Tag: Book Reviews

The Covenant of Water: Abraham Verghese

~ Jeemol ~ Leave a comment

Abraham Verghese’s novel is about a family in Kerala living among the backwaters and canals, but for whom water is an anathema, vehemently disliked! With my Malayalee background I was amazed at the idea that persons in Kerala were afraid of the water? Abraham Verghese’s novel is about a family in Kerala living among the rivers, backwaters and canals, but for whom water is an anathema, vehemently disliked! With my Malayalee background I was amazed at the idea that persons in Kerala were afraid of the water? Read ‘The Covenant of Water’ to understand this ‘condition’.

The Golden Rule: Value of Silence versus Speaking up on Mental Health

~ Jeemol ~ 3 Comments

The Golden Rule: Value of Silence versus Speaking up on Mental Health. While 'maintaining silence' may have been a culture of the older generation, the millennial seems to wear their emotions on their sleeves. The minute to minute expression of thought, love, hope, despair, elation, the mundane on open sites for all ‘friends’ to see and read, is the new way of life. Does this help to maintain a mental balance?

‘The Door’ by Magda Szabo: Story of an intense psychological relationship

~ Jeemol ~ 1 Comment

'The Door' is a novel by Magda Szabo, a Hungarian writer. I was struck by the similarity in the climax to the Hindi writer Yashpal's short story 'Parda'. In both the stories when tragedy strikes, 'the door' and the 'parda', meaning curtain, drop or are torn apart, leaving the stark reality staring in the face of the spectators and the reader.

HOMO DEUS – Yuval Noah Harari’s scary Crystal Gazing in the face of COVID19

~ Jeemol ~ 5 Comments

Homo Deus is a fascinating account of what can become of Homo sapiens with the expanding frontiers of science and the new technology such as, bio engineering, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and machine learning. Harari predicts that the human agenda will focus on how to counter old age, remain in a permanent state of happiness and being Homo Deus, God!

All Things Bright and Beautiful

~ Jeemol ~ 3 Comments

On one of our periodic visits to the local bookstore Crossword I picked up a novel "The Signature of All Things" by Elizabeth Gilbert. It was from one of my favourite genre, with powerful woman characters, detailed and well researched themes. This time the theme of the story turned out to be botany! I never knew that the author … Continue reading All Things Bright and Beautiful

Arundhati Roy’s Ministry of Utmost Sadness

~ Jeemol ~ 5 Comments

Arundhati Roy’s second novel “Ministry of Utmost Happiness” is not happy at all. A story that begins and ends in a graveyard can hardly be happy! Did not understand why she chose this title. In twenty years since she wrote her first novel “The God of Small Things”, she has definitely seen a lot of … Continue reading Arundhati Roy’s Ministry of Utmost Sadness

Pages Out of The Golden Notebook

~ Jeemol ~ 2 Comments

The Golden Notebook by Doris Lessing won the Nobel Prize in 2007 in literature. The book was written and published in 1962. It records the life of Anna Wuff and her experiences with the communist movements in South Rodhesia and United Kingdom. One of  the most fascinating books I have read, Doris Lessing style is … Continue reading Pages Out of The Golden Notebook

The World of Shadow Lines

~ Jeemol ~ 5 Comments

An early novel by my favourite author Amitav Ghosh ‘The Shadow Lines’ (1988) is a rather rambling story about two families from Dhaka (now in Bangladesh) who moved to India and the UK. His later novels mastered this art of a wide sweep across time and space. I have read all his novels with great … Continue reading The World of Shadow Lines

Inside Out on Creativity!

~ Jeemol ~ 5 Comments

The animation movie "Inside Out", Disney Pixar, was sheer genius, Ideation on the working of the mind of a little girl Riley! The characters in the film are not the girl or her friends, but her five emotions: Joy (the heroine), Sadness (the villainous turning heroine), Anger, Fear and Disgust. These emotions fight it out within her mind while the … Continue reading Inside Out on Creativity!