Literary Sojourn

Book Review : Bali and the Ocean of Milk

2012-01-26T08:20:00.008+05:30

Title : Bali and the Ocean of Milk

Author : Nilanjan P. Choudhury

Publisher : Harper Collins

ISBN : 978-93-5029-125-2

A fiction (The Immortals of Meluha) blew me off completely last year by the sheer magic of its originality of the plot and it did leave a lasting impression on me. I am glad I picked 'Bali and the Ocean of Milk' up, which made me relive some of that wonderful experience once again.

Indrah is gripped in the fearsome fangs of ageing and he seeks the help of the holy trinity to attain back his youthfulness and his omnipotence. His Asura counterpart Bali has his own set of issues too. Many threats are looming large on Bali - from some disgruntled powers within his own territory as well as from the all time enemies, Gods. And a very cleverly planned assassination attempt on him brings to fore the failure of his invincible protective cordon. But there is only one elixir which is the answer to all problems that Bali and Indrah face and that is the Nectar. To extract the same, Ocean of Milk has to be churned by two opposite powers - Devas and Asuras with the assistance of tortoise incarnation of Viru and under the supervision of Jai. The narrative vacillates between Indrah's empire - Amravati and Bali's dominion - Tripura.

The story has everything - treachery, vengeance, tables turning, switching sides, power lust and much more. The intelligence of such authors is evident from the way they create a fictional background yet integrate the same so seamlessly with the well known facts and beliefs such as the Big Bang in this case. The author has clothed the story of manthan in a completely new avatar with contemporary touch by - incorporating political references, astutely naming the churning process - Operation Ocean's Twelve and including the lingo of prevailing times in the narrative - facebook, mobile phone cameras, animal rights violation, low-fat milk and most interesting of all, Indrah having to use hair colour - Molten Midnight by So'Real.

First 2/3rd of the book is a treat to read through - the setting of scenes, the building of characters, the amalgamation of modern age vocabulary with mythology, the witticism, the wackiness, the humour, everything is just perfect.

The initial setting is exceptionally impressive to such an extent that the expectations of readers soar too high for the climax and conclusion but I found the latter part not living upto the expectations. Not that there is any flaw in that part of the story, its just that the remaining 1/3rd fades a little in comparison to the initial section of the book which raises the bar too high. Another grouse that I have against the author or the story is - a very fleeting description of The Destroyer of the famous holy trinity - christened as Jai here. (I think the author is one of the strong patrons of 'Sholay' movie !?) The other being Sambha - the creator (I wonder why he did not pick Gabbar as the creator) and Viru - the preserver.

There are not many occasions when we get to read good English written by an Indian author and I was mightily impressed by the selection of words, phrases and overall expression of Nilanjan. The editor has done a remarkable job too and not a single sentence seems redundant in the whole narration. A true page turner. My compliments to a new rising star in the Indian literary firmament. I surely will look forward to reading more written by NPC.

2011 : The year that was...

2012-01-24T13:19:00.003+05:30

I remember the sole reason that inspired me to enter the blogging world (in 2009) was to chronicle my reading jaunts. I wanted to record the unique ideas that each book offer and the impression that each one of them leaves on me and I wanted the same to be accessible within a few clicks and blogging gave me the perfect way to achieve all that and in fact, much more. As I progressed on this sojourn many new dimensions kept getting appended to this endeavour of mine including getting acquainted to some wonderful co-bloggers who inspired me in many ways. Today after more than two years since I began this journey, I can happily say that this has been a very satisfying experience so far and I hope to continue on this path for many more years to come.

So in order to celebrate the body of work that I have been accumulating over these years, I have decided to enlist the 'must read' titles by the end of each year (or beginning of every new year :))

Here is the list of books that I read in 2011, which truly enriched me in many ways.

Non-Fiction

Freedom in Exile - Dalai Lama

City of Djinns - William Dalrymple

Mythology

Jaya - Devdutt Pattanaik

Fun/chick-lit

By The Water Cooler - Parul Sharma

Fiction

The Immortals of Meluha - Amish Tripathi

Travelogue

A Walk in the Woods - Bill Bryson

Kidlit

Flute in the Forest - Leela Gour Broome

Moin and the Monster - Anushka Ravishankar

Water Dance - Thomas Locker

Into the Unknown : How Great Explorers Found Their Way by Land, Sea and Air

Book Review : Melancholy of Innocence

2012-01-16T11:51:00.005+05:30

Title : Melancholy of Innocence

Author : Raj Doctor

Publisher : Frog Books

ISBN : 978-93-81115-05-3

Melancholy of Innocence by Raj Doctor is a passionate love story of Umit who barely made his presence felt in the teen years and a beautiful girl Masum who happens to be eight years elder to Umit. The story is told in a flashback set in late 1920s in Istanbul against the backdrop of post political revolution that led to Turkish independence.

Umit finds a connection of 'Ruh' with Masum and obsessively follows his soul's inner voice. He does find a way to be with Masum and to show his pure feelings to her. Gradually their love blossoms and they decide to seal it with signature of permanence. But are they able to successfully do it and where does Umit find himself thirty years from the time he first set his eyes on Masum? And why is there melancholiness in this love saga?

A couple of sub stories are also added to the narrative, for instance that of Masum's brother and his relationship with his friend but these subplots neither help the main plot move forward nor bring in any freshness to it, hence are complete waste.

The story began quite promisingly and I liked the introspective philosophy sections that appeared in bits and pieces in between the narrative but then the mundane day to day activities were dealt in such elaborate details that it started becoming very drab and a mere chore to read through. I did read through the whole book because I was expecting a great climax at the end when Umit returns to the present time but then the climax and the conclusion were very weak and very naively handled.

The narration is beautifully peppered with philosophy and poetry, a unique style adopted by the author. The poetry is worth reading and pondering upon. However, as the story progresses, the philosophy part lingers on a little too longer than can be easily savored.

There are plenty of editing errors that the whole story suffers from. I always maintain that a tight editing is a must to have a presentable piece of writing and if a book falters on that account, it becomes a big put off.

However, the book is still not a complete wash out as the commentary on human moralities and human frailties, is interesting to read but the absence of a strong plot is sorely felt all through the story.

Book Review : Into Thin Air

2012-01-06T11:12:00.004+05:30

Title : Into Thin Air

Author : Jon Krakauer

Publisher : PAN Books

ISBN : 978-0-330-35397-7

This book has been very high on my TBR list ever since I read Abinav's review at Zealot Readers. I enjoy reading travelogues and adventure books.

Since the time the first person set foot on the roof of the Earth - the Sagarmath (the mother Goddess), the Mount Everest - the lofty peak has beckoned many people over these years. This book is a first person account of Jon Krakauer who was part of the Mt. Everest expedition of 1996. He was in a team led by well-seasoned climber Rob Hall heading the Adventure Consultants. Another group also planned to reach the top at the same time led by Scott Fischer running Mountain Madness company.

Despite being well equipped with all required paraphernalia, expert guidance, meticulously planned program, well researched tracks, deftly organized trainings camps and human assistance in the form of Nepali Sherpas, these two expeditions mentored by two well known organizers completely fell apart. Everest killed 12 men and women in the spring of 1996, the worst single-season death toll since climbers first set foot on the peak seventy five years ago.

Jon introduces the readers to the main characters who were part of these expeditions which began in the spring of 1996, each one of them having different reasons to 'just to get to the top' where the frailty of human body is evident at every step of the trek and the hurdles of unthinkable magnitude stare mockingly at the human faces - freezing, injuries, blindness, breathlessness due to depletion of oxygen in the air, and dying team mates on the way.

In Jon's words - "With so many marginally qualified climbers flocking to Everest these days, a lot of people believe that a tragedy of this magnitude was over-due. But nobody imagined that an expedition led by Rob Hall would be at the center of it. Hall ran the tightest, safest operation on the mountain, bar none. A compulsively methodical man, he had elaborate systems in place that were supposed to prevent such a catastrophe. So what happened? How can it be explained?"

Who was responsible - wrong judgment of even the so called champions of climbing, ill luck, sudden change of weather, rivalry between two businessmen Fisher and Hall, Everest's vengeance, Nature's fury or its way of displaying its supremacy? These are the unanswered questions which do not fade away easily from the minds of the ones who survived the fate. As Jon reminisces, "As I write these words, half a year has passed since I returned from Nepal, and on any given day during those six months, no more than two or three hours have gone by in which Everest hasn't monopolized my thoughts. Not even in sleep is there respite; imagery from the climb and its aftermath continues to permeate my dreams. "

I really appreciated the way Jon has recounted and almost relived the moments while writing this book, that he spent during those couple of months chasing his childhood dream on the terrain which can be as treacherous and killer as it could get. In the preface, he mentions that through this book he wanted to get the expedition and the guilt feeling of 'what if' out of his system. I do not know whether he accomplished this objective or not but the way he has reported almost moment to moment details of those crucial days, it sounds very honest, authentic and unbiased reporting and he truly deserves compliments for the same.

Book Review : City of Djinns

2011-12-09T11:53:00.007+05:30

Title : City of Djinns

Author : William Dalrymple

Publisher : Penguin Books India

ISBN : 978-0-143-03106-2

William Dalrymple is an accomplished historian and a great narrator. City of Djinns traces back the history of a fascinating city- Dilli or Delhi, which has innumerable stories buried deep in the folds of centuries that it stood witness to. The bygone eras are beautifully brought to light in this book taking the readers to a retro journey to find the roots of the city which was believed to be first established as Indraprastha (the original name) by the Pandava borthers, post Kurukshetra battle. Since that time, the city has been through a lot, has witnessed a lot, has endured a lot, has lost a lot and has transformed a lot. This is one city which has displayed unmatched resilience as beautifully worded by the author here , "Though it had been burned by the invaders time and time again, millennium after millennium, still the city was rebuilt, each time it rose like a phoenix from the fire. "

During his one year stay in Delhi, William actually travelled centuries back trying to delve deep in the past of the city which makes it what it is today. He introduces the readers to the two worlds of the same city as they now exist - Old Delhi and New Delhi. Old Delhi which was once an epitome of prosperity, sophistication, culture and magnificence is nothing more than a graveyard of Mughal era now. What is visible now is just the sad reminder of the past, and the ugly face of poverty and ruin at every nook and crevice of the place. This is the same place which bore testimony to the zenith and nadir of great dynasties.

In contrast, New Delhi is what urban India represents - which initially became the shelter for people who poured in from the partitioned Pakistan during 1947 and later from Punjab during 1984 riots. These people, predominantly Punjabis are the business class elite and there is mutual despise between the citizens belonging to these two different worlds. Dalrymple points out that these two diverse worlds meet briefly at the traffic lights as outstretched palms are thrust through the open car windows. The plight of Old Delhi is evident from this excerpt - "Today Old Delhi is a dustbin. Those who can afford have houses outside the walled city. Only the poor man who has no shelter comes to live here. Today there are no longer any educated men in the old city. All the learning, all the manners have gone. Everything is crude now."

Not many places can claim to have been a witness to such extremes as - the affluence and prosperity of Mughal reign versus Persian Massacres in 1739, aestheticism at its best during the reign of emperors like Shah Jahan versus the plunder by British post 1857 mutiny, magnificent architectural genius which have withstood the harshest tests of times versus the indifference towards the same and letting these monuments crumble with time, safe haven for physically and emotionally bleeding people who migrated from Pakistan during partition versus new wounds that were opened in 1984 riots, and much more.

Where does the city stand today? Is there no one left to even remember the likes of Mir, Zauk, Ghalib, Dagh? Is there no patron of chaste Urdu any more? Has the city become a carcass without its soul?

City of Djinnns is a very well researched piece of writing and the mention of dates, eras and the sources of information bring in the authenticity of the same.

Dalrymple takes the readers along to various places, sights and experiences in his venture to dig deeper into the enigmatic city that is Delhi. He joins in the celebration of various Indian religious festivals and vividly presents the experiences. He spends time in the society of eunuchs who earlier were entrusted the task of guarding the Mughal harems but are now literally shunned by the society to fend for themselves by performing at weddings and births. He visits Sufi enclaves which have a huge following by people of all religions and beliefs. He also interviews many Anglo Indians who are completely disowned by both - the country of their birth (India) and the country with which they have blood ties. He meets those who are trying to defy change of times by taking pleasure in continuing the tradition of partridge fights and pigeon collection.

However, I found two irritants in the narration - on a couple of occasions the author delves deep into too many intricate details about a particular person or incident which takes the focus off the mainline narrative. Such places in the book prove to be big diversions in the otherwise well connected and understandable commentary on history.

Secondly, the mention of same old (ab)normal Indian stuff that has been poked fun at by many other Western authors. I guess my expectations run much higher from an author of William Dalrymple's stature and sensibilities, who has experienced Indian slice of life very closely for many years.

Book Review : The Magic Raindrop

2011-11-28T07:31:00.006+05:30

Title : The Magic Raindrop

Author : Geeta Dharmarajan

Illustrator : Bindia Thapar

Publisher : Katha

The Magic Raindrop by Geeta Dharmarajan takes the wee readers into adventurous little world of Kittu and his didi Seetu. It so happens that the raindrop which accidentally falls on Seetu's orange and green kite is no ordinary raindrop. This particular raindrop is possessed with some magical powers and soon enough Seetu watches her kite growing bigger and bigger as it soars higher and higher in the wide expanse of sky. But amazingly the kite still follows Seetu's commands obediently with Seetu holding just a make believe thread to maneuver the kite. The whole day it happily displays various tricks in front of all the village folks and cuts almost all the other kites.

But now the hues on the sky begin to change colours, pinkish sky is fast getting transformed into a grey blanket, the parrots and crows are heading home and the fruit bats are coming out flapping their wings. What would Kittu and Seetu do about the kite now? They need to bring it down but where would they keep this huge kite? Would the kite return to its original size ? Would the kite be as happy as it was when it soared freely in the sky? Would the kite want to stay big forever?

You will get answers to all these questions as you read along this interesting story. Lovely artwork by Bindia Thapar brilliantly brings the story to life. The extra information on Kites about - the origin of kites, kite festivals, beliefs and rituals of different cultures using kites, some facts around kites - is a lovely treat.

Book Review : The Gijjigadus and the Fireflies

2011-11-27T07:25:00.006+05:30

Title : The Gijjigadus and the Fireflies

Author : Gopini Karunakar

Illustrator : Atanu Roy

Publisher : Katha

After reading this book I had great appreciation for the lovely imagination of the author. The story begins with Gijjigudas , the golden sparrows, flying to the Kingdom of Gods with a very genuine request. Their nests are dark, they do not have light and in the absence of anything lit in their nests, their children are scared at night. They also need light, which is so easily available to so many living creatures and they support their argument by showing the Gods - the light in the homes of humans, the light emitting gems of cobras and the shining eyes of owls, all of which are adequate to ward off darkness from their respective lives. The God- Devuda and the gijjigudas brainstorm together to find the solution to this unique problem.

Are they able to find any solution? Will gijjigudas ever get any light in their dark nests? Who will help them to light their nests ?

A beautiful subtle lesson on - how friendly and symbiotic this whole nature is - so self sustaining and so selfless.

An interesting activity on helpful bugs at the end is an added bonus. It is a huge book, each page brings a treat for the eyes in the form of detailed art work by Atanu Roy. The beautiful and liberal usage of almost all sections of the colour palette make this whole book a visual treat and a delightful reading experience which you would not want to miss.

Book Review : Bioscope

2011-11-26T07:16:00.004+05:30

Title : Bioscope

Author : Mamta Nainy

Illustrator : Shanti Devi

Publisher : Katha

This is the story of a little girl Champa, also called Guddu, who is very excited to give a tour of her native place to the readers. But sadly, the sun is very bright and it is hard to step out of the house at this time. But Guddu is never short of ideas, she invites the readers to peep into her village through her drawings. Mithila, the birthplace of Sita is just a few miles away from where Guddu lives. Guddu likes to narrate the story of her life through her paintings, she has everybody and everything in those paintings.

Through her paintings, she shares her day to day activities and hobbies with us, she introduces her little animal friends who are an integral part of her life and she also talks about different places in the village and some of the festivals they celebrate in their unique style by decorating their walls or sometimes offering milk to Kaliya, the snake.

Her mother draws beautiful pictures on the walls of the house and for these paintings, she prepares the colours much in advance. Guddu and Titli didi learn to draw these paintings from her mother.

Guddu comes across as a very warm-hearted little girl who invites people to come over to her village to eat the best sweets in the world and to see the beautiful places and paintings.

This endearing little story is brought to life by the enchanting paintings of Shanti Devi who is a skilled painter in the Madhubani style of Bihar. She brilliantly captures the essence of rustic life in Mithila region through the painted myths and religious symbols. She also conducts workshops for children on the Madhubani style of paintings. A wonderful attempt by Katha to bring such folk art in prominence and to give the proficient artists the respect and fame that they so rightly deserve.

Book Review : Leaves

2011-11-25T08:41:00.004+05:30

Title : Leaves

Illustrator : Enrique Lara and Luis Garcia

Publisher : Katha

Looking outside from the window, different vistas of nature await us every single day. The big and small creatures busy in their mundane routine, the beautiful hues that appear from time to time in the expanse of sky, gorgeous starry blanket stretched over us during the night time, fluttering bugs in the mighty wind and life getting transformed every single moment - all bringing the magical wonders created by the supreme creator. But one thing that mesmerizes the narrator the most is the colourful array of leaves of the trees.

All these things fill the heart of the narrator with medley of feelings, emotions and some desires which mirror the scenes that he/she watches from the window of his/her room.

A tiny book with each page resplendent with generous spray of colours all around. The written text is just the minimal but in the presence of such lovely riot of colours nothing seems to be amiss. Pick this book up and you will realize how much we miss in our day to day lives by taking the magic of nature for granted and by not being aware of its wonders around us.

Enrique Lara Robayo and Luis Fernando Garcia Guayara are the Columbia illustrators who are the winners of the Encouragement Prize in the 12th Norma Concurs for Picture Book illustrations.

Book Review : TransGanization

2011-11-21T05:41:00.003+05:30

Title : TransGanization

Author : Rohit Arora

Publisher : Times Group Books

ISBN : 978-93-80942-35-3

Blurb says : Rohit Arora presents his thoughts on how organizations face growth trajectory problems operationally. The content also gives explanation on the strategic approach to moulding organizational dynamics when the organization is moving from the free energy of entrepreneur set-up to a more structured way of working.

Rohit begins presenting his case by illustrating the point through some statistics on why and how organizations fail when efforts to change are attempted despite huge monetary investments backing those efforts. So how should organizations go about the inevitable change process in order to make it a successful transition? The first and foremost step towards this goal is to identify the three most crucial elements of change - the "What, When and How", of the change.

The author very neatly draws parallels between a life cycle of a human vs that of a growing organization. The company which is newly formed is primarily under the influence of entrepreneur's ideas and thoughts, which moves on to second level when promoters and management take over and lead it to next stage, professionals step into the equation at this stage and funds are pumped into the company to let it grow at an accelerated pace and then the final stage comes when the company assumes the role of a leader in its core area and diversifies into new sectors. Through this book, the author addresses the stage when an organization is all geared up to enter phase 2 and the problems associated with the same.

There are many significant aspects which have been discussed as we go along the book - the finances required at this stage, the significance of standardized documented processes, importance of creativity of thoughts and conversion of thoughts into tangible actions, and the courage supported by perseverance to step into unknown territories

In this whole process what does a 'change leader' do in order to make this whole process a smooth transition and a pleasurable experience for all.

A very well written, precise guide on some of the very significant elements of change and how best to tackle

them.

Book Review : Charliezz...

2011-11-18T23:24:00.005+05:30

Title : Charliezz…

Author : Trupthi Guttal and Zeeshan Farooqui

Publisher : Frog Books

ISBN : 978-93-81576-55-7

The story begins in an engineering firm where its two employees - Zahir Pathan and Khushi Patil, who happen to be the main characters of the story too, are immersed in their day to day struggles to keep themselves afloat in spite of the high pressures and demands of their respective jobs. The corporate scene is brought to life through the conversation among the colleagues as well as between CEO (who is addressed as 'Blast Furnace') and the employees. The friendly banter between the colleagues works well in creating a believable picture of the work place.

It so happens that Zahir reminisces about his college days when he was one among a group of five friends and gives a sneak peek to Khushi into his carefree days of college life. He narrates some hilarious incidents and the antics they got engaged in during that time.

The accidental meeting with one of Zahir's old friends opens the gates to those memories which Zahir had not shared yet and one particular gate led to the memories of his first true love for a certain girl Rashmi. But this love story had a sad ending. What was the reason - was it the difference of religions which forced them to part ways? Was it the treachery of one of them ? And where does Khushi come in this whole scene, does she have anything to do with this love story ? These are some interesting questions which get answered as you read along the story.

A typical cross -religion love story but with a small twist in the end which perks up the interest of the readers but sadly it makes just 50-60 pages out of total of 190 odd pages.

Almost till 3/4th of the book, it felt like the story was going nowhere because Zahir was simply narrating his old memories to the friends in the office, which were bordering on the side of repetitive and a little drab. However, the story picks up remarkably after that and concludes beautifully.

The book is written primarily in conversational format (though it is not a play), which disrupts the flow of the story. Quoting a few short instances in this format is fine but having written almost complete story in this fashion makes it a cumbersome exercise for the readers to follow.

A few typos that have crept in the book should have been done away with.

Book Review : Silent Voices by Rohit Shetty

2011-11-15T18:40:00.003+05:30

Title : Silent Voices

Author : Rohit Shetty

Publisher : Frog Books

ISBN : 978-93-81115-24-4

The Blurb of the book says:

"How does it feel when you want to say something, express your feelings, but are unable to put them into words? Each one of us needs to express our emotions. While some people can do so with ease, voicing what they feel without any qualms, there are so many others who are hesitant, who cannot express their emotions vocally. For them, one form of expression is poetry. The poet prefers using this medium to express himself. Here is a collection of the unsaid feelings and thoughts of a person penned down in the form of poetry. Silent Voices will bring tears to your eyes, smiles on your face and gladness in you heart. Verses that will make you relate to these emotions and give you an outlet for emotional fulfilment... "

Rohit Shetty expresses himself through some beautiful verses on varied emotions that each human is uniquely blessed with. I would say, he has done it pretty neatly and some of the poems are able to stir some chords deep inside the heart, however, there are a few which just pass on without creating even a tiny ripple on the heart's pond.

Poems address emotions covering a wide spectrum from - love and happiness to despair and sorrow of lost love or of unreciprocated sentiments, from love at first sight to the whole journey of love. A few of the poems which really drew me into his thoughts are the ones dedicated to - stirring longing of a caged spirit, hope and positivity, magic key of love which can open hardest of locks and can surmount even the most difficult hurdles, virtues of smiling face and what miracles this simple gesture can bring in and many such other verses.

Overall an interesting potpourri of assorted feelings, thoughts and emotions.

For a poet who has been writing since the age of 12 years, this is a great milestone and the readers must not skip the 'Acknowledgements' part at the end where he has summarised his journey of being a poet so far. It is encouraging to see how undying determination backed with consistent efforts lead an individual to success.

Book Review : The Manga Guide To The Universe

2011-11-14T19:46:00.004+05:30

Title : The Manga Guide To The Universe

Author : Kenji Ishikawa

Publisher : Ohmsha and No Starch Press

ISBN : 978-1-59327-267-8

Manga is the Japanese word for 'comics' and this format has been used for imparting information about various science concepts to the students. Ohmsha Press is instrumental in coming up with some really fascinating books under this series. The same task has been taken over by No Starch Press in USA to create similar kind of impact in English too. 'The Manga Guide to The Universe' is an entertaining and an informative guide on how far we have come in deciphering the mysteries of our universe. It provides an easily readable and understandable introduction to astronomy.

The five chapters take the readers through the step-by-step unraveling of the enigmatic mysteries of the universe. It begins with 'Is Earth The Center of The Universe?' where different earlier beliefs are discussed and how eventually it was established that Earth is one of the planets rotating around the Sun in our Solar System. The subsequent chapters are - 'From the Solar System to The Milky Way', 'The Universe Was Born With A Big Bang', 'What Is It Like At The Edge Of The Universe' and 'Our Expanding Universe'. Interesting and intriguing topics are dealt with in these chapters ranging from - the origin of the universe, its shape and size, extent of the universe to possibility of life in outer space. The information is packed in tandem with an interesting Manga which children will enjoy reading. So there is a perfect balance of fun part and the interesting knowledge enhancing part in this book.

The manga part brings to life the scenes from Kouki High School whose Drama Club is working towards putting up a show for the school's art festival. If they are not able to accomplish this task, the only option left with the school would be do close down the Drama Club so the senior Yamane, junior Kanna and new American exchange student Gloria take upon themselves to enact the adaptation of an ancient Japanese tale - 'The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter'. Through this story they try to present an outer space romance of a princess from the moon. To starighten out the sci-fi elements of their play they take the help of Kanna's older brother Kente and his professors. This leads them to understanding many interesting concepts of Universe and space. The professors lessons are presented in the form of comic which are followed by sections of scientific facts with relevant diagrams and pictures to elaborate upon the understanding of the characters of the comic part.

There are Manga Guides on many other topics like electricity, physics, calculus and statistics.

Literary Sojourn Recommends...

2011-11-08T19:14:00.005+05:30

Perfectly befitting the mood of festivity in the air, Spark decided to celebrate the "Festivals" in its own unique way in the Nov issue. They focused on the F of the word Festivals by celebrating 5 Fs - Food, Fun, Fiction, Friendship and Fashion and the editorial team approached me to list and review 10 must read Fiction novels.

I am glad to be a part of this wonderful gesture of Spark and my compliments to the whole team of the Spark for this fabulous idea.

Wondering what to read, check my picks here...

Book Review : Hathi Chiti's Tales of India Collection

2011-11-08T18:46:00.009+05:30

Title : In The Indian Night Sky

Author : Reshma Sapre

Illustrator : Jayme Robinson

All the heavenly bodies in our night sky are preparing to go to a grand feast organized by Thunder and Lightening. Sun, Wind and the Moon - the children of North Star are super excited too but the mother decides to stay back and light the way of her children back. But she sends each of them with only one request that each should bring for her something special from the grand feast.

Do her children remember this small request of their mother in all the merriment of the party? Are they responsible enough to take care of themselves? What does mother have to say to their behaviour and what verdict does she announce after having seen them behaving (ir)responsibly? Finding answers to these questions makes it an interesting read.

All the pages are filled up with beautiful night sky pictures and the teasing text scattered here and there blends nicely with the illustrations.

Title : The Unfortunate Tale of Kachuva the Tortoise

Author : Reshma Sapre

Illustrator : Jayme Robinson

The old Chukwa Sulcata narrates this story to the children of the old tortoise village in the foothills of Himalayas. Like all little tortoises, we all have grown listening to the story of that unfortunate kachuva who fell down while he was flying with his two duck friends holding a stick in his mouth. But not many of us know what happened after that, how it changed the lives of the following generations of tortoises and what life lesson we all learnt from that incident. This story brings to us precisely that and the cute little extension of the age old classic makes it an engaging read.

Title : Patnaxi Crezy Long Journey Home

Author : Reshma Sapre

Illustrator : Jayme Robinson

Patnaxi is the story of a single grain of rice written in interesting prose. The little grain who is not ready to take things lying down, who dares to change his destiny and who displays exemplary courage in putting all efforts to make that change happen. Patnaxi does not want to leave his homeland for the new strange world. But unfortunately he finds himself stuck to the shoe of the sailor. Is there any chance of his survival and can a small grain of rice fight against huge hurdles on his path ? The situation does look very hopeless but then the indefatigable grit and determination do manage to surmount all impediments.

Title : The Traveller The Tiger and The Very Clever Jackal

Author : Reshma Sapre

Illustrated : Jessica Lian

An interesting tale of a traveller who is itching to embark on a new adventure. Soon after commencing his journey, he finds himself in front of a caged tiger who pleads him for his freedom. But once the tiger is set free, the famished man-eater tiger is ready to feast on the traveller himself. Now the traveller has to pay the price for being so sympathetic to the tiger who was caged and desperate just a few moments back. Is this foolishness or generosity of the traveller? Should he be punished for setting the tiger free? The story makes the young readers think a little about the silent companions, helpers and providers who make things available to us humans and what do we do in return? We cut the trees, we torture birds and animals after having taken their services, perhaps punishing them for their generosity and foolishness of serving us. A thought provoking story and very well narrated.

Overall a great way to introduce some interesting concepts, issues and life lessons through the folktales. All four books are quite unique in their style, illustrations and presentations.

Hathi and Chiti are Hindi Indian names for elephant and ant respectively and there are many folktales based on their friendship and kinship. The new brand of children's books by the name 'Hathi and Chiti' brings the age old classics in new avatars for the children once again.

Book Review : Revolution 2020

2011-11-04T12:16:00.005+05:30

Title : Revolution 2020

Author : Chetan Bhagat

Publisher : Rupa

Revolution 2020 is a story of two boys(Raghav and Gopal) and a girl(Aarti), of love and hatred, of treachery and vengeance, of richness and poverty, of success and failure, of ambition and corruption, and of inner drive to bring revolution and succumbing to the lure of lucre. Three individuals whose lives begin from the same primary school in a small town of Varanasi, experience various life's vicissitudes and handle them in their own unique ways attempting to find success and love.

The story wraps many issues in its folds - the corruption in education, mad rush for the coveted seats in esteemed engineering and medical colleges, the extent to which people are ready to endure to ensure a safe future through the lofty degrees and the pressure of performing and proving oneself which many times gets out of hands. But the story is basically a love triangle and the previously mentioned issues become the tributaries of the love saga between three friends.

Ambition part of the story is dealt well bringing a slice of life in alluring Kota city and the students vying to join the training institutes like swarming bees. However, the love story becomes a little drab. The way the heroine showers attention on one boy and ignores the other till half of the story and repeats the same with the boys switching positions, becomes annoyingly repetitive.

This is the fifth novel that Chetan Bhagat has come out with. The very beginning reminded me of his another book - 3 Mistakes of My Life - both take the readers on the past journey as the protagonist reminisces from a hospital bed. After having read all the writing endeavours of Bhagat, I maintain that he is one of the authors who do not offer any new idea or unconventional thinking through their books, however what became the selling point of his books (especially the first - Five Point Someone and the fourth - 2 States) was the witty and engaging narration. Unfortunately, the author falters big time in Revolution 2020. The story lacks substance and the presentation part also falls short of what is expected from Chetan Bhagat. Overall, it fails to create much impact.

Book Review : Into The Unknown : How Great Explorers Found Their Way by Land, Sea and Air

2011-10-27T17:36:00.000+05:30

Title : Into The Unknown

Author : Stewart Ross

Illustrator : Stephen Biesty

Publisher : Walker Books

Age : 8+ years

Air, Water, Land - The three most fundamental requisites of life. With evolution and the development of complex brain cells, the human beings continued climbing the hierarchy of needs step by step. Once the faculties to satisfy the basic needs were developed and honed, the eagerness to know the environment arose and this led many inquisitive minds to think, imagine and question beyond what they could see. Their undying curiosity led them to take the never travelled paths, their determination equipped them to surpass mighty hurdles on their ways and their indomitable spirits eventually made them pioneers. The names of these individuals qualified to be engraved in the annals of history among the mortals who became immortals. As the author puts it - "The courage and determination of the individual men and women in this book are why we know so much about the beauty, majesty and mystery of our world."

Besides being the most essential life creating and sustaining elements - Land, Air and Water also provide the conduits to the explorers in their quest to know the unknown.

The book begins with the adventure of Pytheas the Greek - who sailed to the Arctic Circle in 340 BC in a very primitive boat without even having the very basic compass for assistance, to the year 1969 when history was made by the crew of Apollo 11 which landed on moon. Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay do not need any introduction, their names have almost become synonymous to the mighty Mt. Everest. Through the stories behind each adventure and the vivid details presented with the illustrations, the readers actually feel like - sailing with Christopher Columbus to the Caribbean, circumnavigating the world with Ferdinand Magellan, crossing the Indian Ocean with Admiral Zheng, experiencing putting the first foot on moon with Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin and many more such exhilarating highs.

The commendable of this book is how the content is arranged and depicted through illustrations. Each adventure comes with the zoomed in map of the specific region from where the journey began, the detailed route that the explorer took, the various navigation tools used on the way, the different gears used and the kind of boats/ships/airships/gondolas/rockets that took them closer to their dreams.

The cover page of the book is a complete delight. It is actually a folded world map and on opening it, you get a full view of all the significant explorations with exact paths charted out. A great book that gives detailed information about how the efforts of some of the adventurous minds help put the puzzle pieces of our world together for us to understand and savor.

Image Source : GoodReads

Book Review : Water Dance

2011-10-24T17:35:00.001+05:30

Title : Water Dance

Author and Illustrator : Thomas Locker

Publisher : Harcourt

Is it a picture book or a book full of text? Is it a children's book or otherwise? Is it a prose or verse? Is it a science or an art book?

The answer to all these questions is very simple - this book belongs to a category selectively reserved for the ones which satisfy all definitions yet defy any one description, which impart so much but do the same so very subtly, which work wonders but it is difficult to replicate the experience every time, which reiterate the known facts but offer the unmatched freshness in doing so.

So if you have picked this book up, you are in for a wonderful adventure and a pleasant surprise.

The life blood of our planet, of each and every breathing creature - WATER takes us along on a journey of its life. It falls from sky as rain, it cascades as mountain stream, it spirals down a mountain cliff making a waterfall, it stays still in a lake, it winds through valleys as river, it rushes to meet the big expanse of ocean, it rises in the air forming mist, it floats in the sky as clouds, or it thunders furiously. The various dance forms and the moves of the water create an endless cycle that it keeps following incessantly.

Displaying its unparalleled virtues - the wisdom of adapting, the acumen of transforming, the poise of getting transformed, the vulnerability in surrendering - water assumes the role of a great mentor of all times.

Water, in its varied avatars, influences so many and gets impacted by so many. On its journey through the world, it experiences and expresses different emotions - from fury of storm, calmness of lake to free-spiritedness of ocean waves.

An exquisite book which has poetic text and mesmerizing oil paintings, each one worth getting picture framed. A really beautiful way to introduce water cycle while subtly highlighting the profound philosophy of life and how much we all need to learn from this silent but powerful element of life.

Image Courtesy : Barnes&Noble

Celebration Time on Saffron Tree

2011-10-23T20:37:00.003+05:30

Saffron Tree turns 5 today and to mark this milestone, the celebrations will span from 23rd Oct to 30th Oct.

This annual festival is known by the name : CROCUS Celebrate Reading Of Culturally Unique Stories

The theme for this year is - 5 Essential Elements - Earth, Air, Water, Fire and Space

Book Review : Sikandar

2011-10-22T20:27:00.005+05:30

Title : Sikandar

Author : Binayak Banerjee (Translated By Soma Ghosh)

Pubisher : Westland

The one feeling which will remain with the readers after having read the complete book, is that of utter confusion. The book begins by introducing the ten characters who are part of the reality show on the format of Big Boss or Big Brother. I was paying extra attention to the part where the characters were introduced but despite all eyes, other senses and mind into the book, I lost track of the characters soon after the fourth one entered the scene.

In the times when a whole deluge of reality shows are dished out to the viewers through multitude of channels, it is not difficult to understand the background of the story. 10 contestants have to spend 68 days together in a house - Jatugriha. The motto of the reality show is 'Jo Jita Wohi Sikandar'( the person who wins will be the Sikandar). The winner has to survive all eliminations which are executed by public voting system. No doubt, the story demanded the character sketches of the ten participants but one thing is sure, unveiling them back to back did not help. With each passing chapter, the confusion keeps building up to such an extent that at one point I felt, the words mouthed by one character could easily have been uttered by another. The characters got all mixed up barring 2-3. Desperate attempts have been made to reach under the skin of the characters who hail from very diverse backgrounds and different walks of life - a teacher, an actor, a hermit, a prostitute, an industrialist, a politician and some more.

The author has tried to put all participants on the driver seat one by one to take the journey forward, but Kanishka Sengupta, the actor and Lovely, the prostitute - hog maximum spotlight. As the show progresses, some old skeletons leave the closets and come out in the public, some hidden secrets are bared while true love kindles in the hearts of two inmates. Another major put off was overdose of philosophical conversations happening in the house.

I am sure the story could have been salvaged somewhere but it leaves the readers completely cheated and me questioning, why would I not watch a Big Boss episode instead of taking the burden to read through this book?

In my opinion, the good books are not the ones which make the readers wreck their brains in trying to make sense out of the story. Unfortunately the story of Sikandar does not go anywhere and the readers keep waiting and wondering - what is the point behind writing this book. Are such books written to just test the patience of readers - whether they can finish reading it from cover to cover? Cannot seem to find a single reason why any one should read it even once. As a book reviewer, I do feel happy that I am actually doing a service to people in my own humble way - dissuading them from some not so readable literature.

This review is a part of the Book Reviews Program at BlogAdda.com.

Book Review : Faces In The Water

2011-10-09T21:57:00.003+05:30

Title : Faces In The Water

Author : Ranjit Lal

Publisher : Puffin

ISBN : 978-0-143-33106-3

I came to know about this book when it was among the shortlisted books in the Children's section, for the Vodafone Crossword Book Awards 2010 and then this book was adjudged the best in that category. The other competitors in the same category being :

Mr. Oliver's Diary by Ruskin Bond (reviewed here)

At Least A Fish by Anushka Ravishankar (reviewed here)

The Fang of Summoning by Giti Chandra

Koni - The Story of a Champion by Moti Nandy (reviewed here)

Sahyadri Adventure : Anirudh Dream by Deepak Dalal

Sahyadri Adventure : Koleshwar's Secret by Deepak Dalal

Needless to say, I really wanted to read it and the excerpts were very promising too.

The book addresses one of the shameful ills that is crippling our Indian society - the preference for male child and the fanaticism carried forward to extremely inhumane acts like female infanticide.

The very prosperous and affluent Diwanchand family is proud of having only sons in their lineage and they owe this special honour to the magical water from the well which is located near their ancestral house. The 15-year old son of this family Gurmeet once gets to spend a few days in the that house and wants to explore the area on his own especially the very famous well. But what does he see in the well water, his own reflection, no. There are three faces staring back at him from the well water - and those three faces belong to three girls. Then begins the journey of unraveling the mystery behind those faces and what do they have to do with the water being magical which blesses the family with only sons progeny. Are Gurmi and the girls together able to reach the depth of the mystery and do they get to influence the attitude of their male child obsessed parents?

Overall a fast paced, fun filled book which manages to address a serious topic in a lighter tone. Though an adult topic, it is handled in a manner which makes it appropriate for young adults too and actually this is a good strategy because the young adults of today are potential responsible citizens of tomorrow. So by educating them now, there is high probability that such diseases could eventually be eradicated from our society for good. The author has tried to spice the story up by including sufficient funny incidents and moments in the narrative and the magic of cyber world and connectivity are used as aids to bring home the point to the new tech savy generation. There is novelty in the way the inexistent world becomes alive with just connecting a few wires but slowly the same becomes repetitive and loses its charm. I found myself skipping those portions on a couple of occasions because they were hardly moving the story forward, rather they were mere diversions on the otherwise smoothly flowing narrative. These are the portions where the book tends to lose its objective. But otherwise a well written piece, with right amount of sensitivity and emotions that such a topic deserves.

I just hope the attempts of such books start showing some results so that we get to live in a free society which has no shameful acts to hide and no guilt to overcome.

Interview with Leela Gour Broome

2011-09-28T18:01:00.003+05:30

Leela Gour Broome completely impressed me with her very first book - Flute In The Forest (reviewed here) and it was a dream come true when she contacted me after having read the review of the book here.

She gladly accepted the offer to be interviewed so that the readers get to know more about her and her experience of being an author.

Is the story of 'Flute in the Forest' purely fictional or is it inspired by some real life characters, incidents or experiences?

Flute in the Forest is purely fictional. It has however been inspired by my years living on the tea estates, and several trips through the forests of South India with my own family as well as with friends, over the past 35 years.

What all research did you do to write a story which has detailed account of forest, animals, lifestyles and customs of some tribes inhabiting that area?

With years of experience in forest areas I had little need to do any further research about the forest I wrote about, its flora and fauna. The lifestyles and customs of tribes in most Indian forest areas will be similar, give and take their eating/ living habits, as a lot depends on the vegetation there.

How has been your journey of being an author so far? What has been the most satisfying part of the experience of writing?

The 'journey' as an author has been wonderful. Firstly, a lifelong dream has been achieved, it was my ambition to write since I was barely 15 years old, time and family constraints made the delay, but it was always at the back of my mind. The most satisfying part of the experience has been seeing my first book finally in print. Of course, learning about the entire publishing business has been an eye opener as well.

You mentioned that you live on a farm. How significantly that environment inspires you in giving words to your thoughts?

Living on our farm , and running our nature and environment camps for 16 years nurtured my understanding of YA 12+ generation, their way of thought, and I pretty soon realized there was an enormous dearth of books relevant to this age group.

I read that you have written three books and 'Flute in the Forest' is one of them. When are you planning to get the other two books published? What are those books based on?

I have written 3 books, but the Flute story was the first to be edited by me over and over again, till I was happy I could not do any more to the story, and certain it would find itself a publisher! (It did!) The second book I have completed two months ago, and its in the process of being read through by editors of a publishing house. And the third needs a lot of changes made to it, as I'm not satisfied with it at the present moment.....

There are other stories I plan to write but would like to stay with the YA 12+ generation.

What kind of story would you want to write next and for which age group?

All my stories will deal with life and times in India, as I'm most familiar with this country, having lived here my entire life. We have such diversity here, nothing on earth can give an author such a massive choice of subjects, lifestyles, communities, religions, events, thought processes!

Who is your favourite among the Indian authors writing children's literature?

I used to read Manjula Padmanabhan, but of late prefer American and writers from the UK, of whom there are many. I do NOT much care for science fiction, or books on magic, magicians, etc.

Could you please share your experience of the process of getting the written work published? How easy/difficult is this process. Which kind of books do you find missing in the children's category in India?

My experience with getting my book published was long, and quite painful. Many many rejections, much editing, many more rejections, not enough email addresses to choose from, and many Publishers not finding YA lucrative enough to make one story go far!! Today's writers haven't much clue about either the market or the target they're writing for, and the usual money spinner seems to be illustrated books for the very young, so this age group is I feel totally neglected. We certainly need a larger number of YA authors here.

Thanks Leela !

Book Review : Out Of Place In Time And Space

2011-09-26T18:27:00.002+05:30

Title : Out of Place in Time and Space

Author : Lamont Wood

Publisher : New Page Books

ISBN : 978-1-60163-178-7

'Out of Place in Time and Space' is a delightful read highlighting the things, incidents and situations from the past which resemble the ones that happened or were invented many years later. How is it possible to see things in the past that look similar to the things in the present? The picture of children holding toy helicopters, toy airplanes on the tombs, the presence of planetary objects in the tribal art, writer having written about the doomed gigantic ship getting into an accident with just a few lifeboats - eventually happening much later in Titanic , movie on the President creating an artificial war as a façade to distract the attention of the public away from his personal affair, the mention of Pacific Front of the World War II more than a decade before the war began, UFOs being depicted in the paintings of medieval period - are some of the examples brought into notice by Lamont Wood.

Wood offers a detailed reference list of such cases appropriately supported by illustrations from some very reliable sources like National Geographic and Scientific American. The facts of the knowledge from the past are thoroughly analyzed form logical angles and are presented in an easily readable fashion adequately stirring the curiosity of readers to know more as the book progresses.

The book does manage to initiate a few basic questions in the minds of the readers - Have we understood the time dimension completely? Is time a much more cryptic dimension than it seems to be? What else have we not understood completely ignoring it as just flight of imagination of a set of people in different times? These and some more will surely incite the curiosity of many readers.

A book, full of substance and evidences for the large array of observations that have been made throughout the book. The information packed book is not devoid of humour so it promises to give an enjoyable reading experience to the readers. This is definitely one of the books which offers 'something different' from the regular content.

The pictures and illustrations added to the text, bring out the point much more effectively.

Book Review : A Waiting Wave

2011-09-22T22:52:00.003+05:30

Title : A Waiting Wave

Author : Kulpreet Yadav

Pubisher : Cedar Books

A Waiting Wave is a love story of Harry and Kareena, who are confronted with a rough terrain in their married life not too long after they took their vows to be in the relationship. Harry decides to handle the situation by silently exiting from the scene for some time with an aim to introspect.

Most of the ingredients that are typically found in any melodramatic love saga find a place in the story - passionate love, another person vying for heroines attention, short-tempered husband, regular complaints of a working wife and jealous spouse. Tsunami - the natural disaster is also appended to the potpourri and the couple in question is caught completely unawares. But sometimes it does take a mightier jolt for mere mortals like us to realize the pettiness of issues in broader scheme of things.

But unfortunately none of these ingredients make the readers connect with the characters or feel for them the way any love story should.

An ordinary love story, very simplistically told, which moves at a constant pace without attempting to soar high anywhere or dipping down too low. Readers would not be able to take much from the story and the impact will end with the last page of the book. The detailed information about the Andaman and Nicobar islands and the native triabals is interesting and sounds very authentic, which shows the sufficient groundwork that the author must have done to write authoritatively about the same. In my opinion, the main story is not strong enough to hold the attention of the readers. On some occasions the side subplots gain more prominence in the absence of an engaging plot.

What is good about the book is that it is free of all sorts of mistakes - spelling, grammatical, typos so I would say the editing job is done well. But the weak plot can make the book go only this far. Read it once, if you must.

Book Review : I Remember My Circus

2011-09-20T17:22:00.006+05:30

Title : I Remember My Circus (Kindle Edition)

Author : Tom S. Figueiredo

Illustrator : Sidney Falcao

'I Remember My Circus' is a story of an ill-fated magical town carrying an open secret. Most families living in this town have one or the other member who turns into an animal. The story starts with a girl working in a circus whose special feat is that she transforms into a gorilla at specific time of the day but this particular day seems to be far from other regular days especially for the gorilla girl and for the people who have come to see this live transformation in the circus.

That particular night, the narrator who is the 10-year old boy experiences the magic of kindness and the wonders it can create. Soon after that the circus is wound up and every single trace of the circus is magically wiped out of the place. Incidentally the little boy gets to witness the secret of sudden appearance and vanishing of the circus which nobody else knew. And he decides to be a part of the circus by not sharing the secret.

The author Tom S. Figueired aptly brings out the imagination and inquisitiveness of a child's mind. The story is very sensitively and poignantly narrated. Great imagination, fresh idea and very creative execution. The illustrations done in water colours are simply gorgeous. However, I felt the appropriateness with the text is not maintained in the illustrations. The 10-year old boy is shown as a small toddler and pictures showing the mother carrying him in her arms look somewhat unrealistic.

Another important thing, the readers should not be misguided by the fact that since this is a picture book so is appropriate for very young children only. The little children will surely enjoy the colourful illustrations but the idea of the story is very mature and may get lost on them. So this book can be read and fully understood by anybody of 10+ years age.

Book Review : Death By China

2011-09-16T16:32:00.006+05:30

Title : Death By China

Author : Peter Navarro and Greg Autry

Publisher : Prentice Hall

ISBN : 978-0-13-218023-8

'Death by China' focuses on how following a meticulously systematic approach, China is attempting to cripple the economy of America under the pretense of 'free trade'. And in this whole process the defense of the country is also getting compromised to a significant degree. The book exposes the stark reality behind the glittering exterior and offers an eye opener for all.

The authors Peter Navarro and Greg Autry talk about the multi-pronged attack adopted by China and its policies on every feasible front - be it currency manipulation, espionage, capturing diverse markets, destroying jobs or pumping poison in the name of medicines, food or drugs. Rules and regulations of free trade are openly violated, ethics are disregarded, principles are conveniently tweaked and surprisingly not much has been done to combat this trend so far. I found the second and third sections the most interesting parts of the book, in which China's gradual domination on resources of Earth and that of outer space are discussed. China has all sorts of weapons in its artillery to accomplish the task of treacherous onslaught master minded by the corrupt Chinese leaders. After having discussed the threats and warning signs that America is facing from the venomous dragon, the authors move on to suggest some clear and workable actions that the US could adopt to safeguard its interests.

The book is a very well written piece of writing, based on thorough research and detailed analysis. The chapters and sub topics are neatly organized in a logical fashion. True to its title 'Confronting the Dragon - A Global Call to Action', the book does motivate the readers that something should be done sooner than later to eradicate the termite kind attack which is fast weakening the flourishing economic tree of the US.

However, on a couple of occasions in the narrative, the authors sound too opinionated and in order to accentuate the overall impact of the text they have not abstained from attempting to sensationalize the same. I feel the statistics and well researched piece of writing speak much louder than just the aggressive adjectives. The facts should always be presented in a completely matter-of-factly manner, keeping the personal opinions and views of the presenter out of the picture.

Book Review : Picture Book Tree

2011-09-08T11:09:00.017+05:30

I feel extremely happy to be sharing the wonderful endeavour of a mother with all the readers.

PictureBookTree is a tree that grows picture books and story books for children.

Stories about caring, sharing, love, and growing up. Like any tree, it loves to share its fruit, asking for very little in return. This site, which is started by a mother, shares beautiful life messages in the form of colorfully illustrated story books. Books that in a very subtle way lead you to appreciate and love this beautiful life, value relationships, respect nature and the world we live in. This site is a gift of a parent to all parents.

Pooja Sardana, the mother of this idea, wanted to make reading easy and accessible to all. She wanted the kids to read and enjoy as many books as they want without getting stuck with the price tag. "Money should be the last thing that should come as an obstacle in their growing up and experiencing life", she says. That's how this tree was borne. A tree which allows parents and children to climb up and read as many books as they wish to.

The site allows users to read, download, and print all the books for a subscription fee of only one dollar a year .

The site also has a Magic Box section where kids can enjoy short educational and funny videos, print out and paint coloring sheets from their favorite picture books or tease their brains with interesting memory puzzles! The site currently has 8 books, 5 more books are due for release by end of August. 15 books are in pre-production to be released by November. So there is a lot to look forward to. Magic Box was released this month and already hosts printables likes coloring sheets and Spot The Difference. Soon short videos, puzzles and other creative fodder for parents and children will be added. All of this comes for only one dollar a year .

PictureBookTree welcomes you all. Be part of the journey of a parent.

I Love You Mommy

A very reassuring story portraying a day from the lives of a mother and her little baby boy. The day

begins with mother waking the child up lovingly, followed by a series of activities that she does for him, which speak volumes of the affection, the warmth and the boundless love that is brimming in her heart for her child. The same feelings, though unspoken and

unheard, do reach out to the little heart in many ways.

They may not be acknowledged every single time but the child does know the presence of unconditional love in his life from a very close quarter and

attempts to reciprocate in his own innocent way.

This is the essence of the tenderly written story - 'I Love You Mommy'. It makes a big difference in building the confidence in the child when he/she is told over and over again - how dearly is he/she being loved.

A Day In The Park

Aman, a nature loving boy likes keeping his surroundings tidy, neat and clean. He is excited about a trip to the neighbourhood park with his mother and his dog friend - Lobo. But he gets disheartened by the apathy of people who come to the park to have some fun time. It feels like, they have such narrow vision that it is restricted to their personal enjoyment only even at the price of disfiguring and spoiling public property. But then he resolves something and starts a mission single handedly.

A wonderful way to convey an essential point to the children - no one is big or small when it comes to standing up for the right cause and even a small child can teach others how to be considerate and sensitive.

It shows how important it is to listen to the heart and follow it despite being the only one treading that path. If the actions are right, the confidence of doing the same enables the person to take on all the hurdles in the stride.

And sooner or later many others join the cause.

The Fish With A Golden Heart

If there is one star fish sharing a fish bowl with four ordinary looking goldfish, how would

the star fish feel - vain, conceited, extra-ordinary? And what about the goldfish, how would they feel - perhaps a little bad, especially when the star fish does not let any opportunity go, to bully the goldfish. But is there a way out of this vicious circle of hatred, revenge, bitterness? Perhaps there is one. There is always a path of forgiveness, which snaps everyone out of the negative feelings. It takes just a little effort from a person, but it gives immense pleasure to all. Such is the power of forgiveness.

'The Fish With A Golden Heart' is based on this aspect of life and how important it is to develop a vision

so that we are able to see the inner goodness of a person beyond the external cloak.

Mr. Might Meets His Hero

Having a super hero in a story is a sure way to enter a child's heart and this trick is used in the - 'Mr. Might Meets His Hero'. Mr. Right, the world's greatest superhero is very conceited because of his flying skills, his saving the world acumen and the reverence of people for him.

But one day he comes across a true super hero, Benji, but Benji is quite

unlike a regular super hero. He could not fly nor could he fight with the aliens and save the world. This little boy just knows very simple things - how to help elders, how to bring smiles to the faces, how to be compassionate and how to bring simple joys in the lives of others. In fact, he is just trying to practice the art of being a true human. Watching this hero very closely, Mr. Right learns many life lessons and realizes how ignorant he has been, completely engulfed in his own world of vanity and pride.

Miss Meow

Tim finds a purse lying on the grass while he is taking a walk one day. He wants to return it to

the rightful owner. He meets many animals as he goes along and keeps inquiring if the purse

belongs to any of them. It is fun to see where all these different animals are hidden and how they respond to Tim.

Children are introduced to the shelters, voices, food and movements of a variety of animals through this story. Knowledge imparted in fun way is always the best way to go about it.

Akayla and Woody

A very cheerful girl Akayla has a special bond with an extraordinary friend, an old tree Woody. They both have been taking good care of each other. They have shared wonderful times

together. This is one friend with whom Akayla has been sharing her secrets too. But one day, it looks like Woody's life is in danger and as expected from a true friend, Akayla stands up for her friend. But are her efforts enough to save her oldest friend?

How many of us are able to save our silent friends - plants and trees?

A great message illustrated beautifully by the paper and fabric cutouts, actually reinforcing the message of reusing the stuff and also

encouraging the kids to try making such collages.

Sharing Makes Me Happy

One day a little boy, while going to school, observes a family on the street and a little kid among them

looked very hungry. He cannot take that scene out of his mind till the time he decides to do something about it. Even a small gesture of sharing his lunch with that little kid, gives him immense pleasure and is appreciated by all.

Such stories teach the value of having compassion for people who are not as fortunate as us and how with a small effort from our side we could make a little change in their lives and make our world a better place to live.

A Walk With Grandma

A lovely story portraying a loving bond between Grandma Rose and little Ben. Ben decides to go on a walk with his grandma unperturbed by the fact that she could not walk and run fast with him. Ben just wants to enjoy the spring weather with his best friend - Grandma Rose. They meet many friendly creatures on their way and have a lot of fun. It is indeed a delightful day for both of them. Ben wants to keep walking further but

Grandma has had enough and can not walk any more, she wants to head back home. Does

Ben listen to her or does he continue walking? Grandma is sure to get a big surprise either way. You need to read to find out.

I especially liked the clever usage of words which go with the kind of plants

and animals they see and with the specific expressions. Will surely help in building the vocabulary of young children as they read along this interesting story.

Book Review : The Secret of The Nagas

2011-09-06T13:45:00.004+05:30

Title : The Secret Of The Nagas (Book II of Shiva Trilogy)

Author : Amish Tripathi

Publisher : Westland

ISBN : 978-93-80658-79-7

I guess all are wary of the sequels, the part II's, the Dwitiyas(seconds) and the following versions, for the simple reason (well supported by statistics)that usually the same seem like the diluted versions which let the expectations down, they even let the impressions of the first one fade away. So all these anticipations and apprehensions were there when I picked the second book of the 'Shiva Trilogy'(Book I - The Immortals of Meluha, reviewed here).

The initial one-third of the story did not stir much emotions inside me. Perhaps the expectations were too high. The story was going on pretty well, in fact, very fast paced but I was desperately missing the euphoria, the magic that I felt many times while reading 'The Immortals of Meluha'. Oh well, I thought, it is indeed not easy to replicate anything, then how could I expect the same magic getting replicated in the sequel too. But all my apprehensions and fears were put to rest the moment the identities of Naga queen and the Lord of the People are revealed. After that the story just soars high in the space, which Amish has made his readers used to.

Neelkanth's mission to find the evil and destroy it continues in the second book. He has to avenge the murder of his dear friend Brihaspathi and identify the mysterious Naga who is chasing Sati. Shiva's sojourn to find the answers to unanswered mysteries lead him and his entourage to many different places - Swadeepan, Kashi, Branga land and to the land of Nagas which has been very secretly guarded by the Naga Queen and the Lord of the People. Shiva gets to understand, experience and learn the fundamental duality of life, the inseparability of evil and good, the coexistence of masculine and feminine part in the universe, futility of preconceived notions, deception of first appearances, imperfections in perfection, scope of virtue in imperfection, significance and need of both evil and good, and much more.

Our hero, the Shiva in second book has matured into a much more assured person, having taken the role of being a saviour comfortably now, in comparison to the unsure rustic tribal Shiva who was introduced to us in the first book. The abuses coming out of his mouth are also contained to minimum.

However, I did not understand the significance of the word 'Nagas' for the people who are actually banished Suryavanshis or Chandravanshis born with physical deformities or abnormalities. They have their own kingdom Panchvati, which is a secret place in deep jungles.

I would say the way the second book ends is not like how the first ended in terms of level of curiosity the first managed to raise. People who read the first book, would surely want to read the second but not sure about the third. Personally, I would want to see how the saga ends because I usually pursue things till their logical conclusions. But there is no doubt about the fact that this journey has been very enriching and fulfilling for all the characters of the story, primarily Neelkantha and all the readers too.

I specifically liked the parts when Shiva is guided by the Vasudevs in a veiled manner. The cover pages of both the books are quite impressive too.

I must compliment the author for having weaved the philosophy of the evil and good so charmingly with the adventure and thrill part. The adventure gives pace to the story while the philosophy part brings the much needed pondering breaks, the opportunity to assimilate and absorb what has been going on in the story.

This story has deeply influenced and impressed me. The almighty seems to have become a little more approachable and accessible to me. I guess, it is all in our minds.

Book Review : Destiny Vs. Choice

2011-09-05T19:19:00.003+05:30

Title : Destiny Vs. Choice

Author : Marie D. Jones

Publisher : NewPage Books

ISBN : 978-1-60163-156-5

Right from the day a person develops the faculties to comprehend the meaning of life and the purpose of existence, the struggle between two contradictory claims begin in the mind - fate/destiny and choice/free will. Is everything hard coded in our make up or can we exercise some control over the choices that we believe to make and the paths we select?

In 'Destiny vs Choice', Marie D. Jones highlights the fundamental point that life is nothing but a sequence of decisions/choices and the decisions taken lead the individual to diverse circumstances offering yet another set of choices. The author brings in the spiritual, philosophical and scientific angles to look at the process of confronting decision points after decision points. She lays down very valid points and doubts on the table, for instance, if God has planned everything and if God is the perfect power, how could sin and evil be part of God's plan? If not, then is evil part of free will? Do fate and 'free will' work in mutually exclusive manner or do they have some common ground? What percentage of what we do or what happens come under the destiny part and what portion of it makes it to the 'free will'? The confusion keeps mounting with more and more parameters and factors thrown into the discussion. Do we lead a robot-like life where minute to minute details are set in stone, but then the whole existence seems really pointless. There has to be a kind of balance, a kind of correlation between Destiny and Choice, perhaps we do get to exercise our 'free will' but in the realms of broad rules of universe, which are there to avoid complete anarchy.

The author has taken into consideration different viewpoints and perspectives - from astrology, astronomy, various religions, DNA blueprint, quantum physics to after-death experiences, thereby making it a well researched guide on trying to fathom the meaning of each of these significant aspects in our life and how to use them to make the life more fulfilling and enriching. The impressive part about this book is that even the complex topics are very effectively weaved together in an extremely readable fashion. And also, the narrative is very beautifully peppered with the quotes of some notable personalities. A detailed section is focused on the great equalizer - the death and the after-life experiences, analyzing many issues under the topic.

The Appendix of the book is dedicated to some interesting tales, portraying how 'destiny' and 'free will' make their presence felt and how people find out the true destinations where they truly need to be, whether it is called the pull of destiny or that of Choice, which seems to matter much less at the end.

Interview with Amish Tripathi

2011-08-26T16:22:00.013+05:30

It was a pleasure to interview Amish Tripathi, the author of 'The Immortals of Meluha' (reviewed here), who seems to have aced the art of story telling and captivating the attention of the readers right from page one of his first book. The second book of the trilogy - 'The Secret of Nagas' is already in the bookstores.

'The Immortals of Meluha' is among the shortlisted books for Vodafone Crossword Awards 2010.

How did the plot originate? Was it an iterative process - finalizing the idea? Was it inspired by any particular thought - the Hindu trinity? The current state of affairs in our country and the whole world at large?

It all began as a pure philosophical discussion while I was watching a TV program with my family. In the program it was shown that in ancient Persia, Gods were known as Ahuras and Demons were called Daevas, contrary to what Indian mythology is based on. Obviously, if the ancient Indians and the ancient Indians had met, they may have called each other evil, because one person's God was another person's Demon.

While having a discussion over this topic, the first obvious question arose - 'Who is right?' - Both? Neither? The answer is neither are evil. Its just that the thinking is different. Which then led to other questions - 'What is evil?' and 'How to identify the evil?' This triggered the idea to write on the philosophy of evil. But later, following the suggestions of my brother and sister-in-law, I transformed the philosophical writing into an adventure, a thriller. The hope was that along with an engaging story, I may be able to better communicate the philosophy as compared to a pure philosophy treatise which may be boring for many.

While writing, there were instances when I felt that it was going nowhere but a timely sane advice by my wife - 'Don’t approach it with the arrogance of a creator but with the humility of a witness' brought peace in my mind and I started experiencing the story coming to me rather that me searching for it. I could feel the blessing of Lord Shiva while progressing on this journey.

What all research went into this project?

For the historical parts, I did not specifically read any book. But I have been a voracious reader throughout my life,so another way of looking at it is that I have been doing the research for the past 25 years. I love to read history books, even the ones which people find very dull and drab.

For the mythology and religious parts, I learnt mostly from my family. My grandfather was a pundit and a teacher in BHU, my parents are very religious people. My family has always encouraged very liberal perspective on issues - religious or non religious. The interesting discussions & debates in my family educated me a lot about religion and the logic and reasons behind many beliefs.

What prompted you to pick Shiva and not any other God? What about Shiva influenced you to make this choice?

I see it as Lord Shiva picking me rather than the other way round. I wanted to write on the theory of evil and who better to be the hero than the destroyer of evil Himself - the Mahadev, Lord Shiva.

There are many instances in the book when the readers experience the 'Wow!' feeling and personally for me one of those was - Har Har Mahadev episode. I am sure you must have received great appreciation for this particular part. Could you please share your experience of writing that scene? Did it invoke similar kind of euphoric feeling when you were penning it down?

Thank you! I was searching for a good war speech, something that could convey the philosophy of Lord Shiva and at the same time, be rousing. Nothing apt was coming to my mind. One day while taking a shower, the Har Har Mahadev idea occurred to me and I actually started crying. I came out and immediately wrote it down. And this part was not written sequentially in the book when it actually happened. The idea just came to me and I wrote it down and I knew this conveyed the essential message of Lord Shiva - Har Har Mahadev - Har ek mein Mahadev - All of us are Mahadevs.

The second book of this trilogy is already in the market and I have read some very nice reviews about that book too. Which of these two has been more fulfilling and satisfying experience for you and why? In your opinion were there any lacunae in the first book which you tried to improve in the second?

For me - both the books were satisfying. It is essentially one story and just for the convenience of the readers, it has been separated into three parts. The books are not independent by themselves. But I hope I have improved in the second book.

I have no qualms in accepting that the portions which are satisfying for readers are the ones which are blessed by Lord Shiva and the ones which are not upto the mark are due to my inability to do justice to that blessing. So I hope I have been able to overcome some of my shortfalls, which would make the second book, perhaps, a better experience for readers.

Some people have natural flare for writing, in your opinion how much of this skill is acquired and how much is it a derivative of the basic nature of an individual? (I love to ask this question to the authors and enjoy varied takes on this aspect)

I believe that every skill can be learnt. But there are two parts to it:

The 'What' part - the idea/philosophy that you want to convey. This is not in the hands of the author. He doesn't control it. It's a blessing. Some authors call it the product of their muse, some call it the generosity of a superior force. In my case, I call it the blessing of Lord Shiva.

The 'How' part - which can be learnt, the words, the phrases and the language that are used to give form to the 'what' part. The mode of conveying the idea can certainly be polished and refined. This is certainly in the hands of the author and regular practice will help him improve.

I think, specifically for fiction writing, no author can be so arrogant to claim that everything is a result of his genius/creativity. Because if that were so, we wouldn't have cases of writer's block.

Who does Amish want to be recognized and remembered as - an accomplished author, a mythologist, a historian or any other title?

As a Shiva bhakt and a good family man. That is the core of who I am. I am lucky to have a good family and should do all to keep them happy. Everything else is secondary.

What was your reaction when you came to know that your first book is among the shortlisted books for Vodafone Crossword Awards 2010. Which is your favourite book among the competitors?

It is nice to have a book shortlisted for the Crossword awards. I am quite happy. Personally, I really liked Chanakya's Chant by Ashwin Sanghi and Connect the Dots by Rashmi Bansal.

What next after trilogy?

I have many ideas. I want to write on Lord Rudra, Lord Manu, version of Ramayana, version of Mahabharata, on Akbar, on Egyptian mythology, on Anatolia.

I enjoyed reading Banker's version of Ramayana. He has gone to the source and has narrated it with modern perspective in an engaging manner. Jaya by Devdutt Pattanaik is an interesting commentary on Mahabharata too.

Event Invite for Crossword Book Awards 2010

2011-08-26T13:16:00.009+05:30

Book Review : Simply Fly

2011-08-25T20:30:00.005+05:30

This book is among the shortlisted books in 'Popular Category' for Vodafone Crossword Book Awards 2010.

Title : Simply Fly

Author : Captain Gopinath

Publisher : Collins Business

ISBN : 978-81-7223-842-1

'Simply Fly' is a story of a small boy hailing from a remote village, who went on to don multiple roles and became an iconic figure, an inspiring personality, a true entrepreneur, a fighter and a true karma yogi.

In his autobiography, Captain Gopinath takes the readers through the journey of his life beginning from a very humble setting, joining Indian Army, quitting Army for pursuing some unknown dreams, becoming a farmer, going into silkworm rearing, foraying into hotel business, venturing into a series of other businesses and finally assimilating his experience of years to establish the biggest business venture - Air Deccan. The dream behind Air Deccan was to give wings to a common man. Captain Gopinath is the person responsible for making air travel accessible for masses. As is obvious, the path was not free of impediments, be it in the form of nature's uncertainty, redtapism, bribery, lack of funds or political machinery delays.

But Captain's indefatigable courage, energy, passion, fighting spirit and determination to take an untraveled path and to achieve the goals are exemplary. He is a live example of the fact that no problem, no roadblock, no hurdle is big enough if it is up against strong perseverance and grit. His unfettered resolve to leave a task only when the goal is accomplished was the burning fire which helped him achieve whatever he aimed for.

This book is suitable as a guide for budding entrepreneurs and could be prescribed as a supplement in senior classes at school level and management institutions. It is sure to stimulate the young minds with hope that nothing is impossible and there are innumerable avenues waiting to be tapped by efficient people. Sky is the limit if conviction is strong.

I really liked the flow of the autobiography, however at some places too many unimportant details could have been edited out. These portions just increase the volume of the book rather than giving much to chew on.

Personally for me, what distinguishes an autobiography from a biography is the personal touch and warmth lent to it by the author. This is one significant aspect which makes a good autobiography stand apart from many others. I found the above mentioned pre-requisites somewhat lacking in Simply Fly.

Captain Gopinath has quoted many great people throughout his book which shows how well read the author is himself.

Some excerpts from the book:

Your energy, you passion, your ability to lose yourself in the entirety and the nitty-gritty of your venture to the exclusion of everything else is more important than capital. Thinking is the capital; enterprise is the way; hard work is the solution - APJ Abdul Kalam

A true entrepreneur is one who creates wealth where it did not exist earlier by creating a new market and a new customer. They create something new, something different, they change and transmute values and on a size and scale that will impact the society.

All great businesses involve two things - One is having great idea. Two is having great people around you. The third is the ability to retain good people is what will count most.

Happiness is a mirage if you look at it as a destination to arrive at. If you take joy in the everyday things of life, you will never need to embark on a journey towards an elusive destination. If work is your joy, you never need to toil at all in life.

A Brief About The Vodafone Crossword Book Awards:

Exclusively Indian, inclusive in every other sense, the Vodafone Crossword Book

Award brings together the entire literary community – readers, authors, booksellers & publishers – like no other awards.

These are your awards - join us in celebrating Indian writing.

The Vodafone Crossword Book Award is one of the most prestigious and popular literary prizes in India that not only recognizes and rewards the best of Indian writing but also actively promotes the authors and their books.

The Vodafone Crossword Book Awards are given out in the following categories:

1. Vodafone Crossword Fiction Award.

2. Vodafone Crossword Non-Fiction Award.

3. Vodafone Crossword Translation Award.

4. Vodafone Crossword Children’s Award.

5. Vodafone Crossword Popular Award.

Click here to know more about the awards.

Vote For Your Favourite Book...

2011-08-25T16:05:00.003+05:30

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Here is how you can do it.

Book Review : Way To Go

2011-08-23T13:09:00.004+05:30

Title : Way to Go

Author : Upamanyu Chatterjee

Publisher : Hamish Hamilton (an imprint of Penguin Books)

ISBN : 978-0-670-08352-7

I must say, I was impressed by the very first sentence - 'For not having loved one's dead father enough, could one make amends by loving one's child more ?'. This sentence beautifully captures the philosophy, the essence of life. Can the wrongdoings in one relationship be rectified by compensating it at some other place?

The main protagonist Jamun is in his 40s and is in search of his 85-year old, half paralysed father Shyamanand, who mysteriously disappeared one night.

Many subplots in the form of tributaries join the main flow of the story as we go along. Jamun's brother Burfi, who had long severed ties with his father and Jamun, returns home. Jamun's former love interest Kasturi and the mother of Jamun's only child comes back too with a clear motive behind this move of hers. She wants to capture the melodramatic moments of Jamun's life into a Hindi Soap - Cheers Zindagi. A crafty builder Lobhesh Monga eyeing the property that belonged to Jamun's father is making all possible attempts to buy it out.

I consider it an achievement of the narration that the readers get to clearly experience Jamun's thoughts, emotions, apprehensions, fears and dilemmas as the story progresses. The story focuses on one relationship predominantly - between a father and a son. The supporting characters are etched out beautifully by Chatterjee whether it is the maid, her son, the neighbour Naina Kapur or Mr Mukherjee.

Like previous Upamanyu Chatterjee's books, the narrative is peppered with sarcasm, dark humour and intelligent witticism. The story deals with perils of old age, agonies, despairs, inevitability of degeneration and death. The story is capable of pushing the readers into introspective mood on many occasions, questioning the meaning of life, imperfection in the world, the futility of existence and where does the exercise of living leads us to. There are some portions which are completely power packed with a lot of substance while some go without creating any ripple. At some point while reading, the darkness, the negativity, the bitterness and the gloom become too much to handle and readers may feel it a challenge to sail through such parts. I firmly believe that sometimes, brevity wins over garrulousness and the author needs to experiment with that a little more. However, the wise selection of metaphors and analogies would surely make readers fall in love with the author's writing style.

A Brief About The Vodafone Crossword Book Awards:

Exclusively Indian, inclusive in every other sense, the Vodafone Crossword Book

Award brings together the entire literary community – readers, authors, booksellers & publishers – like no other awards.

These are your awards - join us in celebrating Indian writing.

The Vodafone Crossword Book Awards are given out in the following categories:

1. Vodafone Crossword Fiction Award.

2. Vodafone Crossword Non-Fiction Award.

3. Vodafone Crossword Translation Award.

4. Vodafone Crossword Children’s Award.

5. Vodafone Crossword Popular Award.

Click here to know more about the awards.

Book Review : The Immortals of Meluha

2011-08-19T11:08:00.010+05:30

Title : The Immortals of Meluha

Author : Amish

Publisher : Westland

ISBN : 978-93-80658-54-4

The book is based on the belief that perhaps the actions, the deeds and karma are the only deciding factors in transforming an ordinary man to Mahadev - God of Gods.

The book begins with a tribal leader Shiva in a dilemma over an enticing offer from Nandi, who hails from Meluha (the land of pure life) inviting Shiva and his tribe of Gunas to relocate to Meluha. The Meluhan King of Suryavanshis - Daksh, invites various tribes to stay in his country in desperate pursuit of a sole savior Neelkanth for them.

Meluha is a near perfect empire created many centuries ago by Lord Ram whose reign was exemplary in many ways. But now the country is struggling against many issues - the aggression by Chandravanshis who apparently have allied with Nagas for terrorist attacks on Suryavanshis, shortage of somras and slow extinction of revered Saraswati river. But the Meluhans firmly believe in the ancient legend which gives them a glimmer of hope - when the problems become insurmountable for ordinary men, the Neelkanth will appear. It turns out that Shiva is the Neelkanth when his throat turns blue on partaking the Somras (the drink which reduces the oxidants in the body and makes the people of Meluha enjoy longer lives).

Shiva finds himself responding to the call of destiny while finding love of his life, forming brotherly associations with some and leading a whole country against evil. But are they up against evil?

I could see glimpse of Suryavanshi-Chandrvanshi disputes being analogous to the ones between India-Pakistan - having the same origin and at one point the argument between the Suryavanshi and Chandravanshi seemed very similar to the ones that we have witnessed many times between India and Pakistan.

What I liked the most about the book:

Using the same characters, places and names which are associated with Lord Shiva -Mansarovar, Sati, Nandi, Daksh, Gunas, makes the whole story very believable and easy to relate to.

Many euphoric moments throughout the narrative, especially the episode when Neelkanth inspires the Suryavanshi army to believe in 'Har Har Mahadev' - each and every person is Mahadev.

The climax and the final revelation to Neelkanth. His inner struggle, turmoil, frustration and desperation to find the answer, the solution and the final realization. The brilliant portrayal of duality of life and of our existence takes the book many notches higher.

Interweaving the sub plots of Saptrishis, Vasudevs, brief history of Devas and Asurasa and Rudra in the narrative without confusing the readers anywhere.

The detailed description of places and situations which helps the readers in understanding the story and moving along with it.

A completely original plot brilliantly amalgamating mythology, history and fiction to create a mesmerizing saga. I would like to give 10/10 for the imagination of the author.

The author has fictionalized and simplified the mythology to such an extent that it can easily be followed by all, thereby increasing its reach extensively.

A few irritants:

The abusive language used by Shiva and his chillum are some of the aspects which may be objectionable to many, but Shiva is shown as a tribal, so I guess in order to bring the authenticity the author decided to retain them. However, I personally did not like these portions, could have been easily done away with, without losing anything on the plot and the impact of the whole story.

Language is very simple, can easily be followed by young adults too. A little refined language and tighter editing can definitely help the book positively.

Some excerpts from the book :

Whether a man is a legend or not is decided by history, not fortune tellers.

A man becomes a Mahadev, only when he fights for good. A Mahadev is not born from his mother's womb. He is forged in the heat of battle, when he wages a war to destroy evil. Har Har Mahadev - All of us are Mahadev.

A person's ethics and character are not tested in good times. It is only in bad times that a person shows how steadfast he is to his dharma.

After reading this book, I was wondering, perhaps the 'page-turner' term was coined for such books. This book completely lives up to the term.

I feel really happy that the literary scene in India is in good hands as long as people like Amish are present on the literary firmament, with their out-of-the box thinking and wonderful plots.

Definitely one of the stories which will remain with the readers for a very long time and I am sure Shiva/Neelkanth/Mahadev will be in their hearts forever.

I am glad to have read and reviewed this book which is one of the shortlisted books for Vodafone Crossword Book Awards 2010.

A Brief About The Vodafone Crossword Book Awards:

Exclusively Indian, inclusive in every other sense, the Vodafone Crossword Book

Award brings together the entire literary community – readers, authors, booksellers & publishers – like no other awards.

These are your awards - join us in celebrating Indian writing.

The Vodafone Crossword Book Awards are given out in the following categories:

1. Vodafone Crossword Fiction Award.

2. Vodafone Crossword Non-Fiction Award.

3. Vodafone Crossword Translation Award.

4. Vodafone Crossword Children’s Award.

5. Vodafone Crossword Popular Award.

Click here to know more about the awards.

Interview with Anushka Ravishankar

2011-08-17T20:52:00.004+05:30

Anushka Ravishankar, a mathematics graduate and a software professional is a prolific children's book writer now. She is lauded as India's answer to Roald Dahl as she brilliantly excels in nonsense verse. She believes that children should read for fun rather than as learning exercise and hence her aim has been to entertain the children through her books. Surely her writings are devoured by kids as well as their parents. Having more than 17 books and 12 awards to her name, she is among the well known names in the children's writers of her generation.

Her book 'At Least A Fish' (reviewed here) is among the six shortlisted books for Vodafone Crossword Book Awards 2010.

1. How did the journey of being an author of children's books begin and how has been the journey so far? Which of your stories is the most fulfilling experience for you?

It started with the realization, many years ago, that there weren't enough Indian books for children which told contemporary stories. So I thought it might be fun to try writing for children. So I wrote some stories and sent them off to a magazine and they liked them. So I decided to switch careers. I was in software before that.

Every book is satisfying in its own way, but the books Moin and the Monster and At Least a Fish were especially satisfying because they were completely mine, as opposed to my picture books, which have been collaborative. But collaborating with different illustrators has also been very exciting. To Market, to Market and Today Is My Day are two picture books that I really enjoyed working on.

2. Do you believe in writer's block and what is your way of deriving inspiration and getting fresh ideas for your books?

Ideas come from everywhere - things you see, hear, imagine, live.

As for writer's block, it's a mysterious phenomenon. When you stare at a blank screen and start typing random keys maniacally, you know it exists, whether you believe in it or not.

3. After having read many of your books, I feel the narrative amazingly captures the ramblings of a young mind, how do you transport yourself to feel and experience the emotions of children so aptly?

To be able to write for children, you have to be able to remember what it was like to be a child. They say about a lot of children's writers that they never grew up. I suspect that's true.

4. What are your next projects? When can we expect the next book in the series of Ana and Zian?

The next Zain and Ana (it's called Ghosts Don't Eat) has been written and illustrated and is expected to be out by September first week. The third Zain and Ana will be out next year, so I will be starting on it soon. There's also a picture book in verse that is in press. There are a couple of other books I want to write after I finish Zain and Ana 3.

5. Which kind of books excite Anushka? Which are your favourite authors ?

I love nonsense verse, especially Lewis Carroll and Edward Gorey. Also Dr Seuss who combines music and meaning so well, and Shel Siverstein's poetry for children. I like Roald Dahl because he thinks up the most bizarre stories. The other authors I like are Hilary MacKay, David Almond and Philip Pullman. I'm talking only about children's books here, of course.

The books in general that excite me vary with my moods, but I like reading books which have been thoroughly researched and are set in times and circumstances that I don't know much of. I also like books which have the Chekhovian quality of being light on the outside with a deep undertug of meaning and emotion.

6. Some people have natural flare for writing, in your opinion how much of this skill is acquired and how much is it a derivative of the basic nature of an individual?

I've found that one's writing improves when one keeps at it, so that seems to argue against the 'born writer' idea, but I think it might be like any skill - you can improve with practice, but to be really excellent, you probably need a gene for it.

7. How has the scenario changed in recent past in terms of kidlit in India?

There's been a quantum leap in the level of activity in children's literature. There are more publishers, creating more books, read by more children. But what we really need are more writers, because until we have a large number of writers, we're not going to have a high percentage of truly good books.

8. Any special incident or anecdote associated with a particular book that you would like to share with your readers?

9. Any suggestions to the budding authors aiming to write interesting children's books?

Read a lot, keep writing, and enjoy yourself. And never write down to a hypothetical child. Write for yourself, and the child who is like you will read and enjoy your writing.

10. Finally what are your feelings on having one of your books being shortlisted for Vodafone Crossword Book Awards? We wish you all the best!

It makes me happy of course, but most of all I'm happy that the Awards now include children's writing. As children's writers we're usually on the margins of the publishing world, but a prestigious award helps to give respectability, as it were, to the business of writing for children.

Book Review : Koni - The Story Of A Champion

2011-08-17T10:56:00.004+05:30

'Koni - The Story Of A Champion' is among the six shortlisted books for the awards under children's category.

Title : Koni The Story of a Champion

Author : Moti Nandy (Translated by Sumana Mukherjee)

Publisher : Hachette India

ISBN : 978-93-80143-55-2

Koni - The Story of a Champion, is an English translation of Bengali novel 'Koni' written by the sports writer Moti Nandy. This is a saga of a spirited tomboy Koni Kanakchampa Paul hailing from very impoverished background and her swimming coach Kshitish Sinha who recognized the sparks of potential in Koni and took upon himself to transform her into a swimming legend.

Sinha noticed Koni for the first time in the Ganges while she was jostling with other boys of her age to grab the mangoes thrown in the river by the devotees. This was followed by another chance meeting where Koni had participated in 20-hour nonstop walking contest for a meager prize packet for her family. Incidentally during this time, Sinha was forced out of his club and he was all charged up to prove his point that he had what it takes to make champions. Thus began the alliance between a reluctant swimmer and a coach of undefeatable perseverance, the journey of grit and determination of Koni under the guidance of temperamental coach Sinha. The coach backed his unflinching resolve with strict regimen of diet and exercise for Koni while struggling against the unfair sports bodies at every level, Koni's poverty and his own familial issues.

The feisty young girl fights all battles against hunger, exhaustion, personal loss, poverty, rivalry, abusive team mates and disgrace and yet comes out of all these to finally display her mettle in the decisive round.

Sumana Mukherjee has very effectively brought up the issues of club rivalries, the frustration of experiencing talent being deprived of fare chance and eventually completing the journey from nadir of inadequacy to glory of reaching the goal. Despite facing a huge number of impediments, story of Koni rises above all to motivate and inspire many young aspirants who dream to make big in sports. At some level, the talent does speak for itself, the road may be tough and full of roadblocks but nothing can stop the indomitable spirit to reach the destination. The narrative is simple and can easily be followed by children of 9+ years.

A couple of one liners from the book:

Nonstop events help identify people with endurance as well as stubbornness.

If one didn't push oneself beyond one's limitations, one would never overcome them.

A Brief About The Vodafone Crossword Book Awards:

Exclusively Indian, inclusive in every other sense, the Vodafone Crossword Book

Award brings together the entire literary community – readers, authors, booksellers & publishers – like no other awards.

These are your awards - join us in celebrating Indian writing.

The Vodafone Crossword Book Awards are given out in the following categories:

1. Vodafone Crossword Fiction Award.

2. Vodafone Crossword Non-Fiction Award.

3. Vodafone Crossword Translation Award.

4. Vodafone Crossword Children’s Award.

5. Vodafone Crossword Popular Award.

Click here to know more about the awards.

Book Review : Mr. Oliver's Diary

2011-08-15T14:04:00.005+05:30

'Mr. Oliver's Diary' is one of the six shortlisted books under Children's section

Title : Mr. Oliver's Diary

Author : Ruskin Bond

Publisher : Penguin Books India

ISBN : 9780143331148

Ruskin Bond needs no introduction. With over 30 children's titles to his credit, he is one of the accomplished champions of the art of writing. He has created a magic in the form of 'Mr. Oliver's Diary' yet again with a very amiable history teacher Mr. Christopher Oliver who arrives in Shimla with more than 100 hungry boys to start a new school term at the Prep School (Classes I - VI).

It so turns out that other than taking his regular classes, Mr. oliver becomes a panacea for all ills and is called by the headmaster for almost all types of problems whether it is the case of fire in the premises, case of sleepwalking student, crisis of a couple of runaway students, invasion of frogs, taking up the challenge of boxing or principal getting locked-in at his own house.

Though not a dashingly handsome personality, Mr. Oliver is blessed with a heart of gold and is a lovable character who manages to share a very special bond with his students.

The hilarious moments with the antics of his parrot who only likes to screech 'Bottoms up' , his wig getting out of its designated position on more than one occasions and many comical instances make it a very funny diary indeed. Since it is a diary so Mr. Oliver sincerely pours his heart out even about the secret admiration that he harbors for Ms. Anjali Ramola, a co-teacher.

Ruskin Bond's refined sense of humour is evident in his writing throughout the narrative. We also get to see glimpses of changing colours of nature as the days and months pass by one after another and the mention of the same finds a place in this chronicle which I found really very intelligent way of involving the readers into the proceedings.

A book well deserved to be among the six short listed books of 2010 under Children's category.

A Brief About The Vodafone Crossword Book Awards:

Exclusively Indian, inclusive in every other sense, the Vodafone Crossword Book

Award brings together the entire literary community – readers, authors, booksellers & publishers – like no other awards.

These are your awards - join us in celebrating Indian writing.

The Vodafone Crossword Book Awards are given out in the following categories:

1. Vodafone Crossword Fiction Award.

2. Vodafone Crossword Non-Fiction Award.

3. Vodafone Crossword Translation Award.

4. Vodafone Crossword Children’s Award.

5. Vodafone Crossword Popular Award.

Click here to know more about the awards.

Book Review : At Least A Fish

2011-08-12T20:32:00.010+05:30

'At Least a Fish is one of the six shortlisted books under Children's section

Title : Atleast a Fish

Author : Anushka Ravishankar

Publisher : Scholastic

ISBN : 9788184774610

'Atleat a Fish' is first of the Ana and Zian series by Anushka Ravishankar. Ana (Ananya Bopanna)desperately wants a pet dog and follows the 'Young Readers' section of the newspaper for the information on homeless pups for adoption. But to her dismay she gets three fish instead of one adorable pup who could have been 'her faithful friend for life'. So she decides to bring a little pizzazz in the proceedings by christening her three fish as - Aristotle, Plato and Socrates. She has her best friend Zian in tow for all sorts of adventures that they undertake together.

After observing the fish very closely, Ana and Zian come to a unanimous decision that just a marble sized food cannot be enough for the fish. So in order to save them from starving to death Ana and Zian decide to take the matters in their own hands and serve the fish a variety of food perhaps spinach or coriander since seaweeds are inaccessible and the fish look pretty dumb to understand the subtlety of variation in their staple diet.

The adventures definitely do not end here, infact this is just the beginning. They land right into many hilarious situations while dealing with nosy twins, annoyed mother, mysterious dragon in the pool and Dr. Nirmala Joshi worrying about finding a suitable owner for her adorable pup Buddhu - 'a dog like no other !'

Each of the characters is amazingly etched and can qualify to be the main protagonist of the story - whether it is Zain who feels pained when Ana uses difficult words like 'ridiculous' etc, the twins Meena and Beena, Ana's mother, Zian's sister, famed tragedy queen of P.K. Medical College Dr. Joshi or even Buddhu - who thinks he is a fish!

Are Ana and Buddhu destined to be together? Can Zian survive his sister's awful perfume and Beena the mysterious dragon of the swimming pool? You are sure to get the answers to these questions and much more in this book.

Anushka Ravishankar is one author who exactly knows the ramblings of childhood minds especially the ones like Ana and Zain and more so when they are left to themselves. In their own world, the fantasy, imagination and reality are not distinctly separate as in the adult world and this free spirited narrative makes this book so special. Anushka Ravishankar has created a hilarious and delightful book which will have many young readers hooked on to it. The wacky illustrations by Shilo Shiv Suleman accentuate the overall impact of the story.

A Brief About The Vodafone Crossword Book Awards:

Exclusively Indian, inclusive in every other sense, the Vodafone Crossword Book

Award brings together the entire literary community – readers, authors, booksellers & publishers – like no other awards.

These are your awards - join us in celebrating Indian writing.

The Vodafone Crossword Book Awards are given out in the following categories:

1. Vodafone Crossword Fiction Award.

2. Vodafone Crossword Non-Fiction Award.

3. Vodafone Crossword Translation Award.

4. Vodafone Crossword Children’s Award.

5. Vodafone Crossword Popular Award.

Click here to know more about the awards:

Interview with Paul McDonnold

2011-08-08T10:14:00.002+05:30

It is an honour to be interviewing Paul McDonnold, the author of 'Economics of Ego Surplus' (reviewed here), one of a very few books that impressed me in recent past. You can read more information about the author here. But one of his statements which I must reproduce here is - "In an age of sound bites, tweets, partisan rants and uninspiring vanilla content, quality writing is not dead. It simply stands out more". I cannot agree more on this. There has been a deluge in the number of books which are being published and are available through multitude of reading tools but there is no denying the fact that the quality writing earns its own respect and recognition competition or no competition.

Sharing his views with all the readers...

1) How did the idea of 'The Economics of Ego Surplus' occur and the thought of combining education with a thriller?

Several years ago, I was teaching an economics course and wrote a homework assignment about a fictional attack on the U.S. economy that the students had to figure out how to stop. The students really liked it, so I started thinking about more ways to combine entertainment with teaching and it grew from there.

2) Do you think these kind of threats are really possible or a country's economy is so big and strong that such attempts are too trivial to bring it down?

I think it’s possible, but a bigger danger than a terrorist economic attack might be one that comes from another nation, or maybe from computer hackers. There are a lot of possibilities that I hope governments are thinking about and guarding against. If a successful economic or financial attack happened on top of an already weakened economy, like what the U.S. has now, the result could be really bad.

3) What all research did you do before writing this book?

Getting the economics material nailed down was important, of course. I also did some research on the settings in the novel. I have been to all of the places except Dubai. I would have loved to go there but it was a little more time and money than I could budget for. Fortunately I was able to do detailed research on Dubai through books and the Internet. So I sort of visited there in spirit!

4) I understand that you take writing workshops, what are the writing fundamentals that you teach through these workshops?

I am still in the process of creating the workshops. My plan is for it to focus on business writing. I would go to a business and do a four-hour class to improve the employees’ writing skills to help them do their job better. So it will focus mostly on business concerns like writing persuasively and concisely.

5) Which new project are you working on now and will it be in the financial/economic sector like the previous one?

I have a new novel in mind, but it is just in the very early stages of thought. I can say Kyle Linwood will be the protagonist again. It will probably have a little economics, but not as much as the current novel.

6) Which new genres of writing do you want to explore and which would be the first one in the list?

I like combining fiction with non-fiction, and especially combining entertaining, genre-type fiction with educational elements. So I expect to keep going in that direction in the future.

7) Which category of books do you like to read? Who is your favourite author?

I read both non-fiction and fiction from pretty much all different genres. My favorite authors are probably from the classics of American literature, like F. Scott Fitzgerald. In the last couple of years I have gotten really interested in Flannery O’Connor, a female Southern (U.S.) writer, who I somehow missed out on in school.

8) Could you please suggest some basic guidelines for the budding authors and how they can improve their writing styles?

One thing that has been important for me, which I never saw in any books, is teaching your mind to slow down. Take time to consider how each word, each sentence is fitting together. Take time to think about or research details when you need to. I think the modern world has gotten so fast that people’s minds are moving at a rate where they miss out on a lot. A writer needs to overcome that and start picking up on the details!

9) Some people have natural flare for writing, so in your opinion how much of this skill is acquired and how much is it a derivative of the basic nature of an individual?

That’s a tough one! What’s amazing to me is how much work it takes to learn how to write a book that reads well. I don’t think you necessarily have to be a genius or some freakishly talented person. But you do have to have a passion for words and be willing to work and be alone with your thoughts for long periods. There are probably only certain types of people willing to do that.

10) Your final comments, views, suggestions or any addition you like to make to this interview.

Just that I appreciate the chance to connect with your readers, and hope they enjoy the book and tell their friends.

Thanks Paul!

Book Review : Economics of Ego Surplus

2011-07-30T08:16:00.004+05:30

Title : The Economics of Ego Surplus

Author : Paul McDonnold

Publisher : Starving Analyst Press

ISBN : 978-0-9829038-0-3

I received the review copy of this book a month back but the only reason I kept postponing picking this book up to read was the uninviting title page of the book which looked very drab and dreary. But once I started reading it, I felt too bad for the book as the cover page does not convey even the smallest fraction of the power packed story that is between the covers. And the title of the book does not help either. The information, the plot, the suspense, the climax and the narrative are full of excitement and adventure with no dull moment.

The story of a college instructor Kyle Linwood is an entertaining concoction of an action story, a thriller and also a guide to important facts and trends in economics. Kyle is all geared up to spend a relaxing summer with his girlfriend, but very unexpectedly he gets an offer from the FBI to work with them in solving a case of internet terrorism targeting the US financial backbone. Soon enough the panic tremors start jolting the whole nation and Kyle works on the case diligently which leads him to UAE. This whole exercise raises many questions about his own fundamentals in life and how everything fits like puzzle pieces. It is an interesting read how Kyle in association with FBI tries to foil the aggressive attempts of economic terrorists. Divulging anything more about the story would be giving away too much. The character portrayal of Kyle is very believable, not giving an impression of some super hero taking upon the terrorists all by himself.

There are quite a few economic concepts which are explained in an extremely simpler way which make them easily understandable, for instance the role of governments in salvaging the melting down economy and many other macro-economic concepts here and there. This book can be an interesting supplement for students who are taking up courses in economy.

The short and succinct chapters are very neatly written with appropriate subtitles. No attempt of stretching the narrative unnecessarily. I am sure this book will make many readers happy as it has the capability to quench the literary thirst of many.

Its prequel, 5 Pillars, 7 Sins is now available as a Free eBook in several formats. You can check it out here

Book Review : Teaching Lab Science Courses Online

2011-07-26T11:40:00.003+05:30

Title : Teaching Lab Science Courses Online

Author : Linda Jeschofnig and Peter Jeschofnig

Publisher : Jossey-Bass

ISBN : 978-0-470-60704-6

Learning science includes laboratory experience as a main ingredient for complete understanding of the subject, be it the dissection of the animals to see the viscera or adding the chemicals to see the reaction taking place under controlled environment or some physical phenomenon being carried out with specific equipments. In order to satisfy this criteria, the conventional school of thought propounds face- to-face learning as the only method of teaching and learning science. But with changing times when technology has influenced and literally revolutionized almost all patterns of thinking, how can this field be left untouched. As per the Department of Education Study, the science illiteracy is on the rise in America and to control this trend, making science experiments available to more and more people who are interested in taking up these courses should be made more easier. And making the same available online means increasing the reach by manifolds.

The authors of 'Teaching Lab Science Courses Online' have extensively covered all facets of this topic beginning with - the need to teach online, the comparison : online teaching vs face to face teaching, the specified tools and techniques helpful in this cause, the effectiveness and pitfalls of this mode of teaching, how to incorporate academic integrity in online science courses and the methods to incorporate online lab assignments, are some of these.

More and more instructors who have actually taught online believe that the commercially available lab-kits to be used at home are very much feasible and highly effective. This opening up of education offers opportunities to many people who cannot spare time to go to the campuses or the people who want to continue education in their convenient time. Not just that the research shows that the student-instructor interaction is much more purposeful and meaningful in online courses. And the social networking sites are easily providing the forums through which the fellow students can interact too.

The authors discuss the practicality of pre-packaged kits for the remote students and these would require instructors working closely with the companies manufacturing such kits, so that the hazard levels are kept under stricter checks while keeping the cost component minimal too so that the affordability does not become an issue.

Linda and Peter - the authors of this book are retired college professors who have been recognized as passionate pioneers in the field of distance science education. This book explores the options available to the students who are looking for valid science laboratory experiences. The online education is reality of new age and is here to stay in a big way.

This book offers a great help to the instructors who want to take their courses online, by walking them through the requirements in terms of appropriate software, modification in the course material, incorporation of 'use-at-home' lab kits, selection of lab options and many more informative guidelines. The authors address the potential obstacles while following this path and the possible remedial options to overcome the same thereby making the reach of education wider and broader with no boundaries and limitations whatsoever.