Booked For Life

Books can be dangerous. The best ones should be labeled "This could change your life."

- Helen Exley

My blog template is enough to indicate my love for books and reading. It is the only thing keeping me sane these days when I am cooped up at home with nothing particular to do. I take to books as a fish to water and should anyone attempt to separate me from my love, it is met with disastrous consequences.

I was none of those boisterous, screaming, mischief- mongering child and hence was any parent's dream come true. Never had I, in my living memory, thrown a tantrum over something or embarrassed my parents by indulging in naughty fun. When I look back now, I think I was more of an observer- keen to see everything but with a step back so as not to get too involved, though I can say this trait got buried as I grew up. I was content reading the newspaper and when everyone was having a siesta at noon, I used to pull out the children's magazines (Champak, Gokulam etc.) and enter my own fantasy world. One of my favorite hobbies was writing down the words I heard on television and get it corrected from father. Then those words would be consulted in the dictionary for their proper meaning and used/abused in everyday life till it was imprinted on my mind.

There have been times when I am reading a book and a particular paragraph or phrase has mirrored my very own situation. This accidental stumbling turns out to be a savior during my rough patches or when I am just feeling low. I just clutch the books and thank my lucky stars for giving me a sign resolving my predicament. I don't boast of a collection because I have relied heavily on borrowing and books off Thane or Andheri station but I do plan to start buying them once I start earning which is an era away.

Just like a mother who wouldn't discriminated between her own kids, I can't name one single book which I adore. I love my kids equally whether it is Paulo Coelho's The Alchemist or The Harry Potter series or Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki to name a few. Let's just say that everyone has given me a hand while I climbed the wall of happiness and knowledge and when I looked down, they all smile indulgently at me, ready to hold me should I ever come crashing down.

But you know why I am in love with books? Because no matter how much time has elapsed and even if you forget them, the books always greet you warmly and not scoff for ignoring them. But the best part is they are the only constants in my life- the people around me will change but the characters and teachings of the book will stand the test of time.

Trust me, I have seen enough chameleons in my life to make me conclude no human is trustworthy(though I still deviate from this principle regularly). So on those bad days when I am exasperated at how much situations and people change, there is this one assurance that somethings in life will always be the same.

Twilight review

I have now begun to sympathize with all the office going women who are my fellow train commuters. I often see them peeling off or cutting veggies in train and I often used to wonder how someone can find twenty four hours as inadequate. This was until I arrived in my last year of engineering. From what I know, those in B.E. rarely meet the requisite attendance of 75% and it is not without a valid reason. Juggling between company interviews and preparing for numerous entrance tests while at the same time completing innumerable assignments is a mean feat to achieve. But then I realized it is not that easy to bunk lectures without risking a trip to H.O.D. Sir or Principal Sir’s office and listen to an hour-long battering. So better sense prevailed and I decided not to get onto the wrong side of college rules and the outcome is that I have little time for myself. It is a real struggle as I try hard not to resemble an undernourished kid with sunken cheeks and a constant expression of listlessness pasted on my face.
In all this, my reading habits have gone for a toss. I was lucky enough to read Twilight by Stephanie Mayer. After the Harry Potter series concluded, Twilight was expected to replicate the success of the book on The Boy Who Lived. Though it did not produce the expected frenzy, but still the book is good enough to be recommended. I got to admit it now that I am sucker for love stories. I was under criticism for praising Love Aaj Kal movie, but what the hell! I loved the love story in it. So I can be a bit biased towards Twilight because of the romantic angle but the story is much more than that.
I won’t give away spoilers but my friend described the story with a really interesting example ‘It’s like you have got a pani-puri in your hand and can’t eat it’. I mean nothing else could describe the situation this well yaar. The guy is a vampire who drinks human blood and the girl is a human being. Worst of all, the girl is crazy about him. Having a pani-puri in your hand and not eating it is bad enough, but the situation gets worse when the sumptuous meal is chasing you… So all you got to do is open your mouth and yum….. Poor guy. Must be possessing a lot of willpower to resist her.
All in all, Twilight is a must read. With the relative lull in the literary scene, this book makes for some good reading.

The Alchemist- Paulo Coelho’s bestselling novel has continued to inspire and awe readers across the globe. With his books translated in more than 39 languages, he has fascinated readers with his writing which imparts in us a greater understanding of our self and that of the universe. With the hard-hitting and universal truth presented in his book, The Alchemist is surely on my list of ‘Books to Read before You Die’. Here are a few quotes from his famed novel:

At a certain point in our lives, we lose control of what's happening to us, and our lives become controlled by fate. That's the world's greatest lie.
p. 18

There is one great truth on this planet: whoever you are, or whatever it is that you do, when you really want something, it's because that desire originated in the soul of the universe.... The soul of the world is nourished by people's happiness.
p. 22

When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it. (my personal favourite)
p. 22

At that point in their lives, everything is clear and everything is possible.They are not afraid to dream, and to yearn for everything they would like to see happen to them in their lives. But, as time passes a mysterious force begins to convince them that it will be impossible for them to realize their destiny.

If good things are coming, they will be a pleasant surprise," said the seer. "If bad things are, and you know in advance, you will suffer greatly before they even occur.
p. 102

Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself. And no heart has ever suffered when it goes in search of its dream.
p. 130

There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure.
p. 141

What happens once will never happen again. But what happens twice will surely happen a third time.
p. 156


...And that dream, day by day, became less important. May be cause it wasn't really his dream
Don't think about what you've left behind.
If what one finds is made of pure matter, it will never spoil. If what you had found was only a moment of light, like the explosion of a star, you would find nothing on your return.
It's not often that money saves a person's life.
It is said that the darkest hour of the night comes just before the dawn.
If I am really part of your dream, you will come back one day.
Fatima

May love be your guide in every moment of your life.
As he mused about these things, he realised that he had to choose between thinking of himself as the poor victim of a thief and as an adventurer in quest of his treasure
The desert takes our dreams away from us, and they don't always return. We know that, and we are used to it. Those who don't return become a part of the clouds, a part of the animals that hide in the ravines and of the water that comes from the earth. They become part of everything... They become the soul of the world.
Fatima

Understanding Harry Potter

Well as you might have guessed from the previous post, I am down with Harry Potter fever. With the last installment of the Harry Potter series and the film based on the fifth book ‘Harry Potter and The Order of Phoenix’ releasing one after another, it is a treat for all of Harry Potter fans. Many might depressed about the series coming to an end, but as they say, all good things have to come to an end.

For more than a decade, the bespectacled orphan boy has managed to capture the attention of thousands of readers and has continued to maintain its faithful base of fans. Google the word ‘Harry Potter’ and you will get approximately hits. J.K.Rowling has, in a way, revived the dying habit of reading. Many critics might dismiss this idea, but they themselves have no explanation as to how these books have set a record for themselves. Fans line up since midnight to get the first copy of the latest installment and then they finish it off by reading it for hours at a stretch. In less than a few hours, websites dedicated to Harry Potter carry spoiler warnings for the plot as the fans quite animatedly discuss about the plot and characters.

So I wonder, what is it that endears ‘The Boy who Lived’ and his best buddies- Ron and Hermione, to the readers? At least there is a partial explanation to this. According to a research, the reason for success of books of authors such as Enid Blyton and J.K. Rowling lies in the way they use simplicity of language. As many might have noticed, both these authors have used simple, lucid language in their works which triggers certain biochemical reactions which in turn keeps the reader hooked. Simple language has got to do everything with their success.

Another reason for success of Harry Potter is that it presents to us a magical world which is completely different from our ‘Muggle’ world. The author has delved into every tiny detail of Harry Potter’s world which makes it all the more believable. We use the book as an escape from our mundane, mechanical life. How nice it would be if we could summon the remote with one flick of wand! Or we could use a flying broom (I personally would want the Firebolt) to zip off to our destinations, without getting crushed in the local trains. The possibilities are unlimited, provided we give free reign to our imagination. More often than not, I find myself chanting spells, charms and hexes in front of the mirror, in the hope that it might work and then I would be inducted in the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I would scan the skies for an owl, conveniently forgetting the bad reputation it enjoys in various cultures.

The emotions in the book are so raw and so human, that you can actually relate to them. Many cried when Sirius Black and Dumbeldore were killed, as if it was their personal loss. Many would ask why one would shed tears over the death of a fictional character. It is because the reader and Harry Potter merge into one whole entity. His problems bother us and we celebrate his victories. It is a source of utmost pleasure to us when we, at least for a few hours, are the hero and by partaking in the adventures, we try to feel the adrenaline rush in our veins. I feel this infuses a new energy in us, which in turn prepares us to face fresh challenges. The author stresses the importance of facing one’s fears and even though we might have many allies in this battle, the final battle will have to be fought by you-alone. And above all it underlines one important fact, always emphasized y the beloved headmaster Dumbledore -nothing is superior to love.

Do you find this idea too churlish? Here are a few lines from ‘Life of Pi’ by Yann Martel-
“Fear is difficult to put into words. For fear, real fear, such as shakes you to your foundation, such as you feel when you are brought face to face with your mortal end, nestles in your memory like a gangrene: it seeks to rot everything, even the words with which to speak of it. So you must fight hard to express it. You must fight hard to shine the light of words upon it. Because if you don’t, if your fear becomes a wordless darkness that you avoid, perhaps even manage to forget, you open yourself to further attacks of fear because you never truly fought the opponent who defeated you.”
Need I say more?

HARRY POTTER FEVER

book review

Book Review
Who moved my cheese? By Dr. Spencer Johnson.
All right I must admit I don’t like those self help books, but I thought I would give this one a try. It was one of those books which don’t tell you to do this or do that, but it accounts the experiences of the author and tells us to choose what we feel is the best. The author has used a story to share his experience.
It goes like this………….
Once upon a time there were four beings in a Maze searching for cheese to feed themselves. Two were mice-Sniff and Scurry and the other two were Littlepeople – Hem and Haw who resembled us humans. Sniff and Scurry used simple trial and error methods to find cheese whereas Hem and Haw used complex, analytical methods, due to which both groups were able to reach a Cheese Station C.
Hem and Haw were so overwhelmed by this discovery that they moved into this comfort zone almost immediately, forgetting one basic thing-nothing ever is permanent. On the other hand, Sniff and Scurry were able to detect the shrinking size of the cheese and were well prepared for any adversity.
Finally the day arrived when the Cheese Station vanished, landing Littlepeople in a soup. Sniff and Scurry on the other hand put on their running shoes and left in search of greener pastures. Hem and Haw who were quite baffled by this loss just kept on asking “why did this happen to us?” and kept asserting “I do not deserve it”, unable to accept the fact that change is the only thing permanent in life. They waited and waited but there was no cheese, which added up to their frustration.
Sniff and Scurry by that time had found a New Station N which had all kinds of cheese. They profited because they dared to venture out of their comfort zone. Haw had by that time become restless and finally left searching for new cheese, scared and apprehensive and without his companion. When he was scared he asked himself “what would I have done if I had not been afraid?” and he found the way. After a while he joined Sniff and Scurry at New Station N, relishing the cheese. Hem on the other hand simply refused to budge due to his rejection of change.
Here cheese symbolizes the thing we desire-money, fame, social status, etc. Sniff, Scurry, Hem and Haw represent the 4 types of people in our society. The decision is left entirely to us to become either one of them and adapt ourselves to the changing times. After all change is the only permanent thing in the world.
Explained in simple language, this one is a must-read for those who find it difficult to cope with the changing business environment and also for those Hems to become Haws.