Why Have'nt You Written

Just finished reading "Why Have'nt You Written" Selected Stories from 1950 to 1972 by Nadine Gordimer. The stories belong to that era when South Africa was under aparthied rule. Most of the stories deal with subtle tensions arising out of racial strife.

This is my 39th and last book for 2008.

The Double Eagle

Just finished reading "The Double Eagle" a first novel by James Twining. The book is about the art underworld and a racy thriller. The narrative though is a bit difficult to start with sequence of events related to a particular time and place. Also there are too many characters in the book. Not a bad effort for a first time novel, the book introduces art thief Tom Kirk as the main character. I believe he has written a sequel to this novel. I would give it a 3/5.

Dead Simple

Read "Dead Simple" by Peter James, a twisting racy thriller set in England, of six friends, one of whom is a turncoat, but the real suspense is at the end. Somewhat predictable, yet engrossing.

The Landlord at Lion's Head

Just finished reading "The Landlord at Lion's Head" William Dean Howells, a story of a transformation of an impoverished New England farm into a successful summer hotel and of the characters played out in its success.
Ram

Is New York Burning?

Finished reading "Is New York Burning" by Larry Collins & Dominique Lapierre. It is an exciting account of the post 9/11 America, when some terrorists attempt to nuclear bomb New York. The scientific and technological weapons, systems, used by Americans to thwart the terrorists' bomb is very fascinating. These guys have written an excellent book on India's freedom struggle "Freedom at Midnight". Also individually, Dominique has written "The City of Joy", which got converted into a movie.

Sherlock Holmes classics

Just finished reading four Sherlock Holmes classics, "Valley of Fear", the last Holmes, the famous "Hound of the Baskervilles", "The Sign of Four" and "A Study in Scarlet". Sherlock Holmes has always been my favourite, keep reading and re-reading it all times.

Wives and Others

Just finished reading "Wives and Others" a collection of short stories by Manik Bandopadhyay a pioneer of Bengali literature. Most of his stories are absolutely brilliant in its scope and context though there is an element of morbidity in some of his tales, with frequent allusions to death and destruction. Sad that like Nabakov he had such a short life.

Bound Together

Just finished reading "Bound Together' by Nayan Chanda, which is about the history of globalisation. Nayan has done extensive research on the subject, and come up with wonderful nuggets of information, which are virtually eye-openers. Why, for instance, that globalisation has been with us since the beginning of humanity some 60,000 years ago, when the first ancestors walked out of present day Ethiopia in Africa. Savour this, succession of traders, preachers, warriors, adventurers have roamed the earth in myriad ways, creating conditions for humans to live in the present day with all its conflicts, wars, SARS, cyberattacks, WTO etc. The fact that all humanity originated from Africa and from a same mother is mind boggling to say the least. Absolutely absorbing book this.

letters to a young gymnast

I just finished reading "letters to a young gymnast" an autobiography of nadia comaneci. Written in the form of letters to a young and upcoming gymnast, it offers a glimpse into the life of one of the most popular olympic stars. Her penury post olympics and restricted freedom in the then communist Romania and her defection to USA through Hungary and Austria makes for a moving narrative. She also intersperses her narrative with her most famous gymnastic routines.

Cheiro Palmistry

Read this many years ago as a fad of the times. Don't believe in it entirely though esp the numerology part.

The Miguel Street

Just finished reading "The Miguel Street" by V.S. Naipaul, his first ever book. Set in Trinidad it is an irreverent look at the life of myriad characters who set their lives in Miguel Street, one part of Trinidad. The book is told from the eyes of a kid who observes the goings on in his part of the world. Being an early Naipaul, it is a good book.

The Lifetime Reading Plan

Just finished reading The Lifetime Reading Plan by Clifton Fadiman. This was the 1978 edition, which was revised by Fadiman in 1997 before his death in 1999. The Lifetime Plan is a must read for all book readers who wish to immerse themselves in the classics of all ages, from the 1600s onwards to the contemporary greats. The 1997 edition includes the Indian classics such as Ramayana, Mahabharata, Kalidasa etc. apart from Arabian, Oriental and African classics.

Season of the Rainbirds

Just finished reading "Season of the Rainbirds" by Nadeem Aslam, a Pakistani writer, my first by a writer from that country. It is a story of a small town in Pakistan in turbulent times, inter-religious relationship and hurtful memories from letters delivered from the past. For a first writer, time novel, it has suspense.

Dead Souls

I just finished reading "Dead Souls" by Nikolai Gogol, my first by a Russian master. I am tempted to think this is probably the best book to be taken for reading of the Russian masters. The story does'nt sound as morbid as the title does, actually it is a wonderful parody of the Russian life and the society of the time. It is such a pity that Gogol had such a short life and only one book. The ending is not Gogol, ostensibly because he is said to have burned some of his manuscripts, so the ending is not the same class as the rest. A wonderful book.

Athabasca

Just finished reading "Athabasca" by Alistair Maclean, a writer who was much famous during my college days. This is my first by him and it is a good racy thriller based on the oil industry in Alaska and Canada.

Cruelly Murdered

Just finished reading "Cruelly Murdered" by Bernard Taylor a true account of a sensational murder that took place in England in 1860. That with the sad upbringing of the killer, unsolved nature of the crime, her subsequent remorse, confession, living in jail for a full term of twenty years and her after-jail work for the downtrodden made for good reading.

Riding the Ranges

Just finished reading "Riding the Ranges" by Bill Aitken, a Scotsman who has made India his home for the last five decades. He has ridden his motorbike across the Himalaya and Sahyadri ranges, two most important mountain ranges in India. It is an easy read book of his travels to places like Arunachal Pradesh, Ladakh, the Deccan, Western Ghats and the various small towns dotting the Himalayan landscape. As a travelogue, it is a different kind, since it is undertaken on his motorbike, so he has dwelt some time on the motorbike related problems while travelling.

Goldfish Have no Hiding Place

James Hadley Chase thrillers have remained with me for the past more than 20 years reading them intermittently. I finished yet another thriller "Goldfish Have no Hiding Place". It is a typical fast paced murder mystery with a lot of drama in it.