14 books till date in this year.
For someone who was languishing at six books till September, the month of October was unbelievably productive. Seven books in one month. I have never ever done this before. Was proud last month. Of course, foolishly thought I could repeat the feat this month too; I have finished just one book. Anyway, a feat is a feat and I should be happy about that.
Too many books have been read without posting reviews. It becomes more and more difficult to jot the thoughts now – once the emotions, ideas fade away. I probably will do what I did a couple of times earlier – post two-line reviews of the books just so as to keep up the writing.
Bridget Jones’s Diary – A delightful book by Helen Fielding. Most of us would have already seen the movie and many dismiss it as soppy romantic movie but like most books that turn into movies, a film can only show so much. The book on the other hand gives an insight to the neurotic, funny character that Bridget Jones is. The humour is so sharp and many LoL moments in there. It was such a great way to peek into the English minds and their anxieties, aspirations. Of course, inspired by the great Jane Austin, I would presume.
Light and fun, with some poignant moments, this was a very good read.
Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman – A collection of short stories by Haruki Murakami.
Murakami always has this unsettling feeling on me - it is good and bad. Good because it makes me think in directions that are not usual for my mind. Bad because I love a good story with a solid ending. Open endings are fine as long as they still give a sense of completeness. One feels very disappointed when one hasn’t figured out the ending and nothing feels satisfactory (our own limits, I agree, still)
Around 24 stories and most of them have an unusual story line. The ‘Crabs’ was horrific (the story line, not the writing) and I can’t forget the revulsion thanks to my overactive imagination. Another story ‘Man-Eating Cats’ was something that hit me about a man and woman’s relationship outside of their respective marriages. How strange are we humans – never satisfied.
For Murakami lovers, this book is a usual. Different, original and many a times shocking. For others, this is a book that can wake you up from your run-of-the-mill life and make you think. What you think, is up to you.
Etta and Otto and Russel and James - Emma Hooper
A book from the magical realism genre, this one is about three people and a coyote named James. At eighty-three, Etta decides she has to see the ocean since she has never seen one in her life, and walks away (literally, on foot) from her home and husband Otto towards the sea.
There are some good parts in this book, some wonderful writing as well, yet, on the whole it fails somewhere. I kept hoping something to happen – something life-changing perhaps, in Etta’s journey, or even in the reader’s mind.
The Likeness – Tana French
I had not read Tana French before and I had heard so much about her writing. This book justifies the hype. She is a brilliant writer – creates such vivid and unforgettable characters, interesting scenes – you would want to live in that world for ever. It forays into portraying and understanding human relationships – especially into the theme of friendship.
A crime/thriller novel where the cops find a dead body of a woman who is an exact copy, a doppleganger of Cassie Maddox, one of the detectives in the force. The problem is that the killed woman used an old undercover identity of Cassie and they have no idea why or if the assault was aimed at Cassie.
Though the premise is a bit too far-fetched, it is an extremely engrossing book which does not stick to crime solving alone.
Mini reviews to be continued…
