Book Review : Uday Mane's Fables from India

I'm sparing all comments on the design
 or it'll be another post 

I'm firmly of the opinion that if you have nothing nice to say it is better not to say anything at all ( especially to strangers; friends, well, they knew what was coming when they signed up) . In fact when I got this book to review I was torn between the guilt of not writing as I had promised to and painful process of finding some glimmer of good in it. But finally, being compelled to write, I put forth my opinion as honestly as possible.

Pros :
It has only one. It has fully restored my faith in myself to be a published writer because clearly anyone can be.

Cons:
Where do I start. The title? The completely misleading title? Though it says Fables from India, the author has generously "borrowed" from all cultures and I even suspect least a couple of them are from his own imaginations( not that it's a bad thing, but why pretend it's anything other than your own short stories is beyond me). Some of them are so blatantly"borrowed" from classics without even the faintest attempt at placing it in the Indian context that you wonder if we are to ignore that content or just blindly accept that it is Indian because Mane says so.

Of the 22 stories ( I giving the poetry a free pass) that Mane covers in the book, there were in total 3 that was free of any mistakes. The rest was riddled with weird clunky sentences( Can a king be a demagogue?! Mane thinks so), spelling mistakes, grammar mistakes, misused similes and metaphors ( simpleton's food instead of simple food). And this after the first read. I did not have the courage to go through it again for the fear of what I will find and corresponding mounting irritation of seeing this language mangled. Honestly, I don't hold Mane accountable for these mistakes but his editor and the publisher who were clearly in such a hurry to publish that they could not manage the most basic proofreading. Or least I hope that is the case because the alternative would be that they are horribly incompetent and I hope their English teachers never have the shame of seeing their work.

This is apart from the occasionally disturbing morals that I hope no child will imbibe like the one in the Jungle Laws story which does not clarify what the jungle law is and could be easily misinterpreted as case for racism.

To be fair there were 2 stories which was bitter sweet and touching (The Joker and Nadir's Little Lamb) in this mess, but it is simply not worth it to drudge through this swamp of words to get to them. This is just one of the prime example why Indian authors/publishers are seen so poorly by the literati and I would sincerely hope no one buys this for their child with the hope of improving the said child's English.

Book of the Month : June 2015

After May, June was a mixed bag. I guess every month can't be a winner. But I was able to see some foreign locales and get interesting cultural insights this month, so it was not a total loss.

Without further ado, Phil presents to you...

Sugar and Other Stories by A.S. Byatt - 2 / 5

I've been wanting to try Byatt but had always been rather intimidated. So I thought I'll start with her short stories. Seemed simple enough. I still don't know if that was a good idea or not, because I simply did not understand her. The language was convoluted and so were the plots.  A couple of stories were nice, like 'The Day E. M. Forster Died' and 'The July Ghost', but most of it went over my head. I felt like a 5 yr old trying to read Shakespeare. Not a collection I enjoyed on the whole.

The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories by Angela Carter - 2 / 5

The idea behind the book sounded super interesting. Brothers Grimm and Hans Anderson more so, had changed the folk stories to make it more palatable for children. In doing so, he took out the morbid and morally confusing aspects. So Carter set out to rehash the familiar fairy tales, from their popular PG rated version back to the the original tales full of sex and violence. Sounded exciting and I was all set. Except, like Byatt, this woman too writes highly convoluted sentences which felt like a cipher than a statement. The basic stories were interesting, especially comparing how the original actually unfolds vs. the popular versions. But I felt it was much too complicated a writing just to say a few fairy tales.

Murder in the Mews by Agatha Christie - 3.2 / 5

She seems to be my go-to gal whenever I want some light reading. This was a collection of 4 stories and the title story I thought was brilliant. So was Triangle at Rhodes but the other two (Dead Man's Mirror, The Incredible Theft) were just ok.  I 'm starting to feel comparatively, that novels are more of her strong point than short stories. But still worth picking up coz after all she's the 'queen of crime'!

The Tiger Rising by Kate DiCamillo - 3.5 / 5

It's not easy to deal with death and all the more when you are a child. I love how deftly DiCamillo has dealt with the subject.  I feel her writings remind you what it means to be a kid - the intensity of emotion, of both joy and sorrow, the ease of forgiveness borne out of the need to grow, feeling trapped between adult needs and your dependency on people less than perfect. It reminds you childhood can be both a wonderful and a terrifying place. While this was not as brilliant as 'The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane', there is no doubt that DiCamillo is a powerhouse in children's literature.

Fieldwork by Mischa Berlinski - 3.7 / 5

If you are looking to read a book on Thailand and get a feel of the people and place, I'm not sure if this is something I recommend. You do get a vague snap shot of the history of Northern Thailand but since the book mostly tends to deal with American missionaries and anthropologists, you don't get a feel of it's native people. But that doesn't change the fact that it is an engrossing read and you do get a good insight into the lives of people who leave behind a way of life to embrace a whole new culture, like missionaries and anthropologists. Berlinski successfully blurs the lines between fact and fiction creating an extremely believable story. If not for the disclaimer by Berlinski, you would walk away feeling that you were reading about a true incident.

The Princess Bride by William Goldman - 4  / 5

Both the book and the movie had been on my list of must-read/watch-cult-fiction and I'm happy to report the book is everything it promised to be. It panders to your most childish notions of good and bad; and does it with panache. The base story is the most cliched bunch of Bollywood story bits mashed together ( drama, laughs, emotion, romance, action) but the narrator makes all the difference. Goldman makes you laugh so hard and in spite of knowing where the story is heading, builds suspense and drama like no other. Pick it up for a good old fashioned adventure!

Sightseeing by Rattawut Lapcharoensap - 4.1 / 5

I had never been to Thailand when I took up the book, but it din't matter because Lapcharoensap is just brilliant at capturing the place though his short stories. The stories have at their heart universal themes but it's drawn in distinctly Thai flavors. The language has a wonderful clarity that brings everyone he writes about alive.Most of the stories have a mix of sadness and hope, and seen mainly from a young person's perspective. It feels like the struggle of leaving behind childhood and it's innocence and straddling between adulthood is part of Thailand trying to define itself.  You get the sense that people are tired of being exploited by the foreigners but are too polite and too dependent to push back. It's hard to pinpoint why it feels so Thai, but it does. It's warm and alive, the stories and you get to bring back some lovely memories of the place and the people with this book.

And now to the Book of the Month. She's one of my favorite writers and her prose is so fine tuned that reading her words is like the feeling of being covered in satin.

The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman - 4.5 / 5

Anne Fadiman's At Large and At Small, a collection of familiar essays, is one of my most read (and loved) books. So, it stood to reason that I should try her book - 'The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures'. The title threw me off. It sounded like a Ph.D thesis report of an anthropologist - dry.  To say I was wrong doesn't even begin to scratch the surface of how wonderful it was. She took a medical case file of a child with epilepsy and turned into a narrative of humanity and it's follies. Most of us like to think of ourselves as broadminded, especially the more educated. But no matter how broad minded we are, we have our blind spots and Fadiman highlights how we ignore them. She explores the two cultures, Hmong and the western medicine dispassionately. Sherwin Nuland said of the account, "There are no villains in Fadiman's tale, just as there are no heroes. People are presented as she saw them, in their humility and their frailty--and their nobility."

It took me almost a year to finish. Not because it's anything less than spectacular, but because it's so wonderfully empathetic to all the pain and human emotions that I found it hard to read it without feeling the pain myself. It can leave you feeling like a raw wound but out of that pain comes compassion and understanding of your prejudices. It opens you up to accepting those with whom you have nothing in common other than humanity. Fadiman proves again and again that she's one of the most underrated and brilliant writers I've ever come across.

Well, that's it for June. Wish you all happy rains and happy reading!
Take care,
Phil!

Book of the month : Apr 2015

Don't blame me, blame the sultry summer for making me lazy and hazy with the heat! And for that same reason April was the month of lazy reading. What's lazy reading? Let me give you a context. There are books you read because they are in your bucket list ( a.k.a most classics); ones you read because they sound interesting ( differs from person to person.. for me it's mostly science, non-fiction and philosophy) and last, the books you read because you are too lazy to exert your brain. The last section, which mainly consists of your 'guilty pleasures' reading ie books which you really really enjoy ( spelled as chick lits, and children's section for me) but would not really admit to reading coz you don't want to dent your persona as a (fraud) intellectual! That's lazy reading! But lazy reading has it's perks too. For one, if you are trying to read 100 books in a year, they definitely help to increase your book count. Two, they might just surprise with unexpected depth.

Lazy reading or not, April was definitely a fulfilling month, reading wise. It was full of magic, wonder, excitement and learning.  In short, it was like an adventure. So without further delay, let's start on the...

The Titan's Curse (Percy Jackson and the Olympians #3) by Rick Riordan - 2.7 / 5

This one is strictly for Percy Jackson fans and everyone else should just stay away. No questions asked. Greek mythology has always been a soft corner and Percy Jackson even more so for me. Other than to my 10 year old nephew ( to up my street cred with him) this is one of my guilty pleasures I don't otherwise openly admit.. until now that is. So yes, I really enjoyed it. But that doesn't stop the book or the story from being a little on the flimsy side. But if you are willing to overlook a certain dicey-ness in character growth and just go with the flow, this one would be ok.

The Battle of the Labyrinth (Percy Jackson and the Olympians #4) by Rick Riordan - 2.8 / 5

Comes with the same warning as the previous one. Actually with a slightly less severe warning perhaps. If you like loads of action in your books, this one is good to go. Super fast paced. Riordan tries to experiment with some deeper themes like 'save earth' but it seemed forced at times. But over all, if you been with Percy, Annabeth and Grover this far, you will enjoy this one too.

A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan - 2.8 / 5

If I had to describe this book in one word, that would be 'underwhelming'. I picked up the book with a lot of expectation, Ms. Egan having won the Pulitzer with this one. And for weird reason I expected it to be like the Goonies. Even though I have not seen the movie and have no idea what it's about other that it being a cult classic.Yeah, dont ask.

But that's not the reason it's disappointing. It's because it's rather unmemorable though it's well written. Of the dozen characters who speak in this book, only a couple of  teenagers stay with you. The rest of the narcissistic, selfish and cynical bunch, all them sort of merge into each other. It's not just their lives which intertwine and connect in odd ways, but their individual motivations and desires also seem to overlap in odd ways. If Egan's purpose was to show us how similar we are even when we think ourselves as snowflakes, I don't think she's been successful in that either. Instead the feeling I came away with was that the characters all seem similar because of their immaturity. Maybe that's why I thought the teenagers seemed the most honest and true. Immaturity is not out of place with a teen. But on the rest of the adults it seemed incongruous. Would recommend you skip this Pulitzer!

PS: It does have a cool chapter written in power point. I'd say skip the rest and just read that!

Natural Acts: A Sidelong View of Science and Nature by David Quammen - 3.5 / 5

Is there every a collections of essay where you read and say all of them were equally brilliant? I'm yet to find one of those. Quammen is at times interesting and at times oddly didactic which is rather at odds with how he presents himself, which is as a layman with a curiosity for science. The description is one I could easily borrow for myself which is why I picked up this one. The initial essays were fun with their counter intuitive logic. He definitely made me look at the crows in new light. Or even wonder whether mosquitoes were actually protecting our rain forests. Then some where in between he lost that quirky sense of humor and it because rather drab. But his style further evolves, into a more serious and thoughtful point of view. And here you again come across some really thought provoking articles with depth. Here the book really challenges you to think how you relate to the world at large. Overall, it's an interesting read and something you can dip into while waiting for a particularly philosophical mood to pass.

Coraline by Neil Gaiman - 3.7 / 5

The book is built with the kind of insidious horror which sort of fully dawns on you just before you close the book. I can't count the number of times as a kid I wanted nicer parents who will give all that I wanted or run away and be adopted by a different set of parents who will appreciate the kind of person I am. But if that was to be true, that it could come with crippling consequences is not something I had thought though as a child. The built up is slow, almost at a sleepy pace though there a vague unease which gnaws at the back of your mind. You almost don't even realise that the unease has grown into panic till Coraline escapes and you exhale a huge sigh of relief. But this is not exactly a horror story in the style of Stephen King ( so no veins frozen with fright ). But if I had read this as a kid, this would rank right along with Chucky (Child's Play) as nightmare material simply because being trapped and unable to reach your loving parents is terrifying. And plus the ending is kind of lovely so would definitely recommend picking it up!

Lady Windermere's Fan by Oscar Wilde - 4.2 / 5

Reading this play made me really wonder if Wilde was really gay like he said he was. I mean it seems ridiculous that a man, that too a gay man, can cut thought straight into a woman's heart with the kind of precision which would make a surgeon envious. His humor and wit aside, it's his grasp of human nature which makes his writing not just fascinating but relevant as long as humanity will exist. If that is not a sign of genius I don't know what is!

The Wondla Series by Tony DiTerlizzi - 4.5 / 5

Picked it up as part of my lazy reading but these surprised me so much. I guess the books would get slotted into Children's books but only because children would enjoy them as well. But I think it's a rather unfair categorization because so often we over look children's book, especially contemporary ones as not being mature enough.

There are 3 books in the series and each one gets better than the last. The gorgeous illustrations by DiTerlizzi alone would make these books a find. The pictures have the kind of clarity and warmth which makes it feel like it's lit from within. But the funny thing is the illustrations, as gorgeous as they are, are only a side to the real beauty in the book.

The characters, both human and alien shine with truth and wisdom. I was genuinely surprised to find myself getting so attached to Eva Nine, the heroine and even minor characters stick to you like burrs. I mean that is the sort of affection I usually reserve for someone like Huckleberry Finn. Someone I have read and loved over and over, every single time I read. Maybe children's books are not your usual pick. Or you have never really like science fiction. But because the magic of a wonderfully written book always stays alive, Wondla is a must read for adults and kids alike!


And finally the Book of the Month goes toooooo....

Moonwalking with Einstein by Joshua Foer  - 4.5 / 5 

While reading this book, I developed such a huge crush on Foer it makes me blush. It reads like a nerdy yet racy novel. The blurb gives vague hints about the contents but it definitely does not prepare you for the fun ride that is this book. It basically follows Foer while he prepares for the U.S. Memory Champion. And while doing so he explore the the concept of memory and the bunch of neurons which helps us remember. So I expected a generous smattering of science but what I did not see coming was the quirky adrenaline pumping narrative of the weirdly hyper competitive world of Memory Championships and how engaging Foer can make it be. It was like a mix of Dan Brown and Big Bang Theory - Funny, entertaining and informative all nicely packaged in a yummy bite of book!

So Until next month, Keep reading!
Take care,
Phil!

Review : 'Younguncle comes to town' by Vandana Singh

Unless you have written a multi-million franchise like Rowling or written classics ( means you are both dead and have a  multi-million franchise) like say Dahl, and you write a brilliant children's book, chances are you are probably not getting your due credit. In the avalanche of Indian writers that's happening in the publishing today, some genuinely talented writers might be getting lost. And I fear something similar might be the fate of Vandana Singh.

 I picked up Younguncle (and yes, it's spelled as one word and is not the lack of spell-check) because I could not sleep thanks to pesky mosquitoes and it seemed small enough and frivolous enough a book to keep me occupied or even guilty of perhaps hoping it'd bore me till my exhausted body gives up and caves in to sleep. What I did not expect was an incredibly engaging, quirky character written with..hmm.. what's the word I'm looking for! Ok, there does seem to be a word in my vocabulary for her particular style. It's disarmingly simple enough for a child to enjoy, yet it's got a certain sneaky sarcasm which makes it the kind of story an adult would love to read as well. It's most definitely not preachy, but it has no qualms about poking fun of our middle class mentality, our everyday what I like to call 'Indianisms' ( which includes our need to know everything about our neighbours and making up English like words by attaching '-isms' at the end).

The stories are exaggerated, as is right in a children's book,with the monkeys and tigers but the human characters are real and relate-able. The people in the book are in parts nosy, generous, worried about what 'society' thinks, greedy and selfish, some more so than others ,which is what makes reading it so much fun. Except Younguncle himself. Though he has blatant disregard for the system , it is not born out of an angry need to rebel ( unlike our bollywood heroes), which makes him the perfect and unbelievably funny foil to our 'Indian'-ness. Especially the part where Younguncle's greatest fear seems to be "settling down" with a "suitable girl" and everyone's need for him to do so was something I could so relate to.

Honestly, I think I'm doing her a grave injustice trying to explain her writing. It reminds me in a vague way, particularly the subtle things communicated in the stories, of C.S Lewis's Screwtape Letters. That was another book which without being preachy and by being incredibly funny gets you thinking.

And I do have a bone to pick with Ms.Singh - on the absolute injustice the blurb is to the book inside. Why, it makes it sound like just another children's book which is so so soooo wrong! Perhaps, she should even consider moving it out of the children's section given how much adults are likely to enjoy it!! And she should get a better illustrator too, someone who captures the spirit of Younguncle and his escapades better ( your round glasses and skinny frame makes me wonder if you yourself might have been the inspiration for the illustrator!! :) )

Anyways, it's been ages since I've enjoyed a children's book so much and for that I have to thank some incredibly quick and aggravatingly annoying mosquitoes!! So looks like everything in life does have a purpose even if you are not able to discern it immediately :-P In the meantime, I can't wait to pick up more of Ms.Singh's books and this time it won't be because I'm looking for a reason to fall asleep!! :-)