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The Great Indian Novel: A Review & Why you should read this book?

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A Dazzling marriage of Hindu myth and modern history. Author- Shashi Tharoor ‘They tell me India is an underdeveloped country….’ The author, before the beginning gives us an hasty note of disclaimer that the name of this book is not on the basis of it being great, nor is it authentically Indian or much of a novel, but takes its title from ‘The Mahabharata’ , its primary source of inspiration. In Sanskrit, Maha means great and Bharata means India. But, me after reading this book, have to say that ‘Great’ is a right estimate for its contents. Said to be ‘A Work of Fiction’, this story is an reflection of our modern history, our country and Hindu myth, its gods and the characters of history merged with the heroes and villains of our epics. The result of this is a fine woven tale, entertaining, humorous and witty. The versions of the events of history altered in this book are humorous yet reflective. One of these is ‘ The Great Mango March ’. One particula...

Correspondence b/w a Reader & a Author : Shashi Tharoor

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To the desk of - Mr. Shashi Tharoor The author of-'The Great Indian Novel' Dated: 7thSeptember, 2015                               Time: 1.01pm Sir, With an optimism of this reaching you, I write to you and that of your position as the author. I have just finished reading your aforementioned book and no, I am not asking you any questions or giving my opinion. The last very few pages have put me in this state of delirium. But, I remember the first 400 pages and the story contained in these pages yet, maybe the forgetful mind is abstaining from asking questions from these pages. Yudhishtir, at last is the hero, not Gangaji or Pandu or our very own VVji. I understand that. But, he says and I quote- “I believed differently, and have paid the price of being defeated, humiliated, and reduced to irrelevance.” Sir, what does he mean by this? I understand with regards to the story but, please tell me what...

LOVE IN THE TIME OF CHOLERA : A Review and An Opinion

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'An Amazing celebration of the many kinds of love between men and women' THE TIMES. 'The most important writer of fiction in any language'   BILL CLINTON   Gabriel García Márquez - a novel prize for literature winner is one of the most profound and prolific modern writers  whose works I have ever read and I can say for certainty that he is unmatched in his way of telling us this story 'Love in the Time of Cholera'.  'Love in the Time of Cholera' is a brilliant and extremely rich book. It has that uniqueness, a unknown something very rare I find in only Gabriel Garcia's stories. And I am not talking only about the magic realism in his stories. The richness in language, the narrative power, the story and all its appeal is something very rich. I find this book and 'One Hundred Years Of Solitude' by the same author as one of the most greatest novels I have and will ever read. No hyperbole. If you have the slightest doubt of me mak...

The White Tiger : A Review

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Winner of the Man Booker Prize 2008 Author- Aravind Adiga For the Desk of: His Excellency Wen Jiabao, The Premier’s Office, Beijing, Capital of the Freedom-Loving Nation of China From the Desk of: ‘The White Tiger’ A thinking Man And an entrepreneur Living in the world’s centre of technology and outsourcing Electronics City Phase 1(just off Hosur Main Road), This is how Aravind Adiga’s debut novel and The 2008 Man Booker award winning novel begins. Though Classified as Fiction, any person hailing from the world’s largest democracy will testify to the dark and rhetorical conditions in India and of its poor and deprived as being true. The book provides a realistic contrast to the belief of ‘India is shining’. This story is a sarcastically humorous account of Balram Halwai, the protagonist and ‘The White Tiger’. It tells his journey from ‘The Darkness’ to ‘The Light’, a dark journey and a powerful story. The Darkness and The Light here are symbolical not...

THE ALCHEMIST: A Review and Reading Guide.

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AUTHOR: PAULO COELHO What one has to say about the most translated book after ‘The Bible’ and one of the most widely read book in the world? Pic Courtesy:  +Martand Dihingia   “ And when you want something in life, all the universe conspires in helping you achieve it.” This famous line from ‘The Alchemist’ by Paulo Coelho reverberates through the ears and minds of a huge no. of people in the world and is a life changer for many. Originally written in Portuguese by the Brazilian-born author, the book though initially unsuccessful has sold more than 65 million copies in 56 different languages achieving the status of a modern classic. If you haven’t read it, go grab a copy or lend one but, after reading this in full. The Alchemist is set in places with deserts ‘and’ meadows. The protagonist is a sheepherder in Andalusia in Spain, Santiago who travels to Africa and then on to the distant pyramids in Egypt, all following a recurring d...

The Secret Letters of the Monk who sold his Ferrari : A review and readers guide.

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: From someone who hasn't read 'The Monk who sold his Ferrari' Author - Robin Sharma. The book is a followup to the hugely popular novel by the same author 'The monk who sold his Ferrari', which is a spiritual story of a young and brilliant  lawyer Julian Mantel, who sold all his worldly belongings including his shiny red Ferrari and went through a journey of penance and salvation through the Himalayas and how it transforms him into a man of peace. That was a non-reader of that book talking to you about that particular book.  As the subheading and the heading promises I will talk about the 'The Secret Letters of the Monk who sold his Ferrari'. First of all, Is it really necessary that you need to read 'The Monk who sold his Ferrari ' before you read the aforementioned sequel????... No,its really not that diehardly necessary as the central plot and story has very little to do with the prequel. The story here is about a distant cousin of Jul...