Indian Readers discussion
READING PROGRESS 2016
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Janhavi's 2016 challenge
Mod
Syl ʃʃ^.^ʃʃ wrote: "All the best. which was the first one?"The Theory of Everything - Stephen Hawking.
Oho. Nice.50 books for me, but then that includes some graphic novels too, so yeah.
All the Best!
#COYJ
Janhavi wrote: "Syl ʃʃ^.^ʃʃ wrote: "All the best. which was the first one?"The Theory of Everything - Stephen Hawking."
Thanks on my tbr! Do temme about it after finishing :D
I hope you will read a lot of good books this year!
Gehna wrote: "Janhavi wrote: "Syl ʃʃ^.^ʃʃ wrote: "All the best. which was the first one?"The Theory of Everything - Stephen Hawking."
Thanks on my tbr! Do temme about it after finishing :D"
It's brilliant. Loved it.
If you're interested in Big Bang, origins of the universe, black holes and such, you'll love this book. Though the book is < 150 pages, I took 3 days to finish it.
The best part is that it is pretty easy to grasp the concepts.
Update: Just finished Andre Agassi's autobiography, Open.
I am a big fan of Agassi's game, and always wanted to read the book, but had been avoiding it - mainly because auto/biographies, memoirs aren't my kind of books.
Short review : Loved it! It's exactly what the name suggests - OPEN. An Open and transparent view about his life. He talks about his childhood, life on tour, and his personal life.
When we look at celebrities (sportspersons), all we see is the glamour, the good life, the wins. But that's just the tip of the iceberg.
Beneath all that gloss, there's a normal human being - though a bit privileged than the rest of us.
Would recommend it to any tennis fan - and non tennis fans as well.
Mod
Update Just finished The Metamorphosis
I think I'll need a day or two to recover. I now understand why my friends were all raving about the book.
Janhavi wrote: " Update Just finished The Metamorphosis
I think I'll need a day or two to recover. I now understand why my friends were all raving about the book."
Lol, I understand you!
Though I hadn't this reaction with The Metamorphosis, I had it with the novels by Kafka but I needed one-two weeks or more to recover. If you still haven't read it, try The Trial or The Castle.
Update Finished after the quake
I rated 3.5/5 .. It's my second Murakami book (the first being Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman)
After the quake is a collection of 6 short stories set against the backdrop of the Kobe earthquake.
I've got a mixed reaction to this book - the stories were great, no doubt. But still feel something is missing in those stories. Didn't get the 'whoa!!' reaction as I did after I read Blind Willow.
On to the next one now..
dely wrote: "Janhavi wrote: " Update Just finished The Metamorphosis
I think I'll need a day or two to recover. I now understand why my friends were all raving about the book."
Lol, I underst..."
Added both, The Trial and The Castle to my TBR. The biggest problem with these books is they are never available in the library :(
The wait list is so long :( You need loads of patience.
Janhavi wrote: "dely wrote: "Janhavi wrote: " Update Just finished The Metamorphosis
I think I'll need a day or two to recover. I now understand why my friends were all raving about the book."
L..."
No ereader?
Mod
Finished after the quake
I rated 3.5/5 .. It's my second Murakami book (the first being Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman)
After the quake is a collection of 6 sho..."
I love Murakami books. Both the above are in my TBR
dely wrote: "Janhavi wrote: "dely wrote: "Janhavi wrote: " Update Just finished The Metamorphosis
I think I'll need a day or two to recover. I now understand why my friends were all raving abo..."
Ah! I do have a kindle.. but my first preference is always getting the book from the library. I'll wait a couple of weeks though.
It's always books vs ebooks with me.
UpdateA Tale of Two Cities What a book!! Charles Dickens - a master storyteller.
A tale of two cities... a tale of love, of sacrifice, of friendship. Beautifully woven around the backdrop of the French revolution.
I was a bit apprehensive when I started this book as classics and me .. we don't get along well. Took me ages to finish Pride and Prejudice. Abandoned Moby Dick midway (it's on hold indefinitely).
Gripping tale. Oh, and Sydney Carton! What a twist in the tale.
On to the next one now.. Started Notes from a Small Island today.
Mod
A small update on my current read Notes from a Small IslandI started it late last night, so didn't go beyond the prologue. Just finished 4 chapters, and I'm laughing so hard my sides hurt.
Well, I knew what I was getting into when I picked this book - have already read 3 Bill Bryson books. It's so hilarious. Recommended!
Mod
UpdateFinally finished Notes from a Small Island. 3.5 stars.
Just when you start a new book, your workload increases and you come home from work so tired all you want to do is just shove the food down your throat and sleep.
That's precisely what happened when I started this book - so it took me longer than a week to finish it.
About the book - it's a lovely read. An account of Bill Bryson's last trip around Britain before moving back to the States. Though it started on a hilarious note, it didn't continue in that manner. Parts of it are hilarious, but not the kind where you laugh so hard that you strain your sides, and your face hurts. Some parts are just "Okay, and ... ?"
Recommended. But if this is your first Bill Bryson book, then I would suggest you read The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid or A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail or even In a Sunburned Country first.
I've started The Picture of Dorian Gray last week. Reading the Kindle edition, so I read that on my way to/from work. And I wanted to start Murder on the Orient Express after finishing Notes from a Small Island. But I received 3 lovely books as a gift, so now wondering if I should postpone Orient Express, and start one of the new books first.
The Collected Works of A .J. Fikry is one of them, and I'm really tempted to start that first :)
Mod
Which are the other 2 gifts?
Update finished two books since my last post here ..
1. The Collected Works of A .J. Fikry
Loved it! Though the story isn't something novel or original, it's a nice read. A widower finds a child on his doorstep, takes care of her and later adopts her... Plenty of books with that subject. But this one was a pleasant surprise. It isn't preachy. Plus there are so many book references, that it's a book of book recommendations.
2. If God Was a Banker
This book was a torture. All the time I was reading it I kept saying "WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS TO YOURSELF? QUIT NOW"
Here's a badly written review https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Mod
Syl ʃʃ^.^ʃʃ wrote: "Both not in my to-read list, Janhavi :)"AJ Fikry is a lovely read. And as I mentioned in my earlier post, there are so many book references, it's like a book of book recommendations :)
About If God was a banker .. less said the better.
Update Finished with The Picture of Dorian Gray
and starting The Kill List - This is one of my favourite genre so it should be a quick read :) Also reading Murder on the Orient Express in parallel. I had initially planned to read Murder on the Orient Express along with the group last month.
First time I'm reading 2 books at a time .. let's see how it goes.
Two books have been added to the Read shelf since I last posted here.The Kill List and Murder on the Orient Express
Loved both.
The Kill List is a typical Fredrick Forsyth book - pacy and intriguing plot. Though this one starts a bit slow. That's because all the characters are properly introduced. Once it picks up speed, there's no stopping.
Murder on the Orient Express - 3.5 stars to this one. I had somewhat figured out the outcome of the investigation. Still one of the best Christie books I have read so far.
The 2016 reading journey continues with Mother Night
So finished Mother Night and Mrs Funnybones.Though I liked it, I'm seeing a lot of negative reviews about Mrs Funnybones. Tbh, I hadn't read her articles or newspaper column. So I had zero expectations when I started this book. (It was my office Secret Santa gift!)
I think if you look at the book as a collection of blog posts, or articles, then the level of disappointment *might* be less.
Liked the simple writing. She is witty, and the humour is completely self deprecating, though at times (just a couple of places) it did seem a bit off colour.
Currently reading Asura: Tale Of The Vanquished - Been on my TBR shelf for a long time.
Mod
Haven't read a Kurt Vonnegut yet.
I enjoyed Mrs. Funnybones too. It made me sit up from the poor opinion I had of celebrity attitudes though it definitely was not a literary treat or something.
Update Done with Asura: Tale Of The Vanquished and rated it 3/5 stars.This books was recommended to me by a friend, and I found the entire 'retelling' of epic concept pretty interesting.
Yes, the book - the concept, is very interesting. It's the story of Ramayana told from Ravana's POV.
Rated it 3 out of 5 as the entire story is told by two characters, Ravana, and Bhadra, so it tends to fly off the tangent sometimes. I often lost focus and track of what was happening. Couple of times I had this "what's happening? Oh, it's Ravana talking now, and not Bhadra" expression while reading.
Currently reading Gulliver's Travels and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Attempting two books at a time :) Let's see how it goes.
Update My thoughts on The Curious incident of the Dog in the Night-time .. on my blog : http://wp.me/px0gF-4K
Currently reading :
Gulliver's Travels
Mod
Gulliver - i havent yet attempted the unabridged version.
Syl. A.k.a Topo di biblioteca wrote: "Nice review:-)Gulliver - i havent yet attempted the unabridged version."
Thanks!
I had read the abridged version of Gulliver's travels, and loved it. Though this is taking a long time.
Also reading Sherlock Holmes: The Complete Novels and Stories, Volume I .. and I'm done with A Study in Scarlet, and Sign of Four.
Janhavi wrote: "Syl. A.k.a Topo di biblioteca wrote: "Nice review:-)Gulliver - i havent yet attempted the unabridged version."
Thanks!
I had read the abridged version of Gulliver's travels, and loved it. Though..."
Your first time reading Holmes? Or you have read it before?
Manveer wrote: "Janhavi wrote: "Syl. A.k.a Topo di biblioteca wrote: "Nice review:-)Gulliver - i havent yet attempted the unabridged version."
Thanks!
I had read the abridged version of Gulliver's travels, and ..."
I've read Holmes before .. This is a complete set. All novels + short stories in one place. Reading one story at a time - it's going to be a 3-4 month long read.
Continuing with Sherlock Holmes. It's a 3-4 month project, so I'm reading 2/3 short stories at a time.Read
and loved it!! It's a travelogue - the author's roadtrips across the Himalayas, mainly Ladakh.The writing is easy going, and you can imagine yourself sitting around a campfire, listening to a friend's trip stories.
Refreshed memories of my Manali-Ladakh-Srinagar roadtrip way back in 2009.
Currently reading
Mod
Hunter THompson one, new to me.
Finished Hey Rube today, and I don't know how to describe it. Haven't rated the book at all. To really understand this book, one needs to have a decent knowledge of American sports and politics. It is full of NFL, NBA references that I had to read with my tab next to me - to google after every chapter.Loved the writing style though.
And started Roads To Mussoorie, a lovely book. Almost at the 50% mark.
Finished Roads To Mussoorie, and almost done with The Silence of the Lambs.Roads to Mussoorie is a lovely Ruskin Bond book. If I had to describe Ruskin Bond's writing in one word .. I would say Charming.
He writes so beautifully, in simple words describes the beauty of nature, and the hills. While reading the book, I could imagine myself sitting around a campfire, somewhere in the hills, listening to Ruskin Bond tell stories.
It's not travel book, but a book full of anecdotes from his travels to/from Mussoorie and within the hill station itself.
And The Silence of the Lambs! This one had been on my TBR list for a long time. Finally got a copy from the library. I have already watched the movie --- countless times.
All I'll say is that the movie hasn't deviated from the book by much. It stays true to the book. If you found the movie scary and disturbing - read the book. It's even better.
Actually, every time I read Dr Lecter's lines in the book, I can hear Anthony Hopkins' voice saying "Claarriicee" It makes my skin crawl. That's the power of great acting, and a good movie adaptation.
Mod
I loved reading Silence of the Lamb. Do you know it is a series of 4 books, Red Dragon being the first, and this one second in series?
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I've set myself a target of 25 books. Let's see how it goes.