Review- Tomb of God

 I very much am fan of books which make the readers think and not everything is served on a platter..

I picked up Tomb of God by Victor Ghoshe and though it took me multiple sittings to complete the book(partially my fault), it is very well deserving of accolades.

The cover is interesting. Wont say it does justice to the book but would definitely stand out in a book store and would compel you to purchase.

The premise is interesting. Victor has done a lot of research and travel to paint the picture of all the places the book visits. You get a very realistic look and feel of those places and can very well fit in the shoes of the protagonists. The book begins on a kind of familiar note, a disaster when all the characters of the book are set into motion at some point of time or another. Victor has scaled multiple timelines, multiple geographies and definitely multiple cultures and brings out the stark differences very smartly. The mystery element of the book is interesting, and culminates into a fulfilling ending.

On the flip side, no major complaints actually. At times, some of his characters behave a bit out of the loop. In the beginning a lot many characters are introduced across many geographies and walks of life and confuses reader a bit, but when the story is set into motion you feel comfortable in how story moves. 

Overall it is a book that you will most def enjoy. It is not a very easy one sitting read, the book forces you to think and be imaginative and that may take multiple sittings. That said, you wont be disappointed if you pick this up and read it through.

I will go with a rating of 4.5/5

You can buy the book on Amazon

https://www.amazon.in/Tomb-God-Victor-Ghosh-ebook/dp/B0937C1NBD/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2UO5CC3PF3YGI&dchild=1&keywords=tomb+of+god&qid=1630462206&sprefix=tomb+of+%2Caps%2C284&sr=8-1

Review- From Kanha to Krishna: The Journey to Divinity

 This is the week of Krishna! Few days back I read and reviewed the very interesting and unique travel memoir by Lalitha Balasubramanian, 'On the Krishna Trail'. So, when it was the time to pick up my next one, I decided to choose 'From Kanha to Krishna: The Journey to Divinity' by Pranab Mullick. Kind of my own Krishna Trail in books.

A lawyer by proffession, Pranab has put loads of reading and experience into the book and it shows. Cover is interesting, with two facets of Krishna, one at a young age and one when he became the mastermind Krishna that we know him as. There is often a discourse about how could a mischief like Kanha become such resourceful and mysterious, yet mastermind Krishna and this book helps bridge in the gap. What happens in the life of Krishna that helps him take this journey.

Interesting choice of cover, right there. Marked with the tone of divinity and the two stages that the book talks about. The title is interesting as well. So, definitely accolades to the author for both.

Since the time Amish Tripathi started a never seen before trend of mythological fictions, there have been many interesting and riveting titles that have come up on the Indian books scene and its very fascinating to find what all different authors have to write and portray. Some time back I read Kaikeyi which narrated the story of Kaikeyi and this one talks about Krishna.

Author has invested a lot of time and energy in development of few very interesting characters, the character of Chanur comes the most to fore front. Depicting the entire build up of how Kansa became the demonic king, how the prophecy of his sister Devaki's eighth son being his demise came to happen, how Kanha became the lovable and charming boy of Nandgaon, how Radha came to his life, how he never saw Radha again in his life and so on. 

Pranab has tried to keep the book as realistic as possible. The story of Krishna is marked with divitnity, mysticism, magic but Pranab has translated each and every event to reality. Sometimes he has went into details of how these events played out, while some times he just gives out a hint and leaves it there to readers's imagination. Kudos to writer for his imagination and translation of such acts into reality.

The war on Kansa's palace is a long scene, and plays it out perfectly like a well thought of war scene. The entire scene is interesting, and well laid out and keeps you on your toes. A lot is happening in this scene and never does it confuse you and keeps you engaged.

On the flip side, the greatest strength of the book is also its biggest weakness. In an attempt to strip Krishna of any kind of divinity or mysticism and just to portray him as a regular person(its a re-imagination of Krishna) and even gives him kind of a sad ending. But this attempt also makes the central characters of Krishna and Kansa as weak. Both are narrated as pieces in the game of a chessboard which are strong but then, are being played by someone else. Krishna still takes a few key decisions towards the end but Kansa is completely being managed behind the scene. This robs the book off some sheen because in the end Krishna and Kans are the reason people know this story of, not Chanur or Akrur. 

But barring these little pieces, overall the book is a very engaging read. Its a page turner and you cannot keep the book without completely reading the journey that Kanha took to become Krishna. The overall atmosphere of Mathura and the times have been described very tastefully and lingers in the mind of the reader long after he is done with the book.

Overall I would give this book a 4/5.

You can purchase the book here

https://www.amazon.in/Kanha-Krishna-Divinity-Pranab-Mullick-ebook/dp/B07M65C55L/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=kanha+to+krishna&qid=1628434456&s=digital-text&sr=1-1

Review-On the Krishna Trail

Few years back, I visited the southern part of India and visited many places like Munnar, Allyppey, Kovalam, Wellington, Tiruvanantpuram and Rameshwaram. It was while visiting Rameshwaram and the Rameshwaram temple when we heard all the tales and legends from locals, and saw all the murals and paintings around the city and the temple itself, and of course, a live demo of the rocks that float on water when inscribed with the name of Lord Rama, there was this deep desire within me to complete the trail of the journey of Rama. Visit places where he was born, places which were special to him, Sita temples in Nepal and so on.. But it was an extensive journey and despite harboring this desire for long, I never could partake it.

On the Krishna Trail is a unique book. The author Lalitha Balasubramanian decided to visit one of the places related to Krishna when her husband suggested to complete the trail by visiting every place related to Krishna and that is the very basis of this book. Its a memoir of this trail with details of all places, every temple, every tale, every legend and local encountered, along with helpful details like how to reach the place, what to visit, in what capacity, etc. The details are so colorful you feel you are actually visiting the place and seeing/feeling what the author was actually going through.

The book is also marked by photographs taken by the author during the journey and the author has decided to pursue pics of not only the more famous places, but also of the lesser famous ones and even certain important points and places. The temples and places she visits in the book range from old earlier constructed Vedic temples to the more recent ones. 

As mentioned earlier, what makes her narration interesting is her coverage of all legends and tales related to each of the place and temple and then enhancing the reader experience with photographs of this place. Another major achievement of Lalitha has been that she has written this book from the viewpoint of a devotee and not that of a tourist. In my opinion, that makes all the difference that there is between what could have been a regular travel memoir and a heartfelt coverage of the life of Krishna.

I dont have any complaint with the book. The writer has been successful in keeping the narration interesting and you are always hooked to the chapters which is mostly what you wont expect with books covering personal travel details of the author. The author deserves full marks for achieving exactly what she had set out for initially.

I would give this book a perfect 5/5

The book is available on Amazon

https://www.amazon.in/dp/B097LBPRVW/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

Review- The Good Wizard

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 Growing up one of my most favorite show on TV was Alif Laila. That and I have always been in awe of The Tales of Arabian Knights. While Aladdin has catapulted itself into another level of stardom, the rest of them also have fan favorites. Prasun Roy's The Good Wizard reminded me of those childhood memories. 

Despite Prasun wanting to keep it very real, this clearly falls into the fantasy genre, and many would claim this one is for kids. Well, we all were kids at one point of time, so why would it not appeal to anyone and everyone? This is one book where I can easily claim, its for everyone. And if like me you enjoyed the fantasy genre shows or games or movies like Ajooba, well you are in for a treat.

The best part about the book is that the story drops in the middle of nowhere, which in my opinion is very important for a book belonging to the fantasy genre. In the very first opening scene, there is a wizard who is the best at what he does and that chapter itself stamps the theme, the tone, the protagonists and the antagonists of the book. There is a larger than life magician who does larger than life tricks and then there is a larger than life villain akin to Jafar or Mogambo...well you get the idea.

The great magician is losing his art to his failing health and mind and he has to bestow the knowledge upon someone. Enter the young kid Titli who has all what it takes, except that she needs some discipline and guidance to achieve all great things that life has planned out for her. Their relationship and journey together is what forms the crux of this book. The ending is kind of expected, the magic is in the narration.

The book is interesting, and as I said, perfect for kids and adults alike who like fantasy genre. There is never a dull moment and the pacing and narration has been consistent and not once you feel bored or want to take a break. Despite knowing whats going to happen in the end, it still keeps you on your toes. Thats the magic of this genre.

I dont have any major complaints with the book, a few  minor hiccups(like villagers claiming their secular credentials again and again and again. Once should be enough). Also there....well lets not spoil the party with more complains.

This is the perfect book I would want my son to read and one I could gift to any kid that I know of. In fact if you are an adult and you tell me you have loved movies and shows like Ajooba or Toofan or Aladdin or Chandrakanta, well I would gift it to you as well.

All in all, I would give this book a perfect 5/5

You can purchase the book from Amazon

https://www.amazon.in/Good-Wizard-Prasun-Roy/dp/9390441072

Review- Kaikeyi: The Warrior Queen of Koshala

 I will be honest. I dont believe in regionalism. I think literature and arts and entertainment transcend beyond regions and boundaries.

But, when I learnt author Jai Shukla, whose book Kaikeyi: The Warrior Queen of Koshala is available on Kindle and that he is a fellow Kanpuriya, well, I was delighted. 

As the author mentions clearly in the foreword, not much is available in any text about Kaikeyi. The fact that she triggered such a mammoth change in the Indian landscape, the ripples and chants of whose are vibrant even today, still she is not covered or discussed or written about much, is indeed a mystery. Kudos to Jai Shukla for picking up such a topic.

Jai has put up a lot of his worldly experience and maturity in the book which is evident right from the start. There is an immense amount of study, research and exploration done to write this book and it is pretty evident in its pages. Jai has carefully crafted the characters of Kaikeyi and Manthra and these two are the backbones of the book. As the entire book is about the early years of Kaikeyi and her marriage to Dashrath, the focus is solely on her childhood and her youth and few years into her marriage. There is a lot of worldly knowledge also put up in the pages mixed with lot of references from source text which keep the flavor of the book interesting. How the entire situation eventually leads our two main characters to be what they later became is capture beautifully.

On the flip side one problem with the book is that for some reason Jai has decided not to capture her later years, specially her sending Rama to exile or when Rama returned, or when Bharat decided not to be king. Jai himself has accepted that there is very less source material about Kaikeyi and when you dont cover a good 70-80% of her story, you are left with even lesser source material to refer to. This is not necessarily a big problem but from reader's perspective they wanted to know how such a firebrand young girl would have reacted to these situations in details.

However, if we just consider this book as a a coming of age book for Kaikeyi then Jai has exceled in what he set out for. Jai paints a very lively picture of the kingdom and how things are in the kingdom and the royalty themselves. The challenges, the triumphs, the shackles of the royals of Koshala are captured very realistically. The cover of the book is really intriguing and I would give full marks for making the cover captivating

All in all I would go with a 4.5/5 rating for the book

You can purchase it from here

https://www.amazon.in/Kaikeyi-Warrior-Koshala-Jai-Shukla/dp/9385440918/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1626315674&sr=1-1

Review- The House of Awadh

There is already a huge backlog which I have to clear up out of my books and while last few weeks provided with ample opportunities to clear it up, work and other family duties have stuck again and I am going slow with reading and reviewing again. Weather is flip-flopping between extreme hot to cold and we are confused between keeping the windows opened or closed at night lol.

This week I had the chance to read The House of Awadh by Nitin Kushalappa MP

I started reading this one without reading the blurb or context. With under a 100 pages, this seemed like a quick read, so I decided to pick it up as I didnt want to jump into longer books at this point of time. 

The cover seems decent. You can figure out a marriage ceremony being done. 

The first thing that hits you when you start reading the first ten pages is the speed of the book. It seems like the author is rushing to introduce all characters, and there are so many of them, and their life choices, their destiny in a very short span of time. The story just rushes from one character to another and it becomes a very demanding read. The setting is modern day India and you are confused as to why the author is rushing so much.

By the time you reach the 11th or 12th page, you realize that this is modern day retelling of Ramayana, with all characters and situations modified to suit modern times. Once you grasp this, it becomes an easy read, because now you know these characters and you know the situations which are going to happen, or happening currently. Now the characters are known so its not that demanding anymore.

Nitin has a huge daunting task in front of him. Previously, there have been attempts  made to retell Ramayana in another context. Mani Ratnam's Raavan or Manoj Kumar's Kalyug ki Ramayan were both such attempts and despite the brilliance of Mani Ratnam, both attempts tanked hugely. So, its not an easy task to retell Ramayana in modern context. With that task in hand, Nitin has done a good job by retelling the story where Rama is a software expert along with Lakshmana while Ravana is a mafia don and Hanuman is a lawyer and so on...

Nitin has done a huge amount of research going much beyond and above of what is mentioned in Ramayana. He has tried to gather as much details and incorporate as much characters as possible and tried to weave a modern day story around it. While turning the pages, there always is a curiosity of how he has interpreted the forthcoming event as mentioned in Ramayana. How he has mentioned the Sita Swayamvar, how he interprets Agni Pariksha, how he interprets Shurpnakha incident and so on. He has done a thorough research and applied a huge deal of imagination of which event would be interpreted as how. Most of the times, he has been successful and when those events occur you want to applaud the author for his imagination and open mindedness.

On the flip side, perhaps the biggest enemy of Nitin's book is its size. Ramayana is a huge subject, and even when modernizing it, it still is a huge subject. I dont know what compulsion Nitin had to finish it up within a 100 pages. There are a lot many events which just come out of nowhere because Nitin had to interpret it to be a part of his book but there is not enough back story and not enough reasoning provided. At many times the book feels rushed and honestly its a disservice to Nitin himself because there is such a diverse and vibrant world he had painted and so much effort went into research and interpretation but the number of pages restrict him.

Still, this book is a huge effort and mostly it succeeds in binding you. Barring minor inconveniences, its a brilliant read and the interpretations of a thousand year old text in modern context comes very natural and modern. The best part for me was that despite modernizing the epic tale, he stayed true to the source text. This for me was an attempt worth applauding.

I would go ahead with a rating of 4.5/5. I again appreciate the task that Nitin set out to achieve and does shine brilliantly.

You can buy the book at

https://www.amazon.in/gp/product/B083JMV55B/ref=kinw_myk_ro_title

Review- Humorously Yours

 Sometimes all it takes is an anecdote.

Sometime you dont need a story. A beginning, an end, a message in between. Sometimes, an anecdote is all you need.

While reading through Amitabh Sarwate's "Humorously Yours", I was often reminded of Malgudi Days by R K Narayan, published in 1943. And thats an actual compliment for the author. Short tales from the grounds of Deccan Gymkhana from Pune, the chapters involve few members of the gymkhana talking to each other, with a character named Barkhurdar always as pivotal point of these talks, and the one who drives each chapter, some times by being an active participant of the tale being told, some times a passive participant.

Despite the name, the book is more of tales and anecdotes which range from subtelety including hope, ambition, faith, and then in some cases, crazy situations.  The cover of the book was OK. There is a good art work in the book which makes it interesting, but cover could have been more engrossing. Its my personal opinion, the back cover would have made a better front cover for the book.

There are certain good things about the book. The chapters are all interesting anecdotes. None of them appear boring. You can pick up the book any time when a chapter ends and a new tale awaits you. As this is not a book of stories but rather of anecdotes, author has focussed just on one character and rest are just few names and milestones on the road. Every chapter is interesting, every tale is fresh, and you can recommend on his writing style that he builds up interest as soon as the tale starts. Amitabh has explored a number of topics ranging across the horizon to compile his list of tales. He has chosen well. He has also been successful in making the character of Barkhurdar memorable and interesting.

I dont really have any major complaints from the book(Except occassional missing quotations for spoken dialogues, which doesnt cost anything because you understand who is speaking and to whom).

 As I mentioned previously, not all chapters are funny but some of them are very subtle and dormant in their ambition. However, because of the same, a couple of chapters end up going nowhere. Also, a few chapters really go into details which is often not needed to drive the chapter. The tale and the anecdote is itself good and there is not really a need to drive the "how" when the "what" is interesting itself. These details sometimes break the continuity of the chapter. 

Its also my personal opinion that characters like Barkhurdar should remain ambiguous for the life of the book. Revealing his back story, kind of rubs a bit of charm off him towards the end.

But, these are just minor complaints. Amitabh delivers each chapter like a master story teller where each chapter most of the time ends up taking a path which reader wont often expect. Amitabh tries hard to build up a setting of Deccan Gymkhana the way, I assume,  he would have seemed through his own eyes. This book certainly has the mileage and the potential to drive a home run.

I would go with a rating of 4.5/5 for the book

You can purchase the book from here

https://www.amazon.in/gp/product/B089NS4D7H/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_d_asin_title_o01?ie=UTF8&psc=1