Book Review: Neelima by Moncy Skaria (Regional)

 

Neelima by Moncy Skaria is the story of a female artist, Neelima, who is in the quest for completeness. Rajesh settled outside Kerala, is a self-made man and a pretty successful professional. He chances upon the title character, and a bond soon develops between them.

Coming to the positives, the novel is a light read and can definitely be read in one sitting. At just about 150 pages, it never feels overlong at any point in time. Those who have a taste for emotional relationship dramas might find this one as an okayish read, at best. The narration is also breezy and somewhat fast-paced.

This relationship drama didn't work for me because of regressive ideas, wannabe philosophical lines, and plastic, half-baked characters. I didn't get why the narrator, Rajesh felt a strong bond with Neelima in the first place! Many crucial scenes in the novel felt unconvincing. Towards the second half of the story, there is a sequence where Rajesh saves Neelima from a bunch of goons on a beach. Okay, what was the whole point? We were told that Neelima is a super-rich woman who is not short of resources, then why did she have to run around on the beach for something as inane as that in this era where everything can be accessed online in the click of a button?

There are too many coincidences, and almost every major twist in the narrative happens in an unconvincing manner.

Coming to the characters, though there aren't many, even those there are plastic and one-dimensional. The reader never knows the real 'Vikas' or 'Ajith.' Neelima is also a pretty confusing character. (I think even the writer also had confusion regarding how to portray her!). If the writer intended to portray her as a slightly mystic character with emotional swings, I am sorry that It has not turned out that well. The other principal character, Rajesh, also comes across as a shaky guy. In the late eighties and early nineties, Balachandra Menon wrote pretty well-off male leads with a heart of Gold, having an opinion on anything and everything under the sun and ready to sacrifice anything and everything for their best friends. I couldn't help drawing parallels between them and Moncy Skaria's Rajesh. I still can't fathom why Rajesh had to indulge too much stand about Neelima's equations with Ajith and Vikas? The hospital scenes are also written in a lousy manner, to say the least!

On the whole, Neelima by Moncy Skaria is a half-baked attempt, in my opinion. If you are looking for a light read on a lazy Sunday afternoon, you can try this one.

 -nikhimenon

Review: Cheese in the Trap ( Webseries + Show ) by Soon kki

Cheese in the Trap by Soon Kki
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I came across this show on Netflix while searching for a show featuring Park Hae-jin. Once I started the show, I got so engrossed in the character played by him in the show that I read the webtoon series to read more in detail about his character and also because almost everyone online cried that the webseries messed up the ending big time. I feel the same very strongly.

This is a story of a group of university kids going through various exams , friendships , love , influences from other people and their struggles in general. The focus of the show is on the relationship between hard working student Hong Seol , who is in the university only because of scholarship and by doing various jobs and her senior Yoo Jung who is seemingly perfect , rich & moody kid with a dark side to him. The story covers their struggles to connect to each other and ways they both bring a change to each other in subtle ways in the beginning which ultimately rolls into defining their characters in a completely new light. Inside the university, they engage with other students , each having its own story arc and being influenced by Yoo Jung in mysterious ways. Outside the university, we have the story of Yoo Jung's old friends - the brother sister duo who in their own way are the culprit and victim of how Yoo Jung interacts with the world.

The webtoon series is beautifully done - the expressions  , the setting , the dialogues and the moments of internal conflict and thoughts are all neatly drawn. There is a clear growth in the characters depicted not just by their actions but also tiny little actions they engage in. After watching the series , I was not expecting to be awed by the webtoon much but I was so wrong. the webtoon has so much depth in terms of plot and the story development. All the supporting casts , though seem to be in shades of grey , manage to get some sympathy from the reader. The highlight of this series for me is Yoo Jung's character and his growing attachment to Seol that makes him justify his actions in weird ways.

Read the webtoon here for the awesomeness it is , but if its too long for you , watch the show on Netflix [ i rate that 7.5/10 (1 point deducted for the ending) ]



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QBR: The Windfall by Diksha Basu

                                                     

                                                       Satire/Drama
                                                        376+ pages 
                                                   Bloomsbury (2017)
                                                       RT Rating: 3.5/5

The Verdict: 'The Windfall' is a humorous take on the life of a typical middle class family from East Delhi.Told in a honest and hilarious manner, 'The Windfall' is definitely a must read!

Synopsis: Mr Anil Jha and family have been leading a middle class life in East Delhi. Mr Jha recently sold his website for a whopping 20 Million US Dollars making the Jha family rich all on a sudden.Since they have succesfully climbed up the social ladder,the family decides to relocate to Gurgaon, the place for the super-rich.How the neo-rich slowly get acclimatized to the new neighbourhood and how they make new friends is all the story is about.Though on the face of it, it looks like Mr Jha and Mr Chopra are in a constant race to out do each other,pretty soon we realize that they do have a lot of things in common.

The Good:The setting is perfect, the jokes are fine and the characterizations (Mrs Ray, Johny, Rupak, Mr Jha) are brutally honest, Diksha's prose manages to be a social commentary and a satirical (Mrs Ray and her stolen Yoga Pants, a perfect case in point) take on middle class ambitions at the same time.

The Bad:The ending was a bit abrupt and ambiguous (may be it is intentional and the author is planning for a sequel?)

Recommendations: Buy it!

#Review: Friends and Other Liars by Kaela Coble

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I started this book with some expectations based on the Goodreads review.  And they were all met but in a way I had not expected. I expected the secrets to be really more sinister and maybe directly hurting the narrator.  But in bargain , the way the secrets impact the people close to them and the everyone's life is so amazingly captured in the book. I hated some characters ,empathized with some and in the end , I fell in love with each one of them. That's how this book hooks the reader and make you feel concerned. This was a beautiful story. Tragic ,but so full of real wise words. I had a hard time letting this one go.

About the Author: 
KaelaCoble lives in Burlington, Vermont, and is a member of the League of Vermont Writers and a graduate of the WoMentoring Project. This is her first novel.

Website: https://kaelacoble.com/


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Review: Season of Crimson Blossoms by Abubakar Adam Ibrahim

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

There are some stories that are doomed from the beginning. And I knew it to be true for this book. I think that is the only reason i took a little more time with the book.

The book is about the affair of an old divorcee Binta and the very young local thug Reza. It is a story of how this one relationship affects their family and their own life. The writing style of the book is very straightforward. There is no fancy poetic feel to the prose but it is rather rustic and it works best to add charm to the setting. The characters are so much detailed and engaging. Though the story moves a little back and forth , it never loses interest. The book shows the history of the city and the political landscape as it progresses with the personal stories about marriages, courtship and the web of extended families.

Such a brilliant story telling and absolutely heart breaking end. I really wanted it to end differently for Binta and I will remember her story for a long time.

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The Bastard of Istanbul by Elif Shafak

"Once there was; once there wasn't.

God's creatures were as plentiful as grains

And talking too much was a sin....

-The preamble to a Turkish tale

              ....and to an Armenian one."

Daring to bring up a controversial issue such as the Armenian Genocide and Turkey's constant denial of the same, the Turkish author, Elif Shafak, an ardent feminist, set this story revolving around two young women- Asya and Armanoush.

On the one hand is the Turkish Asya, nineteen, who portrays a rather rudimentary self even though she is raised by her affectionate aunts and her grandmother, while on the other hand, Armanoush, twenty-one, is an Armenian-American girl who is much gentle and unassuming than Asya.

Inquisitive about her Armenian roots, Armanoush travels all the way from Arizona to Istanbul without her parents' knowledge. Her visit unravels the secret that links both their families and ties them to the 1915 Armenian deportations and massacres.

Elif Shafak was put on trial for allegedly "denigrating Turkishness" when she revealed the contemporary mindset of the Turks and their Armenian counterparts regarding their history in this novel. Her style of writing is fancy yet straightforward,outspoken yet gripping. Through her narration,she brings forth her feminist ideology and tries to empower a woman's mind and heart, as she surely empowered mine. This is because I could really identify with Asya's character or maybe I crave to identify with her,to some extent . She projects an image of a rock-hurt by nothing but only her questionable past- which she thought was buried in some deep abyss never to surface again.

Her personal manifesto of nihilism suggests a deep rooted hatred for pretence but love for self. She is not a "tea-glass woman" , the kind of Istanbulite women Shafak truly criticizes. In this fashion, Elif Shafak drew a clear picture as to what kind of woman can survive the "traumatic culture" that Turkey, apparently, bred.

Still, what remains to point out is the psyche of the people of modern-day Turkey. They are "stuck between the East and West. Between the past and the future."

The secular modernists on one side and the conventional traditionalists on the other side are keeping the common man from speaking any critical word, which also, could be the reason why Elif Shafak got into trouble with a novel this honest.

To sum up, this book can give you goosebumps taking you across a crooked bridge from the troubled past to an unresponsive present along with some insight on Turkish-Armenian relations over the centuries.

The Perfect Groom - by Sumeetha Manikandan

Very little has gone right in Nithya’s young life. So, when a proposal from a young, handsome NRI comes along, her mother jumps at the opportunity and packs her daughter off to the US with her perfect groom. Nithya seems to have settled in with Ashok, ostensibly happy, if as yet childless, in her new life. When an old flame comes back into her life, however, the cracks in her perfect marriage begin to show…

Honestly, The Perfect Groom (by Sumeetha Manikandan) is a very familiar story. It is a light read meant for times when you want to pick up a book but know there will be lack of concentration. Things that I liked about Sumeetha’s book were Nithya’s moments with her in-laws and obviously the happy ending.

The plot presented is quite predictable and so are the characters. I believe that universally story-outlines are limited and every author presents those same outlines in new flavours, with new colours and different twists. But The Perfect Groom lacked all of that! I wish the author would have invested more in bringing out the emotions of each scene. I wish she would have been more descriptive of the characters.

Another thing I admired about the book was that it was a tight story. By this I mean that there were no unnecessary scenes/situations or even characters. The story might be predictable but it has the potential to resonate with a varied audience. This is precisely why I feel that Sumeetha should have dug deeper.

Would I recommend The Perfect Groom? As a super-light read yes!

Would I ever pick up another book by the author? I sure would give it another shot!

Rating: 3/5 (as light as a read can get!)

Seoul-Mates - by Pamela Q Fernandes

She’s a down-on-her-luck foreigner struggling to fit into a close-knit society, and he’s the heir to one of Seoul’s largest business empires. The marriage of Anglo-Indian Katia Rosario to Jihan Kwan, Seoul’s most eligible bachelor, sounds like a fairy-tale romance. Except that it’s not.

Seoul-Mates, by Pamela Q Fernandes, has everything a romantic novel essentially needs – the damsel in distress, the bad-boy and the villain. The concoction of love, pain, drama and evil brewed by Pamela is almost perfect!

This book was my debut with Indirom Novella and I wouldn’t change that (that does say a lot). By the end of the book I did fall in love with the protagonists (Katia & Jihan) and their story. This read more like a short story rather than a novel. I do think it has the potential to be explored more, and here is why: 

• Each character, even the supporting ones, had depth to them. The author could have built those and highlighted their equations with our hero & heroine.
• Katia & Jihan’s meeting & courtship needed to be meatier for me. After all how the guy woes the girl is quintessential for telling a romantic story.
• While his proposal seemed perfect, I do wish her turmoil of entering the marriage would have been shown. It was a difficult decision for her! 
• The character of Jihan’s sister seemed untouched, there was potential there too. Whatever glimpses of the little sister-in-law’s relation with Katia have been shown were nice.
• Spoiler alert: Imo’s (Korean for Aunt) breakdown, god knows was the perfect opportunity to flare up the drama. This was the manic masala bit of this story.

Pamela’s plot might not be the freshest, but her story definitely leaves you feeling hopeful. If I do ever get a chance I would want to know ‘Why did she pick Korea as the destination?’ 

As a one-time read I would definitely recommend Seoul-Mates. Here’s wishing author Pamela Q Frenandes a full-blooded next book!

Rating: 3/5 (it’s a light read)

The Redeemers, by Suresh Taneja

About the author:
Suresh Taneja is a chartered accountant by profession. He published his first book, “We Can Pull It Off” and this book is an improved version of that. He wishes more youth read it, and believes that the youth have a very important role to play in the development of India.

My thoughts on the cover design:
It feels casual, like a light read is implied. Gives out a projection of excitement and enthusiasm.

My impressions from the blurb:
Well, if Suresh’s belief is that youth should play a part in the country’s future, the novel seems to be a reflection of that. A story of youth who have set out to make a change.

My review:
Well, we begin at a time in the future, 2030 to be exact, where things have turned on their head. There is a young Indian ambassador to the US, and India is the leading superpower in the world. Indian companies have become THE brand abroad and such. We’re introduced to a closely knit group of four friends and their families, who are currently holidaying in the United States. This group (G4) are part of the initial revolution that changed India and got them to where they are now. Chapter by chapter from this point, we are taken back and forth in time to see what started it all, and how the change came about.

This book is inspiring, and calls for action from the youth to battle and conquer corruption that has taken over our country, and left it, as rightfully said on the blurb, in a shameful state. It tells us that small things and prompt thinking can help bring about that change, as shown when young Yuvika’s prompt thinking prevents her family from being unjustly accused and charged with murder. It also tells us change might not happen overnight, but working toward it can make it more possible that we feel it is now, to implement the good ideas we might have for changing the nation is also important. Lastly, it also shows we need to have dreams and believe in them, and we should be given that space to believe in them rather than other dreams pushed in, so they become true.

On the downside, editing lacked. A major mistake was Kolkata being spelt with a double t. It is in the future and by that time, another t might be added for all I know, but felt very odd. It also was very off-putting to read the sentences like “G4 initiated discussion with G3” or “G6 wished in chorus” etc. To show that all of the group said it felt wrong. Perhaps it might have been better to put it like one of them wished and the other followed in chorus, or one by one. And also, though they are known as a group like the parents together as G6, fathers alone as G3 and the four of them as G4, just using the group names felt seriously strange. Similarly with the discussion, when political parties was discussed. Names to the parties brings a more realistic feel to it. Things like India’s state of domination in 2030, with us lending huge amount of money to the Americans felt nice, but to be frank, it also felt unrealistic given the pace of development we are currently at. One suggestion from my side is that rather than starting out with India as a fully developed, global superpower, what might have been more apt is for the story to start in the present and go along from there till 2030. That, and being narrated from the point of view of G4 members, like one chapter from Yuvika, the next from Vikram etc., might have made it more effective and touching, rather than starting out with all is fine and narrating the past to their already awestruck children.

The Redeemers is a feel good story that leaves us wondering if we are asking the right questions and how the onus is on us to ask the right ones and be the stepping stone for change.

---

My rating: 3.25 Stars

Book details:
Title: The Redeemers
Author: Suresh Taneja
ISBN: 978-93-82473-39-8
Genre: Fiction/Drama
Publishers: Leadstart / Frog Books
Price: INR. 145

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Reviewed by Leo

Shared with:
1. First Reads at b00k r3vi3ws
2. Indian Quills at The Tales Pensieve

This was an author-requested review. I thank Suresh Taneja for the review copy.

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Bravely Fought The Queen- Mahesh Dattani

And Arpita!

SYNOPSIS: 

First staged in Mumbai in 1991, Bravely Fought the Queen juggles between two spaces centre stage where an empirical drama removes the mask of hypocrisy from a seemingly normal urban household; and a small, rear backdrop from where emerges the raison d être of each protagonist.

The family in focus is that of two brothers, Jiten and Nitin, who run an advertising agency and are married to sisters: Dolly and Alka. Their mother, Baa, moves between the two households, attached more to her memories of the past than to any present reality. Marital friction, sibling rivalry, the traditional tension between mother-in-law and daughters-in-law, the darker moments of business and personal dealings, the play takes us through the entire gamut of emotional experience as it winds to a climactic finish.

With its relentless pace, crisp idiom and unflinching insight into the urban milieu, this is a play that confirms Mahesh Dattani s reputation as India s most influential playwright.

EXCERPT:  

"Lalitha: You stunt their growth. You keep trimming the roots and bind their branches...you've got to make sure,the roots don't have enough space to spread..."

SWARNALI SPEAKS:  

Mahesh Dattani questions and challenges many universal questions regarding traditional and stereotyped gender roles in his plays. Through his plays Dattani explores the multiple facets of human relationships and their validity in today's world. Many of the subjects that he chooses cannot be comfortablyor directly discussed in an orthodox social milieu as in India. 

Issues like incest,lechery,female subjugation amongst others are strongly condemned in India in public and Dattani very tactfully raises his voice on these social taboos in an oblique manner through a plethora of symbols.

In this particular play,Dattani takes the title from the famous lines of a Hindi poem by Subhadra Kumari Chauhan, that all Indians are sure to have heard in childhood-

"Khub ladi mardani woh toh Jhansi wali Rani thi" 

(Translation-"Bravely fought the manly queen of Jhansi.")

The very first time I saw the book,it was the title which caught my attention. I couldn't help but be reminded of the same poem. Intrigued how a contemporary playwright could have used the same lines to tell a tale in the modern world,I picked it up and I can happily say I don't regret my decision!! I was so addicted after reading this one that i couldn't help myself from reading all his other plays and they are equally good. 

This book is an amazing read especially if you are an Indian and if you are appalled by the hypocrisy in everyday things in the society. A very fast moving plot makes you feel like you are actually watching the play being performed in front of your eyes and you are yourself a character in it. 

The title or book cover may suggest a feminist idea being propagated but I assure you that is not the only thing or issue being addressed in the book. This is not a light book as it may keep haunting you for several days as it did to me. The light hearted family talks in the first two acts take a sudden turn in the final act and the reader or viewer is left open mouthed as slowly everything is revealed. Dattani does a brilliant job in cleverly hiding the final surprises/shocks. A must read for all.

ARPITA SPEAKS:

When you sit and think about what makes you like a book more than the others, one thing that definitely comes to mind is the way it makes you feel like a part of the story. But it's even more interesting when you don't feel like you're one of the characters, but that you are actually witnessing something real. 

In the entire course of reading the play, I somehow felt like I was watching it live, rather than reading it- and it was an inexplicably exciting experience. It was even better than imagining myself as an invisible god who got to watch the proceedings without being involved. I didn't feel like I was a friend, of a character in the play, caught in an awkward situation where one has to witness a family drama. I felt like I was sitting in a dark auditorium and watching this fascinating play with bated breath. 

There are eleven characters in all- two brothers (Jiten and Nitin) who marry two sisters (Dolly and Alka), the boys' mother 'Baa', Sridhar, the guy who works under them in the advertising agency, his wife Lalitha, and four other characters who never actually show up and are only referred to- Daksha, the old woman, and Kanhaiya, who is possibly the most intriguing character, if you ask me, apart from Praful (the girls' brother),who is a surprise package.  

It might come across as a heavy read, when you think about the various angles to the plot. It definitely is a dark concept; it involves the 'dirty' secrets that people have to keep in order to keep up appearances. And it would surely stay on your mind for a long time after you've turned the last page. 

Nevertheless, it's absolutely entertaining- and for those who do not like to get too much into the skin of the character, will find it a 'fun' read if they studiously ignore the ghastly revelations that can be disturbing in several ways, because they actually do reflect society the way it is. I guess it could give you a sadistic pleasure- catharsis, if you like, because you're not going through what the characters are.

There are certain situations where the playwright might or might not have been trying a hand at humor, but I certainly found the incidents amusing, all the more because they were just so true to life.

Dolly is seated on the sofa, wearing a dressing gown....she has a mud mask on....After a while, the doorbell rings. She gets up and opens the door to Lalitha....

Dolly: Well, I'm not going to be home very long....As you can see, I was getting ready. My mask is almost dry.

Lalitha: I lie down under the ceiling fan.

Dolly: Huh?

Lalitha: When I have my mask on. It dries faster.

Dolly: Oh, I see.

Lalitha: Then I can do my afternoon meditation in shavasana at the same time. Once the neighbour's boy peeped in through our window and saw me lying flat on my back in the middle of the room. He thought I was dead or dying or something. He called the watchman. When I opened the door for them, they both thought I was a ghost, what with all the mud on my face and egg on my hair. (Laughs)

No response from Dolly.

Dolly: I'm sorry. I wanted to laugh but I was afraid.

Lalitha: Afraid?

Dolly: Afraid I would crack my mask.

The symbols, imagery and innuendos which foreshadow the consequences of the actions of the protagonists might be very accurate, but the play still has the kind of conclusion that will make your jaw drop. If you don't read this, you'll be missing something truly remarkable- you must go for it.

OUR RATING: 5/5

GENRE: Drama

ISBN: 0143062077

ISBN-13: 9780143062073, 978-0143062073

NO. OF PAGES: 100

THIS EDITION PUBLISHED IN 2006 BY PENGUIN BOOKS INDIA

PRICE: Rs.99/- 

On Flipkart: Rs.84/- (After discount.) 

PS- This book happens to be one of Swarnali's most prized possessions, and she gifted it to me the first time we met. I have to say, it was the perfect present. 

Collected Plays Volume 1 by Mahesh Dattani

COLLECTED PLAYS VOLUME 1
AUTHOR : Mahesh Dattani
GENRE: Drama, Anthology
ISBN-13: 9780140293258
NO. OF PAGES:528
MRP: Rs. 508 (on flipkart)

BOOK COVER SAYS: Final Solutions, Dance Like a Man and On a Muggy Night in Mumbai have been staged to critical and public acclaim all over the country and abroad, and his radio plays, Seven Steps Around the Fire and Do the Needful, have been aired on BBC radio. The plays in this collection are prefaced by introductions, which provide fascinating insights into the plays-in-performance in the context of Indian and world theatre.

These eight plays, widely varied in thematic and stylistic content, are a tribute to the dramatic vision and skill of a man who has transformed the face of urban theatre in India.

SWARNALI SPEAKS: Okay, by now you should have realised that my love for Dattani's works have no bounds :P Don't blame me please,his works are depressingly addictive. 

So no wonder I picked up another book of his. this is more of a collection of almost all his plays including a few radio plays that were broad casted on BBC. This collection includes 8 of his plays.

My favorites apart from Bravely Fought the Queen and Tara that I already reviewed,were-

On a muggy night in Mumbai -  This is a pioneer work in Indian English drama where homosexuality was openly discussed, breaking all barriers. Dattani attempts to remove the social prejudices regarding the so called "not-so-normal" people who are a major part of our society and the reason why they are made to remain in the closet. The stigma they face  from both the society and their own group and family is severely criticized by Dattani. The tale of Prakash who is absent throughout more than half of the play, his arrival on stage and the end comes as a brilliant twist.

Dance like a Man- Dattani being himself a trained dancer in Bharatnatyam tries to bring out the prejudice our society has towards male dancer, especially the ones trained in Classical forms. We have come to the 21st century now,but our ideas are still the same orthodox one where we believe that dancing makes a man effeminate. Dattani attempts through his to eradicate this notion that art chooses you and practicing any art form does not change the person you are. There are many other issues that are raised like the responsibility of the parents regarding the future and health of their children. Is it always the mother who is in charge of taking care of the children or is it also the father who is equally responsible. The end maybe mistaken as a very misogynistic one but on a deeper level Dattani gives a very different message.

Others include Final Solutions (he received the Sahitya Akademi award for this one) and Where there is a Will. Each and every story has a surprise end,so be prepared to be shocked and I can bet,you'll never know how the story ends until you reach it. The remaining two are radio plays.

MY RATING: 5/5

Tara

TARA
AUTHOR : Mahesh Dattani
GENRE: Drama
ISBN: 8175300035
NO. OF PAGES: 61
MRP: Rs. 60 (on flipkart)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR : Mahesh Dattani is the first Indian playwright writing in English to be awarded the Sahitya Akademi award. His plays bring Indian drama into the present day in their themes sexuality, religious tension and gender issues while still focussing on human relationships and personal and moral choices which are the classic concerns of world drama.

EXCERPT: "  Dan : Forgive me, Tara. forgive me, for making it my tragedy   " 

SWARNALI SPEAKS: Mahesh Dattani has a motive,a serious social motive whenever he writes a play. But his plays are so entertaining that they often hide the serious issues highlighted in his works. I won't be exaggerating a bit if I say I haven't read another Indian playwright whose works are as captivating, entertaining, well structured and seriously handled as Dattani's. He is a pure genius when it comes to handling complex plots with sensitivity. His multi layered and multi dimentional stage setting is another interesting feature in most of his plays. 

Tara in particular is set in two different locations and different time zones. The play begins with the grown up Dan (Chandan Patel) at his house in London who attempts to write a play called "Twinkle Tara" about his twin sister Tara. The scene is then shifted to the past when Chandan and Tara were kids. Dattani takes the creative license when he makes the characters Tara and Chandan, Siamese twins (which is a biological impossibility. Siamese twins are always of the same sex and are females most of the times). This he does purposefully to heighten the issue he is handling.

Tara and Chandan were born with three legs, one each and an extra which was given to Chandan during their separation. This extra leg which was given to Chandan eventually becomes ineffective and had to be surgically removed,turning both the siblings one-legged. Tara is the bubbly, positive and ambitious one who is not ready to lose due to her physical deformity. Chandan on the other hand has accepted his inability and does not revolt. 

Dattani takes the issue of tyrannical patriarchy and how the siblings turn to be the worst sufferers despite their innocence. I was shocked beyond words when I came to know that in certain families in Gujrat, the female infant is killed by drowning her in a tub of milk.

Dattani takes you through a heart wrenching tale where everyone has their roles in leading Tara to her tragedy. Read the book to know more and be prepared to be shocked and surprised.

MY RATING: 5/5

Westmore - Carol Cassada

NAME OF THE BOOK: Westmore

AUTHOR: Carol Cassada

PUBLISHED ON: 11 April 2011

ISBN: 1461025508

GENRE: Family drama/ romance

PAGES: 390 (paperback) 

SYNOPSIS: 
Set in fictional New England town, Westmore, the story follows the lives of three families; The Greens, the Braxtons, and the Reynolds. While Charlotte Green never thought she could find love again after her husband dies, Peter Green puts his mother in a dilemma when he returns home with his new girlfriend, who's ten years older than him. Scott and Alicia Green are singing siblings struggling to make it big while juggling their love lives, day jobs and worrying about their mother's ability to cope with grief. Andrew Braxton is a ruthless and powerful businessman who runs his household the same way he runs his company, with an iron fist, little realizing that he has lost the respect and love of his wife and children. Laura Reynolds and her daughter Megan move back home with her father, where she plans to start life anew, but little does she know that it's not easy to escape her past. Marie Braxton contemplates her loveless marriage when a surprise pregnancy jolts her world.


EXCERPT:  
"All day and night she 

would cry her heart out, causing 

stress to her body. Finally, her 

children stepped up to the plate and 

got her out of her trance like state. 

They convinced her, this isn't what 

daddy would've wanted. He wouldn't 

want her to mope around all day, 

he'd want her to go out and enjoy 

life. Although she didn't want to 

admit it, she knew they were right, 

knowing Michael he'd be fussing at 

her behavior. Instead of staying 

home, wallowing in self-pity day-8 

after-day, she finally got out and did 

something with her life. She owned a 

successful business with her best 

friend, and her kids, although all 

grown and had lives of their own, 

still made time for their dear old 

mom. 

Although she was doing 

better and had moved on with her 

life, deep down she still missed 

Michael."  

PeeVee SPEAK: 

Westmore is one of those books that I ploughed right through once I got started because of the simple fact that it warrants only that much attention and time. The language is simple, the plot is too. One can possibly get lost somewhere in the beginning for more characters keep appearing but everything settles after the first hundred odd pages. It's just another story of families, love, controlling patriarchs and clashes. Nothing more, nothing less.

Surprises kept popping up even in the last chapters making me to wonder how the author plans on wrapping everything up in the last fifteen pages. Turns out, she doesn't. The end leaves the story hanging with none of the threads tied, loose ends flying around like stray clothes in a storm. No closure, none whatsoever.

From a Google search, I find that there is a part II, let's see if it can make the experience better. For now, the book strictly meant for times when you're in bed with chicken pox and have absolutely nothing else to read.

RATING: 2.5 on 5
PRICE: $15.50/ Rs. 750 (approx.) on Amazon