#BookReview : The five people you meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom

Eddie is a wounded war veteran, an old man who has lived, in his mind, an uninspired life. His job is fixing rides at a seaside amusement park. On his 83rd birthday, a tragic accident kills him as he tries to save a little girl from a falling cart. He awakes in the afterlife, where he learns that heaven is not a destination, but an answer. 

Another year , I have stuck to the ritual of starting the year with Mitch Albom . Unlike other years , I picked the one , I had not read before  - The five people you meet in heaven. All these years , I avoided this book thinking that this would be about people from the central character's life and would not mean that much for me. Perhaps I doubted Mitch Albom is his brilliance , in his magical lessons and making each story valuable to the reader.

This year , I learned about sacrifice and choice ; how every action of ours is linked to even people we do not meet ever in our lifetime. I learned of forgiving the loved ones for their actions, no matter how much it hurt. Most times , there always is their version of love and care that remains unexpressed in all the silence. I felt at peace reading the story of Eddie , like it gave some meaning to reading , to my life at the moment and to my hopes for myself.

This is a beautiful story and I think we all can have some take away from the people Eddie meets.

Sacrifice is a part of life. It's supposed to be. It's not something to regret. It's something to aspire to.” 

“The only time we waste is the time we spend thinking we are alone.” 

My rating : 5/5

Unanswered, by Kunal Uniyal

Life is all about questions and answers. When in our journey, we don't seem to find an answer, we invoke the almighty and put the question to him, see if he can give us the answer, or better yet, help us to find the answers within ourselves. That is a part of spirituality that I admire. And to me, that's partly the path that this book "Unanswered" takes. The book is the poet's contemplation on life, and these questions, and at times, the answers that he finds to these questions.

How one looks at different aspects or characteristics of life varies with each person. Through this book of poetry and philosophy, the poet looks at and discusses on topics like death, immortality, morality, dharma, ego etc. He seeks answers for these in the pages of spiritual and religious texts like the Bhagwad Gita, and enlightens us on what they say about these. And in his own style, he makes us think on those topics as well. Something that I noted down in particular was a quote from Bertrand Russell that I hadn't come across before: "It is the preoccupation with possessions, more than anything else that prevents us from living freely and nobly." I don't quite feel the poet or Russell talks of the very human yearning for something, but it's an obsession that we seem to have for something materialistic that kills peace. And another aspect of this book I could relate to was the contemplation on prayers, for they are something that's very common to mankind, not just a religion.

Poetry cannot really be reviewed, I feel. One can only review or state what one finds or understands in the poem. It is an interpretation of the reader. If it matches the intent of the poet, the joy is more. If not, it doesn't mean that the poet or the reader has failed. The poet here shares many of his verses, but perhaps the one that stands out to me is the very first. What I can relate to is what will be memorable, after all. The poem, titled "You and I" questions and seeks the almighty, and queries if we, or the poet, can see Him in his form, that if He is everywhere and in everything, can He, for some moments, be ours and only ours. I've felt that often. More so, it reminded me of Hiranyakashipu, who wanted to see if God was in a pillar, though not with the same emotions.

There is depth, I accept, in this collection of Capt. Uniyal's thoughts. And it is warranted. But it might still be a bit heavy for most readers, with the vocabulary especially not helping to keep my attention on the prose. But it is worth diving into, and it is appreciable.

I like the book for the most part, but it doesn't engage me a lot. So I rate it 3.5 stars. Best wishes to the author for his future books.

---

Reviewed by Vinay Leo R. for the author, who gave a copy of the eBook.

The Valmiki Syndrome by Ashok Banker

Author: Ashok Banker

Publisher: Random House, India

ISBN: 978-8-184-00141-9

Binding: Paperback

Pages: 278

Genre: Self-help

Rating: 2.5/5

I have to begin with my admission of having a hate-love (more hate than love) relationship with this author. Despite my ordeal with his Ramayana series, which is also something I’m currently reading, I chose to read The Valmiki Syndrome. Why? Partly, because I was ensnared by the title, and partly, because Random House asked me to review it. And at the end of the book, my perception of the author remains the same. However, the book wasn’t as bad as some other ‘preachy’ ones I’ve read; mostly because it uses mini stories to prove the point. Ashok Banker extols the value, and demonstrates the ancient technique of, katha (storytelling) as a way of gaining insight, knowledge and subsequently, wisdom in this book.

The book talks about The Valmiki Syndrome – the common human conundrum of trying to find the work-life balance. I’m not sure if a concept like this existed, or has been conjured up by the author. I think it is the latter. While using Sage Valmiki’s story as an example was okay, calling the whole problem of work-life balance ‘The Valmiki Syndrome’ was stretching it. The book could easily have been called something like ‘The Work-Life Question’, ‘The Urban Dilemma’ or something else that sounds self-help-ey. But Banker’s love of Ramayana and a clever marketing ploy may have prompted this title. There is a resurgence of interest in Indian mythology in the current generation, and like it tricked me to pick up the book, it will many others.

As I’ve mentioned above, the book has three mini stories about three very different lives. There is an extremely ambitious Suhasini; there is Sara, who rebels to find success in a field not approved of by her family; and there is the dreaded dacoit Ratnakaran, who kills and steals to make a living. The consequences of their chosen paths are very different – Suhasini, on a career overdrive, loses her husband and children; Sara succeeds on her path despite the initial estrangement from her family and goes on to get the best of both worlds; and Ratnakaran realizes, with the help of Rishi Narada, that his family does not really support his means, and goes on to mend his ways by treading the spiritual path.

Through the stories, the author tries to encourage the reader to ask oneself three fundamental questions about identity and life. Who am I? Who do I wish to be? How do I become that person? Once a person mulls upon and is able to answer these questions, he is able to find his life path. He is able to prioritise, act upon, and change his life situation for the better. These are pertinent philosophical questions and I liked the book for them. The author is able to demonstrate simply and easily their importance. The packaging of this ancient wisdom is clever.

My only misgiving, as with all of Banker’s books, is his style of writing. I find it boring, especially in parts where it is Banker speaking. As long as he has his story voice on, where the characters talk, he is tolerable. But when his own opinions come across, he begins to sound ‘bleh’. It’s like ‘I’m not preaching, but do this…’, ‘I’m not being a guru, but do that…’. Yeah, okay, Mister Banker, you’re not trying to preach, but you are. Don’t.

The Witch of Portobello by Paulo Coelho

                                                  

AUTHOR- Paulo Coelho

PUBLISHED- 2007

ISBN – 978-0-00725744-7

GENRE- Fiction / Philosophy

SYNOPSIS- How do we find the courage to be true to ourselves- even if we are unsure of who we are?

      That is the central question posed by Paulo Coelho’s riveting work, The Witch of Portobello. It is the story of Athena, a mysterious young woman born in Romania, raised in Beirut and living in London. Her life is told by the many who knew her well- or hardly at all.

EXCERPT- ‘No one places her dreams in the hands of those who might destroy them. No one, that is, but Athena.’ – Heron Ryan, Journalist

‘Whoever drinks this water once can never quench her thirst at other springs.’ –Deidre O’Neill, known as Edda

‘In my world, and in the world of those I lived with, this (note: Vampires) was absurd, nonsensical, unacceptable.’ – Heron Ryan, Journalist  

‘Because God the Father is associated with the rigour and discipline of worship, whereas the Mother Goddess shows the importance of love above and beyond all the usual prohibitions and taboos.’ – Antoine Locadour, historian, ICP, France

‘My child, I’ve been excluded too. It’s a very long time since they’ve allowed me in there (note: The Church).’- Father Giancarlo Fontana imagining what Jesus might have said to Athena

KOUSTABH 'QUETZALCOATL' says- I start with a very controversial doubt I have in my mind for a long time. Why isn’t Paulo Coelho getting nominated for Nobel Prize for literature??

       Well leaving all that thoughts to the genius’ sitting in the Nobel selection committee, I would come back to the book. To be very frank this book isn’t the best work by Paulo Coelho. When you have read the Alchemist, Eleven Minutes or even Veronika Decides to die (an excellent review given on that by Pulkit), this story seems to pale in comparison. The reason, if you ask me, would be that the story line is too random (it getting sllllloooow somewhere and fast in other pages) and without much evolution. For those of you, who think that this is a book about magic and witch hunting, well its not!!

       It’s a story about an orphan girl Sherine Khalil who renames herself Athena (the Greek goddess of wisdom). One would ask WHY?? But answers are not provided in the mundane realm, you have to go beyond your everyday humdrum to understand this and the whole book, a process which Mr. Coelho masters in and makes him one of my favorite authors (though here it is dragged a bit more than what’s comfortable).

       The book starts after the death of Athena, and the author is trying to form an image of her out of recollections (reminds me of Márquez’s ‘Chronicle of a Death Foretold’, superbly reviewed by Arpita). But what raise it to a new pedestal are the innumerable characters pitching in their opinions, even those who barely knew her and even those who hated her. Her unending search for something (which one can interpret as desires, redemption, truth, and questions like who am I or anything else for that matter) is what fuels the storyline and makes her a memorable character. From wild dance and calligraphy to achieve peace, to her search for her true mother, to learning the religion of the Goddess and then teaching others to become one of the most controversial spiritual leader in London.

       A book for all those avid fans of Paulo Coelho, and also for those who wants to open their vista to anew horizon, this novel will pinch out a little bit of your time but in return, I can assure you, will provide many eye openers in this new era of questions and answers. As the editor wrote, “Like The Alchemist, this is a kind of story that will transform the way readers think about love, passion, joy and sacrifice.”

       Though it cannot be strictly compared to books like ‘The Alchemist’, yet it definitely deserves a chance to be read, if only for the sake of something diverse from regular fiction.

       I hope you all Keep reading and commenting!!  

           

My Rating – 3.3/ 5 stars

PRICE – INR 239 (Filpkart Price)

Veronika Decides To Die - Paulo Coelho

AUTHOR - PAULO COELHO

BEST-SELLERS - The Alchemist, Brida, The Winner Stands Alone

SYNOPSIS - Twenty-four-year-old Veronika seems to have everything -- youth and beauty, boyfriends and a loving family, a fulfilling job. But something is missing in her life. So, one cold November morning, she takes a handful of sleeping pills expecting never to wake up. But she does -- at a mental hospital where she is told that she has only days to live. Inspired by events in Coelho's own life, Veronika Decides to Die questions the meaning of madness and celebrates individuals who do not fit into patterns society considers to be normal. Bold and illuminating, it is a dazzling portrait of a young woman at the crossroads of despair and liberation, and a poetic, exuberant appreciation of each day as a renewed opportunity.

QUOTES -

• “There is always a gap between intention and action.”

• “Nothing in this world happens by chance.”

• “God knows the past, the present and the future. In that case, he had placed her in this world with the full knowledge that she would end up killing herself, and he would no longer shocked by her actions.”

• “In adolescence she thought it was too early to choose, now in youth she was convinced it was too late to change.”

• “'If God exists, and I truly don't believe he does, he will know that there are limits to human understanding. He was the one who created this confusion in which there is poverty, injustice, greed and loneliness. He doubtless had the best of intentions. but the results have proved disastrous; if God exists, He will be generous with those creatures who chose to leave this Earth early, and he might even apologize for having made us spend time here.'”

• “Everyone is indeed crazy, but the craziest are the ones who don't know they're crazy; they just keep repeating what others tell them to.”

• “we lived together like fish in an aquarium, contended because someone threw us food when we needed it, and as we could, whenever we wanted to, see the world outside through the glass”

• “An awareness of death encourages to live more intensely.”

• “Stay insane, but behave like normal people. Run the risk of being different, but learn to do so without attracting attention. Allow the real “I” to reveal itself. It’s what you are, not what others make of you.”

• “A schizophrenic is a person who already has a natural tendency to absent himself from this world.”

PULKIT SPEAKS -

A Novel of Redemption;

I read this book almost an year back, when it was recommended to me by my soul sister. She had been increasingly getting worried about me in those days, due to my severe mood swings and emotional outbursts on status updates and blog posts. On being pushed rigorously for the same, I purchased a copy of it. It was a slow starter, I had read alchemist by the same author previously and thus I managed to held on to the plot of this one and the writing style which soon gathered momentum, and took the reader i.e. me to a journey of self discovery and answers. Each character is unique and fresh, Dealing with dilemmas of life which are common to almost all of us, and within the course of the book, they get answers to those dilemmas, simultaneously answering our own set of personal riddles.
The writer successfully manages to set up an analogy between regularity and sadness. It establishes the connect of love and compromise, as well as madness and liberation in the most amazing of manners. This book near its end, hits you hard with slaps of reality and truth right on your face, and reminds you of the life that is present in every moment going by right at this point of your life. Spritual in many ways, and enlighteningly fascinating in others, This is a master read for all those who think a lot and analyze life way too much. Every such reader can derive a lot of new things out of every page and every line. Brilliant and thought provoking, I am glad I read it, at the right time and thus enjoyed it the most that can be.

RATING - 4/5 - Strictly recommended for people who ponder more at day today basis on the meaning of life, A must read for people suffering with depression/Insomnia and mood swings, I guess that included 90 percent of online community of ours ;)

PRICE - $10.17 , Online purchase from Amazon