It's All About Books!!!

Sunday, 1 July 2018

My Feathered Friends & the Book of Poems-Part 1 by Sunil Bhatia (Book Review: 3.5*/5) !!!

I remember reading a book written by the author, Ratnadip Acharya, which had deer as its protagonist. I was very sceptical about the book as it had no mention of human being throughout the movie and was based only on deer. But the kind of message and energy that the book shared through its story is incredible and those messages are still with me which shows me the path whenever I get stuck somewhere in life. On the similar lines, I read another book today written by the author, Sunil Bhatia, named “My Feathered Friends & The Book of Poems – Part 1”. The book has human being as protagonist but his friends are in form of different bird species who help him in different juncture of his life.

In today’s time, there are several self-help and motivation book releasing as almost every second person considers himself as a motivational speaker. Most of these self-help books are just replica of many bestselling books in the same genre and hence reading such books doesn’t interest anymore. But the path taken by Sunil Bhatia is the unique one and which is needed to differentiate the book from all the other books in the shelf. The different species of birds are introduced in each chapter and the way they help the protagonist on the issues that are also relevant to us and everyone in our daily basis gives quite an insight. It is good that author has not spoon-fed everything and left many things for readers to imagine and relate with their lives.

Talking about the 2^nd part of the book which consists of several poems, I must say that showing both sides of him- an insightful author and a deep poet, it’s great to know both the versions of the author. The poems are also deep in their context and explore the topic in which they are written nicely. The poems are also divided in different topics such as mystical, love, fantasy, dark, spiritual, inspirational, futuristic etc. The poems are also not tried to be written in a rhythmic flow but says whatever it wants to say in small stanzas kind of format. Overall, this book tries to answer or touch that nerve in your body with which you always converse to get as much answers as possible about your life and situations. I give this book 3.5 stars out of 5 for being unique.

Thanks.

ABHILASH RUHELA!!!

The Last Attractor Of Chaos by Abhinav Singh (Book Review: 4.25*/5) !!!

There are rarely any good thriller genre authors in India who can surprise you with their books. Even if there are few, they keep on writing stories based on the same background which makes their book and topics predictive after some time. But every time I read a good thrilling novel, I want to go, hold the author’s hand and make him write more and more. I have completed reading another great thriller by the debutante, Abhinav Singh, named “The Last Attractor of Chaos”. And let me frankly give you a statement which will sum up the whole review and make you decide whether to read this book or not: This book definitely does not look as If written by a complete debutante. Yes! It is that good and almost perfect.

Abhinav Singh’s writing style is exactly how a thriller author should write. Once you start reading the book, you will keep on wanting to turn the page and read what happens next and will not stop until the whole story is not completed. The only problem here is that in the end you realize another part of this book will actually conclude the story and this is still not the end. This is what I believe is cheating on the part of publishers that they never write on the cover page itself that the book is Part 1 of the series indicating that this is not a complete book itself. Anyway, the way author has blended several different physical and technical elements in this thriller to make it more exciting is commendable as trying anything as such is very risky considering if Indian readers will like it or not but the way he has handled the whole mixture of theories is incredible and outstanding work.

The author’s knowledge and research work are totally evident from the way he has gone into depth in justifying the theories through his story. There are several moments in the book which will give you goosebumps for sure. The characterization is very powerful and the way author keeps on switching between past and present is another great deal to crack for anyone writing such a complex story with different timelines. Still, I have a complaint that author should have tried switching timelines more frequently which could have made the story and narration more powerful rather than moving into a timeline and then staying there for an extremely long time. The pre-climax and climax of the book is also handled quite brilliantly which never lets you leave you seat and keep on reading till the last page. Abhinav Singh is surely here to stay for long and I wish his 2^nd book is better than this one as I am sure he will himself have to face lot of challenge in beating his own standard. I give this book 4.25 star out of 5.

Thanks.

ABHILASH RUHELA!!!

The Essence of Bhagwad Gita (Book Review: 4.25*/5) !!!

I have been an ardent follower of Bhagawad Gita since a long time after knowing that it contains answer of all the questions that a human mind can think of. I had read Gita for the first time when I was just 22 years old and could not understand a single word because I was not enough mature to comprehend the logic of division among body, mind, soul and energy. But after that, I started going through the simplified versions of Gita to understand the basis of human existence and I must tell you, it added a lot of value in my life which led me towards my spiritual journey. The latest book that I have read in the same genre is “The Essence of Bhagwad Gita” written by Atul Sehgal. The best part about this book is that author has picked up only 70 verses from original Gita which are enough for a human being to understand the basis of the Holy book and perform his duties morally.

Each verse is explained in a new chapter dedicatedly which makes it easy for the reader to go through chapters as per his interest and read the book in bits on daily basis. The book has helped me to understand many perspective and read in between lines to understand the verses in depth. Each chapter first mentions the verse it is about to discuss and also provides its direct translation in English. The best part about the book is that it not only explains the concept but also helps with example about how it can be applied too. The explanations are provided in very simple language which can be read and grasped even by teenagers and college going students. Rather than discussing the tales of Mahabharata, author has only talked about the conceptual theories and its respective applications in human life rather than going through the whole detailed version of the verse. This also helps in keeping the book short with only 235 pages.

Talking about the drawbacks of the book, I believe that some concepts are not very well explained and left with utilization of few Sanskrit words etc. assuming that the reader must be knowing at least this much part of the theory. Except this one drawback, there is nothing that this book does not have to not be there in your favorite rack of the bookshelf. I give this book 4.25* out of 5. Please do read it if you want to begin knowing about the concept Bhagwad Gita introduces.

Thanks.

ABHILASH RUHELA!!!

Dream with your eyes open by Ronnie Screwvala (Book Review: 3.5*/5) !!!

There is nothing special than reading an autobiography by one of the many successful Indian men who did it without any complaints or excuses. We generally get excited knowing about the successes of the individuals in western part of the world but forget to appreciate the people doing well against all odds living and breathing around us. One such man is Ronnie Screwvala who is a wonderful example of how to be an entrepreneur and a success story. He has written his own tale of success and failures In the book named “Dream with your eyes open” having him on the cover page lying on the carpet with a cup of tea placed besides him. The book is tagged as “An Entrepreneurial Journey”. So the author very directly and clearly states here that he is not going to tell what person he is or what his background has been but will only focus on his entrepreneurship life and lessons.

The book is very crisply written without extending the stories with useless detailing. Ronnie exactly knows the value of time hence he assures that he speaks most in as less words as possible. This is what makes the book a special read as you will not have to read much to gain insights on his entrepreneurship role but only 166 pages. The book is divided in 13 different chapters where each one of them focuses on a learning or a stage of Ronnie’s life. The book is written in a very simple language for every student to a new corporate slave or an entrepreneur to understand the same without having to read between lines. The best part about Ronnie’s book is that he rather than talking only about what actions he undertook also discusses in detailing what his team underwent to make something a success. He also talks about his failures with the same enthusiasm which tells how literally he is proud of each second that he has worked upon his life to be a successful entrepreneur.

It is only after reading the book you will realize the number of different things that Ronnie has been involved with. You will be surprised to notice the different scales of business he overtook and started right from Zero and ended up being either the topmost performer or at least in the merit list for sure. Ronnie has ensured that he even discusses the amount and costs involved in the projects without shying away from disclosing the same. Ronnie has taken names of other popular celebrities and talked good or bad experiences he had with them without any fear which makes it an interesting read to know the tie-ups and communication between these personalities.

Talking about the drawbacks of the book, Ronnie doesn’t talk much about his personal lifestyle which makes him a performer he is. To learn about a successful man, you need to know both- his professional insights and his personal lifestyle because until and unless, you do not know both, you will never be able to replicate his success by following his footsteps. Also, there are many advises that he has just quoted to be followed rather than giving heavy explanations on the same. The book also does not find any kind of timeline which doesn’t allow the reader to understand the real struggle of the man in multi-tasking or taking one decision after another. Except these drawbacks, this book is surely readable to understand how one needs to take risks in life to lead a successful entrepreneurial life. I give this book 3.5 star out of 5.

Thanks.

ABHILASH RUHELA!!!

Saturday, 30 June 2018

Padmavat by Purushottam Agrawal (Book Review: 4*/5) !!!

Almost all of us have seen the movie “Padmavat” starring Deepika Padukone playing the character of Queen Padmavati. The debate has always been about the existence of any such queen in the past and regarding her association with Alauddin Khilji. Many people believe even the existence of queen as a myth as multiple authors/poets have written about this story in their own version and each one of them have their perspective defining the characters of the story. I never knew that I would end up reading a book on the same after watching such a grandeur movie on the subject and knowing everything in detailing. I am just done reading the book named “Padmavat” which calls the story as “An Epic Love Story” on its cover page. It is written by an already renowned author, Purushottam Agrawal. The book is introduced and illustrated by none other than the legendary, Devdutt Pattanaik.

The author talks about the poet, Jayasi’s version of Padmavat written in the 16th century. I have for the first time in my life read such a book where an author is describing a story from another author’s point of view. Rather than just narrating the story, author also keeps discussing about the author’s point of view of the story. This is very incredibly handled by the author, Purushottam, where he never bores you with the history or myth or quotations but keeps you engrossed so wonderfully throughout the book that you want to understand Jayasi’s point of view on every scene of the love story. The introduction of the characters is nicely crafted which gives a good momentum to the story later on where the author gets a mileage to complete the whole love story in few pages itself.

The good thing is that author has not tried to portray any character as good or bad but only talks about the nature of each one of them which defines what kind of choices and decisions they take later on which changes the whole course of their life. Author has also shared the original stanzas from Jayasi’s poem which also gives soul to the book as reading those original lines gives us more perspective in the language itself. The best about the author’s style of writing is that he does not stretches any part of the story and keeps everything short and crisp. Hence a book on historical, mythological and spiritual context- all embedded in one, gets over within 200 pages itself. I give this read 4* out of 5. This book is definitely recommended and has re-reading value. Kudos to the author for handling this form of writing so nuancedly.

Thanks.

ABHILASH RUHELA!!!

Wednesday, 30 May 2018

Freedom from the I by Shashank Kasliwal (Book Review- 4.75*/5) !!!

There are some books which hold you like a traveler who does not have any destination to go and is here only to enjoy the journey and the newness he finds in every new second at a new spot of this world. You feel like experiencing some book rather than finishing them off and picking up the next one. It took me complete one month to finish reading a 218-pages book written by a debutante, Shashank Kasliwal, named “Freedom from the I”. The book also has the tagline “Ultimate Path to a Free Mind and Real Success”. This is yet another gem from Jaico Publication. This is one such book if you read in peace and silence can bring out several transforming changes in you and the way you think and see things. I can feel the change in my whole outlook within this one month itself.

I have been a great fan of Sadhguru’s books and videos where he explains about this factor of diminishing the ego and identification that we have and lead a life which is as it is. I never believed that someone could write or explain this concept in a better manner and so vastly and yet in a simple way. Shashank Kasliwal’s first attempt at writing this self-help book is a winning start. Initially, when I started reading, the first two chapters did not sound me any different than all these self-help books which keeps releasing. But since third chapter, as soon as the author gets into his zone of explaining the effect of ego and how we have lost ourselves in this dominance of ego over us just keeps surprising the readers. I felt the book remained at its best up till 8^th chapter. I did not personally feel any kind of motivation reading the last 4 chapters from 9^th to 12^th but they are a fine closer to the book where author explains about our dull mind, affect of emotions, our relationships etc.

Shashank has very finely divided the book in different chapters and even within that into different sections with each concept not going over two pages. This keeps your interest intact as you do not get strangled in too many concepts thrown at you within a paragraph. The book is not at all research-based but purely out of experience of the author which makes it more relevant while reading as you can feel the honesty and truthfulness. This book is best for professional people out there as author has given many examples on how to handle professional and corporate stress and pressure. I have also implemented many of his ideas which has begun enhancing my experience of meditation that I had started before reading this book. The book is written in a spiritual context rather than motivational context hence it needs little more attention while reading to grasp the concepts rather than mugging the points. Overall, this is one of the best books I have read in last decade for sure. I give this book 4.75 star out of 5. Recommended for every living soul out here.

Thanks.

ABHILASH RUHELA!!!

Tuesday, 1 May 2018

Wedding Pickle by Neha Sharma (Book Review- 3.5*/5) !!!

I have read books based on confusion regarding the topic of marriage that keeps moving in the mind of the protagonist even before but never ever could I relate with the topic because I was a student then. Now that I am already running in my late-20s and this is the only thing that is running as a question around me wherever I go and the kind of dilemma it is, I have been able to relate quite much with the latest book I have completed reading today named “Wedding Pickle” written by the debutante, Neha Sharma. The book is published by Grapevine publications and I am quite delighted to get back with the publisher’s book again as it is being managed by youth and their stories are quite relating.

The writing style of Neha Sharma is wonderful where she knows how to engage the readers as the story that she has chosen to write does not have multiple dimension and is specific only to a phase of the protagonist so there are many chances that the book could get boring or monotonous. But the way she has kept shuffling the conditions and the dilemma in the mind of the protagonist is nicely handled. The characterizations are also nicely handled where you can identify how each of the characters are like. As the story does not have much twists and turns or suspense kind of thrilling plot, the book needed to have simplicity that expressed whatsoever is going in the mind of the characters which author has been able to manage quite candidly and effortlessly.

The story starts directly on the point where this specific character enters in the protagonist’s life as a prospect for marriage and all the confusion starts for her. Her argument with her parents are realistic. Her discussion with friends are also funny where they get irritated with her mood swings regarding the person she is talking with for marriage. The way climax is handled in last 40-50 pages keeping the whole marriage scenes describable and explanatory is also a nice end to the book. Talking about the drawbacks, it would have been great if the book had certain twists and turns and few moments where the readers must have got frustrated reading the decision of the protagonist. Also, there are few typos in the book which could have been corrected with some care. I believe the book is little stretched. It could have been easily 30-40 pages less than what it is. Overall, if you are going through the same phase, you are going to enjoy this story. I am giving this one 3.5* out of 5.

Thanks.

ABHILASH RUHELA!!!