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Date Published : March 16, 2015 Publisher : Patridge Publishing Pages : 180 Source : Review copy provided by Nikitha Hing...
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Saturday, 11 April 2015
Date Published: December 22, 2014
Publisher: Leadstart Publishing Pvt. Ltd.
Pages: 85
Format: Paperback
Goodreads Synopsis
The protagonist is about to turn forty, belongs to a rich and
affluent family, lives a luxurious life but feels discontented because he
believes that the world is ruled by fake moral values and suffocating bondages.
He leaves everything and migrates to Kolkata to live a creative and meaningful
life. He goes through many funny experiences in Kolkata in his quest to know
what the real meaning of life is. He meets Debolina, an upscale prostitute, who
loves to listen to his poems while making love. She tells him about many truths
of life and finally he has the panacea for his confusions and doubts.
My Review
What would
you call a rich man in his forty who leaves his family, job and career only to
live a creative and meaningful life in Kolkata? Impractical? A dreamer? But,
Sanjay Chitranshi in his book, ‘Poetic Penetrations’, asks, is it sin to dream?
Well, Sanjay
Chitranshi’s protagonist not only does leave everything behind – his job,
family and life – but also shifts to Kolkata and lives among unknown people to
pursue a creative and meaningful life. As soon as I finished reading the book,
I could come up with only one sentence which sums up the essence of this entire
book – this is one such book which will cut across your heart and make you
bleed.
And here’s
why:
Story of
Poetic Penetrations is probably the most unique one I have ever read. As soon
as I read the blurb of the book, I knew I had to get my hands on it for two
reasons: the book is set in Kolkata and, second, it is about the meaning of
life. And, Sanjay Chitranshi didn’t disappoint me. His story deals with many
incidences from Kolkata and paints a perfect picture of the city. His story has
humor, emotions, thoughts on different issues and everything else which makes
it a perfect story. When it comes to the meaning of life, at least according to me,
happiness comes into the picture. In his book Sanjay perfectly deals with loneliness,
happiness and in the end, the meaning of life.
Perhaps the
most fascinating thing about the book is the language. Sanjay Chitranshi, an alumnus
of IIT Roorkee, has done magic with his simple language in just 80 pages what
rest of the authors couldn’t in more than 300 plus page books. His poetic
language penetrates the walls of the prejudiced and imperfect world questioning
the very foundation of our existence – happiness, morality and meaning of life –
and leaves its readers flabbergasted. Apart from few type mistakes, which
hardly hindered my reading, Sanjay’s language is to be noted by new and
emerging authors.
Probably the
most unique feature of this book is spontaneous thoughts of author running
spontaneously, yet smoothly and steadily, throughout the book. His narration in
the first person, moves throughout the book flawlessly like a river flows through
mountains; patiently and unhindered. The book’s narration kind of reminded me
of James Joyce’s work.
His subtle
yet effective way of directly dealing with social issues – from prostitution,
publishing industry, education system to the meaning of life – makes the book,
a must read! And for that reason, Sanjay’s book, ‘Poetic Penetrations’,
reminded me of one of the quotes on books by Franz Kafka.
This is one
such book for me!
Will Sanjay
Chintranshi’s protagonist find happiness among the unknown people? Will he find
someone to share his loneliness with? Will he ever find true meaning of his
life?
As an
author, book reviewer, poet and reader, I sincerely request Sanjay sir for a
sequel! I look forward to reading the sequel of ‘Poetic Penetrations’.
Note: I sincerely
apologize to Sanjay Chitranshi for the delay in reviewing this wonderful book.
But, I believe that a book such as this one deserves a book review which does
justice to it. For that exact reason, the delay was caused in the reviewing
this book.
~RP
Saturday, 4 April 2015
Date Published: March 16, 2015
Publisher: Patridge Publishing
Pages: 180
Source: Review copy provided by Nikitha Hingad
Format: Ebook (PDF)
Goodreads Synopsis
Just like the title suggests Philia and Sophia
is a compilation of poems and writings on love and wisdom. The compilation
consists of of well-crafted poems written in diamat , haiku, sonnet and free
style of poetry. Philia is a set of heart touching poems with ubiquitous themes
like proposal, betrayal and memories. Sophia on the other hand leaves reader
with a message, a moral and inspiration for better living. Sophia makes reader
really think and Philia makes reader feel. Philia and Sophia intend to touch the
heart, soul and stir deep thoughts.
My Review
“Tell
no one what you are.
Just show them who you are.
Action speaks louder than words.
Pens are mightier than swords.”
Just show them who you are.
Action speaks louder than words.
Pens are mightier than swords.”
~Nikitha
Hingad
Nikitha Hingad’s poetry book, Philia and
Sophia, is a collection of breathtaking poems and writings on love and wisdom
and she has indeed proven that pens are mightier than swords. Her book caught
my attention when I read the blurb of the book on Goodreads and, as soon as I did,
I knew I was going to have the time of my life reading it.
As a poetry lover, I love picking up books or
poems from various authors from various parts of the world. When I found out
about the book Philia and Sophia, I decided to contact Nikitha Hingad Ma’am
right away. As soon as I got my hands on Ebook through Nikitha ma’am, I
observed that the book is divided into two parts: Philia and Sophia. Philia is
a collection of poems and writings on various aspects of love and related
emotions such as betrayal, heartbreaks, longing, proposal etc. , whereas, Sophia
is a collection of poems and writings on wisdom, morals, inspiration. In the
introductory pages, Nikitha ma’am explains beautifully what the word ‘Philia’
means and to quote her,
“Philia is the lover in me, in you, in everyone.”
In the introductory pages, Nikitha ma’am also explains
in mysterious way , what the word ‘Sophia’ means and to quote her,
“Sophia is a mysterious woman whose thoughts are wise.”
To speak of the language of the poems and
writings in the book, I really enjoyed reading her poems for the simplicity of the
language and the depth of wisdom. Her poems and writings travelled deep beneath
the sea using the simplest language I have ever read and left me enthralled. Her
words, simple and subtle, pierced through my heart and soul and touched the
very core or the center of my existence.
For the very reasons mentioned above, I really
enjoyed reading almost all of the poems from the book. But, to point a few
favorites, I would say, ‘Love’, ‘Departed’, ‘Hugs & Kisses’, ‘Chosen one’, ‘Self
esteem’, ‘ Negative emotions’, ‘Hands’, ‘Life’, ‘Pens are mightier than swords’,
‘Beyond religion’, ‘The art of living’ and fear.
One of the most fascinating and unique feature
of this book is Nikitha Hingad has herself illustrated few poems. You would
never expect a poet to be such a beautiful sketch artist and vice-versa. But,
Nikitha Hingad is the exception. Her illustrations, simple and graceful, were
very touching and deep and left a lifelong impression on me. They did in fact
help me understand her writings better as she mentions she intended to do in
the Preface of the book. If you ask me, the illustration before the poem ‘Departed’
and ‘Hugs and Kisses’, ‘I walk alone’ are my personal favorites.
I rate this wonderful collection of poems and
writings 3.5 out of 5. This book is a recommended to all the poetry lovers who
wish to enjoy a collection of poetries on various subjects. Original sketches
in between the poems are unique and make the book more interesting to read. There’s
definitely a lot to learn from this book and so I recommend it to all the
amateur poetry readers and writers. To all the readers, who are not truly
poetry lovers or afraid whether they will understand poems or not, I must
recommend this book for its simple language and deeper meaning.
I’m truly
thankful to Nikitha Hingad ma’am for giving me the opportunity to read and
review this wonderful collection of poems and writings, Philia and Sophia.
~RP
Tuesday, 31 March 2015
Date Published: January 20, 2015
Publisher: Gargi Publisher
Pages: 160
Source: Review copy provided by Sandeep Sharma
Format: Paperback
Goodreads Synopsis
From childhood, the world in which we live,
teaches us to bury our ‘bad’ past somewhere deep inside us, so deep, that even
we can’t dig it back and after that just move on.
What happens when a 10 year old child, who claims to be your future son, comes toyou to help you find a perfect match for his
mother? What happens when eventually you start to doubt on his intentions? What
happens when a girl starts to turn your dreams into nightmares? What happens
when your ‘Future son’ starts to haunt you? What happens when your FUTURE
starts to bleed in your PRESENT through your PAST?
‘Hey Dad! Meet My Mom!!!’ is nothing less than a roller coaster ride of comedy, fear, love and don't forget to expect the unexpected!
What happens when a 10 year old child, who claims to be your future son, comes to
‘Hey Dad! Meet My Mom!!!’ is nothing less than a roller coaster ride of comedy, fear, love and don't forget to expect the unexpected!
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23911468-hey-dad-meet-my-mom?from_search=true
My Review
A
couple of days ago, I found out about this amazing book called, Hey Dad! Meet
My Mom… Written by Sandeep Sharma and Leepi Agrawal. As soon as I read the
blurb of this book, I knew I had to get my hands on it. There was something
strangely beautiful and scary about this book’s title which intrigued me. I
knew I just had to contact authors for review copy. One of the authors, Sandeep
Sharma, was kind enough to courier me a review copy of this book and that’s
when I embarked on the journey of this wonderful story.
If
you ask me, the USP of Hey Dad! Meet My Mom is the story. This story is
probably the most fascinating stories I have ever read. The story of HDM3
starts with a prologue, giving us the slightest hint of what is coming our way,
but leaves us completely guessing at every turn and in utter shock throughout
the book. The incidents taking place in the story are so unpredictable that you
will never be able to guess what’s going to happen next. The story of HDM3 is
like a dream; like a dream, it takes over our mind slowly and steadily with
light humor and lollipop and later turns our imagination upside down leaving us
baffled and confused at what’s going to happen next.
The
most fascinating feature of this book is the dreams. The protagonist sees dreams
or nightmares to be precise, in his sleep, which leaves him baffled and in fear
and the way these dreams or nightmares have been incorporated in the book was
my personal favorite part of the book. The dreams have a meaning, they say. In
HDM3, dreams play a vital role. Without dreams, story of HDM3 would have felt
like a body without soul. The manner in which authors have written the dreams
or nightmares have seriously left me speechless.
Another
fascinating feature of this book is original poems which go along with the
story and the theme of the book. I really enjoyed the poem with which the novel
ends. Every chapter comes with a few original verses which were very unique and
interesting. For a poetry lover, this was a bonus! The authors have done seriously
great job with original poems. Kudos to them!
But,
one thing I didn’t really like about the book was the staleness of the language
and the metaphors. Both the writers are still young and they have written a
really good story. But, somewhere, the language and the metaphors failed to do
justice, to the story. I kept wishing for paragraphs or sentences which I could
mark as the noteworthy, but, I came empty handed. All I can say is that,
there’s still scope for improvement in the language of both the authors.
I
would rate this wonderful book 3 out of 5 for the unpredictable story and the
original poems written by the author. This book is recommended for all the book
lovers who enjoy a light read during travelling or for those who love reading
on a weekend night tucked in bed. This book is recommended to everyone who
loves a good story with humor, romance, and mystery. And last but not the
least, this is a book recommended to all the boys whose mothers are probably
looking for a bride.
Huge
thanks to Sandeep Sharma for the review copy!
~RP
Tuesday, 24 March 2015
Date Published: November, 2014
Pages: 262
Source: Review copy provided by Jyoti Arora
Format: Kindle Edition
Goodreads Synopsis
'It's all your fault.'
Mere
In a society that finds it easier to mark sins of a victim than the culprit, Nirvi is a young girl punishing herself for the faults she did not do and avenging her hurts by defeating her own truth.
"When it's time for you to fall in love, even a
But can love survive, when even the self love dies
First 12 chapters of the book are now available as free download at:
http:// www.jyotiarora.c om/lemon-girl
http://
My Review
"A young, pretty, confident and gracious girl with a dream in her
eyes and last but not the least, a story behind her smile"
Although I wrote these words almost a year ago, I still
remember them as if I just came across them. The reason why I’m bringing the
caption up again from the past is these words: 'Story behind her smile'. While I
read ‘Lemon Girl’ by Jyoti Arora, I was gripped with curiosity, like darkness
grips the night and, the question reverberated in my body and soul was what the
story behind Nirvi’s smile is? Lips which purse just too perfectly to bring out
the most perfect smile must surely be a lie and, deep down, under the bottom of
the ocean, the truth awaits to be discovered. As I read on, I found out there’s
indeed a great story behind that smile.
‘Lemon Girl’ by Jyoti Arora is a great Indian story of a
great Indian woman, Nirvi, the lead character of the book. The dance of sorrow
in Nirvi's eyes and the emptiness of her smile ignited the curiosity of not
only Arsh, the lead male character of the book, but also me. What happened to
Lemon Girl, I wondered. This is where Jyoti Arora didn't disappoint me. Jyoti
Arora weaves a mystery around this very question and takes just the perfect
time to reveal the truth. Just as a cocoon takes just the perfect time to turn
into a beautiful butterfly, Jyoti Arora reveals the mystery of Nirvi at the
right place and right time. And, then Jyoti Arora's story unfolds like a night ;
it falls slowly calming our souls and then, takes us through the darkest and
scariest nights of our lives and, in the end, as the dawn appears, leaves us
with tears in eyes and hopes in our hearts.
One of the most fascinating features of the novel is the
narration of the story. Jyoti Arora, with her two weapons, a Post Graduate in
English Literature and Applied Psychology, narrates the story shifting between
two lead characters Nirvi and Arsh’s point of views smoothly and narrates the
psychology of both the characters. Jyoti Arora does justice to both the characters
perfectly, especially to Nirvi, a girl with a troubled past . I really enjoyed the
parts where Nirvi narrated the story. In fact, that was my favorite part of the
narration – Nirvi’s narration.
Not only the novel but also a fantastic first page
Dedication of Jyoti Arora left me speechless.
Jyoti Arora, a feminist, I assume, couldn’t have chosen
better words than this to dedicate the book to Indian women when she says,
“In earlier times, Indian women suffered in the name of culture. Now it’s
being done in the name of loss of culture.”
Hardly had I read this very first line of her dedication,
when I knew I had the ‘best book of the year’ in my hands.
Well, I have a dedication myself to all the ladies who fell
victims to the cruel hands of lust; to all the ladies who are brave and
determined to live a respectable life in this unfair world; to all those who
are broken, crawling in the dust, helpless and suffering; and last but not the
least, to the ‘Lemon Girl’ and the ‘Caption Girl’. I borrow words from Maya
Angelou’s poetry, ‘I Rise’, and let her words be my dedication:
“You may write me down in history
With your bitter, twisted lies,
You may tread me in the very dirt
But still, like dust, I’ll rise.
.
Did you want to see me broken?
Bowed head and lowered eyes?
Shoulders falling down like teardrops.
Weakened by my soulful cries.
.
You may shoot me with your words,
You may cut me with your eyes,
You may kill me with your hatefulness,
But still, like air, I’ll rise.
.
I rise
I rise
I rise.”
Will Nirvi ever rise from the dirt? Will Nirvi’s smile ever
be back? Will Nirvi earn respect in this unfair world? Will she ever fulfill her
dreams?
Read ‘Lemon Girl’ by
Jyoti Arora to find out…
Lemon Girl by Jyoti Arora deserves a rating of 5 out of 5!
She showed me the mirror of an imperfect world and the beauty of love in the same
book and for that she deserves full marks! I recommend this book to every
Indian men and women, to every parent, children, grandparents, in fact, to
every Indian. This is a book recommended to all feminists and victims of cruel
hands of lust. I assure you, you will have a great time reading this book.
~RP
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Saturday, 14 March 2015
Date Published: February 4, 2015
Publisher: Jaico
Pages: 404
Source: Review copy provided by Blogadda
Format: Paperback
Goodreads Synopsis
Shattered Dreams is the sequel to the national bestseller, Rise of the Sun Prince, in the new spiritual and motivational series Ramayana - The Game of Life. Twelve joyful years have passed in Ayodhya since the wedding of Rama and Sita at the end of Book 1.
Now, in Shattered Dreams, Shubha Vilas narrates the riveting drama of Rama’s exile. Through tales of Rama’s unwavering and enigmatic persona, the book teaches us how to handle reversals positively; through Bharata’s actions, it teaches us to handle temptation; and through Sita’s courage, to explore beyond our comfort zone. This complicated family drama provides deep insights on how human relationships work and how they fail.
With Valmiki’s Ramayana as its guiding light, Shattered Dreams deftly entwines poetic beauty from the Kamba Ramayana and Ramacharitramanas, as well as folk philosophy
My Review
Ramayana and Mahabharata are the epic
mythological tales known to many and have been told and re-told many a times.
But, even if we are aware of these epic tales, have we really understood them
completely? Have we really gone through the details of each and every incident
that takes place and took lessons from them? Have we really discovered the hidden
psychological gems from the epic tales? Have we ever walked into, not only
shoes but also skin of , each one of the Ramayana’s characters and understood
why they did what they did?
No? Well, don’t worry! Shubha Vilas,
a spiritual seeker and motivational speaker, has done it for us.
‘Shattered Dreams’, written by Shubha
Vilas, is the sequel to the national bestseller, ‘Rise of the Sun Prince’ and
is a part of series, ‘Ramayana - The Game of Life.’ To be honest, I was a
little skeptical about the book but, Shubha Vilas’s book has come to me as a
huge surprise and left a lifelong impression on me. And here’s why:
Shubha Vilas has dived in deeper in
the vast ocean of knowledge from the Ramayana and has touched every stone which
was left unturned for all these years. He has presented it to us in his book in
simple and lucid language and has left us bewildered at the knowledge, the
perspectives, and the management skills that can be learnt from the epic tale
of Ramayana. These lessons and skills are also useful in day-to-day life, especially for managers and can be applied to personal relationships. Shubha
Vilas has done what most Ramayana versions probably failed to do all these
years and has left me, someone who never read mythology genre books, completely
hooked to the book. I found myself in utter disbelief that I too enjoyed a
mythology genre book.
Shubha Vilas has done a great job in
carefully arranging chapters and each chapter has innumerable footnotes giving
us the depth missing from the epic tale all these years. If you ask me, footnotes
presented in the book are probably the most prominent feature of this book.
The best part about Shubha Vilas’s book
is the language. His language flows smoothly throughout the book and his words
flow like a river flows through the mountain ranges but only to meet the vast
ocean in the end as if to give a complete sense of satisfaction to his readers.
His words and sentences not only tell an epic tale of Ramayana but also send
his readers in trance!
This book is recommended to all the
readers who want to swim in the vast ocean of psychological depth Shubha Vilas
has explored in the epic tale of Ramayana in very simple and unique language.
In fact, I would recommend readers to get a copy of book one and two and the
entire upcoming series as this is the knowledge and the depth we all have been
waiting for inside the epic tale of Ramayana.
Having said all that, it is just a
formality now to rate this wonderful book by Shubha Vilas. I rate this wonderful
book 4 out of 5 for surprising me with its wonderful insights and giving me a
complete sense of satisfaction by the end of this book.
Huge Thanks to Blogadda for Review copy!
This review is a part of the biggest Book Review Program for Indian Bloggers.
Participate now to get free books!
~RP
Tuesday, 3 March 2015
The Unbreakable You
It is a story of a young girl who faces the toughest test of time and goes through a series of events which shatter her world. She goes through the loss of someone dear and when this wasn't enough she becomes a victim of lust and betrayal by someone she never imagined even in her wildest dreams.
But the story isn't just stating a series of events, the girl goes through, but goes one step further into the mind of the girl who has lost all hopes of ever becoming whole again. This story not only gives you insights into the broken hearted girl, but also questions, to my surprise, 'true meaning of life'.
'Her Diary', a story of a young and vibrant girl, Miss Ruchi Rai, gripped me like darkness grips the night and in that infinite darkness, her protagonist still looks for a ray of hope.
Can she pick up the pieces of her broken heart and become whole again? Can she find her 'ray of hope' in the midst of infinite darkness which surrounds her? Can she ever find happiness in an unfair world? Well, read 'Her Diary' by Miss Ruchi Rai to find out more.
You can buy 'The Unbreakable You' by Write India Publishers from Amazon at surprisingly low prices.
Amazon:
http://www.amazon.in/dp/9384180343
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