To read or not to..

Five Quarters of the Orange

2012-01-16T09:13:00.000-08:00

By Joanne Harris

If you have had Chocolat and Blackberry Wine, then you won’t be able to resist Five Quarters of the Orange.

There are many reasons to read this book, listing down 3:
1- It’s written by Joanne Harris – in her usual laid back, French style, food and wine and stories kind of way.
2- The story unfolds really well.. with the help of an old recipe book
3- There is never a boring moment – and its always quite refreshing to read about life in a village

The growing up while growing old, the drug addiction and the allergy to orange, the recipe for wine Framboise, the trapping of the pike, the politics of business, the stealing of ideas, the selling of ideals, meeting Mirabelle Dartigen and the getting by – it’s all there.

Read it even if you haven’t read Chocolat and Blackberry Wine, two of my favourite books by Joanne Harris.

The summary I like best is here http://www.bookbrowse.com/reviews/index.cfm/book_number/794/five-quarters-of-the-orange

The Museum Of Innocence

2011-11-23T06:21:00.000-08:00

By Orhan Pamuk

It’s not that I don’t believe in true love. I do, but not the kind that lasts forever. Am sure most of us have loved someone truely, for a day/ month even a few years. But I am the sort that believes that when you cannot maintain the same mood throughout the day, how can you love someone forever? And why, it’s proven that we cannot maintain the same mood throughout the day, ‘normal’ in the human being remaining constant i.e.

Therefore, while the book is very realistic, it’s easy to say that it is, in fact, fiction. Because it is about true love that lasts forever.

However, Orhan Pamuk is a favourite to many for a reason. His writing is so beautiful in its depth and details that it’s hard to put the book down. Even when it gets frustrating at times and you start to wonder where the story is headed. The book is paced well most of the time and the details are sometimes overwhelming. As is in most of his books, Istanbul is the hero. This time it’s the Istanbul of neo-modern times where smoking Malboro among the men and women are considered upmarket, where the parties are pristine, where the women folk are aware of Parisian fashion and yet in their minds virginity is still considered a virtue. We Indians can relate to the Istanbul of that time.

Then of course a crash course on the museums of the world is a definite take away. The style of writing also where Orhan Pamuk himself is part of the story is something I have not read before and is quite a nice touch.

You will love the characters in the book (if not forever, at least for a while), especially Fusun, Sibel, Kemal, and driver Efendi, the story telling and finally the story itself.

Read it, the book is for keepsake, afterall, it is the museum of innocence.

For other views log on to http://themuseumofinnocence.com/

The various flavours of coffee

2011-06-07T08:49:00.000-07:00

By Anthony Capella

A very amusing read on very serious subjects – business, coffee, love, rebellion, business of love, love of coffee and rebellion of all kinds - all of it in this one action-packed novel.

I am not a business person, but if there is a book which has helped me understand it a bit better, this is definitely one of them. It comes second only to Richard Branson’s autobio.

Then of course if you are a coffee aficionado, then this book will enlighten you with its description of the various flavours of coffee.

Contrary to what they preach in Hindi movies about love, this book shatters the notion that you fall in love only once in life. This book goes to show how you can fall in love in various ways, to different people and how that can change the course of your life!

A very satisfying read, Anthony Capella is a master story teller and a weaver of words. He takes you for an adventure ride you will not forget. In its humour, in its backdrop, (o and it has many backdrops, from the compelling feminist movement to the beginning of advertising history to the establishment of the retail industry – it’s a joy ride, pretty informative joy ride at that) to its characters and descriptions.

Anthony Capella is un-put-down-able as he takes you from uptown London to the jungles of Africa. From the uber English society to the exquisite slaves of Africa. From the hard world of business to the heart of romance.

The determined Emily, the exquisite Fikre and the very human Robert will surely move you.

It’s a must read!

Thank you Bharthi for lending the book.
Read more: http://www.anthonycapella.com/pages/books/various_flavours_of_coffee/intro.asp

Sputnik Sweetheart

2011-03-02T00:06:00.000-08:00

By Haruki Murakami

This is the first book I have read by the much talked about author. Maybe I should have started with other famous works of his like ‘Kafka on the shore’, because I am quite disappointed. Yes, true my blogs are only about the good books, but in spite of my disappointment I found the reason to include this book in my blog.

For one, it’s the most fast paced book and secondly, it’s un-put-down-able till the end! I opened the book and read it till the end without literally not putting down the book even once. I missed going out to buy birthday present for a special someone, I missed going out shopping to cook something fantastic on the birthday and I even missed lunch!

You’d expect a book which tracks loneliness in people to be boring. While it compares the lives of people to sputnik satellites, travelling alone in the darkness, the book is never boring. All 3 characters are fascinating: 2 of them realistic and one character surreal - two straight and one lesbian - one suffering from delusions, another stuck in the real world and Sumire suffering from malaise - which is as always, unexplained. The reason why I felt Sumire is not surreal is only because I suffered a malaise too when I was just about her age. Unfortunately it is bad enough to be true.

It’s a must read considering the style of writing is quite different, the journey takes you to Japan and then to Greece and then to an ‘inception-isque’ world of dreams.

It’s disappointing because it could have been longer, the dreams aspect could have been deeper and there could have been more explanation. It feels like you just ate cotton candy when you are through with this book – ‘I ate a handful, but nothing happened’!

A Blogger Epitaph

2010-09-21T04:35:00.000-07:00

A short and well-lived life

When is the right time to do the right thing? If we can answer this by doing it then, I think, it is to have lived well.

PG Tenzing passed away on 26th July 2010. Before that he seemed to have lived well. He left the dull, laidback world of IAS officers, embarked on a bike ride across India, alone and then wrote a book on it! His book was published in May 2009. Talk about doing right thing at the right time.

An example of how one should live life to the full, simply because it’s too short not to!

Review of the book ‘Don’t ask any old bloke for directions’ by PG Tenzing is on this site also -dated December, 2009.

State of Fear

2010-09-01T23:50:00.000-07:00

By Michael Crichton

Michael Crichton has surprised me before. I had read Jurassic Park when I was younger and was amazed by the details, astounded actually. In my self-centered mind, the biggest success of the author was the fact that noone had ever explained science to me as well as Michael Crichton did.

2nd surprise was when I saw him in Oprah – a very tall (almost 7’), charming, CEO-ish and very non-author look let alone a person of science! I loved him!

3rd was when I picked up Disclosure! First of all I kept looking back at the cover to check if it could possibly have been written by the same person. But as I read more and more, I was quite sure. With the details and the fast paced way the book had been written, it had to be him. From Dinos to sexual harassment – it was hard to believe!

On that, the movies were huge and the tele-drama ER was fascinating, intense and fast paced, as would be expected.

I read ‘State of Fear’ recently and I am surprised again. The arguments are terrific, the conclusions even more so. Being a ‘green-reading-enthusiast’ it was a right book for me to read. The arguments are quite a revelation in terms of the so called global warming and climate change phenomenon. We really are so under informed! Michael Crichton has studied this for 3 years before embarking on writing this book. So the book is very educative, informative, thought-provoking and definitely influencing.

It’s a must read!

Of course I picked up this book as my tribute to the great man, who passed away in 2008.

The Constant Gardner

2010-08-04T02:33:00.000-07:00

By John le Carre

My blog is about books that leave an impression on you, whether on your being, your treatment of people or your perception. So it doesn’t have those books which I felt lacked the depth or the necessary ‘it’ factor.

In a way I am also like a constant gardener – weeding the unnecessary and planting books which help give us a wonderful kaleidoscope of imagination, interpretation and magical story telling.

I never picked up any books by Carre always thinking that he must be a French novelist and I wasn’t quite ready for those. But lack of books in the library led me to finally pick this one up and what a surprise awaited me!

The most remarkable thing about this book is of course the fairness in which the story had been told. The characters presented are neither ‘herofied’ nor ‘villanized’ more than they should. They are just people who like all of us change differently with circumstances.

Tessa the wife of British diplomat travels with her husband to Kenya. What she sees there changes her life leading to her murder. After her brutal rape and murder, abound with rumours about her infidelity and what she would have known as likely cause of her murder, Justin surprises everyone when he embarks on a journey to relive the murder of Tessa which takes him and us to a journey across 3 continents and multiple perspectives. As the story unfolds - at the heart of it - you will find a deep, well-rooted, heartening and at the same time a simple love and trust story of Tessa and Justin Quayle.

The constant gardner takes you to a journey of drugs, of human guinea pigs, of treachery, of politics and diplomats and the screaming insides of those who that something must be done, no matter what.

It’s very difficult to write the review of this book because it’s a book which is written is a sedate tone – like an onlooker. It might become like ‘Chinese Whisper’ if I start to. So read it!

In the picture: I haven't seen the movie but I am sure this is one of the best shots. Lovely pic!

The Agony and the Ecstasy

2010-07-06T13:14:00.000-07:00

By Irving Stone

I have consciously chosen only 3 biographies to read so far. All 3 have left an indelible impression on my mind and my outlook. But that is unimportant here, the big deal is that, this one in particular was recommended by my truly brilliant friend Anil. The irony is that Anil and I became friends when we found our common interest in the works of Leonardo da vinci. I call it irony because this book recommended by Anil is the extraordinary account of the life and times of the sculptor, poet, painter par extraordinaire Michelangelo Bounarotti, who was a rival of da Vinci. Thanks Anil, I see a bit of Michelangelo in you btw!

No doubt Michelangelo was a genius, but I feel without this account by Irving Stone, we wouldn't know what mettle the genius was made of. Its when you wake up with Michelangelo, go to the bottega and tire yourself out as the sculptor without sleep or food goes on for days concentrating on that one piece (that would go down to history), that you realize, not only has Michelangelo outdone himself but so has Irving Stone.

This book is about geniuses, about people who taught us to love beautiful things, about people who appreciated beauty so much that the proof of their foresight still remains with us after over 500 years. This book is graced by the amazing Lorenzo di Medici, the beautiful Florence and the greatest works of art.

What I will not forget are
1) The Nurturer: Lorenzo di Medici's foresight to nurture art and artists like one nurtures a garden, a true appreciator of art,

2) The Talent: Michelangelo's relentless search for reality and perfection. What makes an artist extraordinary? - he learns dissection of humans just to complete 'David', he thinks for days about how Mary would have felt when holding her grown up child after he has been just been crucified, before he does the 'Pieta' - while the rest of the artist still painted Jesus on a cross! It wasn't just a piece of art for him but the whole thought behind the art, a true thinker.

3) The Storyteller: Irving Stone's detailed yet very contemporary and easy story-telling which makes this book unforgettable and the characters far more realistic than we would have ever thought.

Read it, as these extraordinary men come together to bring you a bittersweet experience of the agony and ecstasy in a life well-lived.

(Inset: Michelangelo's Day and Night, so beautifully described in this book)
image courtesy: travel webshots

Thank You, Jeeves

2010-04-12T05:17:00.000-07:00

By PG Wodehouse

As a tribute to one of my very close friends who passed away recently – I read a book, I know nothing else better. In my normal world, this book was ‘not my type’ and I would never have read it - if not for him.

This was a guy who made me read PG Wodehouse. In school one of my nerdy friends, die-hard fan of Wodehouse used to beg me –‘Ira please read Wodehouse, he is so funny.’ But I was in no mood for funny then, I was more Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Maugham, Hardy –classic, tragic type. And seriously, I never read funny. But this friend of mine T was more persistent than anyone I have ever met. He gifted me a big, thick copy of Wodehouse. This copy, which I ignored for sometime in the beginning, has now become a very important part of my collection of books - it is a commitment to my memory of a wonderful friend, an involved person, and irritating-interesting character, a boy more talkative than me or any other person I have met. This book is for keeps, for life.

I was glad that T gifted me Wodehouse, definitely British, stiff lipped humour is something else. Seeing every situation as funny is what this book teaches you, it tells you that it’s the sum of the parts that’s funny, when the parts themselves might be tragic. Read this book, you might not get weary with laughter, but the smile never leaves your face as you imagine the butler (Jeeves) and the master (narrator), the uncles and the aunts of the top echelon of the British society go on about their social networking in the old times.

Thank you, T.

Rest in peace and if it helps, I agree with you - I loved the book too!

2 quotes as dedication:

She had a penetrating sort of laugh. Rather like a train going into a tunnel.
P. G. Wodehouse

There is no surer foundation for a beautiful friendship than a mutual taste in literature.
— P.G. Wodehouse

Read T's blogs at: http://tirtho-random-thoughts.blogspot.com/

Fall on your knees

2009-12-23T20:49:00.000-08:00

By Ann-Marie Mac Donald

My quest for extraordinary fiction took me to this nook. Ah that rhymes.

My quest for a book
Took me to this curious nook
I took a long look
And it got me hooked, booked and cooked.

Certainly, Ann-Marie is a poetess. Not ‘crude but compelling’ like mine above. Pure and simple poem.

While 75% through the book, you wont know what’s going on, just to go on reading this extraordinary book is a pleasure.
It’s a strange book, definitely. And there are stranger people in it. It’s about the Piper sisters, but you need to check out the family tree to figure out if they are really sisters.

There is Frances, daring and out of this world, there is Materia – poor Materia, there is Mercedes and there is Lily. And then there is Kathleen and Rose and an extraordinary love story, quite unforgettable. Of course there is James, lurking in the back, always.

The book is a bit magical and it’s a bit sad – but it’s worth reading and owning.

Mc Donald seems to outdo herself with some of her prose and the romance. After 75% its worth the wait to read the extraordinary last part and the way in which it is written. Lovely.

I am not into mush and romance, but to look beyond the romance and see the play of words to bring out a point – extraordinary. Mac Donald is an extraordinary writer.

A peek:

I was a ghost until I touched you. Never swallowed mortal food until I tasted you, never understood the spoken word until I found your tongue. I have been a sleep-walker, sad somnambula, hands outstretched to strike the solid thing that could awaken me to life at last. I’ve missed you all my life.

Took me long to part with it.

Please Read. I would again.

Random House Review

Don't ask any old bloke for directions

2009-12-23T20:08:00.000-08:00

By P.G Tenzing

I always thought while growing up, that if I were a boy I would be like Che Guevara –take a bike, do odd jobs and go! I love the outdoors and don’t mind being alone.

When I read this book, I felt like someone just lived my life in front of my eyes. A slight regret but felt good that someone thought just like me

PG Tenzing is from Sikkim, like me. And I saw his father in my dreams last night! No don’t get any ideas, his father was my neighbour. That’s how I remembered that I have not written this review, although I had liked the book.

The first 2 chapters are not good. For someone like me who usually judges a book by its first few pages, it was a surprise that I carried on. The problem with the first few here is the patchiness of the plot. Its like Quentin Tarantino Movie, you don’t know what’s happening in the beginning. Just patches. Pulp fiction.

Then of course any adventure which you didn’t take (but you wish you had) grows on to you. Only when his bottom hurts by sitting a lot on the bike, that you feel good that you didn’t take the ride. But otherwise chances are this book can make you laugh, cry and relate. Esp. if you have stayed in South India and if you are not too old.

Take a ride with PG Tenzing as he quits his job as an IAS officer and takes a Bullet around India, just for the fun of it! The joy is in his experiences, the people he meets and the background of normality. You wish you had done it, but hey, sometimes second hand experience is also a good thing.

READ it!

A Stone for Danny Fisher

2009-12-07T00:38:00.000-08:00

By Harold Robbins

Every so often I listen to others. When I was younger I had formed a perception of Harold Robbins. The perception that emanated in my mind was another Hugh Hefner. Playboy and not my type. Could he possibly write? I did not even bother to find out.

A friend of mine asked me recently if I have read Harold Robbins. Chill down my spine, did he think I was one of those who read that kind of book? I just said an abrupt ‘no’ and turned the other way. This friend of mine enjoys reading the regular way. If it’s a best seller, he has it in his hand already! Unlike me, who takes huge efforts at getting a novel unheard of, different and almost always from another epoch.

‘Well you must read one atleast’ , he said. And before I knew it ‘A stone for Danny Fisher’ was in my bag. I never leave a book unread, if they are at proximity – I feel it would be an insult to the person who wrote it. So I opened the book, and I won’t regret it ever.

Danny is so ordinary that he is almost extraordinary. Danny never gives up and more than anything else Danny is a great guy. But he is born at the wrong time. The novel is set at a time when the Great Depression had just been declared over and the after effects were beginning to show. The novel gives a picture of life as it were at that time. It doesn’t depress you though because its written marvelously.

Its about love, being victims of circumstances, being a child, being a parent and most important – the book is about life.

You will like Danny of course, and at the end of it probably you will want to get a stone for Danny Fisher.

Definitely read it.

London

2009-11-03T17:55:00.000-08:00

By Edward Rutherfurd

Ever wonder that tomorrow your kids might marry your sworn enemy’s kids and it wouldn’t even matter?

Sometimes we think about the purpose we each have in our lives and wonder what we do now, will it matter ever, 50 years, 100 years from now? But then we never live that long to find out. But wouldn’t it be nice.

This book gave me that – map of sorts, a feeling that what we do now, how we treat others now, how big we think now will have its effect years and years from now.
It also gave me that feeling that we are only specks in this rigmarole called life and today I might be a king, but tomorrow I might be a pauper hence it is important o have pluck which can be inherited and passed on and which will help you wherever you are or whatever you are. It’s a wonderful feeling trust me.

While this book talks about London since 57 BC, its not like a history book. There is not one dull moment while the author brings to life the variegated characters as they face the vicissitudes of life, helping build in their own ways the London as it stands now. It’s a book where Chaucer, Henry IV and Shakespeare some of the characters, the book gives a pictures of the life in their times.

Blended in with the history is a beautiful story of generations of the Barnikel, Ducket and Bull families and two others. When in one generation the Duckets are slaves, in another they are knighted.

Always giving you the feeling that life is full of surprises and one should be prepared with pluck and guts to take it as it comes - because a lot of things are not in our hands - this book is a must read.

I don’t think I can do justice to the 1300 pager book, I can only say – DON’T MISS IT and take time to read it.

The Blood Stone

2009-08-16T07:11:00.000-07:00

By Jamila Gavin

A real tale teller, I wonder how I got to pick up Jamila Gavin only now!! Maybe I went by the normal routine of picking up books which are famous like a lot of my friends. Big Mistake! I nearly missed a wonderful story, beautiful flowing story telling woven into a piece of history told in a marvelous fictitious tale. I have read a similar book, more complex by Salman Rushdie but this doesn’t have so many characters and the story telling in this one is smooth, like really good wine.

It gives a glimpse of India and Venice – the book is well researched, the characters are deep, unforgettable just like the book itself. As you go along with Pippo in an arduous and interesting journey, you will also meet the people, be there in that place and experience it all. And that’s what I mean by a real tale-teller. You actually enjoy the ride.

Again as with all good books, I love the way it transports you to a different place and time effortlessly. And the best thing about this book among all the best things is that the story is artfully entwined with Homer’s Odyssey which helps you understand that one good Greek epic better.

Just pick it up – but be careful once you do so, because it is un-put-downable and you will wish the journey never should come to an end.

The Paris Enigma

2009-07-27T07:01:00.000-07:00

By Pablo De Santis

I believe in Einstein and when he says God is in the details.

The book is, how do I say it – loose. While reading it, it feels like calling the author and telling him that he needs to tighten some bits a bit and add details. After all the book is about detectives!

The books starts very well, I think one of the better ‘starting’ I have read in a long time. It lends a mysterious air to the book. However soon as the first chapter is over, there is diluting of this air because of the lack of details.

On one hand it’s a tale about how some detectives go to any length to produce an enigma, on the other it’s a chance success story of a person who once again proves that pursuance and attention to detail can bring success.

As a takeaway you will have a good sense about detectives from various countries and Paris at the time when Eiffel tower was being built.

Read it. Its always a good thing to read a book written in a different language – this case Mexican. Only thing is wish there were more translators – much like Pamuk’s translators.

A Motel Life

2009-07-15T04:31:00.000-07:00

By Willy Vlautin

After a long search for a real good book, I got myself this one. Yes, my blog is about different books and this qualifies.

What will you call an ordinary boy, living a less than ordinary life and still takes life so easy? I think you can only call him Frank Flannigan.

You think life is imperfect and then you meet Frank and his attitude and the perspective kind of shifts. Frank is patient for his age and very good at whatever he does, be it taking care of his brother, the dog, of his girl or telling stories – in which he gets an A+

I wont say much, because the book doesn’t a much to talk about except there is a lot of Frank.

Read it, you’ll love him.

The Kitchen God's Wife

2009-07-09T01:20:00.000-07:00

by Amy Tan

Again first Amy Tan. Exceptionally expressive so much that the scenes are vivid as she writes about the China during war and before that also. The women, the men, the American influence even the food.

There is one thing though, 1000 Splendid Suns has covered lesser miseries than this book. But its also like Gone with the Wind - a triumph of the spirit.

As Winne tells the story of herself while she was in China (before moving to America) to her daughter, by way of removing the guilt she has for hiding secrets - Amy Tan takes you to places and people you have never been to or met before. You get involved in the miseries, the joys of this little Chinese woman, in the end almost making you swallow the big lump which forms in your throat.

Read it, but only when you are happy in life :)

Mystic Masseur

2009-06-29T10:27:00.003-07:00

By VS Naipaul

Like as if it were a rule - I would never pick a book written by VS Naipaul and Salman Rushdie. But with their tales they’ve made me fall in love. The transportation to a new place, another time gives me a new high, a surge of new life.

I read the mystic masseur with no expectations – it was my first Naipaul. I loved it.

What I loved in this book? Everything, from the insight into the way Indians live or rather speak in Trinidad and Tobago, to the innocence of the plot and the lesson that when God gives you a lemon, make lemonade – Truly, this tale of really sweet characters just charmed me no end.

As mentioned in my previous posts – it’s not the story but the way the characters are, the depth in them, their introduction and significance that makes for a really sumptuous read.

Definitely – pick it up!

Twilight

2009-06-29T09:54:00.000-07:00

By Stephanie Meyer

Well. Amateur, no creativity, predictable.

Mmmmm Don’t read it. Or do read it if your travel time is also like mine – 2 hours and you forgot your laptop or ipod.

Interpretation of a Murder

2009-06-26T22:53:00.000-07:00

By Jed Rubenfeld

I like books that take me away from my world and into something so different and so mesmerizing that keeping the book down for a moment would be like coming back to the ordinary. Which is quite disheartening at once.

Interpretation of murder was one such book. While I was looking for a good book to read, I came across this book after nearly 2 hours of searching. I took it up especially because Freud is one of the characters and so is his troupe including Karl Jung. It good to understand their theories, work and life and times in a background of a murder mystery or vice versa. This book indeed was a very interesting option.

Of course, I read it in 5 hours between 2 days and definitely it didn’t disappoint me. It gives you a slight history of things that could have happened for Freud and Karl Jung to go their separate ways, the face of New York at the turn of the century and Freud’s fear that America will be going to the dogs.

The story itself is gripping, with unforgettable characters, including a triumvirate, a love story angle and Freud helping in solving the mystery. It’s a complete pot boiler – but better without the tackiness.

When you read books like this you realize its not about the story but the information, the research, the knowledge, the history that makes for a complete book.

I loved it. Read it.

PS: I found 2 things unsolved in this book though.

Gone With the Wind

2009-03-14T06:43:00.000-07:00

By Margaret Mitchell
"Until you lose your reputation, you never realize what a burden it was or what freedom really is"

I read Gone with the wind when i was 14. And the quote that inspired me most was the one above. Others are hopelessly overrated quotes. The above explains volumes about how beautifully Margaret Mitchell could explain big things in a simple sentence - its a pity that she published only one book in her lifetime. But what a book! Either you write it this big or you don't write at all.

A heart wrenching family saga, a romance like no other, background elements that could give Hardy a run for his money and despite all these amazing stuff that makes up this great book, the one that stands out, the one thing that will be unforgettable is the heroine who can take anything in her stride. Life literally throws the biggest challenges to her and she treats it like its a daily household chore.

One critique here mentions that i hardly write a review, so i will not go into details to explain why the quote above inspired me. Rather let me write something about the book itself.

This book should be read when you think that life has been quite unfair. It comes like a whack on the head and tells one to wake up and take charge.

Scarlet O'Hara was not beautiful, but had a gut that could stand the harshest storms, the coldest winds and what have you and still remains an eternal optimist! Albeit in her own style! There is a thing or two we could learn from this bravado.

In your lowest of times, pick this book and you will realize that there are bigger problems and there is always a way to deal with them and that yours is just one of those. Because a problem is one only till a solution comes along.

I know, this isn't quite a review either, but hell i will think about it tomorrow for 'tomorrow is another day'!

Bookless in Bagdad!

2009-03-10T03:29:00.000-07:00

By Shashi Tharoor

Shashi Tharoor is my favourite Indian writer. Its inexplicable that someone so good looking can be so talented!

Nevertheless I will not write any further on Tharoor’s beauty – rather let me just give a sneak peek on his book – Bookless In Bagdad.

There were many reasons previously for me not to pick up that book. It sounded like one of those books with similar titles. I had been reading Orhan Pamuk and Salman Rushdie and Khaled Hosseini, so I wasn’t ready for this title.

But I picked it up and kept it in my cupboard. One day when I had nothing to read, I had to read this one. And to my surprise, it had nothing to do with Bagdad!

It’s a very easy read on various authors who have made (or not made) a difference to the English reading population. Of course this is from the point of view of Mr. Tharoor.

You get a nice peek into the past writers, the so called classic writers and the real greats. It will inspire you to read some of them but mostly it will give you an overview, an easy way to choose and a look into the past days, the journey of writers over the years.

You don’t have to go by the book but you can go buy the book J

Introduction

2008-11-20T04:03:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I look for a book review which is different from anything I would have read or heard.
Different from what a book critic would write. A review which should be from a reader who read the book not because of the story but because of the author, the history, that important aspect that was relatable, the amazing-ness of the whole idea and various other reasons.

What are those reasons that makes a book unique? If its a 'My Name is Red' its the story, the unique time and place, the amazing-ness of the writer and the way in which it is written. A 'Gone With the Wind' where there is a heroine and the saga narrated so well and the irony of the whole story and the recent award winning 'White Tiger' for its readability, its un-put-downable quality inspite of its various faults and weaknesses.

The idea of this blog is to take out that uniqueness.

To talk about books that make it to the list of 'contemporary classics'.

Welcome to ira-reviews-books.blogspot.com (due to want of a better names pls :))