Mansee's reading progress 2011

[Mansee]

1. Tata - The evolution of a Corporate Brand

[Mansee]

2. Persuasion - Jane Austen

3/5

[Mansee]

3. The Jane Austen Book Club

3/5

[Meenakshi]

oh my God..too much Jane Austen is hazardous dear!

[Akanksha]

Lol.....Do read Sense and Sensibility!

[Mansee]

@ Meenakshi - I know...thats why shifted to Jodi Picault now ;-)
@ Akanksha - have read Sense and Sensibility..seen the movie too..

[Mansee]

4. Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picault
4/5

[Mansee]

5. Princess: A True Story of Life Behind the Veil in Saudi Arabia by Jean P. Sasson
3/5

[[deleted user]]

princess!! for the longest time i hated men after reading this book. it didnt last, but i still get goosebumps thinking back about the characters in the book.

[Mansee]

yeah...it can definitely put you off...but why men in general? It only depicts the Men in Saudi Arabia..and maybe few other Middle East countries...

Have u read "Not without my daughter" by Betty Mohammady ? It was a heart wrenching book too..

[[deleted user]]

I read princess when I was in school which was a vrery very bad idea. Not all men in Saudi are like that either but then again dont we have similar disgustiing things happening here in India also.

Havent read Not without my daughter... honestly wondering if i should :P Its like all my castles in the air falling!! :P

[Ahtims]

try reading 'bookseller of Kabul' - you'll rekindle your hatred for men :-)

[Muddle head]

Cool it off, cool it off. Now someone wd say Thousand Splendid Suns? :-)

[[deleted user]]

Aditya read princess. Im sure youll start hating men too!! :P :P

[Muddle head]

Well, thousand splendid suns seemed enuf for me, but yeah i will definitely read that. Books abt the Middle East ppl (not just women) always intrigued me for their strength of character, their capacity to take in more and more of discrimination n violence day after day for their entire life time and still find smthng worthwhile to live for.

[Mansee]

@ Aditya -that's a good way to look at it..that inspite of the violence, they find something worthwhile to live for...it also reminds us of how fortunate we r...that so many things that we take for granted (education, freedom of choice and the works) is a luxury in other regions..

[Mansee]

6. Mini Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella

3/5

[Mansee]

7. The Long Road Home by Daniele Steele

3/5

[Mansee]

8. Mr. Darcy's diary

2.5

[Mansee]

9. Doctors by Eric Segal

3 out of 5

[Ahtims]

I was hooked to Doctors during my UG time. I have read it atleast thrice. But my experience is totally different from what is described in Doctors. Everything is exaggerated (or so I feel)

[Mansee]

@ Smitha - u know the other side so u r a better judge...but ive recently worked in a hospital for 6 months which also had a medical college...though i totally worked on the admin side - I could relate to some elements like stress involved (though not that much!), working hrs of the residents and interns, casual approach of few doctors etc...the amusing part is that I was reading it for the secondtime (I had read almost 10 years back) ..it was different though as I could relate to different streams of medicine..like internal medicine, forensic medicine which were more like greek and latin to me that time!

[Mansee]

10.
3/5

[Mansee]

My neice had brought these books from her school library (Doctors, Prizes and Family Album)and though I had read them in high school- was curious to see how I felt about them at this age ...though they were good for relaxed reading....Ive had my fill of such books for some time atleast... once I finish with Family Album, no more Danielle steeles and Eric Segals for me....atleast till I read five sensible books!

[[deleted user]]

Smitha do u remember the Mnemonic used in Doctors to study the Cranial Nerves! Thats the only way i can remember them now :P

Mansee If u like Doctors n can now relate to the book better, U will love Final Diagnosis by Arthur Hailey!

[Ahtims]

Yes. It was a bit crude though , Oh Oh Oh to touch and feel a girl's v------Ah Heaven

[Ahtims]

I have read final diagnosis atleast 3 times in my early twenties - in fact, I liked it more than Doctors
(Doctors was too dramatic for my taste)

[[deleted user]]

its stuck in my head like glue wrt the nerves!

final diagnosis is one of A.H's best books .

[Mansee]

Thanks Hazel - Final Diagonosis will be on my to - read list now!

[Mansee]

11. Family Album - 2.5/5

Phew...no more school library books for sometime now!

[Mansee]

12. Family Matters - Rohinton Mistry- 3/5

I liked the writing style...Parsi culture and Mumbai life is well captured ...human emotions have also been captured well...overall - a good read!

[Sherin]

After reading 'A Fine Balance' I was so depressed that I vowed not to read any book by RM ever!

[Mansee]

Sherin wrote: "After reading 'A Fine Balance' I was so depressed that I vowed not to read any book by RM ever!"

You are right - It's depressing in parts but his writing style is good...and it is better fiction then some other senseless stories

[Ahtims]

I love his writings. I have read almost all his books, yes, a fine balance was very depressing towards the end. Even Family matters is a bit depressing, but his style is amazing

[Mansee]

Smitha wrote: "I love his writings. I have read almost all his books, yes, a fine balance was very depressing towards the end. Even Family matters is a bit depressing, but his style is amazing"

Agree! though this was my first, will want to read more of him - any particular book of his you would like to recommend Smitha?

[Ahtims]

I have read only 3 of his books ( I think he has only written a total of 5, including 2 short story volumes) and I remember liking "family matters" most, then Such a long journey, with the most depressing being "a fine balance"

[Mansee]

Smitha wrote: "I have read only 3 of his books ( I think he has only written a total of 5, including 2 short story volumes) and I remember liking "family matters" most, then Such a long journey, with the most de..."

Thanks!

[Mansee]

13. The Last Lecture - Randy Pausch - 3/5

[Mansee]

above average - Amitabha Bagchi

2/5

Not recommendable

[Mansee]

15. The Pillars of the Earth Ken Follett - 4/5

Truly captivating...the nicely defined characters, the pace, the triumph of good over evil....it was all this and more..A historical epic for sure :)

Im so glad it was on one of our group reads; am not sure whether I would have picked up otherwise!

[Mansee]

16. The Japanese Wife - Kunal Basu - 2/5

The title misguides that it a book on "The japanese wife" and not a part of short stories...Apart from japanese wife, there were only one or two stories which held my interest...rest were forgettable...

[Mansee]

17. The Art of Choosing - Sheena Iyengar
- 3/5

[Mansee]

18. Dork: The Incredible Adventures Of Robin 'einstein' Varghese - Sidin Vadukut

2/5 -An average read...bits and pieces were funny but the climax was over the top..

[Mansee]

19. Chicken Soup for the Indian Soul - 2/5

[Mansee]

20. All and Nothing - Raksha Bharadia - 3/5

About 5 friends..all of them going through a rough patch and how they manage to deal with it...what i liked about the book is the realism and the ease of writing. A nice easy read - finished in a sitting of 3 hours :)

[Anbu]

Are these Chicken Soup for Soul books are good?

I see a variety of chicken soups available in every book shop I go.. :-)

[Vidya]

Anbu wrote: "Are these Chicken Soup for Soul books are good?

I see a variety of chicken soups available in every book shop I go.. :-)"

Hi Anbu,
go thru this link for more details:
http://www.google.com/search?q=chicke...

[Ahtims]

I get depressed on reading chicken soup books - most stories are sad/depressing (atleast to me - these all deal with people overcoming adverse events or loss of loved ones - and I get scared reading those)

[Muddle head]

my parents make fun by pointing out chicken soup for teenage soul to me. I get back by pointing out chicken soup for the parents soul to them. Fun, not to be taken seriously i guess!

[Anbu]

Well by seeing so many books around with this title, I thought these are great hits.. Not as great you guys say.. So I think I will skip these books.. :-)