Review: Turtles All The Way Down – A Must Read

Books that talk of mental illness have a special place in my heart. I cannot really say why, but books like Perks of Being a Wallflower, Norwegian Woods and now Turtles all the Way Down will probably always be on the ‘books I can read over and over again’ shelf.

Turtles All The Way Down, the latest by John Green was a brilliant read and a bloody fast one too. But before everything else, here’s a confession that I need to make: I have never read a John Green book before. So I won’t be able to tell you how the book compares with the other ones.

Turtles is the story of Aza, a girl carefully named for her father wanted her name to cover all the alphabets. Like most young adults, she has a best friend, Daisy, and a crazy love story going on in the background. Her love story with Davis Pickett has a mystery angle to it as well, in which Aza and Daisy go on to look for a runaway billionaire which has a promise to make them rich. All these stories run in the background of the central theme: Anxiety.

The book has an overall philosophical tone to it, which gets a little over-the-top sometimes. But otherwise when you’re done with reading and you lie on the bed thinking, it all makes sense. This is a book that makes you wanna think, really.

Among the many reasons as to why you should read th book, the prime one that strikes me is this : the characters are real. The people in the book are so real you’d think you could really meet one of them in real life. For instance, Aza has a car named ‘Harold’. Yes she has named it and she has a relationship with the car as if it were a person. Her emotions with the object are real. We all know at least one person who has real relationships with objects.

Another thing that’s commendable about the book is John Green’s knowledge about other things. Animals, stars, medicine, tech and so many other things. It is amazing to read so many new things.

This is a book you shouldn’t give a miss. It is a must read. Young or adult.

Oh and, the cover is beautiful.

Book: Turtles All The Way Down
Author: John Green
Publisher: Penguin Random House, UK
Pages: 286 (Hardcover)
Rating: 4.5/5

Sad Modern Lover

It’s sad to be a lover today.
Our letters are mails,
Our calls, texts.

I wish I loved you back when
letters were the real deal.
I’d keep all of them safe, and
wouldn’t fear them getting ‘deleted’.

I would’ve smelt them,
for your beautiful hands would’ve touched them.
I would’ve traced each word with my fingers,
for your heart must have whispered each phrase.
I would’ve kissed them, thinking I’ve kissed you,
for you must have spoken the words out loud.

And I would’ve held them close,
thinking I’ve embraced a part of you.

It’s sad to be a lover today.

5 Superb Women Authored Books You Could Start Reading NOW

Firstly, I am not a huge fan of ‘Women’s Day’. Sorry if that bothers you, but women and men and other genders are all amazing and fabulous. And women are superb beings. And one day is just not enough to celebrate a woman.

Anyhoo, here’s my list of the awesome women authors you have to read. HAVE TO. Women are rad, but these authors kick ass! A few months ago, or maybe last year, I don’t remember, I got down to reading only women authors. Specially coloured authors like Alice Walker, of course Angelou, Octavia Butler and the likes. Then there was Katherine Stockett, our very own Sudha Murthy (I love her!), Louisa M Alcott, Sylvia Plath, the very rad Sandberg etc etc.

So what happened when I read women authors for about two months. I felt somehow more confident, happier and proud. Being a woman, it is so good to read stories about other women. And if you’re someone who thinks that women stories are all about their ranting and are sad depressing stories then oh you’re so mistaken.

So without boring you to death, here’s my list of the amazing women authors you could start reading right away.

1. The Colour Purple by Alice Walker
I read this on my Kindle, but oh I so want the physical copy of this book after reading this. It is a book I could re-read. It is a classic. I will not give you the synopsis of the tale, but I will tell you this… The story will make you feel miserable and will then set your spirits free. The relationship between Celie and Shug Avery is what you should look out for.

2. The Help by Kathryn Stockett
Like women who don’t follow no rules? This book is going to introduce three marvellous women to you and will leave you with a laughing heart. And what’s better, the villains and the heroes of the book are both women. So no man-beating here. It is a fast read.

3. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
I cannot explain this book to you, you gotta read this wonderfully poetic and powerful book to fall in love with Angelou.

4. Pinjar by Amrita Pritam (Hindi & Punjabi)
Pinjar is a heart wrenching tale of Puro, that puts forth the harrowing situation of women during the Indo-Pak partition. What’s amazing about the tale is how Puro embodies the injustice and the frustration it accompanies with it, and yet, like most women she rises from her ashes only to find immense strength and courage in her. Read it for the marvellous storytelling of Amrita Pritam.

5. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
Most of you must have read this already, but if you haven’t, please, please do. And if you have, this is a book worth a re-read. A story of a mother and four little women, struggling through the trials and tribulations of the Civil War. Everybody loves the March family, and I swear you would too.

So go ahead and read all these lovely books. Thank me later!

I Don’t Miss You

If you’d ask me whether I miss you,

I’d say I don’t.

But just sometimes, when I’m looking at the setting sun,

My eyes well up —

And my heart aches for your presence beside me.

But, no, I don’t miss you all the time.

I’m being honest.

Just sometimes when I’m ready to run away from everything

I think of your arms, that I’d want to call home.

But I really don’t miss you,

For life’s busy and life’s fast.

Just sometimes, when time is flying by —

            I close my eyes and hope to see you smile.

5 life-lessons taught by a 13-year-old

Anne Frank, the diary of a young girl is a book that comes under ‘must-read’ in everybody’s list. It is not only an awesome book for historians, but an emotional roller coaster for everyone. As emotional as the book may be, it is also surprisingly uplifting and humorous.

What some readers will appreciate is the sheer wisdom that Anne Frank exhibits at an age so young. And through that wisdom and understanding, I’ve lifted five amazing quotes from the book that will really encourage you to look at life in a new light.

Just when you think you don’t have the time, remember this.

So many things, so often, make us so sad. But if only we remember that the world still exists and the flowers still bloom, and the birds still chirp, we’ll continue to be happy.

Life isn’t so easy, and people aren’t always kind. But just because they don’t care about your opinion, doesn’t mean you cannot have one.

Always be thankful. Always.

Even after a long lazy day I have felt tired and wasted and guilty. But a day full of work and production has often left me tired, sure, but so so satisfied.

Such wise words are worth every re-read of the book. If you’re someone who is still unaware of the blazing light that envelopes the reader, you must really really pick this book up as soon as possible. You won’t regret it.

It Is So Hard For Me To Read Non-Fiction. Help!

A new year is here and I am absolutely glad that I am entering this year loaded with books to read. I have on my list four Man Booker awardees, namely, The Underground Railroad , Lincoln in the Bardo, A Horse Walks Into A Bar and The Sellout. These books will take about two months to finish. So yeah, I’m sorted for the beginning of the year.

What I am sad about and want to change in the year 2018, is that my shelves are loaded with fictions. If you go through my Goodreads, you’d see a variety of fiction novels. But alas, I have not read one non-fiction. It is so very difficult for me to read a non-fiction. Why, you ask?

Consider this. I really wanted to know about the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks. And I have an absolutely amazing book, The Siege: The Attack on Taj by Adrian Levy, sitting on my bookshelf (my husband’s actually). I picked that book up. The author starts with the names of all the real people in the attack. After the list, he starts telling us about a father-daughter duo who worked at the Taj. A real father-daughter duo. And that was it. I couldn’t read further. I knew that either one of them was going to die, or rather all the people on the list. Yes, characters die in fiction, but fictional characters. Not real people!! Do you understand? I cannot live with the idea that all the people who suffered in the book suffered for real. Their pain was real, their losses were real.

GIF source- giphy

My eyes welled up when I realised that the father-daughter duo would either die or get separated for life. And I couldn’t take it anymore. This is the reason I cannot read non-fiction. I get too attached to the people. So I need your help here.
I really want to read all the lovely books out there, but what is it that I am doing wrong? Am I picking the wrong books for the start? Am I reading it wrong? Or what is it?

Do you have some tricks or tips under your sleeve that can help me read better without crying a river?

Help!

Wanna read in Hindi? Begin here

So many of us have read so many books. And there are only so many Indian authors writing in ways that are relatable to Indians. Most Indians, majorly North Indians, have an added advantage of knowing another language that is used by them almost all the time – Hindi. And most of us haven’t thought about it, but there is a plethora of books in Hindi that are just amazing and will leave you spellbound by their gripping storytelling.

While you read this, you may be wondering if your Hindi skills are good enough to be reading novels. Here’s the deal… If your language isn’t that good, read. It will improve your skills. Just like reading English books improves your English language skills. I cannot promise that you’d understand every word of the story, but then don’t you need dictionaries while reading other novels? Use this link to translate any difficult words to English, and wallah, you’re all equipped to get reading.
Hindi can sometimes seem intimidating. But there are a few authors like Premchand, Bhisham Sahni and Amrita Pritam, who will make you realise what you’ve been missing and it won’t be so difficult anymore.

Another idea that crosses ones mind is, ‘there are always translations!’. Well yes, there are, but just think about the Hindi dubbing of English films, and you’ll get the idea of the accuracy of the translations. Only a very few translators do a great job in keeping safe the emotions of the book.

So here is a list of books that you can start with if you want to give a hand at reading in Hindi. Trust me, you’ll not worry about the difficulty once you start reading.

1. मुंशी प्रेमचंद 

Premchand is one of the most known authors in Hindi language. You must have heard of him and must have probably read his work back in school. Some of his books are over a hundred years old. He was considered to be the first Hindi author whose writings prominently featured realism. His novels usually describe the sufferings of the poor and the downtrodden. Below are some of his books you can binge read. He also has a set of short stories which you can read one story at a time, if you’re a slow reader.

मासिक वेतन तो पूर्णमासी का चाँद है, जो एक दिन दिखाई देता है और घटते-घटते लुप्त हो जाता है – प्रेमचंद

And what’s great is these books come real cheap because of the small readership (which is sad 😥 ) Buy them here.

 

कफ़न

गोदान

निर्मला

2. अमृता प्रीतम 

Amrita Pritam, is an acclaimed writer and poet from Punjab. She is clearly one of the top writers and is the first Punjabi woman novelist and poet. You must remember her for the story Pinjar? The one that was turned into a movie starring Urmila Matondkar and Manoj Bajpayee? Yeah well, that is the kind of emotion that runs in the veins of her characters. She was the first woman to receive Sahitya Academi Award! I’d say, read Pinjar. But if you don’t want to, you MUST read her autobiography – रसीदी टिकट . The book is going to leave your heart aching and your eyes moist with the intensity of her love and her passion for life.

वह धरती नरक होती है जहाँ महुआ नहीं उगता – अमृता प्रीतम

Again, cheap books that are indeed priceless. Buy them here.

3. एक गधे की आत्मकथा – कृष्ण चन्दर 

The last two authors were my personal favourites and have been written ages ago. But this one was recently authored and oh what a read!
As the title goes Ek Gadhe ki Aatmakatha, this story revolves around the life of an educated donkey. Pulling a beautiful satire on the society, the politics and the people of today, this book is extremely easy to read. And what’s the plus side? It has an amazing storytelling. A 100 pages have summed up the comedy of homosapiens quite precisely.
Buy it and I promise you will not regret it.

 

4. इश्क़ में शहर होना – रवीश कुमार 

Ravish Kumar. Well, he is a journalist who is admired by the whole nation for his straightforward self and unbiased approach towards problems. I have read his works and his blog Qasbaa, and he writes in the everyday Hindi, without using fancy words. So this book is a must read if you’re looking for easy yet sassy content.
Laprek (Short Love Story) is a highly ambitious, experimental Nano format of story writing. Originated at digital platform of Facebook, the famous face of TV news, anchor Ravish Kumar has started writing micro fiction in a limited space of Facebook and twitter. The politics of our times figures as Metaphor in the loving exchange between characters. Laprek is a story of Love in cities. It is a story of Cities in love.
Are you using kindle unlimited? The book is available there. Or you can always buy a physical copy.

5. हरिशंकर परसाई

Parsai is an author all of whose books are great. They’re funny and full of satire. I’ll just present a few of his books’ names and you’ll know – निठल्ले की डायरी , अपनी अपनी बीमारी, कहत कबीर, तुलसीदास चन्दन घिसें, and जैसे उनके दिन फिरे .

मैं मरूं तो मेरी नाक पर सौ का नोट रखकर देखना, शायद उठ जाऊं –

You can read any of his books. They’re all very well written and are a great read.
Buy them here.

 

So yeah, go ahead and read. Trust me, reading in your vernacular language is absolutely amazing. The idea is to not give up. Yes, it will be a little difficult in the beginning and you will read only one page in about five minutes, but then you will start picking up speed and be reading like you read in English.

Happy Reading! 🙂

Read them ‘fore they turn to films in 2018

Everybody loves a good book and we all love to watch our favourite books in the form of movies. Yeah, we all can criticise it later about how major chunks of the book were missing in the film, but nevertheless. With the dearth of original thought and mostly every aspect of love and war covered in movies, film makers are bound to turn to books. And some of the best books are being directed by some of the best film makers.

Then there are some of us, like me, who want to read the book before they watch the movie. Like, when Life of Pi came out, I wanted to watch the movie so very much, but just because I had not read the book by then, I did not watch it. So, before these books turn to movies in the coming year, you have about two months to read them, because the films are going to be irresistible!

There are more than twenty such books. But I’ll list down eight, if you’re to finish one book a week. 🙂

1. Ready Player One by Ernest Cline 

The book has been voted as the best science fiction of the 21st century! And only one man could probably do justice to the racing plot – Steven Spielberg.
In the year 2044, reality is an ugly place. The only time teenage Wade Watts really feels alive is when he’s jacked into the virtual utopia known as the OASIS. Wade finds himself solving puzzles and competing with players who are ready to kill, for the winner is promised immense power and fortune.
Spielberg with Warner Bros. is all set to thrill us. And before he does, go read it!
Buy it on Amazon and while your order arrives, watch the trailer.

2. All The Bright Places by Jennifer Niven 

Are you a John Green fan and ‘The Fault in Our Stars’ is your love bible? Then this book is for you, and so is the movie that stars Elle Fanning (Super 8 fame).
The story revolves around Theodore Finch, a boy who loves the idea of death and Violet, who is grieving for her dead sister. When the two meet on the ledge of the school bell tower, it is unclear who saves whom. And they pair up on a project to discover the “natural wonders” of their state, only to make more important discoveries: It’s only with Violet that Finch can be himself—a weird, funny, live-out-loud guy who’s not such a freak after all. And it’s only with Finch that Violet can forget to count away the days and start living them. But as Violet’s world grows, Finch’s begins to shrink.
Buy it on Amazon and while your order is delivered, watch the trailer.

3. Calling Sehmat by Harinder Sikka 

The book by Harinder Sikka is being turned into a film named ‘Raazi’ which would be directed by Meghna Gulzar and produced by Karan Johar. It will see Alia Bhatt as Sehmat.
The book is about a Kashmiri woman who married a Pakistani Army Officer so as to provide the Indian intelligence with invaluable information during the Indo-Pak War of 1971. Sehmat devised unique ways in her quest to get closer to the top brass in Pakistan. She almost single-handedly torpedoed Pakistans war plans through indefinable courage, wit and determination and was responsible for saving lives of scores of Indian soldiers.
Read it before it hits the cinemas in May, 2018. Buy your copy here.

4. Confessions of a Thug by Philip Meadows Taylor 

Hold your breath, because Amitabh Bachchan, Aamir Khan, Katrina Kaif and Fathima Sana Sheikh are set to star in the adaptation of the novel in the film – Thugs of Hindostan. It is set to release on Diwali, 2018.
Confessions of a Thug is the most influential novel about India before Kipling’s Kim and was one of the best-selling crime novels of the nineteenth century. In the course of a confession to a white ‘sahib’ the imprisoned Ameer Ali recounts his life as a devoted follower of Thuggee, a secret religious cult practising ritual mass murder and robbery. Taylor uncovered evidence of the crimes committed by bands of Thugs as a Superintendent of Police in India during the 1820s.
Read it now so you can boast about how you know the entire script of an Aamir Khan movie! It has a cheap kindle edition that you can download on your phone and read wherever whenever.

5. The Tale of Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter 

Love a nice animated film? Then you better read this before it hits the screen this spring.
Peter Rabbit warns naughty children about the grave consequences of misbehaving. When Mrs. Rabbit beseeches her four furry children not to go into Mr. McGregor’s garden, the impish Peter naturally takes this as an open invitation to create mischief. He quickly gets in over his head, when he is spotted by farmer McGregor himself. Any child with a spark of sass will find Peter’s adventures remarkably familiar. And they’ll see in Flopsy, Mopsy, and Cotton-tail that bane of their existence: the “good” sibling who always does the right thing. One earns bread and milk and blackberries for supper, while the obstinate folly of the other warrants medicine and an early bedtime.
Everybody loves this world famous children’s book, and it is a must read and a must have for everyone, kids and adults alike. Buy it and put it in your bookshelf and I promise, it would be a beautiful addition. Oh and you can also watch the trailer.

6. The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells

This book has seen many an adaptations. But this one will star Johnny Depp. Yes, Depp. So if you haven’t read this book yet, go for it. Buy it, borrow it, steal it, but please read it.
As the plot goes, a scientist, Griffin, creates a serum to render himself invisible. And unable to reverse the invisibility he decends into madness.
I’d say, read the book anyway. It is over a hundred years old book. Published in 1897. Yes. So go ahead, read it.

 

 

7. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle 

It was a dark and stormy night; Meg Murry, her small brother Charles Wallace, and her mother had come down to the kitchen for a midnight snack when they were upset by the arrival of a most disturbing stranger.
Meg’s father had been experimenting with this fifth dimension of time travel when he mysteriously disappeared. Now the time has come for Meg, her friend Calvin, and Charles Wallace to rescue him. But can they outwit the forces of evil they will encounter on their heart-stopping journey through space?
You’ve totally got to read this one. And I bet you’d want to after you watch this trailer.

8. Bluebeard by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. 

Clever, tragic, funny, mysterious, unexpected. These are only a few words people have used to describe the book. Vonnegut is an author you’d fall in love with. Sooner the better.
Broad humor and bitter irony collide in this fictional autobiography of Rabo Karabekian, who, at age seventy-one, wants to be left alone on his Long Island estate with the secret he has locked inside his potato barn. But then a voluptuous young widow badgers Rabo into telling his life story—and Vonnegut in turn tells us the plain, heart-hammering truth about man’s careless fancy to create or destroy what he loves.
Buy it. It has a bloody 4.02/5 rating on Goodreads!

So yeah, that’s the list of the most amazing and compelling storytelling that’re going to hit the screens the coming year and if you’re a reader and a film buff, you really gotta read these books. Watching a film after reading the book is a joy you shouldn’t miss.

Goodreads Giveaway: Lone Fox Dancing

It was some time ago that I enrolled myself in the Goodreads giveaway for the autobiography of one of India’s most famous and loved author Ruskin Bond, Lone Fox Dancing. And I won.

As a kid, I had once had the opportunity to meet him. He paid a visit to our school. And just like the idea that our grandparents could have been young at a point in time seems comical, so does the idea of the author having a childhood. He looked old when he came to visit, about ten years ago. He looks the same ten years later. He seems to have stopped aging. Just like most of his stories. His most famous character Rusty has stayed with most kids of 90s.

I am so excited to read what he has to write. Here’s a line from the book that’s going to make you wanna know what the author’s all about. And how a person who remembers this can write such amazing short stories. And not one or two, but about 500 stories. Enough for the entire childhood.

If we are lucky, we love with both heart and body, and I like to think that my parents were lucky. Neither of them spoke of it as a courtship, however, and when I consider the short time they spent together before I was conceived, I wouldn’t call it a courtship, either. The season demanded passion, and they happened to find each other; so chance had a greater role to play in my birth than it does in others…
…
Granny’s discomfort with me may be due to the fact that she wasn’t sure if I was legitimate or not. She’d have been horrified at the thought.

Review coming soon.

Read with me, I’m Avantika

I am trying to become a book blogger. My love for reading & writing is what got me here. This isn’t my first blog, but unlike my previous blog – that is now struggling to survive because I stopped updating it, I hope to really put in my time and effort into this one.

This blog isn’t just about my love for reading. No, it isn’t. It is about the whole art of blogging and becoming aware and responsible for something I’ve started. I have often left things unfinished, books unread, blogs dying. Yes, I know its too much negative, but well, I think the first step to overcome ones faults is to accept them.

Before beginning this blog, I read a lot of other blogs. Blogs about posting regularly; book blogs; review blogs; time management blogs and a lot more book blogs. And man was I intimidated! There are so many wonderful people out there, reading such beautiful stuff and then finding the time to write about those things, equally beautifully. I saw people who read about five books a week! A WEEK! That’s right. There were people sharing their book list for the month, which had a mad 16 books! Who reads so much?! I want to. But pfft… can I? After all the ‘giving up’ feeling, I logged on to my Goodreads and checked the number of books I’ve read this year. And I was ashamed. So I am not going to share the number here. I am so ashamed.

But nevertheless, I remembered that not everyone is the same, and I am not in a competition. So I am just going to begin, one book at a time. Even though I’ve only read 10 books this year (yeah f** it! I told you!), there’s always scope of improvement. Ain’t there?

I make my time to read in the very busy schedule that I have. And that’s what’s important. But I am going to try better. I am going to try better to read more, to write more and to talk to all the wonderful people coming to my blog more.

What you can expect from this blog are some reviews, of course. And mostly, I would want to cater Indian readers. I know books have no boundaries, but I really wish people and kids in India read more often. So this will be a platform that can help them. Be it through lists, or essays on the wonder of Indian language writing.

But mostly, anyone who loves to read, however more or less, wherever in the whole wide world, will find something here for their liking. And you can always tell me what you feel, even if it is something you disagree with. Do encourage me with your kind comments!