Regional Book Review: Surgical Blade (Stories) by C.Anand

Surgical Blade is an anthology by debutant author C.Anand. There are six stories in this collection where varying themes like retribution, casteism, paternity,loneliness and depression are explored.The book is published by Ivory Books,Thrissur, one of the latest entrants to Malayalam publishing arena.

As I mentioned earlier, Surgical Blade has got six stories.The language is pretty simple and you can easily finish reading this book in a couple of hours or so.Though the themes explored in the book are quite decent, to be very honest, none of them manage to break new grounds nor do they explore any hitherto unexplored ones.While 'Surgical Blade' deals with 'revenge and retribution',the story also tries to make a social commentary on the sexual violence faced by tribal women.'Munichaami' is a story which tries to deal with the multiple themes of estranged paternity and apathetic attitude shown by children towards their elderly parents at the same time. Among the stories, I felt 'Jaathibeejam', which takes a subtle dig at casteism as the pick of the lot.

On the whole, 'Surgical Blade' is a decent collection.

-nikhimenon

Regional: Twinkle Rosum 12 Kaamukanmarum by G.R.Indugopan

               

                   G.R.Indugopan has become the poster boy of present day's Malayalam Popular Fiction by now.His books are raw, rustic and has a very simple kanguage which the masses can relate to.I absolutely love reading his books and Twinkle Rosum 12 Kaamukanmarum is his latest, released by D.C Books.
             The book basically has three Novellas.The title one tells the story of an idyllic 'Punyaalan Dweepu'(island) somewhere in the outskirts of Kollam. Twinkle Rose is recently married to that Thuruthu,but it's soon revealed that she has an old connection with the island in Harro,who is our hero Terry's best friend.What happens when Anurag, her ex-lover comes to the island with his wretched 'plan' is what the story is all about.Coming to the positives, I liked the way Indigopan has created the setting and it's lively characters.The writer has always been known for the real,believable characters which he creates within a rural,atmospheric setting.Here also, he doesn't disappoint a bit.Coming to the negatives, I think the theme could have been developed a bit more and towards the end, the story doesn't entirely do justice to it's characters and their setting.Neverthless, this one is an enjoyable read!
             The second one, 'Pushpavallyum Yakshi Vasanthayum' is undoubtedly the pick of the lot.In this one, Indugopan returns to his favourite territory-the world inhabited by small time goondas and local underworld.We have two local Dons,Pushpavally and Vasantha and this story is all about their gang rivalry and upmanship.I don't know how many of you remember the hooch tragedy which shook Kollam district almost two decades back.It's quite obvious that the 'Pushpavally' of this story is more or less modelled on the female king pin of that notorious crime which shook the state sometime in the late ninetees.The climactic twist is indeed unexpected and has come out really well.If you loved 'Shankhumukhi',in all probability you will relish reading this novella.
              The third one, 'Aaralvaimozhiyile Pathi Ventha Manushyar' has elements of horror and also deals with some pertinent social issues and exploitation.This one is also a brilliantly executed tale.

On the whole,I'm giving a 3.75 out of 5 for this book.You won't regret buying this one!

-nikhimenon

Regional: Postman by Benyamin

            Benyamin is a highly inconsistent writer in my personal opinion.While I loved reading his 'Aadujeevitham' and had an okay feeling about his 'Manjaveyil Maranangal',his 'AkkaPorinte Irupathu Nasrani Varshangal' and 'Shareera Shastram' kind of disappointed me.So I picked up his 'Postman', an anthology of eight stories dealing with helplessness and longing, to read with mixed feelings.But to my pleasant surprise, I liked this book a lot.The stories are genuine, contemporary and succeeds to a very large extend in portraying the emotions which the author has tried to convey.
            As I mentioned already, the book has got eight stories and the pick of the lot is undoubtedly the one titled Postman, which talks about a dedicated Postman in a small village who was reverred by almost everyone in the locality.After his passing away, his son discovers some secrets about him and how he deals with it is what the story is about.The story explores various themes like morality, the perception of right and wrong and also about 'untold' love.
           In Solapur,Benyamin narrates the sad tale of Shobhi and her husband who have been taken for a ride by the Kidney racket and the porn mafia.A genuinely moving tale about poverty and exploitation,this one is! Perhaps the weakest one of this lot is ,'Pusthakkada' in which the author has tried to show his contempt towards best sellers and what it's doing to the avid literature lover. I have multiple issues with this story.First of all, this story is a bit of a stretch and I genuinely do believe that 'popular fiction' also has a very big role in making non-readers to readers. C'mmon, each one of us were introduced to the world of books through these light stuff ,isn't it? But for what he has faltered in 'Pusthakkada',Benyamin more than makes up for it in 'Neeleswaram Baby' which is a genuinely satirical and interesting take on the modern day writers and the double standards they practice.'Markes',another enjoyable tale in this collection has it's protagonist in 'Gregory Mathews', a wannabe writer and the parallels with the Srinivasan character in 'Chinthavishtayaya Shyamala' is unmissable.'Alice In Wonderland' kind of reminded me of P.Padmarajan's 'Lola',but neverthless this one is also an okay read.

On the whole,I'm going with a 3.75 out of 5 for this collection.

-nikhimenon

Tell Tale by Jeffrey Archer

                     Jeffrey Archer's short stories are a pleasure to read. They are mostly easy reads, draw inspiration from real life incidents and almost always end with a small twist.'Tell Tale' is Archer's latest short story collection and like his previous works, the stories in this latest anthology are also quite interesting.
                    The collection begins with the story titled 'The Death of The Mayor'. As the title suggests, this story revolves around the mysterious death of the Mayor of a small town and the investigator who is brought to find out the truth behind the crime. The case is almost left unsolved until the officer stumbles upon a startling revelation.A surprising twist indeed!
                    The other stories are also equally good with quirky and relatable characters. Be it the smart couple who devise the 'crooked' plan to make money 'through' their 'summer holidays' or the car park attendant who makes a living out of an abandoned council property, Archers characters are tangible and believable.My favourite story in this collection was 'The Senior Vice President', which incidentally was also the longest one of the lot.

Verdict: On the whole, I'm giving 'tell Tale' a 3.5 out of 5.This one is an enjoyable book! 

-nikhimenon

QBR: Boo- edited by Shinie Antony

                                        Anthology/Horror Fiction
                                           209+ pages, 
                                     Penguin Random House India (2017)
                                          RT Rating: 2.6/5

The Verdict:'Boo-Horror Stories..' is an okay read at best! Though it is marketed as a horror anthology, most of the stories fail to create a chill down your spine(contrary to what it's tag line promises!).The basic problem with the book is that though the book features writings (translations) by some of the big names in new-age writing (K.R. Meera, Shashi Seshpande to name a few), the essence of their stories seem to have lost in translation!  

 
Synopsis: The stories try to explore the para-normal.A work of Psychological horror is what the book aspires to be ,basically.

 
The Good: The stories which some what stay true to the tag line are 'The Face' by Manabendra Uphadyay , 'The Claws' by Durjoy Datta and 'The Monkeys in the Orchard' by Kanishk Tharoor.

The Bad:horror element missing in most stories, infact the book shouldn't have been marketed as a compilation of horror stories(suspense/psychological short fiction,may be), the ambiguous ending/'literary value'  of some of the stories will not go down well it's target reader group. 

Recommendations: Borrow it!

-nikhimenon

QBR: Buffering Love by Issac John

                                         Anthology/Urban Fiction                                                                                                   209+ pages, Penguin Metro Reads (2017)
                                          RT Rating: 3.9/5

The Verdict:'Buffering Love' is an enjoyable work. Most of the stories are quite good with relatable characters. I haven't really liked any of the earlier books which have come out of this imprint (metro reads) but this debut work by Issac John has turned out to be a pleasant surprise!

 
Synopsis: 'Buffering Love' is basically a collection of short stories set in Urban India. Some of the stories are inter-connected and works as some sort of follow up to the previous ones. All the stories explore through the escapades of their protagonists on mobile apps .Though Love is also a recurring theme,the book is not an anthology of love stories per se.

 
The Good: relatable characters, interesting twists, unpretentious prose, the stories have a 'Jeffrey Archer' feel to it (IMHO).The pick of the lot- Smart Lass and Daft Watch.

The Bad:some stories had abrupt ending, the 'app' element seemed forced at times

Recommendations: Buy it!

-nikhimenon

Storywallah - Stories from everyday India ( Anthology)

I have been a fan of Nilesh Mishra's storytelling and stories from the beginning. And as an extension , I have liked his "mandali" too from the stories I have heard in FM, which were written by his mandali members.

With that expectation and memory I picked this book Storywallah. And it was a little disappointing. The depth and the details that one associates with short stories is some what lacking in the stories of the book.

The book has a variety of emotions - friendship , love , loss , pride , sorrow and a little bit of society's thoughts and working shown using characters of the stories.  There are incidences that one will relate to , moments that you feel one with the person in the story but I can perhaps count those stories on my hand.

My favorite story is "the overcoat" where a girl discovers the meaning of true love through other's life. Another story I will remember for a long time is "The seal" but only for the father dialogues in that one. Another gem is "together" for me as that's about true friendship and having to love someone a second time over.

 This book failed to excite me most part or make me feel strongly for rest of character. I understood the emotion but there was nothing to bind me there. Perhaps the book would have been better in hindi language and it's the translation that has taken away the shine from these tales of every day India.

My rating - 3.5/5 

Love,Murder & Mayhem

- Cosmic tales of the heart gone deadly wrong

I have had very rigid mindset about sci-fic and have avoided it mostly. Perhaps over the years , we have crossed a lot of boundaries that were once considered fictional. This book came at such a tone when I was willing to try new genre and ideas. Even without that , I suppose I would have loved this book.

The stories are not just about aliens or machines but about superheros , the other early species , the humans and the feelings that all these share. There are tales of co-existence , of battles , of covert operations , gossip magazines and the extra ordinary plot twists. My favorite story is about an old robot that surrenders herself when her master's son does in an accident. Another story I enjoyed a lot is of a superhero mom and her husband trying to keep her work a secret while managing 3 kids. There is a certain relatable touch to all the stories -  the human touch and the accidental hum like emotional reactions.

This book was a lovely ride. And the one that totally broke my break from reading. Do try this one.

My rating : 4/5

The Garden of Love, edited by Anuj Kumar

They say any person who has fallen in love, and felt its joys and its pangs, will turn into a poet. Not all poems need to be written though. This collection has 40 poems under the umbrella of love and its various shades. These 40 poems come from the pen of 4 poets as well, so they add their own hues to the poems.

How each reader reads and interprets poetry is different. Some might see depth in simplicity, some will see simplicity in depth. It's quite difficult to review poetry for this reason. If I were to pick up a few poems as favorite from this collection, it would be these...

Of Anuj Kumar's ten poems, I liked Jar of Hearts the best. The poem has the emotion of heartbreak penned down nicely. It's something that many would be able to relate to, I feel, even if the he and she in the poem were interchanged.

The poem titled Yes, I Will is my favorite from the poems penned by Maliny Mohan. The rhyme doesn't seem forced and the flow from line to line is beautiful, just like the happy emotions of love, one that seems forever, that that poem talks of.

Akash Deep Gupta's verses are longer than that of the other three poets. Yet the poem I like the best from his 10 verses would probably be his shortest. One Day portrays a love that remains the same no matter what changes. I liked that portrayal.

From Abhijeet Singh Yadav's poems, perhaps the one I remember is The Text. I leave you to read it interpret, but I thought it could be interpreted at least a couple of different ways.

I like the concept of the book. Love is an emotion that has both a good side and a bad one. And to split the book into poems that relate to both was quite nice. There are some things that didn't work from my perspective. The first is that there were missing letters from the poem titles. Perhaps I got a bad print, I'm not sure. Second, there wasn't a demarcation between the sections of each poet, so I didn't whose poem I was reading. Thirdly, some of the poems, the rhyme felt forced, or the words out of place. Apart from a few poems, I don't think there were poems that wowed me.

I liked the title of the book, and the cover art that went with that title well. And there were definitely few poems that I liked a lot. Like I said earlier, each reader interprets poetry differently, so I do feel the collection would appeal to other readers more than it did to me.

River of Flesh and other stories - The prostituted woman in Indian Fiction ; edited by Ruchira Gupta

When I started this book, I realized I had read two of the stories already as part of author specific anthology. But even then I had paused to think about the women involved in passing. In last few years , there has been both emergence of more stories / movies showcasing the lives and emotions of men and women in the trade.

But whether you have any ideas ( true or not ) about the women of the trade or have never paid any thought to this profession of society ,this book is a must read. While it is a collection of fiction stories , the range of areas the stories are set in is a clear indication that prostitution is across all states and castes of people. If one considers the author list of the book, it amazes how writers have been writing about the women forever. There always have been voices to show the plight of these people - the desperation , poverty and helplessness in face of being out of this trade itself one day.

What this anthology manages to do is to amplify the voices. Together these stories have covered a huge part of the life of a prostitute , and the various ways they cope with their choices or lack of it.
My favorite stories from this collection are "the housewife" and "the kept woman" - both of which are about transition from being a kept woman to housewife and back to being same. Even in pretenses ,the ladies keep the decorum of the household and in that itself they are doubted more. Another story that I will mention is ancestry, the story about a totally pious lady and her hatred for this sinful profession. So much irony in this one, though I did not like my own interpretation much. "Heeng-Kochuri"was much affectionate nostalgic sort of story that made me smile the one time during the whole book.

Not just this book made me a little more curious about the work being done for the welfare of the numerous girls stuck in this trade , the literary aspect of the collection is its brilliant translations from original language to English. Such translated works make me look for more of them in future and to be so thankful for such collections. This book while being fictional, very conveniently showcases a reality that most of us ignore or deny the very existence even when we all  have heard about it.

My rating: 5/5

Stairway to Nowhere and other stories, edited by Ruskin Bond

I think it's wonderful that you have a story to tell, a few stairs to climb and aspire to reach somewhere. It's in school days that I came to know of my love for poetry writing, and it's wonderful to see there were contests for school kids that helped get their story put to print. Stairs to Nowhere, named so, I guess because quite a few stories in the book are titled thus (or maybe it was the theme given to them) brings out stories from young writers from different schools and from all across India. The stories in the book, reading now, feel average and could use a lot of editing or a bit of complexity, but I think looking at the bigger picture, and who wrote them, the effoert is commendable. Perhaps the presentation could have been nicer too, because it felt like I was reading a school textbook. Not a very memorable book, but one that I did like reading.

Reviewed by: Vinay Leo R.
Genre: Short Stories
Rating: 3 stars

In Focus:The Wedding Trousseau and Other Short Stories by Ankita Sharma

                    Ankita Sharma is a publisher and a fellow blogger.Her debut anthology of short stories has just hit the stores.Do check it out and spread the word.The book is available in amazon and Flipkart.

Ps- Our review of the book will be published shortly.

-nikhimenon

Title is Untitled by Santhosh Avvannavar

Title is Untitled
Santhosh Avvannavar,Kundan S,Raghunath Baby Are
Pothi
November 2014
Review copy sent by author

                    'Title is Untitled',what a weird title for an anthology of ?short stories!,when I received the book for review,this was the first thought which came to my mind.But then,after going through the book,I can confidently say that this is one title which totally does justice to the content and the overall mood of this work.The book,which is more like a socio-political commentary on the present day India,dapples with many socially relevant themes like child marriage,suicides,erectile dysfunction,fake degrees and universities,domestic violence,to name a few.The book treats these themes in a mature and responsible manner at the same time without any kind of literary pretensions.
                    The book has got about a dozen stories,each written in the form of a diary of a real life individual.At the end of each chapter,there is a small note which enlightens the reader about the magnitude and gravity of the issue which has been delt with in the corresponding story.The book definitely has got it's heart in the right place and it's the sincerity and honesty in the writing which makes this book worth a read.
                      Having said that,I must also confess that the book doesn't offer much for those who are lookng for literary merit in it.The writing is plain,language pretty mediocre and the stories often read like first drafts of amateur short film scripts!The occassional typos('scared' becomes 'sacred')  and grammatical errors too take the sheen out of the narrative to an extend.But what makes us overlook all these flaws is the honest,genuine content of the book and the noble intention of the authors to make the society aware of these 'evils' through simple,relatable stories.For a self-published work,the lay out and cover design is decently done.
                     The book has definitely got it's heart in the right place and it's undoubtedly more effective than Aamir Khan's emotionally manipulative,so-called 'social-awareness' programme on T.V.(Satyameva Jayathe) in driving home it's point.Santhosh Avvannavar and co,take a bow,you people have definitely succeeded in what you have attempted!

Verdict- 'Title is Untitled' is a very relevant work.I'm giving it a 3 out of 5.

-nikhimenon

Chronicles of Urban Nomads, An Anthology of Short Stories

Short story anthologies make for good reading because you can read one story at a time and each story has its own theme. You don’t necessarily have to look for continuity from story to story either. The Chronicles of Urban Nomads by Readomania brings nineteen such short stories that try to wow you, the reader with their variety.

The anthology has two parts: Imagine and Musing

Favorites:

From the “Imagine” section, my favorite stories were “The Wait” and “A Little Nugget of Fear”. I liked the former for it made us feel the anxiety and the wait along with the character. I’d have loved it more had it been from the perspective of the other character. I wouldn’t say the ending was unpredictable and left me wowed, but the story worked for me. The latter story is one I loved for the perspective. The author chooses to take us on the journey from the point of view of something which is inside most of us, but in particular inside a young woman. I’d have liked it if it ended some other way, because it felt too common.

From the “Musing” section, my favorite stories were “Bachelor and Baby”, “The Last Letter” and “Rendezvous”. Each of these stories had a simple narration style, which I like. It makes for easy reading. The first one wowed me with its storyline and character which left an impact; the second one with its ability to make me emotional; and the last one for its narration and sweetness, though it wasn’t unpredictable as such. They didn’t evoke any strong images as the first part of the book but then again, they weren’t meant to.

General thoughts:

Firstly, I’d like to mention the cover design, which I liked a lot. The stories were interesting and memorable, which is why am not pointing out stories which didn’t stand out as much as the five above did for me. Some stories that made me want to know more. Like for e.g. “The Blue Slippers” while talking of a unique friendship from the view of a camera (it’s not difficult to know this immediately at the start, so this doesn’t qualify as a spoiler), left me wondering who held the camera that captured this friendship, how come they were looking at the two friends so much. “Confessions of a Benarasi Sari” made me wonder if liking a saree picked by someone is really that important for a marriage to survive.

A better way to generate more interest in these stories would have been to mix them up randomly. The sections, while helpful to divide them by a factor, killed the curiosity. After the third story, I started to try and guess the point of view from which the story was narrated. Overall, it is an enjoyable collection, which could have been so much better.

---

Rating: 3 Stars

Book Details:
Title: The Chronicles of Urban Nomads
Series: N/a
Anthology by: Readomania
Genre: Short Stories
ISBN/ASIN: 9788192997506
Publisher: Kurious Kind Media
Price: Rs. 225

Reviewed for the publisher, in exchange for a review copy. The views expressed here are my own, frank and uninfluenced.

---

Reviewed by Vinay Leo R.
31st December 2014.

Ultra-short Book Review: Love Stories that touched my heart

'Love Stories that touched my heart' is an anthology of (obviously) love stories,edited by Ravinder Singh (and published by Penguin India ,2012) whose 'I too had a love story' was a huge marketing success.This compilation has twenty five stories by mostly first time writers and tries to tell contemporary tales of Love in a realistic and believable way.

The good thing about the book is that it is a simple,breezy read and can be easily done with in a couple of hours.The few ones which stand out are 'Heart Strings' by Roshan Radhakrishnan,'Flirting' (Vinayak N), 'A Love Story In Reverse'(Sujir Pavithra Nayak) and 'May God Bless You,Dear'(Yamini Vijendar).

Though the authors have tried to explore the various shades of love and longing with the recurring themes being senility,alzheimers disease and dementia,it's a pity that none of these 25 writers have touched upon taboo themes like homosexuality /same sex love in their stories.Majority of the stories in this anthology are mediocre and shallow and offers nothing new in terms of content.

On the whole,'Love Stories that touched my heart' ends up as an average compilation,at best! Rating-2.4/5

-nikhimenon 

Turning Point:Best of Young Indian Writers

Title:Turning Point-Best of Young Indian Authors
Editor:Nikita Singh
Publisher:Wisdom Tree
Source:Review Copy (Publisher)
Pages:220
Price:150 INR/-
amazon,flipkart,homeshop18

                  Turning Point is an interesting anthology of short stories penned by some of the prominent names among the young Indian Authors.This seemingly un- related set of tales (by Nikitha Singh,Judy Balan,Harsh Snehanshu,Meenakshy R Madhavan to name a few) have one thing in common,i.e. a turning point.These stories describe incidents which inturn act as turning points in the life of it's protagonists.To be very frank,I have never been a fan of any of these authors(Judy Balan may be an exception but even then,after reading her rather mediocre 'Sophie Says' last week,I'm not sure whether I will spend my money on her third work which is due for release any time soon).Still,I picked up this book for review as I am a huge fan of short tales of fiction and I badly wanted to check out what these young Indian writers were up to!

•  The anthology starts off with Meenakshy Reddy Madhavan's 'Insert a Carrot',a supposedly light hearted take on new-age relationships and break ups.While respecting the writer's noble intentions,I must admit that this one reads more like a random blog post than a genuine short story.The writing style and innumerable (often pointless)references to orgasms,vibrators and sex toys don't help the matters either.I would give this one a generous 2 out of 5. 
• The second story('The English Teacher')by Durjoy Datta is about a teenager who is obsessed with his English Teacher.It explores the rather age old fascination of young boys with their teachers.This (though with a predictable ending) is the most 'erotic' among the stories in this compilation with the 'sex' part being quite competently written.My rating  is a 2.5/5.
• Atulya Mahajan's  'U-Turn' is as much about parental love as the choices which one makes in his life.Decently written,this one manages to strike a chord with the reader but here again the basic problem is predictability.Still,it makes for a compelling read.It gets a 2.8/5 from my part.
• Judy Balan attempts a satire quite successfully with 'The Return of the Original Vampire'.The narrative is humorous and pokes fun at the 'vampire craze' among teenagers.Rating-3/5.
• 'An Unusual Accomplice'(Parinda Joshi) is a crime thriller set in the backdrop of a rave party in Ahmedabad which begins well only to fizzle out quite soon.One of the lengthiest stories in this collection,it drags on and on like a bad Bollywood movie and by the time the 52 year old retired army officer is done with his investigation and the startling revelation is made,the poor reader has stopped bothering about the victim and the murder.Rating-1.5/5
• My personal favourite in this anthology is the most light hearted of the tales,'The X-Boss' by Shoma Narayan which is about an office secretary who is haunted by the ghost of her previous Boss.Hilarious one-liners and clever usage of words makes this one an absolute winner.I'm glad to give it a very high 3.5 out of 5.
• Harsh Snehanshu's 'Summer Showers' deals with puppy love and is an okay fare at best.Rating:2.4/5.
• In 'Whispered Prayers',Nikita Singh narrates the story of Anjali,a rape survivor who is considered an outcast by the society.The author puts forward a couple of really valid thoughts but stumbles a bit in executing them convincingly.With a more subtle approach ,this story would have easily become the pick of the lot.I am giving it a three out of five.

                Two things work in favour of this book.First and foremost,this is  an easy read.Secondly,the editor has made sure that there is something for everyone in 'Turning Point'.There is a love story,a super-natural tale,an erotic fable and even a crime-thriller(whether it thrills or not is a different question altogether though!).The publishers are very clear.They want to tap in the market created by the Sandeep Nagarkars and the Nikita Singhs and are heavily banking on the young urban reader to make this endevaour click (which  it hopefully will).On the downside,the book has it's own share of flaws,some tales are too long and predictable and only serves to add to the length of the book.
                 It's easy to dismiss this work as yet another wannabe attempt by a group of amateur writers with no literary merit.But no one can neglect the fact that it succeeds to a large extend in entertaining it's target reader group-i.e the young urban Indian reader.Overall rating-2.9/5

-nikhimenon

Notes on Mice in Men by Anirban Bose

           

                  A couple of years back,I got a chance to read Bose's debut novel,'Bombay Rains,Bombay Girls'- a coming of age story of a group of medical students.Frankly speaking,I didn't like that book very much as I had found it only mildly amusing.So when I chanced upon the author's second work('Mice in Men') in the local Landmark's Book store,I was a bit apprehensive initially but still decided to give it a try as I have a thing for well crafted works of short fiction.

                        ' Mice in Men' is an anthology of short stories set in contemporary India.Most of the tales have a medical background(which is understandable as the writer is a doctor by profession) and in one way or other portray the joys of being in the medical profession.The writer has made sure that all the medical terms used in the stories are explained in a very simple manner without resorting to extremely complicated medical jargons.I particularly liked the story of the young doctor('The Magic of Medicine') who is in a dilemma to treat the 'illegal immigrant' who is fighting for his life.As in the case of any other anthology,'Mice In Men' also packs in a couple of bland and even mundane short works('The temptation of fate') of fiction.The writer has a good attention to detail but the un-necessary detailing backfires atleast in a few occasions-('The faithfulness of traits').On the other hand,I also felt some stories to be a bit confusing and lacking clarity('Stockholm syndrome'-well, it is obviously a well written piece but the author seems to have overlooked a couple of loose ends in the narrative).

                'Mice in Men' is undoubtedly a better work when compared to the writer's debut 'Bombay Rains,Bombay Girls'.If you have a penchant for short tales of fiction,you can definitely give it a try.

Verdict-A good read.I'm giving it a three out of five.

-nikhimenon

Urban Shots: The Love Collection, edited by Sneh Thakur

The book in a nutshell:

A collection of love stories, 31 of them from 27 different authors, compiled by Sneh Thakur.

My thoughts on the book:

So this is a love story anthology, right? What’s the most important ingredient to a love story? Well yeah, it is love. That ingredient appears to be mostly missing here.

When I started the read with the first story, “Written in the stars”, I knew the ending. It’s right there in the title. Put two and two together, and you know where the story is headed. OK fine, corny as the idea was, you’d think there was more about the lovely couple and their relationship. But no, that story was more about the protagonist and his obsession with “the stars”. Till the last page of the story, the damsel doesn’t enter the scenario. With love supposedly involved, you’d be forgiven if you think the guy was dating the astrologer.

With the standard set so high (no, I’m not talking literally), I thought some of the other stories would be better. Sad to say, the trip didn’t fare that well. The story “Rishta” was mostly, if not completely about parental argument and arranged relationships. The story “For Convenience’s Sake” had the ex lover’s sister blasting the protagonist guy for being him. “Making out” (yes, you can interpret literally to know the essence of the story) was more about the guy’s past than the kissing. Moving on, “Coffee” ended with a bitter taste in the mouth. “The Girl Who Was Too Loud” was just too one-note, not about love but of raw sex perhaps.

A few stories save the book from being totally down. Not coz of a love factor, but coz of difference in ideas maybe. I enjoyed “High Time” coz though it was quite a lot about arranged marriages, with the “dekhan dekhai” ceremony, and the parental blackmailing of the protagonist, the story had a humorous touch to it, and it showed there is another side to things. The story “Twisted” was one that had a twist, but the ending wasn’t as believable. “Beyond Reasonable Doubt” was perhaps the best in the book.

Overall, the book has more of these direct stories. Direct tone in love stories doesn’t work that well. The few stories that do work, and are enjoyable, don’t do enough to counter the effect of the not-so-enjoyable stories. I give this a 2.5 from 5.

---

Book details:
Title: Urban Shots – The Love Collection
Editor: Sneh Thakur
ISBN: 978-93-81626-47-4
Genre: Anthology / Love stories
Publishers: Westland + Grey Oak
Price: INR. 199

Rating: 2.5 Stars

Reviewed by Leo
Shared with Indian Quills Reading Challenge

In Black and White by Rudyard Kipling

He was the youngest recipient of Nobel Prize in Literature, the first writer of English language to have that honour conferred on him. My inspiration in writing, Ruskin Bond, found inspiration in his writing. And if I had one regret emanating from the world of literature (which I know is vast and perhaps has no place for regrets), it was that I never got an opportunity to read any work of the great storyteller Rudyard Kipling. However, in a recent set of book Rupa Publications sent me for review, I got my chance to overcome that regret.

In Black and White is my first tryst with Rudyard Kipling, and what a grand, memorable meeting with the master-storyteller it has been. Kipling has been regarded as an innovator in the art of short story writing, and this book is only one of the many examples which lends credibility to that statement. In Black and White is a collection of some of Kipling's finest stories which shed light on the social, cultural and political fabric of India, as it was woven under colonial rule. The imperial conquest of power etched a firm, and almost cruel boundary between the ruler and the ruled - a reality which stories of this book bring out vividly. The language, I will have to admit, was not the easiest to understand. In fact, if anything, it was most abstract, but that is what gave space for philosophical ideas to run parallel to the main narrative of extremely engaging stories. A miner, a priest, a missionary, a betrayed and revenge seeking lover - each character has been drawn deep from within the womb of humble Indian terrain and represent in full the idiosyncrasies of Indians. The tales are endearing at times, witty at others, and scathingly ironical at certain places. Kipling presents both - the inherent innocence of Indians and the corruption which started taking roots under the reign of the Raj in these 8 short stories

The Whole Range of Kipling Special Books 

It is a small book, priced humbly, to invite readers to the enamouring, but critical world of Kipling. My favorite among all is a story called "Dray Wara Yow Dee". Don't ask me what that means. I just know I enjoyed this tale of a lover betrayed, seething with revenge. For the first time, it was not poetry, but prose in which I found an unmistakable lyrical quality.

Kipling has a controversial place in History. He is credited with a doctrine which not just justifies, but glorifies imperial conquests. Given his philosophy of 'A White Man's Burden', I have always wondered how is it that Kipling wrote of nothing but India and its people, so much so, that many literary connoisseurs bracket him in the Indian Writing in English category. A man, not wedded to the sensibilities of this magnificent land could not have possibly written literature which seems like our own. Perhaps this dichotomy in Kipling's writing is best understood in the words of one of my English teachers, who warns with affection - History often doesn't give us the chance to alter our opinions, we must learn to be careful with them.

Its a 3.5 on 5 star book for me.

Book Details - 
Author - Rudyard Kipling (With an introduction by Ruskin Bond)
Source - Review Copy
Genre - Literary Fiction/Short Fiction
Publisher - Rupa Publications
Price - ₹ 140
Pages - 118 (8 stories)
Rating - 3.5/5

Tea-20 by Vinod Kumar S.

Image Source: vinodkumars.com

TEA-20 - Perfect companion for your tea time : Fiction, Short Stories

AUTHOR: Vinod Kumar S.

BEST SELLER: Tea-20 (Debut Novel)

SYNOPSIS (From Back Cover): This book is a collection of 20 simple fiction short stories, which will serve as a good companion for your teatime. This anthology will not only entertain you, but will also give you a generous dose of laughter; it will make you think and contribute to the society, teach simple things about life which are easily missed in our ever-hectic routine and also take you by surprise. Each story is unique in its way, with the impact it leaves in you being the common feature.

A fictional and motivational story that reveals the secret of Sachin Tendulkar's success; a funny narration about the day-to-day life of an IT Professional; the suspense of what happened when it rained that night and stories that revolve around simple things like how 50 Paise could teach you an important message about life; they are bound to impress you irrespective of your age, gender or profession. Read on to know more. 

EXCERPT: 

I heard the sound of her bangles and other ornaments first. Not sure why, but immediately I remembered a Tamil proverb which translates to, "The sound of the bell tied to an elephant reaches even before the elephant", I tried to focus and within a few seconds I became an atheist again when I saw a girl in plain pink sari and green blouse walking in. It was as if the post card size photo was magnified to the size of a poster. This time her weight reminded me again of the same Tamil proverb. Only now I understood its real meaning. 

MSM Speaks: With due respect and appreciation to Mr. Vinod, an IT professional of 29 years, for his debut novel, I would like to say, his Tea-20 was totally not what I was expecting. I read other online reviews and people seem to love it, because it’s humorous (?). May be software people have a humor, which lawyers like me will never understand. I apologize for the quip. As I was saying - NEVER judge a book from its cover, they say. I did that exactly. *Rolls eyes* Cup of tea/coffee on cover, has always betrayed me. (Ref. to Of course, I love you – till I find someone better) Sigh. Anyway, this book is a collection of 20 fictional short stories – which are aimed at bringing the reader, a realization of morale values he/she might have forgotten or does not care about, any more.

The stories are in this order:

•  A Cup of Coffee (A good start. Gave me hopes)
• A Beauty That Turned Dirty (I personally HATED this one. It's so... chauvinistic! No wait, stupid! Let me tell you - the beauty here is a girl holding a sandwich and she becomes dirty because she says 'I wish India was like America.' to someone on phone. Before she said this, the guy was practically devouring her sandwich and I think her as well, with his eyes. Creepy Stalker!)
• Bye (Innovative. Mr. Vinod really told me the value of a goodbye. I totally agree with him on this.)
• Drunken Genius (This was an all guys version of Jab We Met)
• Frosted Hearts (Cute little story of a Mother and her ever curious daughter)
• A Great Escape (The above excerpt is from this one. Believe me, the guy here thinks he is a Hottie...)
• Go Straight and Turn Right (Brilliant Story. Sachin's Secret to success, beautifully penned down.)
• Happy New Year (Encounter with an intellectual beggar who held magic within)
• It Rained That Night (Okay, I was really impatient! I read it from the end. It's a shot at suspense and humor. I felt like a pedophile.)
• Life of an IT Professional
• My Dog - An Amazing Teacher
• My First Love (I thought finally! This man has fallen in love. But yes, I will give you one guess at what he falls in love with - It moves on wheels.)
• Nowhere to Run
• Signature
• Take the 25 Rupees (Such intriguing conversation with an auto guy)
• The Perfect Murder (Heart breaking story of a Friend-zoned guy)
• The Silent World
• Two Sides of a One-Sided Love (Topsy-turvey story.)
• Who Am I?
• 50 Paise (Sigh. Please pick it up if you need to know more!)

For others, which have escaped my detailing...Oh Sweet Jesus!, I had to jump from page to page, skimming through and I sort of understood what the stories were about – sort of predictable. As a first attempt, Mr. Vinod has kept the stories really simple, which is a key to good writing. However, there were inadvertent grammatical and printing errors, which I could not ignore. Anyhow, the stories are short and it’s actually something you can pick up when you are travelling short distances. (If you have nothing better. And if you can read anything) What was I thinking? *Asks herself* Oh, since this is one of the books I chose for my birthday, I am not going to bash the author anymore. I would not recommend this but you can pick it up for a light reading – well, like he says – with a cup of tea. And some sedative for me. Hmpf. Oh wait, this is one.

My rating: 2.5/5 

Tea - 20@ Leadstart Publishing Pvt. Ltd./Frog Books (2012)

ISBN 978-93-81576-99-1

Pages: 125

flipkart Price: 113/-INR