The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga

The White Tiger :A Novel

 

By Aravind Adiga 

Paperback: 304 pages 
Publisher: Free Press

Review of the book by Cashmere
The story of Balram Halwai was quite interesting. From a promising student to a human spider in a tea stall the ups and downs of life in the “Darkness” are spelt out with chilling coolness. The matter of fact description of exploitative practices was quite scary. Made you thankful for not being born in the Darkness region which I would consider East Up and Bihar area.

Then leaving the home village for the nearest town the boy decided to better his prospects by learning to drive. The burning ambition to get out of the tea stall rut motivated him to get into that smart driver uniform. There too with his employers he was servant number two. The lowest in the servant hierarchy, a nobody till he figured out the servant number one’s secret.

That secret he exploited to its full and ended up coming to Delhi with his employers. Out of the darkness and into the dusk. A city where Light and Dark both had their place and he was balancing his act between the two. Keeping up an education which came to him from the streets the driver found his very existence threatened when his master decides to replace him with a local driver.

Drastic problems called for desperate measures. A murder and a robbery later the man flees to Bangalore. There again he takes to the streets and pavements to educate himself. As he says each city has its own language, you need to listen to understand what it is saying to you. The solution to his problem lay in the Bangalore concept of outsourcing.

He begins a taxi service for call centers and turns a profit with the seed money that came from a murder. He crosses over from the poor to the rich. He has finally made it to the other side. Although he is trying very hard not to be like his old masters when he deals with his servants. An interesting read and a glimpse into the underbelly of modern India. The difference between the haves and the have-nots is beautifully portrayed in this Booker Prize winner of 2008.

p.s. I Love You by Cecelia Ahern

p.s. I Love You 

 

By Cecelia Ahern

Print Length: 512 pages
Publisher: Harper
Review of the book by Cashmere 

What do you feel like when the man who has been your best friend for 15 years and husband for 7 years dies at the age of 31? That too after struggling with a brain tumor which was not caught in time despite raging headaches? That is what the author of this lovely story explores.

How do you feel when the world wants you to get some fresh air and drink tea, when all you want to do is wish that you could die. When all that you can think of is the past and the future seems impossible? When you wish that you had died with your husband so that you could be together?

As Holly works through her demons she gets by with support from friends and family and most importantly the list that her dead husband left back for her. A single note with a mission for each month after his death till the new year. Notes which she lives for and which have become the center of her attention. How will she cope when all the notes are over?

Its a sentimental and often sad journey of rediscovery for the widow who is missing her husband to the exclusion of the rest of the world. It really gets to you sometimes and yes I cried and yes I had to see the movie after I read the book.

Thank You Prabhjot for lending me this book! I had not heard about it or the movie made out of the novel starring Hillary Swank and Gerald Butler. And if you had not told me I must read it I would have probably missed out on a beautiful although tear jerking story.

Every Writer I Read Influences Me

Ever so often I read a book that has me hanging on to each page to know just what happens next. In my life I must have literally read thousands of books. At my peak I was reading about 15 books a month. I actually had two books going on simultaneously where one would be a classic like the Iliad while the other would be something fast and racy like an Agatha Christie. I would begin with the tougher to read book and flip over for a break to the faster read.

This was in college when I literally had nothing more to do. Naturally being married and having a kid means that I don't have all that much free time today. However without my monthly book fix I do get grumpy. I typically read about 25 books annually even today.Through this blog I intend to pay tribute to my favourite writers by giving book reviews of their books. I intend to do the book reviews in chronological order whenever possible as that's the way I tend to read each author.

At first I'm just going to assemble book reviews that I have written earlier and publish them on this blog. Then I will begin with Nora Roberts' books as I absolutely love reading her work. Even though I never read a romance or mills and boone till I reached 12th class, once I read some Nora Roberts and Donna Clayton I was hooked. I did not miss out on much when I went through the local library collection. Thanks to the internet I was actually able to interview Donna Clayton, which is incidentally a pen name, many years later on Hubpages.

There are many more I will go on to honour through the blog. I hope that my book reviews give you a good idea about the kind of books that you could be reading.If there is a book that you would like reviewed feel free to tell me about it. If I can manage to lay my hands on a physical copy or a kindle version of the book I will be sure to share the book review. Here's looking forward to sharing my literary experiences with you.

Book Review Of "After Abbottabad-Terror to Turmoil in Pakistan" published in Diplomatist October 2012

After Abbottabad – Terror to Turmoil in Pakistan

 

By Anil Bhat

Pentagon Press

200 Pages

Price: Rs 795/-

Review of the book by Cashmere 

The word terror took on a new meaning with the introduction of Osama bin Laden to the world. America’s “Public Enemy Number One” may be dead, but the world he left behind will never be the same again. This book gives us an introduction to the man behind the terrorist attacks that shook our world worse than an earthquake of magnitude 8 on the Richter scale. It offers us a glimpse into bin Laden’s family background and personal traits. The bin Laden family is one of the most prosperous and influential business families in Saudi Arabia, despite its world famous black sheep. It is a portion of this family wealth that financed the religious fanatic dream of the Sheikh.

The book also introduces us to his infamous organization, the Al Qaeda, a name that the western world associates with the most deadly terrorist organization of all time, but which actually and deceptively has a very humble meaning. It literally means “the base.” The author describes the key influences of the more militant Wahhabi Ideology that led to the organization being formed. He also studies in depth the operations that the organization undertook under Osama bin Laden’s leadership.

For many of us Al Qaeda is a known name, but we are often not aware of just what the organization consists of. In this book the author helps us understand the threat offered by Al Qaeda. He explains the leadership, command structure, financing options and activities that the Al Qaeda is associated with. Many of the major terrorist attacks perpetuated by this organization and its field operatives in the last couple of decades are also highlighted.

The game changer amongst these many attacks of terror being the 9/11 attacks in the US, the book includes a step- wise description of the event that shook the world on that day in 2001. The planning an implementation of various stages of the attack on America which led to the destruction of the Twin Towers and damage to the Pentagon is well outlined by the author.

A very important and ominous development is the partnership between Al Qaeda and Pak army, which already steeped in organizing terror, extends its reach and the great irony is that it becomes US’ ‘frontline ally in the war against terror.

The aftermath of 9/11 leading to the “War on Terror” is common knowledge but the inside story of how Osama bin Laden managed to evade the forces after him for the next ten years makes for interesting reading. The execution of the operation which led to the elimination of Osama bin Laden is the stuff action movie scripts are made of. Just how the US Navy Seals moved into the closed compound of the house in Abbottabad which hosted Osama bin Laden and his family members and finally eliminated him.

The Pakistani response to the event and its possible compliance in keeping Osama bin Laden safe while he was on the run from the US forces is also explored. The family drama that ensued with Osama bin Laden’s surviving family after the attack on the Abbottabad house has been brought out. His surviving wives and children in Pakistan are in the unique position where the country wishes to send them away but their host nations are far from ready to accept them back into their fold with open arms. The legal mess over their extradition is going to take some time to solve. Interviews of his wives have also indicated that the ISI was well aware of where the family fled and hid during the time that US forces chased them. This may well have been the reason why the US kept the Pakistani forces uninformed of their final operation to take out Osama bin Laden.

The turmoil that came about within Pakistan in terms of immediate physical repercussions and led to the murder of the bold journalist Syed Saleem Shahzad explores the volatile situation that terrorism related activities have caused in the country. There is no doubt that Pakistan was caught napping by the operation launched by the United States. It is clear that the equation between the two countries will never reach the same comfort level ever again.

The United States is definitely not as pleased with Pakistan as an ally as it used to be, but at the same time it cannot totally break this alliance with a clean cut. It will have to continue a close, but guarded relationship with its former bosom pal. It has already reduced the financial aid that was being doled out top Pakistan. Unfortunately this is not enough for India as the threat of covert terrorism and overt war with its neighbor has in no way lessened since the incident. India’s activities to help rebuild infrastructure in Afghanistan is also unacceptable to Pakistan.

The fall of the Taliban government in 2011 in Afghanistan snapped the bonds of power between Kabul and Islamabad. The departure of the bulk of the NATO forces from the region next year will render it highly volatile and unstable. The Taliban will try to regain lost ground and its Pakistani supporters will do all that they can to help. The acts of terror continue like dogs snapping at the heels of the present Afghan government.

Another matter of concern for India is the growing bond between China and Pakistan. China is backing Pakistan with technology and political support. Pakistan has its own agenda to recover lost ground, both domestically and internationally. While India’s stand on terror from across the border may be vindicated it is still by no means safer than before. If anything the situation today is even more unpredictable and deadly than before.

The future of Pakistan, Afghanistan, and India are very much interwoven. Until there is a step down in terror activities and a demolition of terrorist groups like the Al Qaeda and Taliban, the world will not rest easy. Unfortunately the terror groups that are fragmented across the globe still retain the ability to strike hard and effectively against any nation on earth. India remains fated to live with the uncertainty of volatile neighbours, for a long time to come. All it can really do is maintain a strong defensive position and ward off whatever attack may come next to its shores maintains the author.


The writer is Senior Correspondent, WordSword Features

Toon Doo

Have you always wanted to draw comic strips but been impaired because you couldn't draw to save your life? Well fear not my friend, its Toon DOO to the rescue. This is a website that has both paid and free memberships. You can make a single character, or a entire comic book using their tools.

Here's the first strip I came up with.