Book Review: Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu's Carmilla

I have to say I really liked this book and finished it in a single sitting. I am fascinated by vampires and this book actually pre-dates Bram Stoker's Dracula. What was interesting was the fact that the main character was a female vampire who preyed on other women. I always thought that Dracula was the first book to explore this theme and the image of Count Dracula has captured the imagination of people for so long.

So it was really interesting to read about Carmilla, a countess preserved as a little girl who preys on other girls and women. There are overt references to lesbianism in Carmilla's love for the narrator. I just thought that it was kind of amazing that someone wrote this in the 1800's. In fact, the writer is a man, so his choice to make both the victims and the vampire women is really interesting.

I enjoy Gothic fiction, especially the old school variety. Most contemporary Gothic tales just don't excite me as much. The old Gothic novel's like Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre and Bram Stoker's Dracula are just Classics that I can read and re-read.

Even though I won't put Carmilla in the same category as those Classics, I would still recommend it to anyone who enjoys Gothic fiction.

Dance Dance Dance by Haruki Murakami

Even though I love Murakami's style, how the metaphysical intrudes into everyday reality, how the ordinary becomes extraordinary, I have mixed feelings about this book.

My mother bought it for me because of the title, since I am a dancer. (not that the book is really about dancing!) When I started reading it, it sucked me in. But somehow by the end of it it did not resonate for me like some of his other books.

What I did enjoy was the satire of the novel and the air of mystery. The other side of reality part and the element of the bizarre which almost almost permeates Murakami's writings somehow just didn't work for me here.

I did for some reason really like the character of the teenage girl, who befriends the narrator after her famous mother "forgets" her in the Dolphin Hotel. The Dolphin Hotel which dominates the landscape of the novel really comes alive. It almost becomes a character in itself.

If you have not read any of Murakami's works, I would not suggest this novel to start with but if you have read his other works then, like me, you will find it captivating, an interesting mix of mystery, satire with generous sprinklings of the bizarre.

Book Review: Sword of the Truth series by Terry Goodkind

I am writing after a while since I wanted to finish the entire series before I wrote about it, which is 11 books. And then I just completely got lost in my dance world and have re-emerged after many months of being reading deprived!  Anyways these books were recommended by my friend Amit Patel and I really really loved the series. I was somewhat apprehensive when I began reading but the books are an engaging read. I love fantasy as a genre; nothing else allows such complete creative freedom. So wizards and confessors, mord-siths and all the characters and creatures are unique to this series, along  with the very landscape in which they are set.

The traditional good versus evil plot exists, but questions of what is right and wrong are raised. The books go beyond being fantasy stories, and it is the philosophy that emerges that unifies these books. Ideas of the value of individual effort are reminiscent of Ayn Rand's philosophy and her strong defense of capitalism. Thoughts of individuals taking responsibility and being active agents are hinted in the first few books and developed in the latter part of the series. The first book is called Wizards First Rule and each book reveals one of the rules of the wizards. Interestingly, these rules are not based on magic but are more practical and common sense, such as people will believe anything they want to, because they are afraid that it's true, and how sometimes the best intentions can create problems.

The characters are well-developed, my favorite being Richard Rahl and the mord-sith Cara. Emperor Jagang brings to mind Contemporary religious troubles. He genuinely believes he is doing the Creator's work, while his misguided actions create death and disharmony. His character echoes religious fanatics, who are single-minded in their cause and passionate about imposing their beliefs on others.

There were some books which were a bit tedious, my least favorite being "The Pillars of Creation" which dragged on forever and then just ended abruptly. I was also slightly bored by "Soul of the Fire." My favorites were "Faith of the Fallen" and the last three books of the series, just because they were exciting and action-packed!

So if you are a fantasy lover, this is one of the best series that I have read so far. I read these books a few months ago and was seriously considering re-reading them. But I figured I should read something new and maybe come back to these next year, though I must admit I am currently re-reading the Harry Potter series!

Review: Percy Jackson & the Lighting Thief by Rick Riordan

I am a sucker for fantasy novels! And I love Greek mythology. I was quite apprehensive about this book and had been debating for a while whether I should get my hands on a copy.

The problem was that I had seen the movie. The movie was not bad, fairly entertaining. But I never seem to enjoy a book after I have watched the movie. Honestly, I don't even always enjoy movies based on books because most of them don't do justice to the written word. Still reading before watching is my preference.

Anyways I was at a friend's place eating dinner, when I happened to see this book. Her 9 yr old son was reading it which only made me more nervous that it would be too childish of a read.

But still something possessed me and I decided to read it. I don't know if I am just old school but I love myths and legends cloaked in the mist of the past. I somehow can't relate to concept of an Ares as a biker dude, Medusa in a burger joint or Mount Olympus existing on top of the Empire State Building. 

Anyhow, I didn't enjoy the book. Part of it definitely was that it was a bit childish for me. What I did like were the little mythological tidbits, woven throughout the fabric of the writing, such as the war between the Gods and the Titans and Persephone's story. But I do feel that the movie ruined it for me to a large extent.

I am actually going to attempt to read the second book. Maybe that will change my opinion. Maybe not!

From Native to Refugee (Book Review of Basharat Peer's 'Curfewed Nights' by Lado)

Guest post by Lado

With the promise of sweetened nimbu pani or fresh juice I trailed behind my friend Sam into the Cafe Turtle Bookshop. One has to enter the Bookshop to get to the cafe. I’m usually excited about books, bookstores, the smell of books, new books,old books, comics but we’d just gotten waxed and I wasn’t in the mood to browse.


My friend recently quit her job and was quite happy to be back in Delhi and kill some time. She pottered around unaware of my impatient nimbu pani dreams. After I’d gently put across some hints to hurry it along, I finally asked her if we could “get a move on?” to which she replied by whipping a book in front of my face “I had terrible nightmares for a month – Lado you HAVE to read this book!”.

Ouch.

I’m not too keen on Indian authors as I’ve found some of them tediously slow and melancholic (especially diaspora writers).
I always say “I live in Delhi and see it everyday – I don’t have to read 600 pages on India’s poverty.” All it makes me want to do is kill myself.
I’m a fast reader but suicidal is not a feeling I want to sustain for 600 pages.


In any case I wanted to hurry along and get that nimbu pani but there’s no point in reasoning with Sam- stubborn Tauruses! She doesn’t get that buying someone a book is like buying perfume – its great if you have the same taste but if you don’t it’s a gift that’s likely to be unused or re-wrapped. Anyway I decided the quickest way to my nimbu pani was to shut up and go along with it. I could always pretend later that I’d read the book.


Anyway having seated ourselves and consumed our summer beverages, Sam and I decided to verbal spar, which turned into us bickering and then maybe having gotten heated up from the hair removal and the wait, I took some very regrettable shots at her. In any case things cooled down eventually, we ate a plate of spicy-chilli-nachos.I apologized for being an ass, but there was no escaping that I’d hurt her feelings.

I got home later and found the book in my bag – there was no way even I could justify not reading the book now.


It was a couple of hours well-spent. The book was engrossing and I read it quickly over a couple of mornings.The title of the book is ‘Curfewed Nights’ and it’s by Basharat Peer and he tells of having to grow up in a changing Kashmir; A living through of the “Kashmir stereotype”, one that underwent a horrible change – idyllic apple orchards to raging modern battleground.


The writer has a style I enjoy, it’s to-the-point, descriptive without being tedious and he manages to balance emotion that he feels (it’s autobiographical) with the events that are happening. He’s also had his journalistic training so he manages to put significant political events in without getting statistical. Through his personal experience you can feel how someone could have a personal experience of a political event, or how society reacts and how community and families are immediately affected by overreaching events like civil struggle and war.

I have to say I like-hate the book. Like it because it’s so well written and suits it’s purpose; Mira Nair said in an interview “If you don’t tell your stories, who will?. He tells the story of adolescence affected by war in Kashmir and does it spectacularly. Hate it – because it’s heart-wrenchingly sad. Kind of how the story of Kashmir is.
It stays with me as a metaphor for the beautiful state, the story of any displaced people, refugees who dream of a home that no longer exists.

Review: One Amazing Thing by Chitra Banerjee Divakurni

Summary: In an Indian passport and visa office in an American city, an unexpected earthquake traps nine people within the premises. The characters include an upper-class Caucasian couple whose relationship is disintegrating. A punky teenager and her Chinese grandmother, with secrets in her past. A Muslim-American man, whose life changes post 9/11. A graduate student haunted by questions of love. An African-American soldier who seeks redemption. And two visa officers who are on the verge of having an affair. As food and water supplies dwindle, the basement is flooding and no escape seems possible, these people share personal stories; "one amazing thing" they have never shared before, from their lives.

Review: This book is easy to read and fairly quick. I liked certain elements in it such as the concept of sharing personal stories, as tragedy strikes this group of characters. Each of them is subtly transformed by this process of sharing.

The book is quite short (It is 220 pages, I usually steer towards the 700 page novels) but she manages to bring the characters to life through their stories, as well as their interactions with each other. Some of the stories are definitely more powerful than others, one of my favorite being Jiang's.  Her story was the first one and after that my expectations were set high, so I felt disappointed by some of the others. There were images in the book that were vivid and memorable, such as Lola's beauty salon, Jiang's shoe store and the description of the bits of food. Other stories were not as effective. I was waiting for the soldier-Cameron's story, but felt a bit let down when it was finally revealed.  Tariq and Mrs. Pritchett's  story were quite clichéd and didn't really strike a chord with me.

Overall, it was an OK book. There is no doubt that Chitra Banerjee Divakurni is a skilled story teller but there are other books by her that I have definitely enjoyed more such as The Palace of Illusions, or even Queen of Dreams. In comparison, this book is much more forgettable; I did not get a lot from it. It was reasonably enjoyable but not of those books that stay with you.

Review: Eats, Shoots and Leaves by Lynn Truss

I am not a big non-fiction reader. I happened to come across this book on my friend Jayanth's bookshelf and I just starting browsing through it. It caught my interest right away.

I do understand the importance of correct punctuation and value it deeply in my reading. However, I wouldn't call myself a "stickler" (The author is a "stickler!" There is a picture of her adding the required apostrophe to a poster of  the movie Two Weeks Notice, on the back, inside cover of the book). At the same time, I felt compelled to read this book.

How can a book on punctuation be fun? It can be informative, instructive, but fun? This book with the tag-line "The Zero-Tolerance Approach to Punctuation," was actually a fun read! It is amazing that a mundane (but important) topic like punctuation can become such an interesting read.

Besides the history and evolution of various punctuation marks, the differences between British and American punctuation styles, and the subtleties of the usage of punctuation marks, what I loved about this book was the author's style of writing.


Witty and sarcastic, providing hilarious examples as to how punctuation can change the entire meaning of a piece of writing, Lynne Truss's passion for the subject shines through. She explains that despite the rules, punctuation, much like writing itself, can be subjective, and has room for creativity. She renders what could have been a boring, dreary read, into a comic, creative and illuminating journey delving on the importance of correct punctuation and its frequent misuses.