Reviews & Musings

A city is very much an entity and a complex one at that. It assumes for itself the life of any character(s) that identify with those of its elements given prime recognition. For instance, if the underbelly of a city is given prominence in a book, then the city gets to be seen as a villain. Where beaches, parks, gardens and serene parts of a city are central to the setting and plot of a story, then the city becomes romantic. In any book, the city assumes an entity in its own right. And even when this is not spelt out, but the reader knows. They always know. And if they don’t, there are some others who take note, and these ones end up wondering why their city is represented in a pleasing or displeasing manner; and then they contemplate whether to despise the author, or the book, or both. 

  Maybe you don’t like that I sold drugs. You may wonder why I came all the way from Nigeria to another man’s country to do illegal things. If someone had told me that I will be selling drugs when I came to India, believe me, I myself wouldn’t believe that person. And if the person had told me that selling drugs would be the only option for survival for me in India, I would never have come to India. You see, many of us you see are very good people back home in Nigeria. We come from respectable families. So many of us have invested time and resources in education. 

Spotlight: The Nigerian Mafia- Mumbai by Onyeka Nwelue Mumbai, the City That Never Sleeps Ek ungli kharab hai toh sab mat kaato – that is to say, don’t chop off all fingers if just one of them is rotten.

ISBN:  978-9358111019 Genre: Drama / Contemporary Fiction Price: INR 349/- Lost Edges by Salini Vineeth Lost Edges by Salini Vineeth is the story of a couple, Ravi and Geetanjali as they navigate through their marriage. The story takes place in a decade after their marriage and captures the ups and downs of their marriage beautifully. Salini Vineeth is a fiction writer and travel blogger based out in Bangalore, India. Her latest book is Magic Square - an English Novella. She is an engineering graduate from BITS Pilani, Goa. She later completed her MTech from IIT-Bangalore. While working as an electronics engineer, Salini started her travel website Pick, Pack, Go in 2014.   Having read her work previously, I was kind of prepared for Lost Edges. However, the author that she is, Vineeth blew me away with the treatment of this story. Her knack for dealing with relationships, talking about their messier aspects while continuing to retain their beauty shines through the book. In the beginn

  Lost is a story of love, betrayal, honour, revenge, and everything in between. It’s also a love story that sets fire to the world they live in leaving them with no choice but to rise from the ashes anew…

  ISBN: 978-9395481205  Genre: Non-fiction Publisher: Vishwakarma Publications  Bringing together his experiences as a journalist and a keen observer, David Lepeska writes a raw and gut-wrenching book on Kashmir. Part memoir, part travelogue, and part reportage, Desiccated Land is a page-turner.  The book starts by tracing the history of the region along with his own history, as a student who was dimly aware of the history of Kashmir and the turmoil it has been causing for centuries between India and Pakistan. Lepenska takes us to Nilamata Purana ( likely written in the 7th century ) which tells us the story leading to the birth of this region. He also shares an alternate possibility of the word being derived from a lake ‘Mira’ named after Vedic Sage Kashyapa.  His first visit to Kashmir closely followed by his second (and much longer) visit as a journalist working for the Kashmir Observer after the 9/11 attacks, make for an interesting read. Lepeska had questions, a lot of them. An

  Why would anyone want perfection when they could have Vaani Jaishankar instead? Aditya Khamankar was a chartered accountant who built his life on a bedrock of numbers. For no matter what happened, numbers and math never let you down. They stayed the same. And that fundamental fact defined many of his choices. He was the obedient son, the diligent student, the overachieving employee, and the reliable friend. All he wanted in his life was routine and sensible discourse. All he craved in that same life was peace and quiet. And then his senior partner’s flighty daughter came home. And life as he knew it was never the same again… Reality television villain and tabloid fodder, Vaani Jaishankar lived for the arclights. The notoriety, the glamour, the larger-than-life noise that came with it held her in thrall. Until the industry she loved and the people she trusted used and abandoned her. And now, she was back home. Darkening the doorstep of her childhood home, something she’d sworn she’d

From this blog in 2011 to Barnes and Noble website, my reviewing journey has been full of surprises.  I am working on an essay tracing it and realized that I started reviewing books in 2001 (Yes! I am old) for a small library next to my house. Needless to add, my payment was in the books. The library owner also happened to be the first person who taught me how to write a book review and what to focus on. And that is where I learned why reviews matter.  Cut to 2016 when my book review was taught in a Literary Criticism class held by British Library. A relative happened to attend that class and the news spread like wildfire in the family. That is the moment when my family knew this much more than just a hobby. 

ISBN:  978-9391019792 Genre: Mythology Publisher: Jaico Books Year of Publishing: 2022 Price: INR 399/- Shatrujeet Nath’s Warlord of Ayodhya Book 1: Rebellion is a captivating foray into the lesser-known facets of the Ramayana, focusing on the turbulent reign of Bharat, a character often overshadowed by his more famous brother, Rama. This thrilling spinoff combines mythological reverence with a fresh perspective, creating a narrative that is both engaging and thought-provoking. About the Book  Bharat. Son of Kaikeyi. Brother of Rama. Reluctant king of Kosala. Bharat’s carefree life in Kekeya is turned upside down by the death of his father Raja Dashratha and the exile of his brother and crown prince Rama. Untrained in statecraft and unsure of himself, Bharat begins his rule over Kosala by tackling an audacious rakshasa attack on Ayodhya. There’s more trouble brewing. As the magic that sustains the kingdom starts weakening and a drought looms over Kosala, Ayodhya’s citizens begin to

  About the Book  Women today not only deserve but should expect a pain-free, active lifestyle, no matter their age, no matter their previous experience. In his famed San Diego clinic, Pete Egoscue has taught women of all ages and from all walks of life how to use the Egoscue Method for safe, effective, and permanent relief from chronic pain without prescription painkillers, physical therapy, or invasive surgery. Now he shares his specially adapted “Pain Free” program for women to use at home.  Whether you suffer from back or neck pain, joint discomfort or sore knees, or need more stamina, improved balance, and extra strength, here is a revolutionary and proven approach to self-care that promises optimal health through a simple set of exercises that will transform the way you move and feel — forever! Egoscue shows women how to take back their bodies by recovering and restoring a precious health asset — full, free, flexible motion — that he believes has been drastically reduced by our

Introduction  Living with Chronic Illness is like being in for a new surprise every day. Despite following all that you have been advised, your body might choose to respond differently to the same factors daily. Bringing together such experiences of day-to-day life is Shruti Buddhavarapu’s book ‘The Weight of a Cherry Blossom‘.  About the Book  If you took a map and pinned each city I’ve lived in, I’d exist somewhere in the tautness of the string attaching one point to the other.    ISBN: 978-93-5333-699-8  Category: Non-Fiction  Imprint : Rupa Publications  Year: 2019  If a life is lived across many homes—from balmy Chennai to muggy Mumbai, the crackling expansiveness of Delhi to the breathtaking splendour of Vancouver in spring—where do you truly belong? If you are constantly on the move, is home just what Customs can clear? And how do you find love, in the middle of it all, when you do not or cannot stay in one city long enough? Funny, poignant, and reflective, The Weight of a Ch

  “You think your pain and your heartbreak are unprecedented in the history of the world, but then you read. It was books that taught me that the things that tormented me most were the very things that connected me with all the people who were alive, who had ever been alive.”― James Baldwin  I don’t remember a time without reading as a hobby in my life. Having been introduced to books at the age of 4 by my mother, my love for the written word has grown manifold since then. Though, I must confess there was a phase in between when I was unable to read a book. This was after my autoimmune detection. The sudden changes in my body had taken me aback and I was almost on the brink of depression, which I am told is the case with many sufferers.  During one of my routine visits to my doctor, he suggested I take up some hobby to keep my mind busy. And, I broke down. He didn’t realize he had opened a can of worms with that statement of his. In between sobs, I told him, “What hobby? I can’t dance.