hope she will write as many books as she can so her subtle message of love and civility will reach more people. I finished True To Form and The Year of Pleasures in 2 days! The former is told through the eyes of a budding teenage girl who lost her mother and is finding her own way in the world. What is great is how she picks up on the love of people around her even when it is not so demonstrative. It is that awareness of true and gentle love among all layers of people and its understanding that will form the person that she is. Great great book. I could easily see the 13 year old me in her:-) The second book is about a well loved and protected wife who is forced to find the meaning of life anew when her husband dies. Berg portrays her decisions and how she mourns rather well and while some parts could be said as piling it on (the warm cozy), still manages to remain true to her basic message in a reliable story fabric. I am going back to get more of her books.

In a rather sad but not really so aside, I have to say that my trusty Library has just decided to charge us yearly for its wonderful service because although we live near it, we don't fall in its service area. Being superior to what we have in our service area, I will be ponying up the money for sure. Just hope that it won't keep going up each year though.. Isn't it odd that all the Elizabeth's I have come across are good writers that cater to the reader in me? Could it be because I am partial to them for carrying my sister's baptismal name? On other news I have drafts of a few fantastic books I had read earlier and will be posting those in the coming weeks. Till then go find Berg and have one on me. K?

A Visit and a Book

2011-05-01T09:07:00.000-07:00

Little did we know that we will be flying to tornado country when we booked tickets to spend Easter with my brother and family. Luckily for us, we managed right under the ravaging weather radar and came back safe and sound. Our prayers for those who were caught unawares. Yes, we went to Pioneer Woman's state although we didn't spot her and even had food at Sonic. It was really good to spend this holiday with family. Afterwards we drove 5 hours to the neighboring state to see my alma mater in US (pictured above is the ornate top of the oldest building on campus) after wrangling a dinner invite from my graduate adviser. It was quite a gratifying trip and the family enjoyed revisiting my old habitats. Weather too decided to be lenient while we were roaming around campus. When we visited the downtown I realized that I had never visited it during my time there! My husband and I would like to actually move there, as the green and sprawling university town is just what the doctor ordered for bringing up a nice little family. Hold your horses, we are not moving yet, for such is the travails of life that these decisions cannot be made lightly... So here we are back in sunny benevolent California, obediently spinning the daily wheel of life.

In expectation of my sister's visit from India in summer we are doing some much needed repair ( remodeling sounds better. eh?) to our house. I am holding my breath until the work is over because I just cannot tolerate dust and so much hegemony inside my sanctuary. But we cannot really escape it if we have hopes of living in the house long term. OK, so that was all about the visit and what is the latest and greatest here. Now for the book.

An Atlas of Impossible Longing

The main reason I bought the book was because I wanted something to keep me occupied during the flight especially since the kids are older now and the husband came prepared with his newly acquired Nook. I just need to hold paper between my hands which is why I don't own the Kindle that he tried to get me. So off I went browsing the airport bookstore and this book caught my eye despite there being hundreds of good books around. I hope to go back to that book store another time just to note down titles for future reads. Didn't have much time to spend there during this trip. Lack of time is also the reason why I thought this was Arundhathi Roy's second book instead of Anuradha Roy's first book. It is also what made me think the coconut trees on the book cover shows Kerala instead of West Bengal! Only after getting on the plane and settling down did I realize the mistake. Undaunted, I started to read the book and a few pages were enough to tell me the mistake was actually a find! Anuradha Roy is a gifted writer with a great perception for people from all walks of life. The book envelopes the reader in a nostalgic past that you will totally get even if you are not from that part of India. Story spans three generations of an old family in Bengal starting with pre-independance India and is sort of centered around a house on the banks of a river. The house is not the one lived in by the family in question but comes out as a central character. Roy's other job is as an independent publisher in India. If you come across this book you will know what to do now. We had four flights to take in all and that is about the time it took me to finish the book!

The Year Of Fog & A Summer Without Dawn

2011-03-31T21:00:00.000-07:00

Not only did the kids get better, but we all went skiing last weekend amidst snow showers as evidenced by our little snowman up there! Dads and kids did the skiing while I had fun sitting inside the rented cabin with other Moms and enjoying the falling snow, drinking coffee and taking a leisurely walk. Don't get me wrong, I wanted to ski but the weather seemed more for simple merriment rather than trying my first hand at skiing where one could fall many times over before getting the hang of it. The decision to postpone the inevitable was rather quickly taken if you know what I mean:-) Perhaps half the charm of being in the snow was knowing that our snow free hometown is only a few hours drive away.. True to form guess what we did just three days after getting back from the snow storm? Went biking around the block in near summer weather!!!! Only in California I think..

The Year Of Fog by Michelle Richmond

This beautiful book was finished in 2 sittings separated only by going to work and tending to kids' needs. Six year old Emma vanished in the few seconds that her step-mom-to-be Abby turned to take a picture in the foggy Ocean Beach of San Francisco. Michelle Richmond describes Abby's uncommon love for the lost girl with a realistic approach. The twists and turns in Abby's relationship with Emma's father is also realistically portrayed. As an extra perk, the way memory works in people under different circumstances is shown with the support of adequate research material. The way Abby rethinks the events of the day and picks through her memories even after Emma's own father has given up is far from the norm and intriguing. Abby's search is made conceivable to the reader through interesting visuals and thought processes. Interesting to note that the fog on the beach of the initial chapters gets replaced with the fog of Abby's memories. Very good and quick read. All the beach and fog brought forth memories of House Of Fog and Sand which was a book and movie that I had liked. But they are not similar in any other way.

A Summer Without Dawn by Agop J. Hacikyan & Jean-Yves Soucy

This top of the line historical fiction is a must read for all. There is not much material on the authors in the web especially for Jean-Yves Soucy. Agop J Hazikyan is of Armenian descent and his background has done full justice to the story he is trying to tell. The authors have painstakingly portrayed the plight of a people while keeping it on a personal level by threading in the story of a particular family. I agree with the reviews that describe the book as the Armenian equivalent of a Dr. Zhivago or a Gone with the Wind . Vartan Balian is an Armenian Christian who is an Army Reserve Officer in the Ottoman Empire around World War I. He is also a trained pharmacist and even this position of advantage and wealth does not help him and his family from what was to come. Maybe it was because Mother Teresa was from the same region of the Balkans (Albania) that I felt a quick affinity to this particular story. More than a million and quarter of Armenians were systematically eliminated in the Armenian Deportation procedures that started in 1915 during the Young Turks regime (the name Sublime Porte is also used) under Sultan Mehmed V and the three Pashas who wielded the real power. Armenians were asked to move from their ancestral homelands in the Ottoman Empire to far away lands with no intention of letting them reach any destination. Vartan, his beautiful wife Maro and 10 year old son Tomas are noble, lovable characters and it is not surprising that we feel their sufferings as our own. The book served literally as a 'Porte' into the time around the downfall of the Ottoman Empire before the formation of the Republic of Turkey. Historical fiction at its best. Interesting fact for those who watch Food Network. Just learned that Chopped Judge Geoffrey Zakarian (a favorite of yours truly) is of Armenian descent. The last name ending in 'an' is common for Armenians it seems.

Below is a picture from my girl based on the entirety of our trip which started through rainy green meadows and centered around the snow cabin.

Three Books

2011-02-28T23:43:00.000-08:00

I have read a few books these past days. That was before the cold virus landed in full force. Found only three of them worth mentioning. These are real gems though and I am happy to talk about them.

The Savior by Eugene Drucker

At first glance it has the look and feel of a story similar to The Pianist. No I didn't read the book, only watched the movie and loved it. So then what is the big deal. Why bring this to the post? There you have it. It is a violin instead of a piano! OK just kidding:-) It is quite an interesting story of a German (read Aryan) musician being reduced to playing for bored and angry soldiers and eventually for an experimental group of concentration camp inmates during the Third Reich. The expected but still ruthless conclusion makes us feel the human pain in full force. Being told from the other side of the fence by a sympathizing spirit is a good change. An intriguing aspect is the presentation of music and its organization for concerts even if not for the usual audience. I was not much into instrumental music until my son and now my daughter started piano lessons. They are not maestros but it is endearing and lively to listen to the sound of music played by little hands in the house. This gave me a new appreciation for music unaccompanied by voice. So enjoyed this book probably more than if I'd read it earlier. How else could I have appreciated the presence of Bach's Chaconne and its effect on the characters? Eugene Drucker is a Grammy winning violin artist and has given the equivalent of a beautiful concert to his readers here. It is loosely based upon the experiences of his father who was an accomplished musician in Germany during the period of the story. A good read doubtless.

A True Story Based on Lies by Jennifer Clement

Jennifer Clement is a well known poet and I knew that is why this book attracted my attention. Not really, but I have to say the book read like a poem. How could she express this deep deep story in such simple and elegant prose? Clement just had to be a poet. The funny thing about the book is, there are not many words in which one can describe it. It is an amazingly well written book. A lot is said in a little in this gem of a book. It goes through the exploited life of a woman named Leonora living among Mexico's impoverished tribes who finds work among its rich. The story maybe be oft told but we will see it anew through Leonora's eyes for whom I developed a certain admiration. This very real character will take a stranglehold on your heart and keeps you thinking whether you like it or not. This small book is simply too large to ignore.

Elizabeth Berg's Home Safe

Whenever I visited a library in Kerala, India there was an author that I could bring home in confidence. Elizabeth Goudge. I have read most of her books in this fashion. So when I fastened on the name Elizabeth Berg I had a deja vu that this is going to be a long relationship. A faithful author to read along the lines of Goudge, Piccoult, Divakaruni or Amy Tan. I was not disappointed. She seems to be a prolific author and I will be reading her books again. Home Safe is all about writer Helen Ames and how she copes with writer's block and life in general after her husband's sudden death. It also explores her relationship with her daughter and her attempts to build a social network by teaching writer's workshops. I have half a mind to join one. Maybe in another 10 years? Read all of her books OK? Because I will.

Olive Kitteridge

2011-01-15T23:50:00.000-08:00

I give you this most perfect book on the 3rd anniversary of my blogs. What a book to post about on this special day! It is the one at the top of the set. While strolling through the streets of a nearby University town we spotted a used bookstore. Of course we had to take a peek which was gratified on realizing that the owners cater to just my kind of reading in the fiction aisle. So we got a book from there and Olive Kitterdige came home with us. Written by Elizabeth Strout, this book is a compilation of short stories about the people living in the New England town of Maisy Mills. Olive Kitteridge pokes her face in all the stories. In sometimes short and sometimes long spans. Elizabeth Kitteridge, I mean Elizabeth Strout - it is difficult to separate them - has magnificently captured the trials and tribulations of a present day woman through the various stages of life. Strout seems to be primarily interested in portraying people through their post marriage lives and is very good at it. Looks like having lived in a small New England town of Puritans has given her the right tools to delve into her characters with precision.

I could not put this book down although there were no mysteries to solve and no thickening plots. The quite simplicity with which Strout goes through each story is just cool. Why is this so perfect? Because there is something in it for every reader. This will be my all-time recommendation for anyone, anywhere, any day. Suffice it so say I have read Strout's two other books after hunting them down in our Library. Her very first book Amy and Isabelle explores mother daughter relationships and teenage angst in all honesty. Abide With Me is simply too sweet to pass up and can hold a good candle to Cronin in the turbulent yet peaceful journey of its main character Tyler. So many good reads everyone. Boy, am I generous today, there are more books to follow!!

Chitra Divakaruni's One Amazing Thing

A Divakaruni book is a surefire read and this one was no exception. Her portrayal of a cosmopolitan group of people caught inside the Indian Embassy during an earthquake has come together very well. Divakaruni is venturing closer to her current home environment in this book . Meaning she writes it without the usual foot in a nostalgic India immortalized through her golden prose many times over. The change is really beautiful and though less lyrical shows her off as a strong writer and storyteller once again.

The Portrait of an Unknown Woman By Varona Bennet

Varona who? you might say but this writer is a force to be reckoned in period dramas based mostly on facts. Chances are you might already be familiar with her and I am the last to get on board. The book is about 425 pages and was way awesome until about 400 pages. After that it fell through a little too quickly! Maybe the author wanted to keep the pages to an agreed upon number and had to end it there. Anyway there were too many secrets being revealed in such a short time that I couldn't swallow all of it so easily. Having said that you will still thoroughly enjoy this book if you are a historical fiction-er like me. The Unknown Lady is Margaret Giggs. A ward of Sir Thomas More the famous lawyer, humanist and Chancellor to Henry VIII. At least until he resigned, was executed and later joined the Pantheon of Catholic saints. Being raised a Catholic, Thomas More's name was not unfamiliar to me but this book is a jewel of information both in regards to More and Meg Giggs and the many luminaries of those turbulent times in the Church's history. The best find for me was Hans Holbein, portraiture expert and King's Painter. This mostly logical story line developed by the author to weave England's Plantagenet and Tudor dynasties into it was fun. A wonderful period for the writer to choose from. The brilliant pick of Meg Giggs as narrator instead of the oft repeated characters from Henry's Court augments the novel's appeal. Holbein painted two family portraits of the Mores. The sketch of the first can be seen here and the second here. How some of Holbein's paintings took shape is given special thought and written in detail. This provides a most interesting angle to the book. So read them all or read a few and don't forget Mrs. Kitteridge. Keep reading!

The Red Pyramid & A Movie

2010-12-22T15:56:00.000-08:00

I think I told you that my son is totally into Rick Riordan. So I got him the Red Pyramid when it came out. He's been very good about getting all the Riordan books from his school library so far. But the Red Pyramid being home caught my attention on a lazy rainy afternoon and I took it up much to his pleasure. Suffice it to say I finished it off fast. It reads almost like any of the HarryPotter books and even seems to have some themes running in parallel. But the environment is quite different what with Egyptian Gods fighting each other through the centuries and all. I am as you well know is a big time sucker for history. Mythology and ancient legends are so closely intertwined with history that I find those easy to read. A good book and a good author. It may not be as appealing to the adults as the HP books are, but comes close. So take it up if you were eyeing these books and wondering..

The Movie
Finally watched Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I that I'd been promising my son ever since it came out. Now that Christmas holidays are here I thought the 3PM show on a Tuesday cannot be that bad since it's been a few weeks. Much to my surprise the theater was full by the time the movie started. A rarity around here. Even more interesting was the wide spectrum of people who came to watch the movie. From the old Grandpa with the cane to my girl who stubbornly kept her eyes open through most of the scary scenes. I as an adult totally enjoyed the movie. I guess the director got a chance for some character development this time since they are doing the last book in two movies. I loved how the 3 brothers' tale was portrayed in the movie. Very tastefully done. Do watch it with family esp if everyone is a fan of the books. Tangled is next in list for the holidays.

Orhan Pamuk

2010-12-08T00:42:00.000-08:00

I am a fan of Orhan Pamuk. I even have an absurd pride that I picked up "My Name is Red" from the library to read him for the first time and he won the Nobel Prize for literature later the same year. Me & The Nobel Committee on the same line. Not bad eh? Since then I had been very interested in his works and own a copy of Snow. I know Naperville Mom shares my enthusiasm for Pamuk. There was a short Pamuk break but recently I happened to watch a Malayalam movie called 'Kaiyoppu' and in it the protagonist who is a budding writer has a talk with his mentor while they were discussing the current state of writing. He quotes the first line from Pamuk's book : "I read a book one day and my whole life was changed." Who wouldn't be intrigued by that? So that was enough for silly me to jump into the library site and put The New Life on hold. It was all worth it I tell ya. The book was not quite what I expected in terms of where it lead but Pamuk's writing kept its hold on me as always. He can be down to earth when he wants to and fly up into higher planes as easily. This Marquez of Turkey has been translated into many languages and is Turkey's best selling author. His writing is also reminiscent of many Malayalam novels of a certain era. Not a specific author but rather a specific time. Along with The New Life was Pamuk's latest : The Museum of Innocence. While reading the initial chapters I had a feeling that this is perhaps the least liked Pamuk book. Boy, did Orhan Pamuk prove me wrong! By the end of the book I was completely back into Orhan's world. The Bospohorous plays a part in some of his books as a backdrop. I love the feel of a body of water bobbing up now and then in a book flowing so well. Ataturk looms large in all his books maybe because he played such an important role in shaping present day Turkey after the fall of the Ottoman Empire? Orhan Pamuk also seems to know the effect his books have on people. That first line in A New Life is mentioned towards the end in The Museum of Innocence and his own name comes up many times as a minor character. You will find yourself smiling and nodding when you come across the familiar name. You have to read Pamuk. That is if you haven't already!

The Bearkeeper's Daughter By Gillian Bradshaw
While swimming in Pamuk pages I had company from this book which oddly enough also has The Bosphorous flowing through it. Only this one was during the Byzantine Era when Istanbul was Constantinople:-) Very interesting story about Empress Theodora who rose from rags to riches and ruled alongside her husband Emperor Justinian I. Her NurJahan to his Jahangir I guess. An easy read replete with history. As with well researched historical books Gillian Bradshaw's novel is a wonderful mix of historical facts and brilliant fictionalization leading to a viable storyline. Good pick for curling up on the sofa with a warm cup of tea and some crunchy snacks..

Cutting for Stone By Abraham Verghese

2010-11-01T20:26:00.000-07:00

Halloween is over. We had a 10 year old hockey wizard casting spells and a 6 year old bunny (cute bunny suit thanks to HAunt's sewing skills) hopping madly collecting candies helter-skelter. This is the most favorite holiday for the kids. Christmas holds its charm only due to the presents and long holidays. Who can resist dressing up in costumes and getting huge stashes of candy, all community approved! Sharing and bartering of acquired candies went on yesterday and now I can hear the calm rustle of candy wrappers from where I sit. My son has a bigger horde and is able to enjoy it over a long time since he is not as crazy about eating it all at one time. Little sweet tooth is in candy heaven for the moment without giving a thought to what she will do when her horde is over and cheta (big brother) still has a bunch left:-) I used to hide it all and give it away but not lately. They did work hard for it you know..

The other news is of course the matter pertaining to our title here. Yes, I finished this book that my husband spotted for me when we were at the Library the other day. Funny part is I had it on hold a few months back and took out the hold since the wait seemed interminable. I had read a review around the time it was published and had an inkling that I might like it. I think it was in 'More'. A magazine that I discovered at my son's piano teacher's place. My husband homed in rightly onto this book and I am so glad he did. A wonderful book that tells the story of twins Shiva and Marion born to British Surgeon Thomas Stone and Malayali (person from the state of Kerala in India) missionary sister Mary Joseph Praise in Ethiopia. If it sounds a little distasteful or scandalous or Grey's Anatomyish don't worry. You will not feel any of that once you finish reading. Abraham Verghese is not just a Professor in Stanford School of Medicine but is an accomplished writer as well as a caring human. This last quality is what enables him to be what he is I believe. Reading his other works are naturally in the plan.

In the book he reiterates the beginning of Christianity in Kerala when St. Thomas the Apostle came to India. A fact most Indians at least are familar with I guess. But did you know that Ethiopia is the only African nation that remained independant during the coloniztion of that continent? I bet you only vaguely knew that Ethopia's last and most famous Emperor Haile Selassie I was the last of an unbroken royal line that is believed to begin from the Queen of Sheba and King Solomon? Yes older than the Hapsburg line. Wait till Dan Brown gets a wind of this:-) Ethiopia and Kerala shares much in terms of preferring to wear white, and the presence of early Orthodox/Syrian Christianity. This page describes how on his visit to Kerala after his much published coronation the Emperor was impressed by the thousands of uniformed school children lining the streets to wlecome him and hired an entire batch of Malayali teachers to teach in Ethiopia? Ethiopia always brought to mind the heartrending picture of a very famished child picking up after a cow to fill his tummy, but now it also brings to mind an independent nation with an outstanding history. In Verghese's own words, a nation of beautiful people emerging from a mingling of Persia and Africa with ancient traditions and a monarchy belonging to the House of Solomon. He goes on to claim that Ethiopian Airlines is one of the best he has ever flown. Verghese does not overlook the reality of Ethopia's impoverishment but this other aspect was never put forward as a rule. The book will be appreciated by expatriates anywhere in the world for its colorful descriptions of their trials and tribulations. So dear reader, take it up and you will have spent some entertaining and educational hours as the 500 or so pages draw to a close....

If you say you have read it, then answer me this: What treatment is administered through the the ear in an Emergency?
(See comments for the answer)

A Mystery Book From The Past & Others

2010-09-27T22:49:00.000-07:00

Crooked House by Agatha Christie
Before I knew about genres, about mysteries, about Dame Christie herself I had the chance to read a book that I had appropriated from my brothers' room. The brothers in question are right above me and my sister in the pecking order -er.. birth order- and shared a room at the other end of our house. The room contained a variety of books which was a constant source of fascination for yours truly. Oh.. they tried to lock it up and stuff in an effort to keep the pest of a little sister away. Me, I was rather resourceful and knew where the key was kept, what time they were likely to return etc and made a clean sweep of any books present as soon as the coast was clear. More than anything else I guess they did it out of a sense of personal space that we all acquire around the early/late teen years.

Coming back to our book, it was a Library book in Malayalam but the story was so foreign that I still remember it quite vividly. Books from the past are playing catchup with me now-a-days. First The Cardinal and now this. There was hilariously delightful book called "Vellappokkam" (flood) that I still remember from one of those forays. Only a few years back did I figure out that it was written by none other than Thakazhi Sivasankarapillai.

Few months back a book friend of mine gave me three books to read. Since she was not particular about getting them back anytime soon I had put off reading 2 of those by Agatha Christie for a later date. I had a bunch of Library books to finish off you see. The time finally came for me to pick up Crooked House and give it the read. On my way into the 50th page or so it dawned on me that I am familiar with this story and in fact had never forgotten it! Having read it in Malayalam by the name of "Ajnatha Khathakan' (Unknown Murderer) and not remembering the author's name at all it never occurred to me that they could be one and the same. Though I knew the mystery's answer Dame Christie's intriguing ways kept me a captive till the last page once again. This is not a Ms. Marple or M. Poirot story by the way.

Aftermath: I finished the 2nd Agatha Christie in one sitting (The
                 Murder of Roger Akroyd) and fished out "Ordeal
                 by Innocence" from the Library. Ordeal by Innocence
                apparently is one of two all time favorites of Agatha
                Christie. Crooked House being the second.Christie is
                a beloved writer who can get you through boredom
                 without fear of any long lasting effect and so what have you
                 got to lose? Get off that sofa and go get some for there is
                 no better medicine to cure a reading block:-)

A Death In The Family by James Agee

Memories always take precedence over exemplary writing. Mea Culpa. The subject/story is morbid as the title implies but the book is a literary treasure. What puts this book on the pedestal is not the all too familiar storyline but the evocative, moving pros describing the love, angst and care of all in the family when faced with a beloved person's death. It is autobiographical which I didn't know when I read the book. Young Rufus and deaf Grandma Catherine alike will take root in our hearts and refuse to go away with the last page.

That James Agee was gifted does not need to be said by the likes of me. The book was posthumously published and had an editing team arranging the manuscript in chronological order. The manuscript itself was finished before Agee died. A true classic and a must read. You will be a better person to have read it and I beg of you to do just that.

Stieg Larsson's Lisbeth Salander trilogy

I know by now most people have heard of Larsson's Millennium series. The saving grace is the heroine Lisbath Salander who is very contemporary and accounts for the wider spectrum of empathizers. I read all three books and while it is awfully boring where Blomkvist descriptions takes on a larger than life form, it is quite an entertainer that could get you through train journeys and airport waits in a jiffy. I think the story could have been better told in 2 books instead of 3. The strength is the tightly woven dark story albeit with a more Utopian view of the world for certain aspects of living.

It is to Larsson's credit that he wrote the stories while living under threats to his life and was always an advocate for what he believed in. He also did not live to see the phenomenal success of his books.
I am not sure if he intended Salander to be the main character but that is what caught the imagination of the public and the reason for the success of the books. I feel Salander lives in the background except maybe in the 2nd book while Blomkvist looms large everywhere. Another all important fact is the window into Sweden's darker side which had remained relatively unknown to the outside world.I really enjoyed the first one esp taken as a mystery of the missingVanger heiress. There is a certain naivete to Larsson's writing that could be endearing or tiresome depending on the reader. To read or not to read is left up to you.

The Devil's Advocate

2010-08-19T23:09:00.000-07:00

You have to agree that the title is intriguing. Reading the preface will interest you even more because it will tell you all about the Devil's Advocate hereafter to be known as the DA. The Catholic Church has allocated this title to the person who will argue against making someone a saint. His edict is to study the saint-to-be's life and purported miracles and turn the skeptics' eye on it. On an aside, reading Morris West's book took me back some years.

My father used to be the member of a book club called Book-A-Month (BAM) club. I have no direct memory of this because I never saw books arriving once a month. Based on some search links that turned up it could be a publisher rather than a club even. When I turned a book worm I hankered after every single book at home regardless of caste or creed. Luckily for me it was a large horde accumulated over the years by my Dad and older siblings. The encouragement to the reader in me was from my Mom and Mom only. MAB books were mostly great works of literature from other languages translated to Malayalam. One book in particular from that time stayed with me a lot and I have been looking for it for a while now with no results. 'Cardinal' was the name. It was about a priest named Stephen Fermoil who rose to become a Cardinal in the Church from his humble beginnings as the son of a trolley driver.

Definitely the styles are not similar between the two books but the general environment around the characters sort of are. I am so glad to have found this book to give me a certain closure:-)

I can't just believe it! I wrote up to the above line and saved and started searching again for the Cardinal on a whim. Contrary to what happened the umpteen times I tried, the Search Goddesses (aka, key words) aligned and brought out a whole bunch of links from the woodwork! So even if I had only intended to write on West's book this has now turned into one on The Cardinal too!!!! Apparently it was a very popular book and was even made into a movie. Note to self : watch movie. I also know the author's name now. Henry Morton Robinson. So it is official. I now have total closure over this hitherto unresolved issue..

Getting back to the DA, it is all about the DA himself under threat of imminent death from a terminal illness who is sent to investigate the path to saintdom of a man named Giacomo Nerone in rural Italy. You will find an unlikely hero in Father Blaise Meredith and will come to admire the man for his honesty and lack of flowery speeches. A good read doubtless.

Windfalls

2010-07-10T08:20:00.000-07:00

Jean Hegland's book starts out describing a photograph. It is of a tree that has been split almost in two with the living part covered in blossoms against a storm charged sky. Hegland's gift for vivid descriptions is not the only reason to like this awesome book about two mothers living quiet different lives. When they meet at the end they willingly learn from the other's life and keeps on going.

I think Jodi Picoult does a good job in describing personal angst or deep feelings of the heart despite the popularizing aspect of her books. Yet, the subtlety with which Hegland approaches emotions has simply blown me away. And I quote : "We're all so alone, in mothering, " Anna went on , her voice low and raw. "We can talk about how our kids are doing in school and the cute things they say. We can even complain about how they're driving us nuts. But we can't talk about how much it terrifies us to love them as we do, or talk about how much we scare ourselves, trying to stay sane while we raise them, We can't talk about how much they teach us, how much they cost us, how much we owe to them, Or- " She shrugged. "Maybe it's just me".

I bet each of you parents who are reading this will think how aptly Anna describes your own feelings. Hegland's is the credit! Hope to read her other books and you should too.

On July11, 2010 on the World Cup Finals Day
Wanted to add another book that I am reading right now on loan from my husband's cousin.
Talent Is Overrated by Geoff Covin
This is very similar to Malcolm Gladwell's Outliers. Some themes even run in common with The World Is Flat and so don't want to make a separate post of it. Good read about what goes on with the practical lives of this world. i.e, when we get the time to think/ponder such things. If there is no time then reading this book will give insights into some parts of it for sure. Talent in itself is likely to be a perception and if we look at the successful people in any field including music we could see that the linearity is along hard work rather than just plain talent. I happen to agree with this but with many corollaries to factor in personalities, open mindedness etc. There are other angles too that I hope to read about by the time I finish off the book.

Giuseppe Pontiggia's Born Twice and other such books.

2010-06-17T22:18:00.000-07:00

I had finished reading Tilt written by author and poet Elizabeth Burns and meant to do a post on it. Unfortunately it's been a while and I have forgotten the nuances and the immediate feeling which usually makes for a good write up. I'll just write down what I can now since it is not to be missed. Burns has proven she is as good an author as she is a poet. The sufferings of a couple in a nuclear family with 2 kids where one is a disabled child only gets worse when the father's schizophrenia lifts its ugly head and the Mom takes refuge in deep depression. There is a sort of redemption in the end which helps the reader to feel better for the Mom who is the narrator. A good book that makes you take a step back and count the myriad of blessings that are yours without asking.

Born Twice has an interesting hardcover and since I like works of translation I just couldn't resist this famous Italian author's first foray into the American market. I was well rewarded with a masterpiece! At times the style reminded me of Umberto Eco. Not sure if that is because both are translated works from Italian. It happens to be a style that I love anyway but mostly the book has its own splendid style. Oonagh Stransky did the translation. The story/theme resembles Mark Haddon's 'The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. Haddon has the kid narrating his life while for Pontiggia it is the father who takes us into the realms of growing with a disabled child.

What took my breath away in Born Twice are the snippets of analysis/philosophy on the various situations in life, be it related to the disabled child or not. It was a pleasure to read through all that the father puts forward to make sense of his own and other's actions. I thought I alone had the need for this sort of analysis:-) Giuseppe Pontiggia has the unique ability to put feelings from the deep recesses of the mind onto paper keeping the reader's interest and pique the said reader's mind at the same time. Dostoevesky was especially gifted in putting his Freudian points accumulated from a hard life into readable form but I'd say Pontiggia has simplified the process and makes it more accessible to readers. So don't say I didn't tell you. Include this in that short list of books to add to your personal collection. It will remain a cherished asset.

Some Cherries & a Movie

2010-06-13T07:38:00.000-07:00

Enjoy these cherries from the orchard. Not ours of course! We went cherry picking on the Memorial Day weekend and this year the harvest was exceptionally juicy, firm, sweet, ripe and scrumptious all at the same time! Must be the season. Our neighbors as well as colleagues agreed whole heartedly when offered some.

Coming to the movie, the four of us went and watched Karate Kid this weekend and I have to say that it is the most wonderful family movie that I have watched in a while. Reminded me of Spielberg's Jurassic Park I even if they belong to different genres. It is a remake of the original and I really loved this version. Will & Jada Smiths's son Jaden Smith is awesome and is perhaps the reason why the story and the triumph was so persuasive. Jackie Chan was his usual charming self and Taraji P Henson wasn't too bad. So watch it with kids and you have a home run.

Sway: The Irresistible Pull of Irrational Behavior

2010-05-31T09:29:00.000-07:00

Ori &Rom Brafman are brothers and did some broad research before coming up with this book. Like other books of its genre it states something that is obvious to most but a little difficult to overcome. Very easy to read as one can identify with many of the situations. Although easy to read, the authors sometimes follow a train of thought, then trails away from it and fails to come back in time. By the time they do, the reader is engaged in the new events. You may not learn anything new but it could be interesting/comforting to know that most people in the world are in the same boat as you when making irrational decisions:-) The power of sway is somewhat similar to 'first impressions are the best impressions'. People are easily swayed by outward appearences as evidenced by how they totally ignored world class violinist Joshua Bell playing on his 3.5 million worth Stradivarius because he was playing on the New York Subway dressed as a street musician. They would pay through the nose to hear him if only it was in a concert hall! Or how an investor refuses to sell a stock that is slowly going underwater against the advise of his agent and lost all his investment in the process. I know many can empathise with this one including me.

All of this reminded me of a story I had read in India when little. I believe it was about Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar but I have heard many variations of it. The story : One day this well respected scholar was travelling in a train with a youth. The youth did not find it amusing to go with this person in simple attire and showed his displeasure in many ways. The guy was going to attend a lecture by the famous Vidyasagar after all and belonged to the higher echelons of education. Imagine his surprise and remorse then, when on reaching the destination he saw people waiting to garland the simple guy who travelled with him as the famous scholar! To my delight I found a version of this story as well as more details on Vidyasgar here. I love telling this story to my kids. So the book Sway is a collection of many such instances helpful for the new generation where the old adages 'all that glitters is not gold' or 'think before you leap' etc. may not suffice.

Kaffir Boy & Lying Awake

2010-05-22T22:34:00.000-07:00

True, I'd been MIA the past few weeks but books were never far away. Reading is my favorite form of relaxation. Yes, above eating, sleeping and shopping! I see at least a few heads nodding in agreement. So I got to finish a bunch of extraordinary books which will be shared as time permits. Time to go to the first of the two books featured today.

Kaffir Boy By Mark Mathabane

Mark Matahabane's Kaffir Boy strikes you with such force in the first paragraph that you feel as if you have no choice but to read it. And read is what I did. A visiting relative brought it with him and me being me, could not keep my hands off the book. He kindly decided to leave it behind. It is a painful read but you are forced to go on wanting to know how this incredibly strong person survived the tough life he was dealt.

This is an autobiography and Mathabane's is a success story but the pitfalls and sufferings he had to overcome simply blows the mind. Born in Alexandra, South Africa inside one of the numerous black ghettos that surround the city Mathabane had to live each day as it came. Apartheid was at its height and if it was not for his Mom & Grandma he sure would have ended up dead in some tsotsi gang fight or another. As it was, he managed to put himself through school, developed a voracious reading habit and had the lucky break of being introduced to Tennis through his Grandma's white employers. Tennis was the ticket that got him to America. The land where he knew black players like Arthur Ashe were admired and roamed freely. He has written a few books since then but none compares to the forcefulness of the events of his difficult life in this book. His relationship with Mom & Dad are also explored in depth. It simply had to have been cathartic for him to finally be able to express all the pent up feelings of living as a black man in oppressed South Africa.

Each page takes us through the abject poverty and utter cruelty that the black people had to weather just for the bare minimum of survival. Think Dharavi and add to it a totalitarian state against the black people.

Cry The Beloved Country by Alan Paton has long been a favorite of mine for the story it tells as well as the almost lyrical, down to earth portrayals of both the beautiful country and its people. Hands going up. Yes I own it. Beautiful, beautiful book. In contrast, Mathabane's book talks of a similar plight but with a force that makes it impossible to look away. It took me a while to finish but couldn't dream of abandoning it. To do so would be a betrayal. The book is being used as school reading material as well as at College levels I believe.

Lying Awake By Mark Salzman

Having read his Soloist before I didn't hesitate one bit to pick up this Mark Salzman book. And what a read it was! If you liked "To Kill A Mocking Bird" or "Jonathan Livingston Seagull" then I need to say no more. Just find the book and read please. As for the content, Cronin's "The Keys of the Kingdom" comes to mind. It might appeal to you only from a certain stage in your life. It came to me at this right moment and I loved every single line. It reads like King David's Psalms. Sister John of The Cross goes through duelling phases of total faith and serious doubts in a cloistered Carmelite Monastery. Salzman seems very attuned to spirituality in general. His portrayal of Zen Buddhism in The Soloist was revealing. I'd be getting any of his books that are available with the confidence of a fulfilling read.

Harry Potter - Yes, again!

2010-04-16T18:24:00.000-07:00

I can't thank reflections enough for being staunch in her stand about the Potter books. I have finished all 7 of them and am completely bowled over. I guess it is one series that I don't need to waste words on for people to read it. This is for those with this giant block to get over when thinking of reading a fantasy book that seems infiltrated with magic. What can it offer other than wild creatures and things that do not make sense to the normal person? JK Rowling deserves all the accolades she has received and more. She has woven this fantastic tale about the young boy who always chooses love so well that I could not imagine the series coming to an end. Hermione, Ron, Dumbledore and Severus Snape are all still very much part of conversations with my son as we pull out imaginary wands and throw out spells at each other whenever. It is great fun I'd say. 'expelliarmus', impedimenta', 'stupefy', 'crucio' and 'avada kedavra' seems to be the most popular around here. Rowling skillfully wove together Harry's magical world with an easy to relate school life full of pranks and teachable moments. She structured the books ingenuously and brought the whole story together with ease. Harry's trips on the Hogwarts Express to the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry reminded me of all those train journeys that I took during the undergrad years. We were divided into 4 houses in my school too but with names likes Red, Yellow, Green and Blue. I know, I know, nothing like Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Slytherins or Hufflepuffs but it brought back some wonderful memories:-) Rowling's usage of every word as it refers to magic are chosen with care for their simple elegance. She is quite unparalleled in her command on words and ability to unerringly create the right environment for each of the events. I can go on and on but of course it is not necessary. If you Muggles haven't read one, it is time to go look for one. It will bring out the child in you and yet the adult in you is equally mesmerized . The Lady is awesome! She knows her material and knows what it does for her readers. The dementors of Azkaban was particularly interesting.

Er.. Did you know that the members of the Black family are all named after stars from the constellation? The Weasley family names came mostly from King Arthur. The charming and intelligent Hermione whose portrayal was what first pulled me into the series is loosely based on the author herself. Ok I have to stop somewhere and this is as good a place as any....

March by Geraldine Brooks

2010-04-11T20:04:00.000-07:00

By now books in our Library seem to know what it is that I am searching for. There is no other explanation for how this book jumped into my hands. True, there was the golden Pulitzer Prize sticker on the front page but still... It must be the dog eared look that did it.

It was surprising to find out that the 'March' of the title is not the month and not a parade event but Mr.March from Louisa May Alcott's Little Women. Yes, Geraldine Brooks has made this irreproachable book around the mostly absent father of the four delightful girls. Brooks is generously endowed with talent which is evident as soon as you read a few pages. Soon we shed all the inhibitions of reading about a known character because the story that evolves can stand very well on its own. We rarely meet the family except through the letters from Mr. March. He writes regularly from the war front (American Civil War) on the side of the Yankees where he serves as a Chaplain. It is is his second time in the South which he had traversed as a salesman in his youth. This time around however, things are different and circumstances more complicated. As the war progresses we move with March to learn of his past and how it changes his present relationships. Family endures and by the time we meet Mrs.March coming to take care of her invalid husband in the hospital we would have gone through a lifetime worth of experiences ourselves. A classic of a book where the literary environment created by the author is simply not to be missed.

A second book
BTW, I just finished Gentleman &Players by Joanne Harris. It is a riot of a read. A fun yet serious murder mystery woven around an old prep school called St. Oswalds. In this Kazuo Ishiguro'esque novel Harris relies on her British background and it has paid off. Please guys, if you are in for a light and fun read, look no further.

Irving Stone - Lust For Life

2010-03-01T21:34:00.000-08:00

Irving Stone was a biographer of immortals. I had read Stone's Agony & Ecstasy on Michael Angelo a while back and was on my way into another round when this post in pareltank came to my attention. Thanks! Afterwards, I had to visit a neighborhood library to get a copy of 'Bridge To Terabithia' for my 4th grader's class project. (A wonderful book. Do read the book or watch the movie of the same name.) Wandering around I found 'Lust For Life' grinning at me from the shelves. Grabbed that along with some for my Kindergartner and we left happy customers.

Stone's ability to inhabit the people and events of the period that he writes about is uncanny. He must really love/respect his subjects to be able to do that. This is probably why he was able to portray Vincent Van Gogh's life so realistically. This painter strove to capture real life characters and places into his canvass. At the height of his painting days it was imperative for him to finish a painting the same day that a scene or people caught his imagination. Irving Stone succeeded very well in making the reader understand the agony of creation that goes on inside a painter's head. To be a true artist one should have no inhibitions in the expression of the art. Van Gogh's paintings were ridiculed for being childlike and for portraying a lower class of people. He lived during a time of renaissance in painting but people were just getting used to the Impressionists and Vincent's time was still in the future.

Van Gogh's story is never complete without that of his brother Theo Van Gogh. It was Theo who stood by this lunatic of a brother - to ordinary standards - when he wanted to take up painting around the tender age of 27. An age when most men were established and married. The world would not have heard of a Vincent Van Gogh if it was not for Theo's ardent financial and moral support. I'd like to watch the movie Vincent & Theo someday.

Van Gogh was born in Holland and was part of a well known family. His father's five brothers were all well known in politics and in the arts. Two of the Van Gogh brothers had controlling interest in art galleries in London, Paris, Brussels, The Hague etc.. Vincent's father was the least known Van Gogh but was the beloved and intelligent curate of a small parish. His parents wished their son would be like others but stood by him as much as they could in all the decisions he took. He started off as an art salesman in a London art-gallery owned by his uncle and namesake Vincent Van Gogh. He was doing well and was even thought to inherit the Van Gogh art kingdom some day. Unfortunately Vincent was a man of strong passions and an initial unrequited love pushed him off the path of normalcy and into his ultimate destiny. He left the gallery and wanting to become a curate which eventually lead him to the disparate lives of miners in utter poverty in the Borinage. True to character Vincent tried to do them justice by giving up all he had for their betterment but it was more than anything he could do. When Emile Zola wrote about miners in his book 'Germinal' he mentions having met many in the Borinage area who spoke highly of a Christ like Van Gogh who lived among them and loved them.

When he could not be a successful minister Vincent got depressed and unhappy. He spent days barely eating and always in the clutches of a fever that stayed with him ever since. One day the urge to bring to life the raw people around hit him and that was the beginning of the artist. Theo who was starting as an art dealer in Paris, stood by him in this with an understanding that defied norms. He promised to send Vincent a monthly allowance from his salary as Vincent had no other means of support. This was single most thing that let Vincent pursue his art in his own way. Unlike the existing norms Vincent was trying to capture the essence of true people - as he called it - into his canvass. He considered himself to be a peasant like his subjects. He lived in the outdoors or found models from real life such as laborers, and washerwomen when indoors. He spent every franc to pay the models and on painting supplies. This often left no money for food towards the last days of the month which in turn would bring the fever and the cycle will stat again.

He lived with his parents for a while in Etten and fell in love with a widowed cousin. This was not acceptable to the families but at least this time he had his painting to look forward to. He went to the Hague where he got some guidance from Mauve who was a maternal uncle through marriage. Here he lived with a woman Christine and her children for a year or two while trying to rescue her from street life. This was the only semblance of family life he had in his entire life. Running out of money does not conduit to a stable life and he was driven out of this life back to his father's new parish in Nuenen. There he painted prolifically while getting mildly frustrated in search of that painting that could ultimately satisfy the artist in him. He went out with easel and supplies in the morning and got back only in the evening. A routine he kept through the remaining years.

From Nuenen Theo took him to Paris where by now he was a successful art dealer. This is where Vincent met most of his friends and was introduced to Impressionism. Paintings used to be generally dark till then but the exposure to Impressionism gave Vincent a new perspective.Theo was well loved for taking the side of new artists against established gallery practices. He fought hard to give the Impressionists a display space in the walls when the art buying world had not woken up to them yet. Vincent made friends with Georges Seurat, Henri Toulouse-Lautrec, Henri Rousseau, Gauguin, Zola and the likes. He was very fond of Gauguin and they hit it off well.

Vincent developed his own style after at first futilely attempting to copy the impressionists. The time had come to settle down. From Paris he went to Arles which is a sun baked little town with olive trees and vineyards. Here he rented a small yellow house that he loved and started on his famous sunflowers. The scorching Arles sun could not stop his relentless pursuit to capture life with character on canvass. His most satisfactory and productive years were spent here. The grueling routine and the inevitable lack of food got to him and started his epileptic spells. It was around this time that Paul Gauguin came to live with him. They each harbored a solitary temperament which did not bode well for the relationship. It ended one day when Vincent cut off his ear while they were quarreling. Gauguin left and Vincent's doctor admitted him to a peaceful mental asylum in the countryside with Theo's permission. There at St. Remy's he painted the surroundings but the fire inside was slowly dying down. He also figured that the epileptic bouts came about once every three months. The waiting and the uncertainty of the attacks brought him further down but knowing an approximate time also gave him a certain amount of confidence. After a year, he went back to Paris to be near Theo who had married and had a child named Vincent. Theo placed him under the care of Dr. Gachet and Vincent chose a cheap place in Auvers where he stayed till his untimely death.

One page biographies will give you a vague idea of the person but Stone's book will make you a close acquaintance. At the end Stone mentions that almost all the events described are true based on his extensive research. It helped that Theo Van Gogh kept every single letter written to him by his brother. About 700 of them I believe. This is available as a book. Vincent died of self inflicted gun shot wounds in the arms of his brother at the age of 37. Theo died 6 months later. Theo's wife Johanna - herself the sister of a painter - loved Vincent as much and was instrumental in bringing Vincent's life and painting to public attention.

Needless to say, I am on quest to read all of Stone's books. Oh and don't forget to listen to Starry Starry Night.

HP - Look who is here!!

2010-02-14T10:38:00.000-08:00

I have not read these yet. Reflections have always waxed eloquently on the inimitable HP and a little seed was planted. Got the whole set of 7. Will there be more? The son has finished 2 books already in 4 days! I don't know whether to be mad at him or amused. I am going to start from Book 1. This Percy Jackson movie is what brought it on. I thought if he can be that gaga over it, then he must like Harry H Potter and who am I to stand in his way? Being a little harried lately I won't be able to read it in bits and pieces from the Library and so got the whole set to read at leisure. It looks nice and feels great to have a whole series waiting to be read. So there it is. I am er...soon will be.. one of you. Checkout JK Rowling's page for details if you haven't already.

Intel's Andy Grove - Swimming Across (A Memoir)

2010-02-06T21:29:00.000-08:00

It is rare to find a computer user who does not remember the famous 'Intel Inside' logo. During Andy Grove's tenure as Intel's CEO the company grew to its heights. Grove's earlier book Only The Paranoid Survive was well received in the business world. It offers great insights into redefining and conquering new markets while never sitting pretty with a measure of current success. Sounds tough but 'no pain no gain' is something anyone can agree on.

Swimming Across is a well written and highly readable memoir of this remarkable leader. My husband picked it up when he took the kids to Intel's Tech Museum as it was being offered for free there! Call me a snob but something about the 'free' froze me every time I tried to pick up the book to read. The presumption of a boring book was a high wall which I just couldn't jump over at least for a while. When I did I was quite taken aback by the simple and engaging style with which the book was written. The guy knows a thing or two about selling stuff I guess:-) I was taken with the book from the first page. It starts at his birthplace in Hungary (Budapest) at the age of three and goes through all those early years. The time that saw Hungary under Fascism, Nazi Germany and Stalin and the Soviet Red Army. He had me at 'I was born in Budapest':-) (Yup, loved Jerry Mcguire)

Grove talks of the war years under Nazi Germany when his father had to work in a labor battalion and he and his mother had to live as hideaways under non-Jewish sounding names. Fortunately although tortured and ravaged with illness, his father managed to return about 6 months after the war. Like son later, the father was a true soldier of spirits and went on to rebuild his life despite being under a slowly stifling Stalinist Russia. They had some semblance of a normal life for a while.

He tried his hand at journalism during school years and was successful. The country then being under the Soviets, he could not see much of a chance to succeed at it while also being true to the profession. Not to worry since he loved Physics and Chemistry too. Andy (born Andras Grof) takes us through his adolescent boyhood years with a self awareness that makes it a useful reading tool for parents. He was in his second year at the university as a Chemistry student when Hungarian Revolution hit the streets. He had to find a way out of the place if he was to keep from being rounded up and shuttled off.

Grove sets of on his life changing journey to America, the dreamland of many an immigrant before and since. He was lucky to have family in New York but it was his own persistence and willingness to work harder towards a higher level of Academics that got him where he is now. From wanting to be a Chemist to becoming a Chemical Engineer, he succeeded with flying colors. Together with wife Eva, he drives to California after Graduation and never looked back. The last chapter where he dealt with being a first time arrival in the US and of life in an American University sounded a lot like mine sans the refugee part and I enjoyed it much. His parents eventually migrated to America. From his first job in Fairchild Semiconductors, Grove went onto be a founding member of Intel - the largest maker semiconductors- its CEO and its Chairman.

He never returned to Hungary. But the idea of writing this memoir retelling his life there took root with the arrival of grand kids. I am so glad he did as the world would have missed a rare peek into this successful and intelligent personality. I'll keep the book lying around in the hopes that both my son and daughter will pick it up to read as they get older. My son did make me a sort of a bookmark/memento with a picture of this book on it! I was rather pleased:-)

I hope you too will make time to read this bestseller at some point. You will be as fascinated as I was to read all about the boy who later oversaw the deployment of Intel's microprocessors (computer brains) to computers across the world to the tune of 85% of the market share!! Not being a natural swimmer he took pains to master the art on his own in a small wild pond which was a harbringer of things to come. It makes this an aptly named book.See here for amazon reviews.

Elizabeth Maguire's The Open Door

2010-01-03T19:08:00.000-08:00

Reading the preface, I wasn't quite sure that this is about a real woman author but later research showed it to be true. When you are done reading you are not sure who to applaud the most, the astute author who laid out such a lively picture of this independent American author ahead of her time or the character herself. Either way it is a good book to read. Compact in size and easy to finish too!

Elizabeth Maguire has taken great resources from within herself to make the book come alive. She had to feel a lot of empathy for Constance Fenimore Woolson to be able to write her thoughts and actions out so well. Woolson's platonic relationship with acclaimed author Henry James is a main thread in the book. Woolson herself had accomplished fame and money by colorful writings of the local American lives that she was so familiar with. James cannot take it that Fenimore - as he calls her - probably made more money than him in the writing business. He knows his is the superior work which Woolson accepts without contest, yet he cannot get over his jealousy at her financial success.

The story begins with the death of Woolson's mother who was under her care. Finally free of this loving but stifling bond, Woolson takes off for Europe never to return. One reason for the trip was to meet and befriend her favorite author Henry James. Once she caught up with him, they became rather fast friends. For the rest of her life, she did everything she could to keep this friendship out of jeopardy. She was afflicted with the depression that had plagued her father and in the end succumbed to its clutches. Reading about Woolson through Maguire, one gets the feeling that she really could not help it especially at that time when even the smallest of women's afflictions was dismissed as nothing serious by vaguely condescending male doctors. She did find some good physicians to help with the persistant ear problem that eventually denied her even the mere enjoyment of music. Throughout it all one can feel the will power and discipline that enabled her to have the life that she wanted regardless of the scant medical help. This hope inspiring and is recognised as such I believe. It was interesting to read about the time when James wrote The Portrait Of A Lady as that was a book I had liked much. Here is the Amazon review on Open Door.

Cold Sassy Tree By Olive Ann Burns

2009-12-19T18:18:00.000-08:00

It is while reading Olive Ann Burns' Cold Sassy Tree that I came to permanently discard that dream of writing a book one day. Guess anyone who read books will eventually toy with the idea of writing one and I thought I had it in me to write just one such book. Luckily for you that wish is gone for good:-)

Mrs. Burns wrote Cold Sassy in her later years and the sequel Leaving Cold Sassy was published posthumously from a partially completed manuscript. I own both books and consider them good acquisitions. Burns describes her efforts at writing a book in the sequel. In fact half of it is a reminiscence about the author's life by friend and editor Katrina Kenison. This brought to surface the practicalities of such an effort and I understood that I simply am not up to the task. Luckily for me google came along with this perfect spot where I can 'publish' what I write if that is what I think it is or keep a journal if that is how one looks at it. Nice setup. Eh?

So Mrs. Burns deserves the credit for showing me the light and google's blogger deserves the credit for giving me closure. Seriously, we are talking about a true classic here. This book will be read by many more generations after other books have been read and discarded. It is a sweet and simple account of small-town Southern life in the post civil war era America. It revolves around young Will Tweedy and his strong and colorful Granpa Blakeslee and the family and people that surround them. Read here for a summary of each of the chapters. The google link in the first sentence will let you read a whole lot of pages from the book. Read here for amazon reviews. Fictitious Cold Sassy town was named for a tree of the same name that stood on the road leading into the town. When townfolk felt they needed a new name Granpa Blakeslee will hear none of it. The book is replete with such stories and more. Read here for a complete summary.

The Syringa Tree By Pamela Gien

2009-11-05T00:07:00.000-08:00

It seems good things come in two's. It was only a few weeks back that I watched the wonderful German film Nowhere In Africa based on a book by Stephanie Zweig . It was autobiographical. And now this gem of a book also happen to be based in Africa. It is fictional but since Pamela Gien was raised in South Africa it has autobiographical elements strewn throughout. This is one of the best books/ new finds that I have had recently. The language is elegant and captivating. I ransacked my brains to give an example of an equivalent style and it dawned on me that finally I have found someone who writes like the cherished Malayalam writer Lalithambika Antharjanam. The Syringa Tree started out as a play starring Gien which she converted later into a full fledged novel.

Every line is a treat. Allow me to quote, "In the fleeting African spring, over before you can say Jack Robinson, rude August days of 1964 had already burned away the the first blossoms. Giving all things new and delicate no moment to shine. The syringa buds that survived this sudden heat burst in seconds into full clusters of shooting lilac stars, hanging heavy and fragrant too soon. In the blink of an eye, it was summer again. My mother hoped this would bring rain in fantastic thunderstorms with displays of afternoon lightning that would send whimpering dogs scurrying under beds. Rain would relieve and settle us." I didn't skip a single sentence for fear of losing the simple enjoyment of words regardless of where the story was.

For 6 year old Lizzy Grace, South Africa is her own land and so she does not understand why it is not really so in the eyes of different kinds of people. Afrikaners think of her family as not belonging anywhere being made up of a little bit of the Afrikaner, some Jewishness and some Catholicism. The blacks with whom they live together in harmony imagines them to soon be going back to their own homes across the sea despite her parents being born in South Africa. More than her own mother whom she seems to understand very well, it is Salamina, her black nanny who has Lizzy's heart. She considers Salamina's daughter Moliseng to be her own little sister and in the end related events drive her out of Africa and into US. There is a (spoiler link ->) murder in the book and I have never before been so affected by the murder of a character. Such is Pamela Gien's gift of mingling words and emotions in the gentlest of manners to draw the reader into her book. The syringa tree is not indigenous to Africa but grew roots in its soil and is the solace of Lizzy's loved but insecure childhood. She nested in its branches whenever bothered by daily events . Salamina, The Syringa Tree and her Mother completes a cozy triangle of motherly love for Lizzy in this story.

Sweet Moliseng is so endearing as a baby and a toddler that just like Lizzy we end up anxiously awaiting her dramatic entrances. The little speck held the heart of the Grace household. Dr. Grace is a hero for both Lizzy and the reader as he does all he can for the changing South Africa hurtling towards Apartheid and its ensuing evils. Little brother John, Grandparents and neighbor girl Loeska makes up the rest of her world. A world which is enchanted and threatening at the same time in a way unique to South Africa. What can I say... Every character is portrayed so well that I just love all of them!! It feels a travesty to call them characters as they feel like acquaintances rather. I hope there will be more stories from Pamela Gien. This book is a keeper without doubt and one for the home rather than the Library. Read here for more on the book from the author and here for more on the book from other readers.

Out of Place, A Memoir

2009-10-22T21:06:00.000-07:00

Edward Wadie Said's autobiography is a testament to his towering intellect and amazing analytical powers. This most famous Palestinian after Yassar Arafat, is an amalgam of such contradictions that just reading what he has written down is an experience in itself. No, his is not a sob story and is not mysterious in any way but the precise and in depth analysis of a life lived belonging to a homeland mired in controversy. Being a natural born American Citizen among other things only amplifies the paradox of his life. Add on to this the fact that he is an Arab Christian of Palestinian descent with an entire childhood lived in colonial Egypt under British. Most of it was spent attending local British and American schools by virtue of his father's wealth, his Christian background, and the odd Citizenship again through his father. His father Wadie along with his mother dominated Edward's early life. Wadie had fought in the American Expeditionary Force in his early wanderings of the world before eventually returning home and becoming quite successful through brilliant entrepreneurship and business acumen.

This book is not for the faint of heart. It is not that the book depicts grisly war stories or heart wrenching pictures of families being torn apart - that aspect is represented very well and takes up good space- but rather it taxes the mind by forcing us to go through everything the author perceived and assimilated. Said's material shines with extreme intelligence and honesty in telling the story like it is. Like Said we also do not judge his autocratic father, vacillating mother or even the circumstances of his highly privileged but restricted life. Everything is laid out as bare facts but with enough empathy so the reader will see its oneness with the author. He has penned quite a few well acclaimed books and started writing this autobiography towards the end when he was diagnosed with terminal cancer. This could account for the analytical clarity and integrity that comes through his words but I believe these are qualities that permeate all his works. Pick it up only when you have time and willing to finish it. It is not an easy read but it makes you want to keep on reading and so you will finish it. It took me longer than usual but I will read it again just for the pleasure of going through Edward Said's brilliant presentation of his eventful life.

Joseph Boyden's Three Day Road

2009-09-25T20:42:00.000-07:00

I read about Boyden's book while blog hoping. I can't for the life of me remember which blog it was especially since the post was not a recent one. If it is your blog do let me know and please receive my appreciation for the introduction to this fine book. Since then I heard a lot about it and decided to give it a go. So here I am a newly minted Joseph Boyden fan! Found the book in the Library shelf waiting just for me and it never hit the floor till I finished. A fantastic book by this new author who is blessed with the wisdom and gift of an experienced writer. I know he has many more books waiting to form in his story arsenal and each an experience to treasure for the reader.

It was interesting to find that 'Three Day Road' was also one of David Davidar's first publishing efforts in his capacity as Penguin Canada's President and Publisher. He was richly rewarded with Canada's prestigious Giller Prize being awarded to Boyden for his second book Through Black Spruce which I have not read. It is a sequel to his first book and it seems a third book is also planned to complete a trilogy.

Three Day Road is complex in story and character and quite captivating with its World War I backdrop. I didn't think I could take War activities in my stride but Boyden has succeeded so well that I flew past page after page of trenches, grenades and sniping not to mention all the other grissly details in complete empathy with the characters. Xavier Bird or 'X' as he is known is the narrator that sticks with you to the end. His Aunt Niska and close friend Elijah Weesgeechak (used in story as Whiskeyjack) also are strong in their narration of the events that shape their lives as Cree Indians as well as Canadians taking part in the War on behalf of their country. To me the story where the heroic but quiet Xavier being ignored for the impulsive but well spoken Elijah runs in parallel to Canada's quiet but courageous participation in the War alongside the more eloquent and applauded United States . Read here for an excerpt from the book to get a feel of Boyden's genius and here for more on the book itself.

"The real cold settled in with the moon of the exploding trees". This is how Boyden begins to describe the forest on a harsh winter night when the Cree where going through an extremely severe year. His language is picturesque and deep. Being of Irish Catholic ancestry sprinkled with traces of Metis and Mi’kmaq, Boyden has drawn on the Native American part well enough to have an authentic feel for this book told mostly through Cree Indian insight. If you don't read this book it will be your loss.

Short Stories by Ghassan Kanafani

2009-09-18T19:13:00.000-07:00

I was rather disillusioned with a book that lost its storyline and style in the midst of reading. It was historical fiction about the Middle East in the colonial era. True to character I finished the book yet it felt incomplete. A Jordanian acquaintance who is originally from Palestine suggested that I might find reading Kanafani a different experience. Found 'Men In the Sun' in the short story section. It includes a novella of the same name besides several other short stories.

Kanafani is a gifted writer and I could see a future O.Henry if only his life was not cut short so tragically early in his career. Like Henry's famous stories, Kanafani's stories too have a life
lesson to teach be it related to the plight of his people or just the normal everyday lives that many of us live.

One aspect of the title story 'Men In The Sun' is a theme familiar to the unemployed who is only too aware of the sufferings and trials to fulfill that elusive dream of finding a job to survive. A lot of the times for many it used to be about reaching the Gulf somehow and this story also describes how some of the Palestinians displaced from their homes reach Iraq in the hopes of making it to Kuwait through means straight or not. It describes how these innocents from all walks of life are played back and forth by swindlers and smugglers who make a living by feeding on their dreams.

The story 'A Hand In The Grave' where two Med students attempt to steal a grave for a skeleton is one that many can identify with. One of them believed that he poked his fingers into the eyes of a dead body through a hole they dug and came off screaming. He eventually quit Med school while the other carried on. Years later they all learned that the graveyard was a fake one. The owner built it as a camouflage for storing wheat and flour and to keep them away from thieves. Reminded me of a recent movie that I watched called Delhi-6 which portrayed the fear that we all carry in our hearts in the form of 'Kala Bandar' aka 'Black Monkey', a phantom rumored to be roaming the streets and the cause for all the troubles. Read here for more on the book.

As the translator points out, Kanafani's success as a writer comes from the humanization of his stories by not limiting them to a particular people but rather presenting them as universal truths. This renders integrity to his stories and make them classic in nature. I could only wonder what this author could have accomplished had he lived longer. His writing style is evolving and the story endings could use more finesse but the greatness and control of his stories are not easily found elsewhere.

Catching Genius by Kristy Kiernan

2009-08-15T20:31:00.000-07:00

A rather endearing tale of two sisters where one was declared a genius when they were still kids. This lead to a separation that lasted well into their adulthood. The estrangement started gently enough with older sister Estella staying away from little sister Constance for fear of giving her the high 'eyecue' she was diagnosed with that threw their parents into a frenzy. What made it worse for Connie was the abandonment also of her Dad who took up Estella's cause in the belief that this greatness could only have come from his own illustrious ancestors. Their Dad passed away and in later years it was their Mom who gave them the chance to mend fences by inviting the two to pack up their childhood home for sale. Tensions flared, revelations happened, forgiveness asked and given and love withstood the test of time and events. Estella 'the math genius' was even able to offer assistance to Connie's older son Gib trailing in algebra. They came to terms and even found ways to protect Connie's younger son Carson who ended up being 'discovered' as a musical prodigy. Finally Mom revealed her own ever absent Father's penchant with numbers which gave closure to Estella who could never really fit her gift into her Dad's side of the family. Kiernan is a first time author and has done very well. The cover proclaims her to be welcomed by Jodi Piccoult's readers but I believe she has her own style and way of looking at things. She has written two other books since then.

This by the way was my husband's pick rather than mine from the Library since my luck had completely dried out and I had no browsing time to pick one with care. He has done a wonderful job and I am thinking of appointing him my book selector from now on:-) He always picked the right books whenever he thought of giving them to me as gifts. Read here to know more of the author and here for more on the book.

Love, The Painter's Wife & The Queen of Sheba

2009-07-31T23:11:00.000-07:00

This is a single book and a small one at that. Queen of Sheba and other ladies of The Old Testament were and still are a constant source of fascination for me. I am eager to read up anything about them especially in my favorite form of fictionalized history. Reading the title, I didn't really think this book had any connections to true events. Imagine my amazement then when I stumbled upon the fact that the painter Piero della Francesca is a historical figure and had actually painted those pictures alluded to in the book. French author and critic Aliette Armel has produced a well written book. This is the second book I read featuring Bilqis the Queen of Sheba. Both books that came out of independent research seem to be very similar and thus render credence. Armel traveled to Yemen for the book.

The story is about Piero and his wife Silvia and how Silvia helps Piero find his muse to do a historical series of paintings. She achievs this by artfully retelling the story of the Queen and her visit to King Solomon of Israel. Through the story telling we get to know not just Piero & Silvia but Queen Bilqis and King Solomon too. The Queen had always stood out for me among those old stories. I have often pictured this courageous and smart woman traveling to Solomon's Kingdom. It was a difficult journey rife with bandits and she also had to brave the fear of a potential annexation of her small Kingdom by the powerful King. The trip ostensibly was to experience first hand the fabled wisdom of Solomon. His wise resolution in the story of the two women and one baby is a well known one.

I loved this book and with two brilliant stories in one, it is a bargain read!

Du Maurier's 'The Scapegoat'

I cannot skip a Du Maurier. Now that I think about it, if at all I would want to meet an author, it would be her. A writer with deep perception on people and how they affect each other, it is sheer pleasure to delve into Daphne Du Maurier's books. Thought I had finished reading all the titles by this author and so couldn't believe my luck when this turned up on the library shelves. This is her best book yet. Books like 'Rebecca' & My Cousin Rachel' are replete with mystery. The Scapegoat is mysterious but is equally readable by a non-mystery person. It talks about British Professor of French literature (John) switching lives with French man (Jean) who by a twist of fate is an exact replica of his physical self! Jean de Gue orchestrated the switch through deception to escape from the people in his life who were demanding. John on the other hand decided not to go to the police and instead live this French Count's life in his Chateau full of people which seemed very similar to what he had always wondered about through those pages of history. A classic for all times and all readers.

Blink : The Power Of Thinking Without Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell

2009-07-13T21:46:00.000-07:00

Malcolm Gladwell is a journalist and it shows in this book . I read all of it with interest yet I had this feeling of being cheated of something. Well, 'cheated' is a hard word so let us put it as something missing instead. I figured it out soon enough and from then it was not bad at all. You see, the book reads like a bunch of articles sewn together. He did make certain names appear here and there for the sake of continuity but in essence the chapters were articles. That does not mean it is not a good read. In fact I did not skip over any part and did read all of it. I am just ambivalent about the reading experience that is all.

I am sure almost everyone has heard of the phrase " First Impressions Are The Best Impressions". Gladwell has written a book on this with ample examples to prove his point. I agree with most of what he says and since he himself did a good job of creating a good first impression on each of his 'articles' you will finish each with pleasure. See here and here for more on the book and here for more on the author.

Added on July23
Well, Gladwell has managed to make me conscious of what normally is an intuitive feeling. So read him at your own risk. I am adding this to write about how he does truly have a point and my recent experience just proves it.

You see, I work at this company where they have these huge conference rooms in the lobby with full paneled glass doors that everyone can see into and back. Most job interviews are held here because there will always be at least one or two of these rooms available. The last few days, as I was walking past one of the rooms I began noticing the same group interviewing with different people. Sometime two on the same day etc. I started slowly being aware of these candidates quite unconsciously and decided on one particular one as the most likely to be hired. It was arrived at almost as soon as I glanced at the candidate through the glass doors. Thought to myself that if I were to hire, I'd be hiring this person.

So...... guess who got hired in the end? Yes, "my" candidate. So the group didn't need to waste their time and money. All they had to do was to put the candidates in a lineup and ask me to point to the one:-))

Just checking in

2009-07-03T09:43:00.000-07:00

I haven't gone AWOL guys. Just that my 'Luck' seemed to have run out finally. I know, couldn't have lasted that long. eh? The last few books from the Library were disappointments. Yup, nothing to write home about. But I do have some interesting reading going on and will update once I am done. Till then bear with me and Happy Reading!

Kamala Das- Madhavikkutti - Kamala Suraiya

2009-06-10T21:54:00.000-07:00

I was away from the blog/net world and can't believe to have come back to this. This iconoclastic writer that I admire much has passed away. Any Malayali who likes books could hardly miss Madhavikkutti's books. Had to leave this quick but respectful note remembering this great author's life and contributions. I still have many books left to read. Her childhood memories are the ones that I love the most among her works. Read more here, here and here.

The Soloist by Mark Salzman

2009-05-23T22:56:00.000-07:00

Nope, it is not the movie based on the life of Juillard's alumni and homeless musician Nathaniel Ayers which indeed is a compelling story. This rather is the book by Mark Salzman about a child prodigy who failed to blossom into the great Cellist that he was to be. Renne Sundheimer's present life is sort of aimless. He rigidly practices everyday on his cello, yet doubts of ever being able to give a concert. At this time a young Korean boy, Kyung-hee enters his life who reminds him a little bit of himself. This gives his life a momentum that wasn't there before despite his own misgivings. The interesting part is how Salzman has managed to weave into this fabric, the a murder trial of a Buddhist (Zen) monk during which Renne sits on the jury. The background of the murderer's life unfolded through the trial makes Renne more aware of how his own life is lived. Salzman talks at length of Zen myths and facts without it getting too complicated or out of place. Looking into more of his other books I see that he does add an extra dimension like this to most of his books. A serious author and a successful story teller is a wonderful find and Salzman is one. Having lived in China, having played Cello etc. must play a part in his writing.

The whole music part reminded me of my own feeble attempts to learn Indian Classical Music during my post undergrad days while waiting to get word on higher studies. The teacher was kind but much as he tried he could not bring himself to encourage me beyond what courtesy dictated. I got the message but since I had a few cohorts in the same boat we kept with it till the master just couldn't take it anymore and got himself transferred:-) Don't get me wrong though, The Soloist is all about true talent and how one so endowed lives with the hand he's been dealt.

Joanne Dobbson - A Mystery Writer of Interest

2009-05-06T19:27:00.000-07:00

Agatha Christie, Arthur Conan Doyle and in later college years, Robert Ludlum (The Bourne books) . There you have it. These are the authors I needed for my mystery fix. Even now I am perfectly happy reading these guys or watching related movies. Daphne Du Maurier can be mysterious but I love her for the style of writing rather. I believe I have read other mysteries but cannot bring them to memory at present. "The Hound of Baskervilles" can give me the chills even now. Of course any Hitchcock movies could do that too. Edgar Allan Poe has a vague place somewhere in there.

Hordes of 'Kottayam Pushpanath' stories brought home by my brothers from the local Malayalam Library is probably what started it all. Although his stories were populist with no credible storyline or a specific style to cry for, they served to instill a craving for the mystery in the young me. How can I ever forget the "woman who looked like a statue of Venus in the dim candle light and of Detective Pushparaj always suddenly needing to break his car while driving on the narrow and dangerous Carpathian Mountain Ranges to find a dead body blocking the road while wolves were howling in the distance?" My sister and I used to have lots of fun making up similar stories by mixing and matching many such lines from those books...

Like I mentioned before, the team that stocked up our Library seem to be kindred spirits. Encouraged by my many recent finds, I decided to stop by the Mystery section this time on a fast run in and out trip there. My eyes locked on author Joanne Dobbson's collection of books. Women writers of the 19th century and set in a college campus were enough to get me interested. Took two books and liked both for the simple mystery and romance and this most interesting way this author -who is also a University Professor - has found to introduce American women writers from the 19th century of whom very little is known to the general public. As she says here, the most popular of them - Emily Dickinson - couldn't have just been born into the literary world all on her own without any predecessors. It is this author's mission in life to use the medium of her books and other tools to make these unknown and brave group of writers better known to the world. I congratulate her on this and she has completely succeeded in getting me interested in these early pioneers.

The books I read and others are listed here. Since the characters seem to have continuance, it might be better to read them in chronological order. Either way these books are fast and easy reads with interesting nibbles of info on American women writers of .. you know... 19th century. This also brought back to memory the fictionalized book I have at home based on Emily Dickinson's life that I enjoyed immensely. "The Diary Of Emily Dickinson" by Jamie Fuller.

Life Of Pi by Yan Martel

2009-04-30T19:39:00.000-07:00

An out of the blue e-mail brought back to life memories of this immensely readable book that I had read a year or two ago. It was the orange and white flash on the cover and the use of Pi in the title that first attracted me to it. Once I started I could not bring myself to put it down except of course when one had to be at work. I enjoyed it so much so that I took to updating my husband on each day's progress. Finally when I finished this incredible story of personal perseverance and full blown adventure I had no doubts that it was a true story. I divulge this here because it actually does not take much away from your reading experience. Might even augment it a little.

Martel has done a fantastic job in making Piscine Patel (shortened to Pi Patel) and his improbable story true to life. Only when I did a little web research post reading that I realized that it was all really fiction. Aptly categorized:-) It is an incredible - did I use that already?- sea adventure that makes you sit up and pay attention to every detail. When I went to a book group meeting at the local church this was brought by someone and was received very well as a book enjoyed by all who read it. Read here to delve deeper into this Man Booker Prize winning book and its author. At the end especially after finding out that this was not based on one specific real story, I had this strange feeling that this will forever remain the author's best work. Some authors are one time wonders where the book is usually drawn from their own life which is what made it alive. This is not based on Martel's life, yet he was able to write it as if. Not sure if he can be as passionate and come alive in another such book. He will definitely need to crossover to full fantasy in the next and might be able to make it attractive in that genre. 'Life Of Pi' is rather on the cusp of being a fantasy and yet so real as to make silly me fall for it hook line and sinker! But hey, I am certainly not complaining:-)

Added Later:
Check here for a wonderful one liner from this book.

Stones From The River & Never Let Me Go

2009-04-16T20:57:00.000-07:00

Whoever stocked up our Library this time has done a pretty good job. Most of my random picks are true blue reads. The two books that follow are just great and I will recommend them to anyone in a heartbeat.

Stones From The River By Ursula Hegi
German born Ursula Hegi has written a splendid book that is superb in content, character development and history. Hegi tells the story of Trudi Montag, a dwarf woman living in that time straddled between the two world wars in a small German town called Burgdorf. She is also a Catholic and the community is made up of Catholics and Jews alike. You know where that can lead to in Nazi Germany. I have read many books on the holocaust. This is the first from the point of view of the ordinary German from those times. Ursula Hegi has succeeded where many others have failed. To present all the sides of a particular story fairly and accurately. I can't even begin to describe the way her characters develop over the years. If you read Jodi Piccoult as an instant gratification tool for a good character, then Hegi is for when you want to indulge in a story and go deep into each character. Trudi Montag and her widowed Dad Leo Montag will feel like like family members by the time you finish the book. Together, they run a pay-library that is their main livelihood. As a Zwerg - German for dwarf - it is just humbling to know everything that goes through Trudi's mind and to feel for yourself almost what it is like to live that life. Hegi does this all with an efficient but poignant style that manages to bind you in its simple magic. A true literary achievement. Read here for more reviews on the book.

Never Let Me Go By Kazuo Ishiguro
I knew I will get all of Ishiguro's books available in the Library. This second one just stopped me in my tracks with the very haunting name. I cannot really say what the book is all about as that will take away some of the enjoyment from your eventual reading. But this is essentially the story of three friends who reminisces about Hailsham, the institution where they all had their schooling while growing up. Kathy is the main narrator and Ruth and Tommy make up the trio. Like a critic described, now one can portray the sense of loss like Ishiguro. There are some holes in the story when you look back on it but that does not take away anything from this awesome treatise on human relationships and how they evolve. A word of warning. Don't read it if you are not in a happy mood. As it is, I am still struggling to come out of the overwhelming sadness that the book evoked in me when I finally finished it. Read here for more on the book. Time picked it as one of the 100 best English-language books.

Five Quarters Of The Orange

2009-03-17T18:49:00.000-07:00

A completely satisfying read! The book is replete with war, childhood, mystery, scandal, love, hate and best of all, recipes and cooking. Set in the tiny french village of Les Laveuses on the banks of river Loire, the story is told by chief protagonist Framboise Dartigen. Boise for short. Nice name eh? I thought so. Wait till you hear the name of her Mom, the even more mysterious Mirabelle Dartigen.

Mirabelle is a widowed mother who went about the wrong way to bring up her kids but with the best intentions. She treated them the same as the trees in her small but plentiful farm. Cassis, Reinette and Framboise are the threesome. Paul, a neighbor makes up an occasional quartet. It was too late even for the favorite - Framboise- by the time she figures out the tenacity with which her mom had loved the kids. Mirabelle is afflicted with migraine and the onset this is always through an imagined smell of oranges. A fruit effectively banned in their home. Their father was killed in the war which made their mom into an all the more stringent disciplinarian. Boise the youngest and the most like her mom couldn't but exact her revenge by laying her hands on any orange she can find and surreptitiously bringing it home. Joanne Harris has succeeded in telling the ultimate story that felt so complete at the end. I read her 'Chocolat' just before this and it was just OK. Yet, I could feel a pull to the way this author did her story telling and so got my hands on 'Orange'. Totally worth it.

The book is permeated with various aspects of cooking. Mirabelle left her scrap book of recipes to Framboise in her will and the story unfolds once a much older Boise is able to decipher her mother's handwritten notes scattered all over the book. Fell in love with the the concept from the beginning. That and the fact that I am a sucker for quaint french countryside descriptions of any form ever since coming across them in a biography of the french impressionist painter Camille Pissaro. The two may not track together much but as an outsider it was enough of a connection. OK, that one is coming soon since I want to read it again. Hope the Library here has a copy...

Read more on the book here and here and on the author here and here. I shouldn't forget to mention 'Old Mother', a rather large pike that nine year old Boise finally managed to catch from the Loire. The fish is present throughout the book and adds another dimension to the whole story. I hope you will get a chance to read this wonderful book if not for the story, then at least for the green tomato jam recipe:-)

The Indian Clerk (Srinivasa Ramanujam)

2009-03-08T08:51:00.000-07:00

This book by David Leavitt explores the life and times of the famous Indian Mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujam mostly during his short but productive stint at Trinity College, Cambridge, England. The story develops as told through a series of speeches by Ramanujam's mentor and guide in Cambridge, G.H Hardy. Hardy is giving these lectures on Ramanujam towards the end of his own distinguished career to the students of Harvard. Some lectures occur only in his imagination and therefore more personal.

Being an Indian, I was surprised at Leavitt's intuitive understanding of the expatriate Indian's craving for food and family when far away from home. In the early 1920s England Indian food was not that easy to find and being a strict vegetarian Ramanjuam found it very hard to find stuff that he can eat. My only objection is the generous sprinkle of subtly sexual references -both hetero and homo sexual - that goes on parallel in this otherwise enjoyable book. If you can dismiss or understand as much of it as you think necessary, then the rest of the book is pure enjoyment. Perhaps the disappointment took such large shape because I was hoping to enjoy this book on the Great Indian with my kids. It rings a discordant tune when present in the same book on the mathematical and ultra conservative Ramanujam:-) Hardy's lifelong collaborator Littlewood is the third main character who along with Hardy was instrumental in recognizing Ramnujam's undisciplined but unique genius in that first letter he sent to Hardy. Two other professors at Trinity had ignored the Indian's letters earlier.

As GH Hardy take pains to impart in his lectures, Ramanujam's was not just a calculator kind of mind as portrayed in the media of those times, but true pure genius of the highest order. In real life, when asked about his achievements, he credited the discovery of Ramanujam as his best contributions to the world. Coming from this highly accomplished and well respected Mathematician on his own right it is very endearing. It seems the England of 1920s or rather its highly regarded educational institutions at that time had some of the best minds England had ever produced. Throughout this well researched historical fiction, it was pleasure to meet the likes of Bertrand Russel, Virginia Woolf, Niels Bohr, D.H Lawrence and Trinity's most famous son, Newton! The book also minimally explores Ramanujam's relationship with his Mom and his lack of it with wife Janaki. He died at the age of 33 almost a year after coming back to India. His health had suffered with chronic ailments in the cold English winters. From Leavitt's book I can almost imagine a pleasant and mild mannered Ramanujam trying to walk through the snowed in Cambridge streets in ill fitting shoes and layers of unfamiliar but necessary clothing with his mind constantly delving in formulas and numbers. He was a man who loved numbers unconditionally it seems. There is the story of how while measuring out lentil beans to make 'rasam' he came up with the beginnings of his partition theorem. The book has such interesting anecdotes all over to bring it to the layman's level. Hardy mentions Ramanjuam's penchant for coming up with original theorems and formulas almost out of thin air, having known the proofs in his mind already. Hardy worked hard to get him into the habit of also writing the proof down as otherwise it is as good as lost for posterity. Ramanujam was untrained in mathematical discipline having been dismissed from college for not paying attention to any subject other than mathematics. Conversely this absence of discipline rather enabled him to wander freely into the Mathematical realm and chart new and hitherto unexplored paths.

Wilma Mankiller - A Chief And Her People

2009-02-22T11:25:00.000-08:00

This is only the tip of the iceberg. The story of the native people of America who were called 'The Indians' not to be confused with the people of India. My son was doing his Native American Report last week and his tribe was 'Cherokee'. While collecting information about the tribe, an acquaintance of Native American ancestry kindly lent me this book that she was reading at the time.

This is the autobiography of Wilma Mankiller, a Cherokee who is one of the most admirable women I have come across in person or in print. Not only did she rise to the post of Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation, she went through numerous personal struggles and came out victorious each time. A person of unending will power, she says coming back to her family's roots was one of the things that helped her to get a better perspective on life. Her story is so enormous since it is not just her story but also that of the Indigenous people in this continent and is difficult to contain in a few sentences. She is well read and her experiences transcend race or creed and is a shining example of what can be achieved through personal power. Her name by the way is derived from a military title held by one of her ancestors. The book is sprinkled with Cherokee stories of old handed down through generations in addition to a closer look at the history of her people. The Cherokees originally lived in the southeastern US and were driven through what is referred as 'The Trail of Tears' in the 1800s to the west of Mississippi by the earlier administrations especially that of President Andrew Jackson. They lost millions of acres of land through inefficient or ambiguous policies designed just for that purpose. They also had their own internal struggles with the lose of culture and assimilation. Cherokee at present are the second largest Native American tribe in the US next to the Navajo.

Mankiller speaks of the 'Iroquois' and other native people who were here long before Europeans ever set foot in the Americas. How they always had their own government councils and culture and how the government to government treaties between the Indians and the settlers were rarely honored and the list goes on. It is said that the constitution of the Iroquois that existed long before is very similar to the US constitution and the main difference is that while the US constitution excluded women, the former had women as an equal constituent. A much more evolved society I guess. They also knew of the balance and harmony of nature that needed to be preserved for the good of mankind long ago, akin to present day environmentalists and conservationists.

Mankiller served as chief for 10 years and continues to this day in her efforts to help her people be aware of their own strengths and to help them know their roots. I feel like I have a barely half baked knowledge on the whole subject and so will not go further and will let you at least take up this book for an interesting window into the deep rooted and rich culture of the Cherokee people.

Roald Dahl and other Children's authors/books

2009-02-15T10:29:00.000-08:00

I simply don't know how I managed to skip this writer till I got here and watched a movie called 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory' with my son. Came to know that it was based on the book by a guy named Roal Dahl and didn't think much more of it. Then came my son's birthday and guess what he got? A bunch of children's books authored by none other than Mr. Dahl! My son immediately finished reading 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory' and that was it. He was onto other peer reviewed interesting books by authors like Barbara Parks (Junie B Jones), Jeff Kinney (Wimpy Kid) and of course Star Wars and the ilk. We did get the kids stories from Panchatantra, Jataka Tales, TinTin, as many 'Amar Chita Katha' I could find in stores etc all of which my blooming reader devoured in no time.

He wasn't too much into chapter books that looked a little dull or long. My husband finished reading 'Swiss Family Robinson' from the Illustrated Classics with him and again that was that. But once we got the full set of the 'Treasury of Illustrated Classics' (which unfortunately seems out of print now) he had also reached the right time. We started him off with one chapter at a time which he just had to finish by himself before we got to the next day's turn. Sherlock Holmes was what started off the frenzy I think. Now he started scouring the house and of course the Library for books to read. So finally I was able to turn his attention to the 'Roald Dahl' books. This is when I also discovered how fun they are to read! My daughter who is into 'Panchatantra' stories, who then slowly drifts off to sleep while the reading is going on has started to sit back up to listen because the adventures are such fun. We are reading 'Danny The Champion of The World' now which I think is the best ever by Dahl! There are still more of his books (Matilda, James and the Giant Peach, BFG etc) to finish and I can't wait for each.

One book that he had to learn in class was by actress Julie Andrews that is greatly entertaining is: The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles . He also got me 'Death of Superman' from the school Library although he had already read it. Am I not lucky?:-)) I am glad we are past Arthur, Dr.Seuss , etc which are indeed great kid books (my daughter finds them very easily laid out to read all by herself) but I wouldn't be able to talk much about with the kiddos. I do love Avatar stories. We have '1001 Arabian Nights' at home but it looked so bulky that even I couldn't bring myself to read them. My husband found some audio stories (storynory) online for long car trips which the kids enjoy a lot. It had 'Alibaba and the 40 Thieves' which was so popular with them that now I am on the lookout for a simple 'Arabian Nights' edition.

Speaking of car trips, all 4 of us -especially my daughter- love listening to the Laurie Berkner Band in car. She also loves to listen to old Yesudas classics:-) To my surprise, they are enjoying the 'Alice in Bibleland' stories that I had bought hoping to substitute for a mildly anchoring religious aspect we might not be able to provide here due to a busy life and the lack of extended family - read grandparents- around. Step into Reading books are no brainer buys for kids who are in various stages of learning to read. My son didn't take much to Magic Treehouse but I think my daughter might like them. Her all time favorite and first love is Arnold Lobel's Mouse Soup which happens to be one of her brother's favorites too. Well folks, I have some more children's books to gush about but I think it is time to step off the pulpit and let these permeate. Hope your kids will find at least one new author/book/genre here and will come to love them.

P.E.T - a parent self help book by Dr. Thomas Gordon

2009-02-08T15:39:00.000-08:00

I never believed in self help books. I always knew what was good for me. I used to take pride in the fact that having grown up in a large family with all kinds of people I knew all I could learn about people right at home. Wrong! I also hadn't accounted for the ones who were brought into this world solely by me and my husband and whose lives depend on us for nurturing. Living away from the cocoon of extended family makes this role more visible. For the record, I was raised in a household where there was no spanking and therefore needed to find something that will work like the untold chain of love, respect and discipline that existed in my childhood home. P.E.T (Parent Effectiveness Training:-)) didn't provide all the answers but it was a good reference.

Whenever I am in a dilemma I search for more information. This one book shone with wisdom and had effective ways to handle things that agreed with my policies. They have little examples. Some are extreme but when we know how even those can be handled wisely and peacefully then we build a certain confidence. I see that it is not very easy to adhere to everything the book says, but then we can adapt what we read and try to shape it into what works. It also helped to know that there are a large majority of new parents seeking similar insights into effective parenting. It talks of the strict households and the permissive households and shows a middle ground to do things more effectively. Even if you don't follow the book, it is a good read especially if you are the kind that sometimes wonders whether you are indeed providing the right environment for those sweet little bundles of joy that God entrusted to you. Read here for a rather critical review I found in Amazon that will provide another side. This wiki page gives some insight into the book's philosophy and this page gives more on the book. You can know more about Dr. Gordon who was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize here.

Three Books

2009-01-30T21:31:00.000-08:00

I went to the library and got not one but three that I thought worthy to bring home. Two of them were really good and a third not too bad. All in all pretty good I'd say! I always worry when I search for books in the Library and move along the aisles that if I am passing up little gems as I walk away to the next row. Many a times I had wished that I'd have word of mouth info from a kindred spirit about each of those books. This is among one of the many reasons for this book blog. To give a would be reader a thumbs up or down. Most are thumbs up as I turned out to be lucky in the ones that I latch onto. Let us get to the ones for today:

The Harafish by Naguib Mahfouz
Translated by Catherine Cobham

This Nobel prize winning author was an unknown to me till last week. Our local Library seems to have had a renaissance in quality as well as quantity. Or maybe they are just being shelved better. Anyway this one or rather the author's name caught my eye and I liked what I saw. I am glad his books got translated from Arabic to English. The cover pages make it clear that this book is more like 3 of the author's other popular books - The Cairo Trilogy - and so maybe the rest are different. I am going to find out soon as I can't believe an author with such a deep perception on life can be anything but readable no matter what the style of narration is. Take this book 'The Harafish' for example. 'Harafish' means 'the common people'. It could also mean 'the riffraff'. Think R K Narayanan only he is in Egypt and not in India:-) This is in terms of the theme but in narration Mahfouz has quite a unique and quaint style. I believe his expertise is in being able to tell a saga of depth with as little words as possible. He is able to tell a story spanning many generations of the Al-Nagi family succinctly and in detail. How is this possible? I myself was amazed at the short number of pages written for each generation yet the content didn't lack anything. I could be partial to this style of narration, having been attracted to the stories of the Old Testament not only from a religious view but also for the pure fun of it:-) We used to read a chapter a day at the evening prayers from this large Black Bible. When my tenure started as a real listener and the chapters moved from the sleepy 'Genesis' and the likes to to the more entertaining Juedan Kings I just had to read it all myself instead of waiting for the chapter of the day... Mahfouz's style strongly reminded me of those. Yet just like those Bible stories though the content is very entertaining and light, gems like this are scattered throughout the book : "If wrong existed, right must exist too. It must be constantly renewable, and if it was possible to suffer lapses, it must also be possible to ensure that they didn't recur". Need I say more?

David Long's The Falling Boy

This book looked almost like "Snow Falling on Cedars" which is what brought me to it. Then the reviews on the front and back kind of stood out from the usual jargon that we get. David Long seems to have quite a following among the critics based on his short stories. This is one of his initial attempts at the long form of story telling and I think the expectations did not fall short. I liked the book and how the author presented his characters and the story. It follows an orphaned and amicable contruction worker's - Mark Singer- life with remarkable clarity especially when handling relationships from Mark's perspective. Some female characters lacked depth towards the end but I am sure Long is on his way there or is already there. Will surely read his other books. Read here for more on the book.

When The Emperor Was Divine by Julie Otsuka

Loved the name of the book. Loved what was written in the book unlike two other books that I had put back right away after a few glances and wanted to bring this one home. I was right through more than first half of the book but somehow it fell short in the last half. Not sure what happened as the disappointment was sudden and real. Couldn't really get through the last pages yet the story of Japanese prison camps in the US during World War II is a compelling one. Wish it could have provided a better experience for such a poignant theme. Maybe it is just me being unable to appreciate the depths the author tried to portray.

Ian McEwan's Saturday

2009-01-24T21:30:00.000-08:00

After 'seeing' Atonement written by McEwan, I had determined to read some of his books. Didn't think I will get a chance so soon. Sure enough, the author lived up to expectations. In the book McEwan takes us through one particular Saturday in the life of Dr. Henry Perowne of London. One might be reminded of Arthur Hailey's 'Airport' in that respect.

'Saturday' leads us gently and with enough suspense through the lives of everyone in Dr. Perowne's family on that day. I for one was able to completely empathize with all of his characters including even the meanies! The novelist succeeded in transporting his characters into the minds of the reader. Like its name, I finished the book in a day on Saturday. So do pick it up if you need a good but short read any day of the week:-)

Colleen McCullough - An Author of Excellence

2009-01-03T17:02:00.000-08:00

I can't seem to get Gaius Julius Caesar out of my mind and Colleen McCullough is why. I had read her 'Caesar's Women' a first time just few years ago and had left it at that thinking it was not quite what I expected from the book. Now during a cleanup I came across it again and before donating it to the Library wanted to read it one last time especially as I was fresh out of books to read. My goodness what a path it lead me to! Reading it this time I understood the author's original intent that it was really all about Caesar and who he is rather than his women. Doing a little more research I discovered that this was quite true! I hadn't known -being a frog in the well as far as McCullough books were concerned- that this is the 4th book in a series that she had been doing on the Master's of Rome. Seven in all. And yes though she did write about the beginning of the end of the Roman Republic I think it is Caesar she really zoomed in on among all that patrician pageantry.

Since the US elections just got over and with the latest senate seat peddling scandals in the mix etc, I just couldn't help but see how everything is just a repetition of history. That is right folks! There is nothing new in this 21st century -all the technological breakthroughs duly acknowledged - that hasn't been done before. Rome was the old 'New World' that Romulus created around 750 B.C to which flocked the enterprising people who wanted to make a new life for themselves.

The Roman Republic came into being with a Senate and a House of Congress to boot - I mean the Plebeian Council - and there were elections and armies and commissions and reports all orderly and recorded to the hilt. All remind one of the political systems of the world we live in now especially that of the US. I bet Thomas Jefferson had imbibed extensively on the Roman political system before he started on the US constitution. The main difference being 'The Consul' - the highest electoral post- was elected only for a year instead of 4 years for the US Presidency. That and the Senate was initially only for those of the patrician families while the Plebeian Council was for anyone. All of this was gradually changing for the worst towards 100 B.C around when Julius Caesar was born.

The Republic was formed around 500 B.C after a revolution of sorts with the last King of Rome executed by none other than - are you ready? - a great great ancestor of Marcus Junius Brutus, the same Brutus who is attributed Caesar's murder which in turn lead to the spawn of the Empire .

McCullough's series is about how the Republic ended and the Roman Empire came to be and revolves around the leaders of Rome who were instrumental in this. The first books tell us about Cornelius Sulla and Gaius Marius, then comes Julius Caesar with Pompey the Great, and finally Marc Antony, Cleopatra and Octavian aka, the first Roman Emperor Augustus Caesar. But Caesar is ever present whose entire lifespan from infancy to death is covered in the first 6 books. The last book talks of Antony & Cleopatra and the formation of the Empire by Caesar's grand nephew Octavian. Caesar and the great orator Cicero were contemporaries. The author has presented Cicero in less flattering terms than one would expect. Maybe because Caesar is said to have been an orator on par with Cicero in addition to his many other qualities and vices. You may not need to read all the 7 books as there could be repetitions galore in such a complex historical series. But do read one or two and it will leave you intrigued and thirsting for more things Roman. I was vaguely aware that the Calendar we use had something to do with Julius Caesar with July definitely being named after him. Didn't know that what we follow today is mostly based on the 'Julian Calendar' that Caesar personally implemented with some important changes added later by Pope Gregory to make it a 'Gregorian Calendar'!

Reading McCullough, one comes off with the unbelievable feeling of an extremely handsome and charismatic military leader who was an astute political leader too. When you see Caesar's statues or busts it will all fall into place. The Roman busts were made from wax molds of actual faces and so they show real physical traits. He reminds one of a Socrates or Plato albeit dressed in military uniform. Whether contemplating political or military actions, Caesar always thought and planned ahead. He was way ahead of his time which didn't endear him to his peers. This link is a must read if you are interested in Caesar's policies and what made him standout so. And if you don't believe me about the history being repeated part just go on over to this page in the link and go down to the section titled 'The Empire' paragraph 3 and tell me if it reminds you of any of the current day economic measures:-)

It is true that McCullough seems to have fallen for Caesar much more than any other 'Masters of Rome' including Pompey but it still is a good read. She is a good story teller which was evidenced by 'The Thorn Birds' I had rather shockingly read oh, so long ago. I am not planning to read any more of the Rome series except maybe 'The October Horse' but won't hesitate if they happen to fall into my hands. I am however planning to read her latest as I thought it'd be intriguing to see how this master storyteller put a spin on one of another master storyteller's rather obscure characters.

The Good Earth & Of Human Bondage

2008-12-29T10:31:00.000-08:00

Two golden classics! I had read these a while back but wanted to read again when I came across them. I knew how getting on in one's life can change one's reading experience and these two books were no exception.

The Good Earth - By Pearl S Buck
I admit that when I first read Good Earth I knew it was a great book. But it is only when I read it recently that I was able to fully appreciate what Buck was trying to show in there. Not only was she able to portray the life of a farmer enslaved to seasonal weather changes but also the political and normal living conditions in China during the reign of the last emperor. She was raised in China and English was taught to her as a second language which probably accounts for her intuitive characterization of things Chinese. She did her college education in the US but went back to China after that. Buck won the Pulitzer Prize and later the Nobel Prize for her work. Read more about the author here. Wang Lung the farmer and his wife O-lan are such deep and real characters that you will not fail to empathize with them. More so with O-lan if you had been through a childbirth. Read more or rather all on the book here.

Of Human Bondage - By W Somerset Maughm
Another author of great insight who lived in post Victorian England around the same time as Buck and the likes of Faulkner, Virginia Woolf etc. I had read another book of Somerset Maughm before I had read this book long time back but can't remember it for the life of me. None of his book titles remind me of which other book was it. I remember reading it with pleasure but as one gets old I guess memory gets selective in what it wants to keep. It could be 'The Painted Veil' for all I know but 'Of Human Bondage' is the one that I remember from then and when I read it this time I skipped a few pages in between where the story seemed at a standstill. It was around a quarter into the book. Before and after it flowed well, esp after. This is the most biographical of Maughm's books who also lost his parents at an early age and was brought up by his uncle who was a Vicar. Having known this fact, all throughout the book I couldn't fail but see Maughm's face instead of Philip Carey's. Maughm's disability was not a clubfoot but rather that he stammered. Read here for more on Somerset Maughm, here to read the book and here for some details on the book.

Two Books

2008-11-27T09:02:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving is here. Doesn't look like this is the year I'll finally prepare that Turkey Dinner. No worries since my son is assured one at our friends'. Thus guilt free, I am sitting down to write about two books that I read, each a different experience.

Bridget Jones's Diary by Helen Fielding
A book I didn't think I'll ever read. I am not one to refuse a book if it comes to me. In this case a friend had it with the others she had for me. Is it not great to have a good book friend who never fails to think about you when it comes to books? She was sure I will like it when I expressed my reservations on seeing the title. She was right. It is so contemporary that I did read it with a certain pleasure till it was finished. But once I was done, that was it. Nothing is leftover from it for me to ponder about or wonder about. Yet, if you want to read it, go for it as it has a certain charm. It has been made into a movie, and since I like Renee Zellweger it probably is a good movie to watch too.

The book is of course about Bridget Jones who tells the story in the form of writing in her diary. If you like Pride and Prejudice (which I absolutely do) then you will find the storyline familiar complete with a Mr. Darcy. Be forewarned that being rather old fashioned I couldn't digest some words that occur throughout the book however perceptive they were. These broke the flow many times till finally I got used to it and glossed over without flinching:-) Read here , here and here about the book, movie and author.

The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje
Another book that I didn't think I'd read but eager to keep when I saw it. I had seen the movie and had loved it. So it was a little surprising to find the Indian Sikh character (Kip) appears to be as prominent as the English Patient and his lover in the book. The nurse's character too runs central in the story while the movie didn't leave that feeling. The actress won the Oscar for Best Supporting actress though. I was disappointed at first but later figured that both the stories - that of the Englishman and the woman & that of the nurse and Kip - are equally strong and the movie indeed is well made on the side it decided to track. One thing I have to say about the movie is that whoever picked Christian Scott Thomas to play Katherine Clifton made a brilliant choice as she was the perfect fit for that role. She is a personal favorite who reminds me of the Malayalam/Tamil actress Suhasini in acting skills. Read here and here about the book. The movie won nine Oscars, all well justified considering how difficult of a task it was to convert it to a visual medium.

It is difficult for me to get back to the book from the movie. eh? The time the story takes place is during the tail end of World War II when the Germans were retreating and the Allies were advancing slowly through Italy having to wait for an extraordinary amount of leftover bombs and mines that needed to be defused. It is about a completely burnt man being cared for by a military nurse alone in a villa in Italy that was taken over as a wartime hospital and abandoned for all purposes when the war was winding down. The nurse Hana stayed on when the patient refused to move. They all believe him to be an Englishman but as he talks it is revealed that he could be a counter spy named Almasy. Further revelations show him merely to be a man trying to return to his lover whom he had to leave in the desert after an accident. The book is immensely interesting as the Enlglish Patient is a history buff and is able to relate everything in the present day world to something that happened in the earlier centuries. Even through the fire he didn't lose his book The Histories by Heredotus which also served as his jounal. He was a desert explorer charting maps and discovering lost landmarks in the desert for the Geographical Society at that time.

Author Michael Ondaatje is from Srilanka and has lived in the UK and Canada. As I was reading about Kip (Kirpal Singh of the bomb disposal unit) I was amazed at the author's perception of his character and how accurately he was portrayed. Of Indians taking part or not in a war that is not theirs and almost on the cusp of Independence. Kip is a talented engineer learning to assimilate into this new world he is thrown into. I didn't miss a word of his bomb diffusing episodes. The author's adept story telling kept it from getting too mechanical or technical. Kip and Hana slowly fall in love. While Katherine do not really enter the book till almost into 2/3rd of it, Kip is presented much earlier. Both seem all pervasive at the end of the book. Hana is an unusual person who has matured early through her life experiences and her deep sorrow in losing her father Patrick to the war in a burning death. Then there is the one other character Caravaggio who is a spy as well as a friend of Hana's father. I couldn't really define his presence in this book except perhaps to provide the final explanation of the English Patient's story. It is endearing how the Englishman bonds with young Kip through Rudyard Kipling's Kim. The atom bomb that dropped on the Asian continent was what ultimately exploded in Kip who was endangering his life to save mostly European lives. He felt betrayed by that act and eventually returned to India to become a doctor who saves lives.

Almasy and Katherine Clifton were real people and the story uses part of who they were. The similarities end there. These two had never met in real life and their characters and the events in the story are complete fiction. Ondaatje has written a book that will forever be appreciated by the reading public for the incredible depth of its story and characters. I had read his 'Anil's Ghost' sometime back which while a little difficult to follow, also left me with similar feelings. The English Patient won the Booker Prize. Read here for more on the author.

Daphne Du Maurier's Rebecca

2008-10-18T12:31:00.000-07:00

The previous post briefly touching my undergrad years brought on a precious memory that is well suited for these pages. In those years when we stayed in the hostel, friendships were never confined to the one particular class you were in. My good friend who was from another class always made sure that I got to read all the books she got too before returning it. Since her class sources had better books I was rather grateful for this habit of hers.

One time I took a fancy to Daphne Du Maurier's 'Rebecca' after reading a glowing review on it. I went crazy through the streets and shops of the college town I was in, looking to actually buy this book and there was no end to my disappointment when I couldn't. Guess what my dearest friend got me as a parting gift at the end of the undergrad years? Yup. 'Rebecca', with a little note for me written in her familiar script. I don't know how much trouble she had to go through to buy the book but the fact that she cared enough to remember my affliction was what mattered. Of course I couldn't wait to read all of it and is a special treasure among all my books.

As for the book itself, what can I say. If you are a fan of Du Maurier's unique style I don't need to elaborate. If not I'd say without doubt that you have to actually read one of her books before passing up. Rebecca is a personal best of hers I'd think. Du Maurier stories tinge on the mysterious and she makes it effortlessly palpable. . "Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again". This is how Rebecca starts and I was hooked from this first line. I won't spoil the story for you, but read here , here and here for more on the author and the book.

Living To Tell The Tale - Gabriel Garcia Marquez

2008-10-18T12:15:00.000-07:00

Today I am setting out to write about a well known author that people usually can't wait to read. Yes, it indeed is the Nobel Prize winning author of 'One Hundred Years Of Solitude'. I have developed an affection for this author's books that I hadn't when I first read him sometime during my undergrad years.

One of my brothers was home for the holidays and I saw him sitting quite engrossed in this book. Being a book magnet I passed up close enough and found that it was 'One Hundred...". Marquez had just won the Nobel Prize and I hadn't read any of his books before. His name and book's name were all rather intimidating unlike for example 'Ayn Rand' and her 'Fountainhead' which I had no difficulty gobbling up with no second thoughts when it made its rounds in the girls' hostel. Anyway I don't think I read the book right then but I did get to it not too late. A saga full of lively characters, it will not fail to raise your interest in Marquez. I have yet to read his 'Love In The Time of Cholera' but when I came across 'Living To Tell The Tale' at a sidewalk sale, it intrigued me as I hadn't heard of it. It turned out to be one of the best buys yet.

This is an autobiography and is as entertaining as any of his books or more. Reading it enlightens us as to how he came to be a writer through sheer love and persistence. Guess he just couldn't become anything else as he was born to be a writer. The prolific amount of characters, the beloved town of his stories all begin to beautifully fall in place with this book. He credits his Grandfather Marquez on his Mother's side as a pivotal figure in his life. He grew up in his Grandparents' house, you see. When you put the book down you will have developed an affection for young Gabriel who spent his early years in politically troubled Colombia's Caribbean coast so fertile with characters. The cover picture shows Marquez when he was 2 years old. He lives in Mexico City now according to the book. Please don't miss the eventful life of this most beloved writer. I hope he will come up with a sequel to fill in the latter years as indicated. Even if they are better recorded than the early years, I know it will be a treat to hear it all in Marquez's own mesmerizing words.

As always: click away here, here and here for more on the author and his books.

Thalamurakal - O. V Vijayan

2008-10-10T19:48:00.000-07:00

A book that I bought on one of my visits to Kerala just because it was written by the much revered OV Vijayan. I believe Vijayan's style of writing revolutionized or at least opened up a whole new set of possibilities for Malayalam writers. You never read one of his books without feeling that you have come across something great. The wonderful part is, this happens with every single book of his I have read so far. 'Madhuram Gayathi', 'Gurusagaram' etc stand out and of course the much famous 'Khasakhinte Ithihasam' (Legends Of Khasak) . I'd even go as far as to say his writing is the Malayalam prose equivalent of Kahlil Gibran's poetry. I confess I have not read Gibran as much as I have read Vijayan and that could be why. The Gibran poems that I have read and the Vijayan books leave me with the same feeling of awe about the writer.

In 'Thalamurakal' (Generations) Vijayan tells the story of the ancient family of 'Ponmudi'. It is written as told by one of its last generations through the numerous family legends he was told and heard and witnessed. Vijayan's use of rarely used words are stitched seamless into the narrative and never stands apart. It looks at the different casts and religions of Kerala over the years with a discerning and leveled eye.

It almost feels like a biography where the narrator is Vijayan himself. 'Ponmudi Tharavad' has found a special place in my memory shelf. Click here to read an excerpt in Malayalam.

Anya Seton's The Winthrop Woman

2008-10-06T21:31:00.000-07:00

I have passed by Anya Seton's books many times. I have this unreasonable liking for her name but was afraid the she is a romance novelist. Not that I have anything against novels being romantic but when I spend my precious time on a book, I'd like to have more than just only that.

The other day I stopped once again in front of Seton's books and bravely took this book out from the lot. The author's note in the beginning was quite reassuring as to the contents and for a history buff like me this was the perfect book to bring home. At first I imagined the title talked of many women from the Winthrop family but it was about one in particular. This one's life ran rather like that in a movie with stories and sub stories strewn all over.

Elizabeth Winthrop was a cousin as well as married to one of the Winthrops. Winthrops being among the first of many puritan families to arrive from England on ships in the hopes of making a puritan community thrive away from the persecutions at home. The most famous among the ships being The Mayflower I guess. The first thirteen colonies of the US appear all over this book based mostly on documented facts. It also attests to Elizabeth's courage and iconoclastic nature even in those times and her steadfastness to the family she had. A very satisfying read filled with geographical history and of the many kinds of people who sawed the seeds to the making of this nation with open tributes to the original inhabitants. Elizabeth's first marriage to Harry Winthrop, her deep friendship with his brother Jack who was the early Governor of of the state of Connecticut, her uncle and their father John Winthrop who was the first puritan Governor, her second marriage to the prosperous goldsmith Robert with a touch of madness in him and her last and peaceful marriage to Will Hallet and her many children and her relationship to the Native American woman 'Talaka' all form a wonderful kaleidoscope of real stories and real revelations. I didn't know that New York was once a Dutch territory and was called New Amsterdam for instance. Go here , here , here and here for more on the book, the author and the heroine.

The Palace of Illusions &The Kitchen God's Wife

2008-09-22T19:05:00.001-07:00

Palace of Illusions
Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni is a favorite author whose books I know I will enjoy. So I couldn't wait till this her latest was available in the Library. Surprisingly her writing style was quite different in this book. I know because I have read almost all of her books. Check here for a list of her books and more info on the author. I am a fan of her lyrical style perfected in 'Queen of Dreams', Mistress of Spices' etc. and so missed it in this book. It is still a fascinating book to me because of two things. One, this is a concise book on the various stories of Mahabharata told in an easy to follow narrative; two, it is told from the unique point of view of Draupadi, wife of the Pandavas. So do read this or even buy one as I am planning to do if you were one of those kids who thoroughly enjoyed the mythical stories of Mahabharata and Ramayana but had only read stories from it in bits and pieces. This page and this has more on the story. The palace in question is the magical palace that Maya built for the Pandavas/Draupadi for that relatively peaceful period when they were ruling their half of the Kuru Kingdom.

The Kitchen God's Wife
While Divakaruni's books are a must read because of the additional pleasure I get being from India, Amy Tan's books are depended on when I am in need of an easy read with no hassles and am in no mood to start searching for one. I have read quite a a few of the author's books and know for sure that eventually I will finish all. But why hurry a sure thing? This book, like other Tan books portrays mother-daughter relationship in all its intensity. I do get her books mixed up in that I can't separate the characters from one book to the other. It does not interfere in the reading pleasure at all as each storyline is distinct and will remain a 'rainy day' source for me if I don't finish them all up too soon:-) Check here and here for a synopsys of the book and here for more on the author.

The Bone People by Keri Hulme

2008-08-24T19:02:00.000-07:00

When I came across this book I had a good feeling about it. But I didn't know I'll come to love one of the characters so much. The initial attraction for me was that it was written by a Maori about the Maori's of New Zealand. If you liked The Whale Rider ( the book) then you will no doubt find this book quite readable. The book is heavily laden with Maori language which you hardly notice while following the story that is being told. Keri Hulme has a special way with words. The book at first glance appears as if it's been hastily put together or not edited well. But pretty soon you are so engrossed in the book that this fails to matter! I said this is a Maori story but the story is so universal, that in the course of reading the book one almost forgets this aspect. The author's characters are strong but are not ostensibly so and the whole book is on its way to being a classic if I have any say:-)

The central and most endearing character is a mute, rebellious and possibly abused little boy who was washed ashore on a stormy night into the lives of Joseph (Joe) Gillayley and Kerewin Holmes (sounds a lot like the author's name too!). Kerewin is a loner who took an immediate though reluctant liking to this window breaker and petty thief of a boy and was rewarded in return with his love and trust. The boy who was named Simon lived with his foster father Joe when they met and the unlikely threesome were an item afterwards. Keri Holmes has succeeded so well in portraying Simon that even after I finished the book I kept wishing it didn't. I actually missed reading more about Simon! Read more about the book here, here and here.

Tagged by Reflections

2008-08-03T16:08:00.000-07:00

The Rules are as follows:

1) Look at the list and bold those you have read.

2) Italicize those you intend to read.

3) Underline the books you really love (and strikethrough the ones you hate!).

4) Reprint this list in your own blog.

I have added another category where I have also italicized the books that I read a while ago, liked and would like to read again.

1 Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen

2 The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien

3 Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte

4 Harry Potter series - JK Rowling

5 To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee

6 The Bible

7 Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte

8 Nineteen Eighty Four - George Orwell

9 His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman

10 Great Expectations - Charles Dickens

11 Little Women - Louisa M Alcott

12 Tess of the D'Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy

13 Catch 22 - Joseph Heller

14 Complete Works of Shakespeare

15 Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier

16 The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien

17 Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks

18 Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger

19 The Time Traveller's Wife - Audrey Niffenegger

20 Middlemarch - George Eliot

21 Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell

22 The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald

23 Bleak House - Charles Dickens

24 War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy

25 The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams

26 Brideshead Revisited - Evelyn Waugh

27 Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky

28 Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck

29 Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll

30 The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame

31 Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy

32 David Copperfield - Charles Dickens

33 Chronicles of Narnia - CS Lewis

34 Emma - Jane Austen

35 Persuasion - Jane Austen

36 The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe - CS Lewis

37 The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini

38 Captain Corelli's Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres

39 Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden

40 Winnie the Pooh - AA Milne

41 Animal Farm - George Orwell

42 The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown

43 One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez

44 A Prayer for Owen Meaney - John Irving

45 The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins

46 Anne of Green Gables - LM Montgomery

47 Far From The Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy

48 The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood

49 Lord of the Flies - William Golding

50 Atonement - Ian McEwan

51 Life of Pi - Yann Martel

52 Dune - Frank Herbert

53 Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons

54 Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen

55 A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth

56 The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon

57 A Tale Of Two Cities - Charles Dickens

58 Brave New World - Aldous Huxley

59 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon

60 Love In The Time Of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez

61 Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck

62 Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov

63 The Secret History - Donna Tartt

64 The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold

65 Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas

66 On The Road - Jack Kerouac

67 Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy

68 Bridget Jones's Diary - Helen Fielding

69 Midnights Children – Salman Rushdie

70 Moby Dick - Herman Melville

71 Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens

72 Dracula - Bram Stoker

73 The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett

74 Notes From A Small Island - Bill Bryson

75 Ulysses - James Joyce

76 The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath

77 Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome

78 Germinal - Emile Zola

79 Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray

80 Possession - AS Byatt

81 A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens

82 Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell

83 The Color Purple - Alice Walker

84 The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro

85 Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert

86 A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry

87 Charlotte's Web - EB White

88 The Five People You Meet In Heaven - Mitch Albom

89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

90 The Faraway Tree Collection - Enid Blyton

91 Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad

92 The Little Prince - Antoine De Saint-Exupery

93 The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks

94 Watership Down - Richard Adams

95 A Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy Toole

96 A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute

97 The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas

98 Hamlet - William Shakespeare

99 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl

100 Les Miserables - Victor Hugo

My score is: 59/100.

Any book lover who would like to do this will find some new books or authors. I did a quick google search on some of the ones that I hadn't heard of and italicized the ones that I'd like to lay hands on. Thanks reflections!

The House Of Blue Mangoes - David Davidar

2008-07-27T10:54:00.000-07:00

This gem of a book was recommended by a family friend. She is an avid reader and so I just bought the book when she spoke highly of it. It was not a mistake and was worth every penny.

David Davidar tells the story of a village alongside the Coromandel coast (Chevathar) and the Dorai family. The book is an easy read and the story flows along well. I have yet to hear of anyone who did not like the book that I loaned it to. Being from Kerala it was also interesting for me know of this community that enjoys 'puttu' and 'appam' just like me:-) So go ahead, buy or borrow and enjoy! Davidar is one of the founding members of Penguin of India. Read more about the author and the book here, here and here.

And Quiet Flows The Don - Mikhail Sholokhov

2008-07-13T20:08:00.000-07:00

I was waxing long about almonds here and somehow that brought on a mention of Russian names which in turn revoked the memory of this book that I had read long time ago. I'd like to read it again to see how my perception of the characters have changed from then to now. I remember there were four volumes and am not sure I will be able to finish them now in a reasonable time. Now that I look back, our home had a well stocked library if you can call rows and rows of bookshelves that. I have not seen my father reading much but he was responsible for most of the books and a brother with a bookish pen friend abroad was responsible for some. I did come across a handwritten full novel that my dad had finished while fishing through his papers. I still remember the sheepish grin on his face when asked about the book and the concealed pleasure that at least one of his broods came across it. It was written in an older Malayalam style and so he must have written it when he was younger. Then of course there were the classic literary books you have in your syllabus and considering the number of older siblings I have, these were also a decent bunch.

I remember coming back from school on the day mid-summer vacation starts and throwing the book bag away with a punch and settling down on the floor next to the book shelves that I'd been eying the whole year. My Mom always encouraged me to read as much as I want except of course when I take it to the next level and bring it to the dining table:-) But there was always schoolwork and so I rather looked forward to the abandon with which I can enjoy the books once vacation starts. Mom loved it that I liked to read so much. Something I find that my husband also shares with her except of course when it affects our normal flow of things:-) I similarly love it when I see my kids engrossed in a book. The younger one is still too little to read but she is getting there. There is something about a book in hand that is just wonderful.

I used to leave the heavier looking books alone for fear of not being able to understand them but as I continued devouring the books, finally these were the only ones left. This is how I came to read the heavy weights like Tolstoy, Dostoevsky and found to my surprise that they did contain some nice enjoyable stories once I got past the mental block. I loved reading great fiction through English as they were the ones available. It took me till my undergrad years to get to know the Malayalam greats like OV Vijayan, Lalithambika Antharjanam etc. I am a fair reader. I think the Muttathu Varkey stories speak to a certain part of the heart and therefore enjoyable. I absolutely loved Varkey's 'Inapravukal' and I believe he is the author of the eternally endearing 'Oru Kudayum Kunju Pengalum'. You can always find gems if you look for them I wouldn't call the book 'A Stone for Danny Fisher' by Harold Robbins a gem but it was well written. That was the first book I came across where the narrator was telling all those stories from under ground where he was already dead and buried. Recent Nobel Laureate Orhan Pamuk's 'My name is Red' is the other.

My brothers had an admirable collection of comic books that were hard bound together to 4 or 5 big volumes and I didn't leave these alone either! How could one forget Superman, Mandrake and Phantom? Bahadur and his Karate antics also caught my fancy and next in line were Flash Gordon and Batman. Those were nice books and were not as fierce as the comics we see today. I had taken my son to a comic bookstore here with the hope of introducing him to these old time greats and I couldn't really find any that appealed to me. He has since fallen into the hands of Pokemon who I guess are rather cute. I am glad he and my daughter enjoy the TinTin collection of comics that I got for them. They were rather inexpensive to buy from India. Recently I found an Asterix book and guess who was as eager as my kids to read it?

I was searching for Mikhail Sholokhov and Don on the net when I came across this wikipedia page that mentions a controversy that the first part might not have been written by him. He won the Nobel Prize for literature for this. Read more about it here. But anyway Pantelei Prokofyevich and his brood of the Melekhov family were portrayed well and this was when I noticed that Russian names for daughters or wives take after the family name ending in 'va' as in Aksinia Astakhova for the Astakhovs and ends in 'ov' as in Astakhov or 'vich'. This may just be for the region the story was set in as I don't see this being followed as a rule. I enjoyed figuring this interesting piece of info out myself. This also rang familiar when I read a book about Norwegians where the guys were 'sons' and gals were 'daughtirs' as in Gunnarson and Gunnarsdaughtir for Gunnar's kids. Don't know more about this though but it is filed away as an interesting fact. The story is set on the banks of the life giving river Don and of course there is always a war in such epic books. Pantelei's black sheep of a son Gregory Panteleyevich (see the -vich added to his dad's name as his last name?- and Ivan Astakhov's much abused wife Aksinia develops a relationship that forms the thread for everything that happens in the book. Here is a nice synopsis of the story. And Amazon rarely disappoints if you want to get some user reviews.

When it rains it pours, time to bring out some lighter books. Soon....

The Best Short Stories of Fyodor Dostoevsky & Perumbadavam Sreedharan's 'Oru Sankeerthanam Pole'

2008-06-28T21:41:00.000-07:00

When I read 'Crime and Punishment' some time back it took me while to get Raskolnikov out of my system. I can't always read a book like that as it can bring you down some. It goes without question that Dostoevsky was a gifted writer and well versed in the workings of the human mind especially if it was a deprived life.

It took me some time to finish all the stories in the book. I enjoyed every single one of them except 'Notes from the Underground'. Could not read it at all as I couldn't make head or tail out of what he was trying to say. The best are probably 'White Knight' and 'Honest Thief'. I don't presume to critique such an esteemed author's stories. So I'll just say the ones I liked were wonderful and the one that I couldn't, well, I just didn't get it. Read more about the book here. One reviewer has notes on each of the stories in the book.

Why bring in Perumbadavam Sreedharan when talking about the great Dostoevsky? Why not will be a more appropriate response. I remember reading his 'Anthiveyilile Ponnu' most likely in Mathrubhoomi magazine and being thoroughly impressed by the newness of his expressions and the strength of his writing. So when I went to browse in a bookstore in Kerala a few years back I didn't hesitate to buy 'Oru Sankeerthanam Pole'. It turns out that Perumbadavam has great respect for Dostoevsky and wrote this book as something he just had to. It is the story of the young and hapless Dostoevsky and a girl called Anna who came to help him with writing his novels. Anna became his wife. It is said that she had been the great love of Dostoevsky. Too many greats eh? Can't help it. Anyway the book is pretty good and I think reading Sankeerthanam made me understand and appreciate most of the short stories in the first book. So if you come across either of these books, go for it. Don't forget to read the foreword by Perumbadavam if you get his book. He is described as the writer with God's signature on his heart. This is Dostoevsky's description too. I don't know about that but one thing is true. You will not fail to be impressed by this writer. Not sure if any English translations exist but that would be quite an event! Read more on Perumbadavam here , here and here.

A Tag

2008-06-28T21:21:00.000-07:00

Tagged By reflections.

I am: who i am

I think: sometimes

I know: some things

I want: a library

I have: no library

I wish: to be among family

I hate: sloppiness

I miss: my extended family

I fear: fear

I feel: calm

I hear: two little voices clamoring

I smell: boiled ripe banana. just steamed it!

I crave: ripe mango from one of the mango trees that is not there anymore

I search: myself

I wonder: about the way the world works!

I regret: regrets

I ache: when i fall

I am not: sad

I dance: sometimes

I sing: in silence

I cry: when i feel like it

I don't always: cry

I fight: with none

I write: in greeting cards

I win: sometimes

I lose: memories

I never: read a harry potter book

I always: brush my teeth

I confuse: myself

I listen: to music

I can usually be found : with a book in hand

I need: books

I am happy about: the clear blue sky

I imagine: rain falling outside

I tag anyone who'd like to take this up.

The Town - Conrad Richter

2008-06-10T20:49:00.000-07:00

Another trip to the library yielded this splendid book.

It is a fictionalized history of the early settlers and the towns they built after coming to the "new world". This the third in a trilogy and won the Pulitzer prize in 1951. 'The Trees' and 'The Fields' are the other two books. I have not read those, but there was no loss of continuity. The story revolves around a daughter of the founder of a small town called Moonshine. Sayward and her many children and their future is intertwined with the growth of the town in this book.

The language is deep and nostalgic and if you live far from home or were interested in family tree sort of stuff like me then this will ring a bell. Go here for some info and here to browse more.

Atonement - The Movie

2008-05-24T16:18:00.000-07:00

I generally don't like to watch movies made from books as a lot of what was in the book gets lost in the movie and one is left with an unfulfilled feeling when seeing such a movie. The reverse is also true probably. I never can buy a book if I watched the movie first. I am afraid that the scenes from the movie will interfere with my imagination for the pages of the book. But what if you watched a movie and felt like you just read a good book? Well, then you just go and do a post on it:-)

So we had this video 'Atonement' waiting now for more than a month to be watched and finally we got a good night to watch it. A beautifully told and photographed movie. Do see it and you won't be disappointed. I saw in the credits that it is made from a much acclaimed book of the same name by Ian McEwan. If I had come across the book earlier I never would have bothered to watch the movie. Then I would have missed the incredible photography of this movie. I am not an expert on photography and so perhaps it may not be a big deal. But I just loved and appreciated all the camera angles and scenes in the movie.

The story revolves around young Briony Tallis who mistook something she saw for something else and acted based on it which put her sister's true love into prison from which he ended up going to the war. Her sister Cecilia - Keira Knightly - took up army nursing and Briony - by then 18 or so - followed suit as a form of penance even though she was slated to enter Cambridge. Well told and well made movie with superb acting. I didn't go much for the grown up Briony as a Nurse but everyone else did a good job. Reminded me of English Patient a little. I liked this better though. Click here if you are interested in more details of the story.

Herman Hesse's Siddhartha

2008-05-18T14:20:00.000-07:00

I had to use the gift card after all, since the Library was closed:!!! Of all the days, it had to be on this Friday when I got to sit home with the kids for a day. There is no point crying over spilt milk so I headed straight for Barnes and Nobles. The cover of this new paperback edition of Siddhartha had attracted my attention the last time I wandered around the store. Catchy, don't you think? I loved it. Finished the book. It was translated from the original by Rika Lesser. If the translation is so good to read then what must the original be?

This classic book will remain so as it transcends time. Sometimes when you re-read a book years later you are able to get much more from it and in some cases a different view from the first time. I have even come to root for a different character altogther. Case in point is Anna Karenina. Having read it in upper primary/middle school time I was unable to sympathize with Anna and was always rooting for her husband. But when I read it sometime last year I couldn't fathom how I didn't get Anna before... As always I digress. Let us get back to S for Siddhartha.

As the introductions take great pains to let us know, this is not the Siddhartha who became Gautama Buddha but the story is set in the same time as the Buddha's. S meets the Buddha in the midst of his quest for truth. I was able to follow S's quest so well and wholeheartedly agree with how it ends that I am left - can I say flabbergasted?- amazed at Hesse's understanding of life. I wouldn't say Eastern or Indian or Buddhist as what Hesse has laid out in there is the truth of life in this world. I urge everyone to read this book. it is not full of pedantic and long stretches of text that are beyond one's immediate grasp but laid out in simple and concise lines. Maybe it is this particular translator but it is Hesse that shines from it.

The last few pages - chapter Govinda-maybe a bit harder to chew as there Siddartha discusses with Govinda all that he was able to internalize during the course of his life. You can come back to this chapter later if it leaves you curious or it can be left alone as it still is a whole book for a reader like me.....This paperback edition is only $6.95 and I didn't have to think twice about adding it to my humble collection of books.

My Earliest Memories

2008-05-16T09:36:00.000-07:00

This is not a book. Haven't been reading one the past few days. I am adding a bird and her nest to make up for it. She was happy to make her nest on our not yet taken down Christmas lights! But not to worry I am all set to go to the Library with the kids in tow. Hopefully I'll be able to get one to read in the midst of finding their books and videos. If not, have my trump card. er.. I mean a Barnes & Nobles gift card that I am going to use to buy Herman Hesse's Sidhartha. I think I have read it before but would like to have a copy of my own. So while things are brewing in the reading dept. I'd like to honor a sort of promise I made to this blogger friend's sort of tag:-)

I do have vague memories of playing around in and out the house with my sister and brothers before, but this one stands out pretty clear.

Being the youngest, Mom was reluctant to send me out for Sunday Catechism classes that my older siblings were enrolled in or had graduated from. All the more so because the church that we go for these classes was at quite a distance from home. Not the parish church that everyone goes for the Sunday Morning Mass in a vehicle of some sort. Mind you, this one is farther than the Catechism church. It is a long story which I might tell later.

Well anyway, since my sister -who is only a year older than me and deserves all the youngest credits as me is deemed the older and therefore in charge of the 'baby':-) -was taking me it was decided to be okay. I reached the church without event and the classes went well. I was always one to hog classes and therefore loved it. I was almost 5 at this time.

It happened on the way back. I fell into the unpaved road and brutally scorched my knees. It was not that bad but the visuals were terrible and I remember the expression of horror and love on my Mom's face who then and there decided that I should wait one more year before making that perilous trek again.

Though I could always feel a general love in the family I had never felt it so focussed on me, us being a rather large family. I guess this memory helped sow in me an appreciation for love from family which gives you a warm cozy feeling no matter how old you get. I hope my kids do know this from us even without such incidents.......

I have some more but I'll save that for later as now the Libary is calling....

The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai

2008-04-27T07:51:00.000-07:00

“All day, the colors had been those of dusk, mist moving like a water creature across the great flanks of mountains possessed of ocean shadows and depths. Briefly visible above the vapor, Kanchenjunga was a far peak whittled out of ice, gathering the rest of the light, a plume of snow blowing high by the winds at its summit.” Thus begins Kiran Desai’s The Inheritance of Loss. If you are not caught by these lines then the book is not for you.

Desai is the daughter of well known writer Bharati Desai and she has won a Man Booker Prize for this book. I believe this book is a cut above many of the books I have read recently. It is not a fast read at all and at times the story seems to go nowhere. But that is beside the point as the strength is in the language and Desai just excels in it. All that mist reminded me of another well written book called House of Sand and Fog by Andre Dubus III but the comparison ends there. Without judgment Kiran Desai is able to portray everyday struggles in all zones of life. If you have tried to put an emotion into paper then you know how difficult it is, but Desai’s pen weaves effortlessly and beautifully through all kind of situations.

The story revolves around the remnants of the British Raj in India particulary in West Bengal and the struggles of Gorkhas of Kalimpong. Read here to get a background on Kalimpong’s history before delving into the book. The love story of Sai & Gyan gently traverses the book and gives it the semblance of a story too.

Haweswater by Sarah Hall

2008-04-09T19:12:00.000-07:00

I was supposed to go out for a group lunch the other day. Something changed at the last moment and I found myself with a sanctioned long lunch hour at work. There was a Barnes & Nobles near work that I had always wanted to checkout and this presented the perfect opportunity. Armed with a location map and yahoo driving directions I found the place relatively easily. Much to my delight this location had a Starbucks café which agreed perfectly with my lunch plans. I wanted a book so I could sit and read and eat. Ah! Isn’t that heaven? But I also didn’t want to spend much on book to satisfy a whim. This is when I noticed the $4.98 books on display from which I selected a book ‘Haweswater ‘ by Sarah Hall. To be honest what intrigued me about this book other than its price was the name of the author’s previous book included on the cover page. ‘The Electric Michelangelo’ Very intriguing, is it not? I thought an author who could come up with such a name surely has imagination. I ordered my latte – I wished my husband could join me since ordering a latte is our guilty pleasure – and a blueberry scone, found a quiet place by the window and settled down to read. The book was good, not disappointing as I had secretly feared and the whole lunch time and more passed in bliss before I could bring myself to spring up for getting back to work. Having said that, I have to say it is not an easy read. The story is told laboriously so as not to lose any details and might be boring to some. The author’s strength for an impatient reader like me was that I was willing to read through each of the words so as to be pulled more and more into the story she is trying to tell. I wanted to read the story without skimming it and was also quite happy to put it down for other errands knowing I will come back to it to finish it.

Sarah Hall is a British author and this is her second book. I intend to find her first book from the Library as I believe it will be good too and it was a Man Booker prize finalist. This book tells the story of the tenant farmers of Britain in the 1930s in the village of Marsdale and how the building of the Haweswater Dam affected their lives. Having grown up in a farm could explain why I took to this book.

Kazuo Ishiguro - When We Were Orphans

2008-03-29T07:36:00.000-07:00

I had the luck of a book lover the other day in the local Library.
Had a short time to select a book because I had started earlier
from work and my husband called to say he is picking up the kids.
Browsing fast I couldn't really latch onto a book that tells me that it is
worth my time on it. I so wanted to try a new author that I didn't want
to resort to my tried and trusted authors this time.

Finally I picked a book which only sort of spoke to me and was on my way to checkout a little disappointed when I noticed it. A hardback with that look! In a flash the books were switched and during a respite from home activities read the first few chapters. The book read like an Arthur Conan Doyle/Daphne Du Maurier style that I enjoy much. I was congratulating myself on this find as I had spotted many more books by the same author in the shelf which now I can borrow with no second thoughts. It was then I noted the less noticed caption under the book title. 'From the Author of the Remains Of The Day'. But of course!! I had watched the Merchant-Ivory movie and liked it and knew right away that now I am totally at peace with my "new" author. Kazuo Ishiguro was born in Japan but grew up in Britain where his family emigrated. He won the Booker Prize for 'Remains of the Day'.

Here is the dish on the book:
Christopher is a Shanghai born British boy whose parents mysteriously disappeared in the orient. He also left behind his boyhood Japanese friend Akira whose memories never faded for him. After returning to London he became a famous detective and all the while he had the inkling to one day go back to find his parents. It happened during the opium wars and his father used to work for a British Company that also dealt in opium. Enough said. When he managed to go back the Japanese were invading China and the book goes on to describe how he partially succeeded in the search for his parents and the revelations that came on its heels.

Two Books. Again!

2008-03-16T20:32:00.000-07:00

Yes, I seem to be reading in pairs these days:-)

Midnight At The Dragon Cafe

Judy Fong Bates is an author I chanced upon in the Library. I had not heard of her before.

The story is about the life of a Chinese family from the Mainland that immigrated to small town Canada in Ontario. It is interesting in that it gives a glimpse into how the family and probably many others like theirs adapted to life in a foreign land fleeing from the communist regime of the time.

What The Body Remembers

Sahuna Singh Baldwin was born abroad but brought up in India and settled abroad. The story is written from a women's perspective. Provides enough insights into a strong woman's mind who had no freedom to express it. It is also entwined with India's Independence and the partition which can evoke familiar emotions of forgotten sorrows.

I am not sure I will be looking for works from these authors diligently but I won't run away if one chances upon me.

Malayalam Books – non fiction

2008-03-01T10:42:00.000-08:00

My in-laws came this week and Dad brought me some books as a gift. He probably didn’t know he got the ideal gift! All were Malayalam non-fiction. Something I hadn’t been exposed to in a long while. Was pleasantly surprised to find that every single one of the books were good and gave me something to think about. Dad mentioned that they were selected by a priest friend of his who is also an avid reader. I am laying two of these books out here so if any of you wanted to get a Malayalam fix of quality you can go for these.

Chidambarasmarana
I had heard a lot about Balachandran Chullikkadu. Mostly that he is a poet and remember pictures of him with medusa like hair and stuff. Had read some of his poems when I was probably too young for them as I didn’t understand much. So I had ignored him as a most modern poet. Reading his book now I can’t imagine why I would give him such a label. Even in prose his poetic nature comes through. Although his memoirs – at least quite a few of them – are not what I would want to dwell on much, the beauty of the language cannot be ignored. Because Malayalam is infused with commonly used English words whose native equivalents are not easy to digest, it is difficult for writers to use pure Malayalam without having these ‘outstanding’ English words in them. Chullikkadu has no such problems. Language flows effortlessly for him even when describing the crudest parts. I didn’t catch it at first as I started the book with a prejudged mind. But over time I was so engrossed in the beautiful usage of words that I was floored. He even has some poetic lines of his in there. The one that affected me the most was the description of his thoughts that came out during the death of his estranged father. One simply cannot ignore the force of his language that slowly gets you…I used to love OV Vijayan who is my favorite prolific Malayalam writer that I believe has an extraordinary talent with Malayalam word flow. This one comes pretty close.

Neermathalam Poothakalam
Written by the world renowned poetess and writer Madhavikkutti/Kamala Das. Her English poems are known around the world. She has written a book in English with Andrew Arkin that has her prose as well as poems and is available from amazon.com. Dad was saying that she is known to be a little off in the head these days and my answer to that was “but that does not matter because if you read her books you will feel like respectfully prostrating before her”J This book is a classic example. It is her childhood memories and comes out haphazardly. But you hardly notice. It mostly touches the people in her childhood connected to the many Nair ancestral families that are networked with her own famous Nalappatt family. She also reminisces about her uncle the famous poet Nalappatt Narayana Menon. It does not go too much into detail about her equally famous Mother and poetess Balamaniamma most likely because they did not spend much time together. A blessed writer of both Malayalam and English whose calibre stands up well with any other good writer in the world.

The Glass Palace

2008-02-15T18:53:00.000-08:00

My first book by author Amitav Gosh. I had read a Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth and found it rather tedious and so was afraid to take another book that appeared similar. Being from India I had satisfied myself that I pretty much knew the history of its Independence. It was a surprise to find that the events described in 2 or 3 paragraphs in history books can span the sprawling canvass of events laid out in this book. It gives us an idea of what went on with Indian officers in the British Army during those eventful times. I didn’t think the story will lead this way as it started around its intriguing namesake The Glass Palace which was the official residence of the Kings of Burma then. There too it was interesting to read of a Golden Burma especially as we are faced with quite a different kind of Burma these days. If you are a historical fiction buff like me, then you will find this immensely satisfying. It follows the story of orphaned Rajkumar through the streets and forests of Burma, the Rubber estates of Malaysia and eventually into India. The events are historical yet well told in a fictional format. Do read when you are ready to enjoy some history. I watched the Hindi movie ‘Lakshya’ after reading this book. There is not much connection between the two except both sort of refer to the Indian Military Academy. Amitav Gosh’s book shows IMA’s roots and the Movie gives its current scope.

Of Books, Authors and Me:

2008-02-15T08:08:00.000-08:00

I got carried away with the food part of my blog. Besides, no new books had entered my horizon. Now I have another one in a row! The book I want to speak of today is ‘My Sister’s Keeper’ by Jodi Picccoult.

Jodi Piccoult is a Harvard educated former school teacher turned prolific writer who develops her characters pretty deep with few exceptions and this is what attracted me to her books. When you read her books you get to know the characters pretty well. Some of her support characters have a little ‘masala’ inclination but her superb writing intermingled with her mastery of words more than make up for it towards an enjoyable read. It has enough of a mystery to it to make you want to finish it all in one stretch. No other book of hers has affected me as much as her book that I mentioned above. It tells the story of a sister who was conceived just so her sick older sister suffering from leukemia can have her cord blood. A book where the question about the reason for existence becomes rather interesting. The book examines this from the perspective of many of its characters. The mother character is very close to one’s heart though portrayed rather coldly. I read the book ‘Plain Truth’ first and then went on to get all her books from the public Library.

Middlesex

2008-02-14T18:09:00.000-08:00

Don't let the title stop you from reading this well told story. I just finished reading ‘Middlesex’ by Jeffrey Eugenides lent from a good friend. Eugnides’ book is such an interesting and classic book that it transcends cultures and surprised me in the same instant with the reach of its understanding. I can’t say I read the book without putting it down as something special because being a compulsive reader I can’t put down most of my books without finishing:-) But this is a good book and a Pulitzer prize winner to boot. The writing style is unique and to me seemed like a blend of Gabriel Garcia Marquez and Arundhathi Roy. It is written from the point of view of a hermaphrodite – a person with unsure gender identity - again don’t let that define the book as it really explores the 2 sided nature of everything in this world as well as some interesting nuggets of history that span generations. Come to think of it any good author will have to have split perspectives to be able to present male and female characters in a book. This serious and complex novel is written in a lighthearted style that I enjoyed much. I find that I always love novels peopled with lot of characters. Probably an after effect of having lived in highly populated India....

Two books : Agnisakshi & Family Matters

2008-02-02T16:36:00.001-08:00

Today I’d like to talk about two books. The first one is close to my heart which is in Malayalam and written long ago. The second book is more recent from an Indian author written in English.

The first is ‘Agnisakshi’, written by that doyenne of elegant Malayalam literature Lalithambika Antahrjanam. I am not sure if there is an English translation and am not sure if a translation can do justice to her language. No other book has captured me so much both with the story line and with simple and elegant language. There, I have used elegant twice already but that is what comes to mind when I think of this book. Antharjanam wrote short stories and articles most of her life and wrote this novel in her seventies at the behest of an editor friend. This was made into a Malayalam movie but I have not seen it yet. In my experience if I like a book first, then the movie based on it usually will not keep up with the expectations. The story is told in the form of a memoir by a now old lady –Thankam aka Mrs. Nair- about her brother and sister-in-law in a traditional Kerala Brahmin –Nampoothiry- household of old but changing times. One caught in the ties of tradition and the other on the cusp of breaking from it and how inevitably they go their separates ways still loving each other. The story begins when she meets her sister-in-law as a yogini/holy woman while on a pilgrimage with her son which takes Thankam back to her childhood days. I can’t say enough of Antharjanam’s language. Chitra Banerjee Divakarunee’s poetic prose comes somewhat close I’d say. The lingering feeling is that of having read something so soul filling and sweet. I never realized that Malayalam could be used so lyrically.

The next book is by Rohinton Mistry. A writer born in India of Parsi heritage. Well written with engaging characters, this novel still clutches my heart when I think of it.The story of a Parsi family with 2 kids whose sweet and gentle maternal grandfather comes to be cared for by them and how it affects/changes the lives of each of the members. Owe the discovery to my kind friend who is always on the ready to lend me books. This is a must read and will make up for not being able to read the first book.

Citadel

2008-01-27T09:01:00.000-08:00

Today’s book is a no brainer. All of you have probably read it or at least heard of it in passing. It is ‘Citadel’ by AJ Cronin. Being of the genre of classic writers I know of no other author that I can take up without having to worry about if it will be worth my time.

I have always been a satisfied reader with Cronin books and this is no different. I read it first from my sister because she had it in her college Syllabus. Then I read it again recently and loved it now as then. The story is about a doctor and his wife struggling in old England with the established medical setup which makes it difficult for practicing doctors where things could only be done a certain way regardless of results or logic. It still is valid in present day medicine especially in this advanced country where doctors are bound by the edicts from insurance companies that have long lost their medical touch.

A word on this blog

2008-01-17T23:36:00.000-08:00

This blog is not really a standalone blog but rather an extension of my food blog. Much to my Mom’s chagrin my hand was pretty much glued to a book regardless of whether I was at the dining table or munching on snacks. I had always combined reading with food which made each activity more interesting. So when I thought of a food blog I couldn’t but put in some book stuff. I don’t intend this to be a full review book blog as I said before. It is just some guidance for books I liked to read for someone who might be looking for word of mouth info on a good book before spending their valuable time getting it from the Library or buying it from a bookstore..

BTW, Vaayanasaala means Library in Malayalam

The World is Flat

2008-01-15T23:10:00.000-08:00

I am reading ‘The World is Flat’ now. Can’t think of any other book more appropriate to kick start my food and book blogs. It is written by Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Thomas Friedman. This book is a truthful and rational treatise on the State of Technology (like the State of the Union) in the present world by an American who seems to have a true grip on the global nature of things. He has put his finger into many personal observations I had when I landed here but put off as something I just fancied and not qualified enough to be observations. He identifies the strengths and weaknesses of the emerging nations as well as that of the US and workable solutions which I hope will be heeded. It is an interesting read and makes you think. For those who are in engineering or technology yourselves or through your spouses or kids, this is a must read. Most of the things in it are known to us or we have a vague idea of but it is good to have a reliable reference when in need. I have recommended this to my nephew in India who is on the threshold of making decisions about his future studies. You have to go past the first chapter to get really interested in the book and see its potential. It is rather large but worth it.