The Edible Woman by Margaret Atwood

Just because its a big name doesn't mean it can't go bad.

This is the case here. I was never a fan (I didn't get Handmaid's Tale) and this was too flimsy to be called even a decent one.

I later read some of the reviews which talk about it being the beacon of feminism and what not but I could just see a badly connected plot. In fact, I thought that you can change the genders of all the characters and it will still sound equally stupid so don't get carried away with it being feminist.

I guess I had enough from Margaret Atwood and will not be coming back for more. But I don't know if I could lay my hands on another one and pick it up.

Love!

The Mathematics of the Breath and the Way: On Writers and Writing by Charles Bukowski

How does a writer write or what inspires a writer to write?

These questions are not answered in this book but if you are looking for a personal account of a prolific writer like Bukowski than this is going to help.

To be a good writer you need to be a writer first. Which means writing a lot even if not all of it sees the light. Also, be prepared to not making a lot of money from writing. It is not that people don't pay for the good books but the answer lies in the fact when was the last time you actually bought a book.

Second thing is don't be to harsh on yourself and better lean on to a good editor. Not all the good writers are good editors so if you're not the later (which you will know soon if you are open to listening) find one.

Lastly, there is nothing like a great thought. I believe that you start with very basic ones and one of them will eventually with become big and by that I don't mean complicated. In fact, it is going to be so simple that it wouldn't require any interpretation from the writer. Most likely everyone will connect to it on their own terms and that is the best writing.

On a lighter note I never really understood too much of a poetry but that doesn't mean that you can't. Most of the times it is going to be like if you ever tried. 

Caution - don't get carried away with the alcoholic episodes and start thinking that it is some sort of shortcut to get to good writing. It is not, no matter how many times you hear it.

Love!

The Noise of Time by Julian Barnes

 I read this for the Barnes since I read "The Sense of an Ending" earlier, and what a marvellous book it is.

It talks about the life of Dmitri Shostakovich a Russian composer who was put out in front of the world as a representative of art and culture on behalf of Stalin's Russia. It goes deep in the thoughts of the artist and how it shifts from being artistic to survivalistic.

There are different ways to look at it and the easiest is to call the people opportunistic. They can be criticised for getting moulded to the external factors and not being true to their art. This sounds moralistic but until you get down to the basic idea of staying alive. Dying for the ideas or not abandoning your ideas sound heroic but is it possible for everyone to do that?

I'm not a connoisseur of music but after reading this book I actually listened to some pieces from Shostakovich, and I couldn't find them to be following any pattern that it might have been pushed into. Maybe I need more ear training and exposure to a much larger repertoire.

Read this one. It is small but gives you some big idea on how not to judge people on their life choices. You are not in those shoes and never going to be because we come with our own shoes.

Peace!

The UnAmericans by Molly Antopol

 If you write well the readers are going to love it. I was never a fan of complications specially when it comes to telling a story.

The one here is so simple and beautiful that you can breeze through them. They are fresh, and all of them leave you with a thought.

I don't have any favourite here as all of them are equally good. Read it for the simplicity of storytelling.

Love

Amnesty by Aravind Adiga

 Why I even picked this one? The answer lies in the second chances.

He lost me on White Tiger but I was still interested in reading one more before I say no more.

So, going forward nothing from Aravind.

This one was equally haphazard and incoherent as the white tiger. Trying to push the pace and pack one day of an illegal immigrant, a murder, a lot of details in 200+ pages and it failed to register anything.

Peace

God Help the Child by Toni Morrison

 I did read the Beloved so this was an easy choice because as a writer there is no comparison for her.

However, what I didn't get was the idea of your childhood defining who you're going to be. I understand that a difficult childhood (specially in dangerous living conditions) can affect your thought process but the whole idea of missing love sounds too romanticised to be true.

This is exactly the case here and it was a difficult for me to connect here. It might not be fair to compare it with a film script but by the end of it this is what it looked like. Not like that film scripts are any less scholarly than any other format but this one failed to make the mark.

I would have skipped this one and picked something else but then I read it all and realised skipping was the better option.

If you're a fan of her writing, skip this one, and maybe pick something else from her writing.

Love

Half Gods by Akil Kumarasamy

I am not sure if this is a different way of writing or my brain is wired to avoid over complicated writing.

I read this but don't understand a single character in the whole book. I have read books which have an open ending and they leave you with a thought to ponder. But not this one. It was written all over the places and I couldn't focus on what was told here.

I couldn't connect with the whole Arjun and Karna analogy here.

Maybe not a book for me!

Love

Red Birds by Mohammed Hanif

This is what you call dark comedy.

A lost pilot, a prematured kid and a bunch of misfits in a war torn camp. And, yes, there is a dog with the thoughts of his own.

While reading this one a lot of situations look so comic until you realise that they are sitting in a war zone. War is never a solution and it pushes backs or wipes out the generations.

It is written with all seriousness on a lighter note.

Worth a read!

Love

Maps by Nuruddin Farah

 This is the first one in the trilogy but I'm not sure if I'm going to read the other two.

What I gather is that the whole trilogy is around the people who are searching for an answer to the question "who am I".

For quite some time I used to think that this is more of a thought gymnastic, and I've not changed my thoughts much. I still think that these thoughts are amusing and even entertaining depending on what you're going through in your life but if you look closer these questions sound non-consequential. Which means you're going to answer it as per your current mind set. Most probably your answer will differ (if you're giving it a serious thought) at different point of time. And this is not a bad thing because we are mostly wired to react and not respond.

I'll not be looking for the other two books in the trilogy but if you're looking for a different narrative on life and interested in hearing a different version of somebody's take on life, this might be a bit different in terms of treatment from anything you've read/seen/heard earlier.

Peace

Van Gogh's Ear: The True Story by Bernadette Murphy

All I was looking for was a new take on the events when Van Gogh cut his ear.

But a lot of this book goes into details of how difficult it is to get information around a century old event. I did like some of the information but that was not what it looked like from the title. Another thing, I was not looking for anything sensational.

So, if you already know the story from some good sources (Not Lust for Life) than this one has not much to offer.

Van Gogh was a painter with exceptional talent, and it is well established now that he had the mental health issue. Read this sentence again, I'm not saying he was mad. Unfortunately, the patients didn't get as much care and medical support at that time. And it is a surprise that Van Gogh ended up with such an amazing work even with those health issues.

So, next time when you hear a painter gone mad for Van Gogh, you would better come up with a right answer rather than writing things off.

Love 

Japan: The Paradox of Harmony by Keiko Hirata , Mark Warschauer

I wanted to read Hirohito and the making of modern Japan, but I still have to start it and instead I found this one and thought that this would be a good commentary on the modern Japan.

And yes, this is a real good one covering various topics from culture to economy and aging population. The arguments presented in this book are well backed by research and reasoning. It has been a bit critical to many things which has been traditionally followed in Japan as a culture or tradition, but it is not possible to judge the effect of such things in just one book. It would require more volumes, but this will help you understand the basic issues that Japan is facing, and aging is just one of them.

Another thought was that every society is unique, and the rise of Japan was exceptional after the World War. There are things which look a bit like marching backwards but eventually that can't be the only index, and in that sense a lot of progress which came with discipline, subordination, and longer work hours can be maintained with a fresh approach rather than attributing the slow changes to traditional ways.

Worth a read, and don't expect you to be a specialist in economics, culture, or social sciences. Bonus point, I got to know so many new words in Japanese which might be helpful in further readings.

Peace

Ragnarok The End of the Gods by A S Byatt

I was stuck with a lot of changes recently which doesn't mean less time for reading but less intent of reading. On top it I picked up one which is utter rubbish. I'm still reading it and when I'm finished will post it here.

Meanwhile I picked up another one in parallel and this being rather thinner got completed sooner. I've read a few of them on Norse mythology and I do look forward to read some more on the same topic.

Even with less interest in knowing how it all ends, I did pick this up (yes, I can pick the real ones again). This is about Ragnarok but this comes with a thin little girl who is speaking about Norse gods and Ragnarok in a personal narrative. There were some passages where it sounds more of an autobiography or coming of age but it is less of that.

Raganarok is technically known as an end of Norse gods but if there was an end than they were not god. This is a catch phrase but a closer look does reveal the point that they never claimed to be gods. Maybe with some superpowers but never an inhuman existence. Or you can differ on this point as well.

Coming back to this one, it tries to bring all the stories together and ends on Ragnarok. There are not much details of everything here but that was not the target in the first place. Actually, I'm still struggling with the whole idea behind this book but one thing which I felt was that this is not a book about mythology but a scrutiny of author's own thoughts while growing up with the Norse mythologies. It tries to draw some parallels in the stories and the real life but that doesn't mix well.

Nevertheless, if you're looking for a retelling with more human commentary than this is a real good one.

Love!

 

Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro

This was not a fan moment or the Nobel aura but I saw this on the isle, and since I already read the other works earlier so this was an easy pick.

I didn't understand what AF (artificial friend) stands for until it was explained later in the book. Same is the case with "lifted". It could've meant anything but here it was for the people whose DNA was altered.

The story is in a dystopian future, and the narrator is a robot Klara (AF) who was bought by a lifted girl. The girl is having some life threatening issues due to the lifting.

Well, the AF is sensitive, and a good observer. Since it takes its power from sun, it believes that sun is the nourisher of the world, and can actually bring the dead to life.

And there is a love angle of dying girl (Josie) and a not lifted boy (Rick). There is a scientific subplot as well but that will be a spoiler.

Nobody can say anything about author's writing style, and this one does a justice to his reputation.

It is very much possible that some readers might find it stretching or boring but I looked at it as a story of life even when death was just around the corner. I was not really looking forward to the end of it (like in case of a detective novel) but for me it could have ended anywhere but still complete.

The larger thought is that with all the scientific advances if we end up somehow preserving the human consciousness than it is not going to make much difference in isolation. We all have a personality/consciousness but this doesn't belong to us only. It is formed by the people and environment around us. You take it away from those people and out of the environment than it is not what it was.

Sounds complicated! But yes worth a read.

Peace!

The Tyranny of Merit: What’s Become of the Common Good? by Michael J. Sandel

This took some time to digest. It does ring a bell but will not say that it echoes my thoughts.

Fairness is an unfair word, and there is nothing like an equal opportunity. But the one thing which was very clear was how the politicians sometimes pick up a wrong tagline, and try to mould everything around it. You can't bend a lot or you will break it.

So, the idea here is that does merit is the new oppressor. It is very much evident that the society claps for the success which actually influence everything to a rat race. If we're going to change how the meritocracy works, the first task would be to change the perception of it. And this is not just for the higher education, where the book starts and ends, but also for all the other criterions of the success.

Maybe the whole idea of doing good in life has to be separated from the money you earn. I'll not go into who should be taxed more or the wage equality but a lot of these ideas need a closer scrutiny before forming any opinions.

Peace

Human Origins by New Scientist

This one is a collection of different experts of evolutionary biology and Anthropologist and Archaeologists.

It is dedicated to the evolution for humans, and tries to explain a lot of points from evolution biology perspective. The one thing it does not do is to try answer everything. In fact, it claims that everything that we know about our evolution is changing fast with all the new evidences, and technical advances that we have made in the last two decades.

This is a well balanced book, and avoid creating any hype around the subject. I remember reading Yuval Noah Harari's books which kind of left me with unease. I'm not saying that they are any less important but Yuval's books go too much into interpretation with an storytelling structure. Which is not a bad thing but the one thing it does is that it dilutes the message of science, and adds more of a fictional record.

Hence, Human Origins has done a better job with not sounding very sensational.

Evolution may be a subject for scientist to find out but it gives us a better perspective of where we come from which I believe will make us appreciate what we've now.

Definitely worth a read, and don't try to memorise all the dates because they are still evolving too :) 

Peace

The Science of Mythology by C.G. Jung, Karl Kerényi

This is a collection of four essays by Jung and Kerényi which put together their thoughts on Mythology and Psychology to establish how the two fields can be analysed from a common point of view.

I didn't buy the title for the first time because it sounds so counterintuitive because there is nothing in mythology which can be called as science. Even the dictionary definition is "a collection of myths, especially one belonging to a particular religious or cultural tradition". Which I think is well defined because those myths represent a particular thought or narrative which is more imagined rather than found naturally.

So, the myths are treated like that beautiful story. Any further dissection to find out some hidden meanings are going to remove the essence of why it was created in the first place.

I also don't agree to the point that these myths define human psyche. Myths were a collection of thoughts of a smaller group (myth-makers?) which was adopted by a larger group later by different channels (mostly art - poetry, drama, sculpture, paintings, books etc), and became the part of society. But that doesn't mean that they started having a life of their own. Force fitting some of the psychological conditions with a myth was not the best thing. It actually complicated the things much more with some imaginary accounts and characters.

This one really needs an open mind before you start accepting a lot of things here as normal or logical.

I don't have any expertise on any of these two subjects but defining everything within the two myths of Divine Child and Maiden Goddess may be a good idea for religion but it can't go beyond that.

One thing which I missed badly was a pronunciation of a lot of Greek words here which were given as is.

Love

Babur: Timurid Prince and Mughal Emperor, 1483-1530 by Stephen F. Dale

This one is a short biography of Babur based on his autobiography and the accounts of some of his contemporaries. It does include a larger part from the actual translation of the autobiography.

Being short/concise this does cover most of the aspects of Babur's life in short, and doesn't try to overwhelm the reader with a lot of historical commentary which might not be very useful for a non-academic reader.

I didn't read much about Babur actively earlier, and this was my first book which was dedicated to him only. I never liked the idea of putting the soft side of such raiders like Babur who would just kill a few thousand and go back home writing some poetry or praising natural scenery or building next garden. A common argument is that those were the times of hardship, and it was a dog eats dog world but this is a lame excuse. There were poets, artists, astronomers and what not who were not responsible for mass slaughter, and their work was much superior than anyone else.

His autobiography which is the base for all the myths around him can be really read as a narcissistic account. Here he talks only about himself, and never gives credit to anybody or praises anyone who is better than him. And, yes, most of his biographers end up eating out of his hand. The skull towers get a mention in footnote or a blink-miss but the poetry gets the whole limelight.

After completing it I realised that he was just a person low on self esteem who was always looking for acceptance and approval from others. He was less of a dynastic founder but more of a raider who was interested in anything from a sheep to a gold coin. And his whole idea of being special was that he was related to Genghis Khan which in his opinion gives him the right to greatness.

Worth a read if you're into history.

Peace

The Buried Giant by Kazuo Ishiguro

 No question on why I picked it up. I did like the "The remains of the day" and was looking forward to read some more of his works.

The story is about lost memories, and revenge. It asks the question if the lost memories are better be lost. What if we get back all of our memories on a condition that we'll have to take all of them: good or bad. It sounds hypothetical but maybe a comparable scenario would be to check if we can move over the bad memories as an independent choice. The answer is not easy to provide and much difficult to act upon.

We were worse but we did improve to something which we're now. It can be bad or not so bad, best case good enough. But did the worse part can be written off or forgotten. Can you being better than earlier gives you any right to the things that you have now.

A lot of parts start backwards, and it takes time to find out whose perspective we're looking at which might be.a writer's style for this one but this was a bit annoying as a reader because as you progress you've already a few characters in mind based on the pronouns and finding someone else later is bah.

Worth a read even if you're not a fan!

Love

How to Argue with a Racist by Adam Rutherford

It starts with accepting the limitation of this work but claims to prepare the reader from a scientific know-how to see the trap.

I've read the ones which were more detailed, and had better arguments but this one does what it claims to do. This talks about top 4 stories and builds the narrative around it.

The one thing which is a given is that people in power talk about it for their vested interest, and everyone else is getting influenced by it in a wrong way without knowing what they mean when they start showing such behaviour. Yes, science don't have all the answers, and you can't do much when people start filling those gaps with something for their own.

A quick read, and good for the readers who are into it for the first time.

Peace

Mating in Captivity by Esther Perel

 I noticed that I've started thinking about why I picked up my recent books. There is no pattern but I think my choices were a bit dependent on what showed up in the library. And if I had a faint notion about the writer or the topic I'll just pick it up.

I try not to fall for the bestseller label while picking up the book, and this one was a conscious choice even when I was not sure what should I be expecting.

I do remembers a few things here and there, and I remember the name of this writer which showed up in my Youtube suggestions. I do watch some Ted talks but I'm no fan, and think most of them are a bit overhyped. I guess, this Ted behaviour prompt the algorithm to suggest this video from this author. I just remembered the name somehow but didn't register the topic of that Ted talk.

I saw this book, and remembered the name. Hence this one got picked, and what a stupidity to pick this one up.

First thing, if there are any problems in a relationship don't try to find out the solution in your sex life. This sells well in the market but doesn't do anything for the reader. 

Second thing, I don't mind a pex (pep + sex) talk but this one was utter rubbish. If you want to delve deeper maybe take Sex at Dawn which talks about it in more evolutionary terms, and do put some good ideas out to think about.

As an after thought don't go for something which has the Youtube views, and Fortune 500 as the credentials.

Love

The Queen's Gambit by Walter Tevis

 I didn't watch the series when I came to know that this is based on a book. Usual choice :)

Finally, I got this in my hands, and will say that I got hooked to it. I generally don't stick to the books to complete but this was one of those exceptions which had such a fast running narrative that I finished it in a day.

This is an amazing book with a very tight plot. We can see Beth growing over a period of time from a non-existing child in an orphanage to the queen of chess board.

Of course it has its dull moments which actually felt like being written to add the pages or maybe for the script but that can be overlooked.

Definitely worth a read even if you've watched the series!

Love

The Awakening by Kate Chopin

 The biggest news is that this has an introduction from Carmen Maria Machado, and after reading this you can actually skip the rest of the book. You know on the very first page what is going to happen.

I'm not into thrillers where you don't want the secret to be out until you reach the last chapter. I always appreciate introductions because it gives you a perspective on what you're going to get into. You can have a same or different impression after completing the book but introduction is good to have. But not the one written like this one.

I read the introduction, and lost the urge to read the rest of the book. But I still pushed, and unfortunately I started looking at the whole narrative in the light of how it was going to end. And another thing where I think the whole introduction falls flat is to connect it with feminism but I look at it from a point of unfulfilled desires, and maybe some psychological issues which applies to a character irrespective of the gender.

So much for the introduction!

For the book, it is a dark read but worth reading for the style Kate Chopin was able to portray the mindset of a lonely woman who needed a companionship but felt rejected from everyone she had the expectations from. Edna is no Anna but she is a strong character in her own narrative.

Love

Juliet Naked - Nick Hornby

 I never heard of Nick Hornby until I saw this book, and yes the title got me curious to pick this one up. Why so weak :)

Well, turns out there is no such thing in this one, apart from the title of an album.

The story largely spun around the three main characters Tucker, Alice, and Duncan.

I'll not go into details of a 200 pager but it has some really witty lines, and situational comic elements. And yes a lot of Gooleness and a dead shark.

Quick and light read after the recent heavy lifting.

Love

In the Name of God - The Evolutionary Origins of Religious Ethics and Violence by John Teehan

 Don't go with the title.

This is fairly limited to Judaism and Christianity with a small mention of the other religions. And this was very clearly mentioned as a scope of this work.

So, if you thought you're going to talk about everything than you may be disappointed.

This probes the current form as well as history of two monotheistic religions over a period of time in the light of how the human evolution affected these developments.

I may not be very convinced by all the arguments presented here, and in fact a few of them looked like a force fit into the narrative to drive the point backward. But this definitely gives some key points which we can use to understand how these two religions evolved.

One more thing that I noticed was that it was quite critical of Judaism but the Christianity got a bit lenient treatment. But this can be very personal perception because there were instances where the author openly mentions that he is not in favour or against any one religion.

Its quite scholarly read so will be more suited for the readers who are looking for some serious discussion around this topic.

Peace

The Lies That Bind - Rethinking Identity by Kwame Anthony Appiah

 I'm thinking of stop going to the humanity section of the library. This is so full of such titles which pique my curiosity.

But yes I never regretted picking any book from that section.

So, here is this one, and again I didn't know about the author when I took it but this was really good.

The whole narrative was very well defined, and a lot of points/arguments brought forward resonate with the understanding of a common person. It gives you a wide perspective of how different identities were built, and eventually got established over a period of time. I might not agree with the idea that these identities were catered by falsehood even if we don't understand the complexity these were built on.

The identities are largely divided into gender, religion, nationality, class and culture. That is a very wide range to cover because every single one of them fill volumes. But this balanced approach here does justice to all these identities.

Best part is that the author writes about a lot of these from his own experience which is very diverse.

This may not tell you everything about identities but that is not even the aim of this book. This gives you a fair idea, and arguments to construct your own take on identity.

Peace

The Apocalypse - A Brief History by Martha Himmelfarb

 This one was picked up because from the cover it looked like a critical examination of the idea of Apocalypse. And I was not looking for a literal one.

The book does pick up a lot from the apocalyptic literature which someone can really use to dive deeper into it. However, I couldn't add much apart from the different names who defined apocalypse in their own terms.

Which means there is a lot more reading to do before I say if this book was good or good enough.

I'm unsure if I'll go that deep in understanding the whole idea of apocalypse but if you're looking to start from somewhere or want to have an overall perspective, this is a good one to start with.

Peace

Power by Bertrand Russell

Here is another from the philosophy section.

I can't really call it philosophy but more like thoughts on power. And the power is sliced from all the possible angles.

This is really good to give you some food for thoughts as this talks about the wide range of powers that are exercised in the society. Some are good but most of them are unproductive or bad when left untamed. Also, the idea here is to identify when the power is pseudo. It may not be the power but an idea of a person or thought being projected as powerful.

However, the power is a very local or you can say a relative thing. Different things, ideas or people gain power in relative terms. Which means that they are not powerful in isolation but in comparison. And this comparison actually drives how the power is going to used and pursued.

Charlie Chaplin's quote can be added to bring another dimension to power "You need Power, only when you want to do something harmful otherwise Love is enough to get everything done" but we're free to choose what we accept it to be as long as we don't forget that its always relative.

Peace

The Crisis of Islam: Holy War and Unholy Terror by Bernard Lewis

 I don't know why this one was picked.

First thing, this is super old (2003) so most of the information is outdated or verifiably available through other sources.

Secondly, the title is so wrong.

The book talks about how the current (in 2003) terrorist activities came it to be what it was. It tries to explore the historical events but fails miserably in bringing anything new. Most of it is rhetorical, and some of it will sound absurd if you've read some of the recent books on similar topics.

Not worth the time.

Peace

Pyrrhonism: How the Ancient Greeks Reinvented Buddhism by Adrian Kuzminski

Philosophy needs training similar to any other subject out there.

This one was picked to see how much I understand, and I'll say that this was a difficult read. It did took a lot of time to understand what was said, specially when it goes into the abstract thoughts (they are abstract of a first timer but may be coming easily for a trained student).

Anyways, this is a comparative work of philosophy which compares Buddhism with Pyrrhonism (You'll not get the definition here :)

The prime object is to establish the point that Pyrrho visited India with Anaxarchus, and during his visit he interacted with some of the thinkers/practitioners of Buddhism who influenced his philosophical ideas which led to the birth of Pyrrhonism. The philosophy which largely differs from the other branches because it offers a lifestyle and thought process but not really an argumentative kind of philosophy which proves to a particular point.

The idea was to suspend the judgement on anything, and avoid any mental perturbations that these judgements, if made, can possibly produce. This is a difficult thought to understand but the explanation comes from the perception of everything around us, and how it comes to be what it is.

Not the place for such a discussion but if you've recently been disturbed by any thought that doesn't go away than this is going to help.

Peace

Ataraxia

Origins: How Earth's History Shaped Human History by Lewis Dartnell

I picked this one out of curiosity. And, yes it was a good pick.

This talks about how Earth's evolution over a billion years shaped the existence of life (human life) on the planet. How over the years the Earth went through various transformations creating the things/elements which will eventually support the human sustenance. Of course, humans were responsible to identify the use of each of these elements and exploit it.

One thing which is also a central point is that cooling comes more naturally to Earth as compared to heat. Human activities in the last 200 years (largely after the industrial revolution) has been responsible for the heating of Earth (global warming) disproportionately. But cool is more natural (that's why the Ice Ages, and yes that is plural) so one fine day its going to be unbearably cold but not in a lifetime.

Larger point is that human life has always been looked down upon as a speck at the astronomical levels. And that's more than true. Even after all the scientific developments the existence of life as we know can be wiped in a moment, and the cycle of life starts again from null.

So, next time you're worried about something than think about it at a tectonic level :)

Peace

Childhood, Boyhood, Youth by Leo Tolstoy

 Nothing beats Tolstoy.

This one is an autobiography where he has written about the three stages of his early life as Childhood, Boyhood and Youth.

All the three stages have a same detailed exploration of people and situation of his life which he is famous for. One thing which may pose a question is about remembering all this so clearly after such a long time but a close look and you can see that most of the stories are woven around the people which most of us remember from our lives. We may not remember a lot of situations  but we do remember the people (specially the teachers, friends, family etc).

Tolstoy intended to write another part for the Youth but he couldn't do it. What a miss for us!

Well, its a must for fans but for others as well who can initiate in his writing.

Love!

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

I knew Maya always from her quotes. I came across a lot of them specially around struggle of woman, African Americans, repression, rape etc. 

But I never read any of her work, and this is the first one I read. And this is her first autobiography. Yes, there are seven of them so this is not the end.

This is an amazing read. The power of the book is how it can help you to relate with the characters even if you don't know anything about them, and this does a pretty good job. You will immediately feel how that Store would have been like or how that god fearing Grandma would have treated you. Of course, she was brilliant and successful that she could tell her story because I was thinking of all the kids who were not that brilliant academically or got a scholarship. Their story would have been more frightening.

It doesn't make sense to narrate an autobiography but if you jump into it you will come out wiser or more empathatic.

I may not be actively looking for her other books but if I come across another one, I'm definitely going to pick that up.

Love

Fairies, Demons, and Nature Spirits 'Small Gods' at the Margins of Christendom Editor: Ostling Michael

 This is a classic textbook, full of references, and covering a larger range. It consists of essays from different scholars who specialises in knowledge of wide range of cultures, and countries.

Fairies was something which you know from the Disney movies. There are some folklores but they are mostly treated as entertainment, and not really a scholarly discussion. It may not even worth it as well.

Firstly it covers that to show the seriousness the scholars to prove that they exist, they build a whole catalogue. And all these mythical creatures are divided into different categories like somebody defining the flora and fauna of planet earth. There is a catalogue of these creatures who don't exist. What were you thinking.

Secondly, it talks about how the local gods were painted as demons or local minions under the influence of Christianity. To prove it to be the only god, everything else was to either go or marked as demon. Which happened and so went down the history of a whole culture. And, it did later created some tension when people started recalling the values that they have grown with or inherited from the ancestors.

The one thing which was a bit strange was an argument that you can't prove the older thoughts/beliefs wrong in the light of new discoveries (specially scientific ones). Well, if you were so serious about it than those older arguments would have never brought into the discussion. They should have been marked as redundant in the light of new knowledge. However, its unfortunate that they are not only used as a prime argument but put as a self proven truth which no rationality can question.

Complicated to read but maybe worth the efforts if you're into it.

Peace

The Power of Myth by Joseph Campbell, Bill Moyers

This is a record of conversation between Joseph Campbell and Bill Moyers for a documentary, and later Bill Moyers edited those talks to present in a book form. But this is still the record of conversation and not a regular book.

The book format is more like to present the complete talk in a written format so at times it feels like you're listening to two people talking which is a beauty of the presentation.

As far as the narrative is concerned, this was not a good read after Richard Dawkins :) 

This book stands in contrast to what Dawkins says. I've read Joseph's "The Hero with a Thousand Faces" and that was a good one as long it talks about myths. However, once you believe those myths to be more than myths than the problem starts. Myths are good to know to understand the cultural nuances as these are the building blocks. These are good for imagination and at times it is a healthy entertainment. It can even build the character to an extent but than we need to toe the line on how far we're going to believe these myths. There are a reasons for calling those literary works as epic but that doesn't dictate the terms in real life.

Myths are good to know, remember, cherish and share. Every era has its own myths, and the best one survives to tell a story. It is good to have healthy myths but more important is to know where you segregate myth from a reality. The path of taking myths for truth is a road down the hills, and it will be a speedy descent.

Peace

Thor: Myth to Marvel by Martin Arnold

 When you say Thor, the most common reaction is the Marvel superhero. Yeah, that one.

But Thor is much more than that. He is a God, and there are multiple aspects of his image, how he came into being, where he sits in the hierarchy, and over a period of time how he evolved from a pagan God to a symbol of national/cultural identity.

I did read the Edda earlier and that was one piece of work but this book puts the whole narrative around Thor and goes deep into how the whole psyche of a God to superhero evolved.

Do read if you want to understand the myth behind the Marvel superhero.

Love

The Weather Machine: A Journey Inside the Forecast by Andrew Blum

 Let's not go into the details but did you ever wonder how this weather get's updated in your phone. Or how you plan of going out to the beach or not based on what you know about the weather today. Well, the most common point is that the weather scientists are never taken seriously until recently when there weather forecasts alerted us about the torrential rains or typhoons.

But after reading the book you will appreciate the way you check weather on your phone. It is a complicated system of data, hardware, software and global cooperation.

It may be a bit boring to read but only complaining about the weather was the most entertaining thing.

Peace

Outgrowing God: A Beginner's Guide by Richard Dawkins

 Well, this was what I expected.

Given that I've already read some of his works previously, this was not giving a new point. But this did give a lot of example that can help you understand the whole idea in a larger set. This actually counters a lot of points which are given in favour of some higher power. Just because we don't understand it yet, can't be an excuse to attribute it to god.

In fact, the positive thought would be to nurture that curiosity, and point in the right direction rather than believing into something that is an easy way out.

Worth read, and yes, a quick one too!

Love

Tales from Russian Folklore by Alexander Afanasyev

 Who doesn't love a good story!

This is a collection of about 200 stories from Russian folklore. Looks like a big project for the collector and bigger for the translator.

The stories are not long, in fact, a lot of them are very short. A lot of them don't make any sense specially which are very small. They are more like a pun rather than a story.

But overall it has that rustic charm of storytelling.

Of course, you can see some common themes which are found in such tales across the cultures like wicked step mothers/sisters, poor family, brothers fighting, marriage, dragon and speaking animals.

The number three is also very important like three days, three years, three sisters, three brothers, three riddles, three tasks, don't know why?

And yes the Baba Yaga. It's funny that to read all the wicked portrayals of Baba Yaga and the famous house on one leg. She is mostly addressed as Granny, and she does provide with food, rest, and bath before expressing her evil intentions.

Worth a read, and since this is a collection you can read piecemeal.

Love!

Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows by Balli Kaur Jaswal

 Picked it up to read something lighter after the recent pounding.

Well, this was pretty light with all the elements of a fun read family, deaths, mystery, action, romance and yes lots of sex.

The title clearly mentioned what a reader was getting into, and it was all on the good side of the fun. I was really amazed at the writer's capability of using euphemism for the words and body parts ;)

~400 pages was a bit of a stretch given the plot but than its always a writer's/editor's call but I'd have preferred it a bit trimmed.

Love

The Final Solution: Origins and Implementation Edited by David Cesarani

 This is a collection of 17 essays by different writers who explore different sides of Holocaust.

Honestly, this is my second on this topic since I read the Anne Frank long back. However, this did come up with a lot of analysis that it intrigues you further to pick up more.

This is a bit difficult read irrespective of what you've read or heard about Holocaust. I'll say this is a bit brief but gives you the larger picture of all the different elements.

One of the points which is emphasised well is that a lot of records/documents were lost/never found. And a lot of the instructions were never really recorded in a formal way. With the opening up of archives of different countries there will be better understanding of many obscure details.

It is not very academic even if there are is a very large notes section for each of the essays. Which simply means that one book can't really help us comprehend the scale of the larger events.

Peace

Empires of the Mind: The Colonial Past and the Politics of the Present by Robert Gildea

 The title comes from Churchill's famous quote in 1943 'The empires of the future would be the empires of the mind'.

This is an amazing book exploring the colonial pasts of Britain and France. This systematically breaks the colonial idea of global peace and harmony expected out of this colonisation. There was so much to hide that all the colonial atrocities were masked under the lame excuse of liberation, and civilisation. The whole narrative of freedom and equality which was mythically created by these powers never saw the light in the their colonies. The colonies only knew the brutalities and exploitation.

I'll not go into the details which are already given in the book as how the two colonial masters kept the colonies (Africa, India, Egypt etc) under their domination by power, manipulation and lie. They not only refused to let go of the colonies but also created new devices to keep the control over them even after the transfer of autonomy.

The narrative extends to the roles of UN, world wars, new financial systems, neo-colonialism (under the garb of supporting and later keeping the national assets under direct control), and even to Brexit and the new superiority theories. This led to massive unrest when the people revolted against the puppet governments, and loss of sovereignty.

The power unfortunately remained among the larger nations who used it to serve their own vested interests. This unnatural distribution of power gave birth to the aggression in the suppressed societies and its population, which in turn generated the sense of exclusion and alienation of masses in native population and immigrants alike who started looking for the meaning in the religion and radicalisation.

This is definitely worth the read.

Peace