Rajat Narula's Blog, page 9
April 10, 2020
The Drunk Bird Chronicles: Malay Chatterjee
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A giant white raven who is hundreds of years old, speaks multiple languages and has a taste for brandy, a London brothel-keeper who is an inventor of sorts and designs the Calcutta tramway, a young architect in CPWD who is visited by the then PM Indira Gandhi in hospital, a royal uncle-niece duo in love with the same man who they do not mind sharing . These are amongst many more colorful and unique characters that breathe on the pages of Malay Chatterjee’s ‘The Drunk Bird Chronicles’. The book traces the lives of five generations of Gareth-Braganza family from London to Calcutta to Khasi hills to Goa to Delhi. You have to salute the author’s ambition, his imagination and the breadth of the canvas he paints in vivid colors and minute details. The book stands out on many counts: literally hundreds of characters that are all unique, the pacing – characters come and go – but the pace of story-telling doesn’t slacken anywhere, and the interweaving of fiction and reality. Karl Marx, Jackson Pollock, M.F.Hussain, and many others make cameo appearances that enliven the proceedings. Chatterjee does a great job in holding the story together, capturing the essence of the cities the story plays out in, and in capturing readers’ imagination. A masterful piece of writing indeed.
Read.
March 27, 2020
Becoming: Michelle Obama
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Becoming is the heart-warming and inspirational account of Michelle Obama’s life. Starting from a small apartment in a Chicago street to Princeton and Harvard to White House. It is not a dry, ambitious journey; the warmth of her family life in her early years, the friendships she formed growing up, and her dating Barack give Michelle a character that matches with her public persona – of a warm, compassionate person who cares about a lot of issues deeply. The identity with the race comes out too strong, but she acknowledges her upbringing and experiences being very different from Barack’s. The weakest part of the book is the White House bit – ironically what I was looking forward to the most. Her fawning over her husband’s accomplishments despite odds somehow overshadows her own story.
Read.
March 20, 2020
Where the Crawdads Sing: Delia Owens
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Once in a while comes along a novel that makes you question if you have your head fixed right or is everyone else in the world crazy. A Reese Witherspoon book club selection, NYT best seller for a number of weeks, over 21000 reviews on Amazon, Where the Crawdads Sing comes with strong credentials. However, it is poorly written piece of fiction. The premise itself is a little hard to digest but even if you overcome that, the predictability of the story line, stereotypical characters, repetitive writing and convenient coincidences make it a hard to read book. Delia Owens may be a good biologist, but a good writer she is not. Even the unique beauty of the marshlands is not captured well. It is the oaks, Spanish moss, the gulls – including the big red, estuaries over and over again without any captivating description that you get tired of the setting and just want the story to end somehow. Sometimes I wonder the value the editors add to the books. Wouldn’t the editor have noticed that Kya is almost always dressed in a white top and cut-off jeans, every few pages reads out a poem by Amanda Hamilton, and the food has to be listed each time we are near a diner. It makes for tiresome reading indeed.
Don’t even think about it.
March 13, 2020
Sing Unburied Sing: Jesmyn Ward
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Sing Unburied Sing is an engrossing story about race relations in modern times and also generations past. How so much has changed and yet so little has. Thirteen-year old Jojo grown in a household where he is the primary caregiver to his little sister besides his grandparents because his black mother and white father are too busy getting high, dodging law and making love. The glimpses into the past of his grandfather and the prejudices he faced two generations ago is the backdrop which keeps the reader grounded. The fact that the POVs of JoJo and his mother are starkly different make the book even more engaging. The magic-realism bit in the book didn’t work for me. It was okay that Leonie saw her dead brother every time she was high, but then it gets much with Richie, other ghosts that the kids can see, and Mom’s death scene where everyone sees everyone.
Read.
March 6, 2020
Gun Island: Amitav Ghosh
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It has been a season of legends falling from grace. Salman Rushdie disappointed with Golden House and now it is Amitav Ghosh’s turn with Gun Island. Ghosh is clearly passionate about some of the current issues including immigrant crisis and climate change and decides to weave a story around these two themes. However, he forgets one critical element of story telling: story. It is hard to imagine it’s the same Amitav Ghosh who spun such vivid worlds in The Sea of Poppies and The River of Smoke. Current events is perhaps not his thing and he is better off playing on history and events past. It is heartbreaking to read the mumbo-jumbo Gun Island offers.
Don’t bother.
February 28, 2020
Narcopolis: Jeet Thayil
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One wonders how the book made it to the Booker shortlist. An exotic setting and interesting characters (including Dimple, the eunuch) certainly, but it doesn’t add to anything at all.
Don’t bother.
February 21, 2020
An Absolutely Remarkable Thing: Hank Green
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John Green’s brother makes a remarkable debut with ‘An Absolutely Remarkable Thing’ – a YA, SF that is fast-paced, gripping and meaningful. Hundreds of statues appear in all the major cities all at once and are from another world. Our protagonist, with the unforgettable name of April May, becomes an overnight sensation as the first person to find them. Then begins the struggle between the people who think that the Carls – as they are called – mean well and ‘defenders’ who believe the statues have been planted by a civilization that intends to colonize earth. In the end, the Carls leave and April May, given up for dead, returns. The supporters Vs defenders bit was particularly well done and reflected the ongoing immigration debate. Except the inconclusive end that leaves the reader hanging, the book works well. The voice is fresh and full of wit and humor. Very today.
Read.
February 14, 2020
In Search of Heer: Manjul Bajaj
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In ‘Search of Heer’, Manjul Bajaj re-tells the Heer-Ranjha story. Despite the story being a legend, she succeeds in telling it in a manner that is fresh and holds the interest of the reader. In my view, Bajaj scores on three fronts: first, she does a fantastic job with the world-building. She transports you to the rural Punjab of Mughal era and holds you there. Second, the characterization is superb. Each character is distinct and leaves an impression. The brave and volatile Heer, the vain and taciturn Ranjha, the conniving and evil Kaido. She does a particularly great job with some of the minor characters – Heer’s MIL, for instance, and Sehti. Third, the writing. Part-lyrical, part-insightful, the writing is consistent. When Ranjha goes looking for Heer at the start, the readers are drawn in the beauty of his journey. The insightful bit comes towards the end when Heer interacts with her mother and sister in law. Many a quotable quotes where you stop and admire the words. Another bit that worked for me was Bajaj’s commentary on religious extremism and double standards that are timeless. An enjoyable read indeed!
Read
February 7, 2020
Another Man’s Wife: Manjul Bajaj
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An interesting collection of short stories. ‘Ripe Mangoes’ stood out. Great visuals and lovely characterization. I love how the author works on the minor characters and makes them stand out.
Read.
January 31, 2020
If I Die in a Combat Zone: Tim O’Brien
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A very personal account of the Vietnam war written with candor and honesty. Touching and sensitive. However, excessive repetition of incidents, makes it a little monotonous in parts. Engaging overall with excellent characterization.
Read.
