Mansee's reading progress 2011

[Mansee]

@ Anbu - they r ok...as Chintan says - some are good and some r not...but u cannot like read too many...they r too goody goody sometimes...can be read in bits and pieces..

[Anbu]

Mansee wrote: "@ Anbu - they r ok...as Chintan says - some are good and some r not...but u cannot like read too many...they r too goody goody sometimes...can be read in bits and pieces.."

Ok.. Thanks all.. I will try read one when no other books are there.. :-)

[Mansee]

The Guide - R K Narayan - 3/5

A good read..More eventful then two other R K Narayana's works which I have read...Simple writing style ....also gives fodder for thought for a nice Sunday evening

[Mansee]

Mother Pious Lady: Making Sense of Everyday India - Santosh Desai
- 2/5

It was an okish read..authors take on Middle class India..some customs and habits..was more like a blog...liked some posts...rest were about average. Nothing worth buying but if you have it in a library, a can read..

[Mansee]

My Friend Sancho - Amit Varma

- 1/5

Though it was funny in bits and pieces..but the end...did not realise the novel has ended..It was like the author did not know how to end it so he ended it abrubtly..total waste...he even had the guts to advertise his blog upteen times in the book!

Totally avoidable

[Mansee]

Star Signs - Bejan Daruwala

[Mansee]

House Rules - Jodi Picoult - 3/5

It was a nice read...somehow guessed the ending in the middle but somewhere it did not hold my interest as much as "nineteen minutes" by the same author..both books talked about kids on a trial for some crime they were assumed to have committed ...both had difficult backgrounds...both had wonderful moms ..someone you want to just hug and say - u did ok, girl! but somehow my natural sympathy for "Peter" in nineteen minutes was more then "Jacob" here...i know not fair to compare books but if they are by the same author - it sometimes happens?? But as far as moms go, my vote def goes to "Emma" from "House Rules" especially when she celebrates or looks back with good memories at some of the sweet things that her child does instead of remembering only the trouble he creates..

[Ahtims]

I too enjoyed House Rules and 19 minutes. I too sympathized more with Peter. Both were very well researched and well presented stories. I love Jodi Picoult, though many say her books are stereotypes. I have most of her works with me and have kept those for 'rainy days' (days when other books dont hold my interest, and I need to fall back upon some author, who is sure to delight me)

[Mansee]

and the fact that you are a mother, you would have fallen in love with books like these...also my sisters keeper by the same author is one of my fav ..

[Mansee]

Perfect Chemistry - Simone Elkeles - 3/5

Nice read

[Muddle head]

romance? heard so much about this series..one thing that u think is special/different in this book?

[Mansee]

Wanted to keep it a light breezy read and thus romance..i saw the review by Smitha and was thus tempted to read it...there is nothing majorly diff about the story- typical teen romance: rich girl and bad boy kinda story but the characters were brought out well...the main leads as well as the close friends ..

[Ahtims]

I liked both the books - Perfect Chemistry and Rules of Attraction. Third book might be coming in the near future

[[deleted user]]

Ya even I liked them.
Even the other series by Simone Elkeles is nice http://www.goodreads.com/series/42802...

[Mansee]

@ Smitha/ Hazel- Is the "Rules of attraction" as good as "Perfect Chemistry" - its on the second bro right?? somehow i didnt find the characters of his brothers interesting...

[Ahtims]

is not as good as PC, still, readable. His second brother is quite a character. More wayward than elder bro, considers his elder brother a putty in the hands of his girlfriend and constantly teases him, but then he himself falls into the love trap -quite hilarious

[Mansee]

27. The Last Song of Dusk: A Novel - Siddharth Dhanvant Shanghvi - 3/5

It was an interesting read...melancholy and sad and wierd in parts though...

[Muddle head]

Mansee wrote: "27. The Last Song of Dusk: A Novel - Siddharth Dhanvant Shanghvi - 3/5

It was an interesting read...melancholy and sad and wierd in parts though...
[bookcover:The L..."

Interesting, this book is read/reviewed by more non-Indians than Indians, ordering it rite away on flipkart!

Mansee, wat genre is this? Family drama?

[Mansee]

u can say that...but i would not order it...it was in my library so I read it but not that great a book...a little above average

[Muddle head]

oh ok!

[Mansee]

Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy - 3/5

Wheew...that was quite a hefty read...took me almost a month to read it..The story was average, but what I like about the book were some of the sentences....they got me thinking...which I realised when I read the first sentence...

"Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way."

The end is as impactful :

"I shall go on in the same way, losing my temper, falling into angry discussions, expressing my opinions tactlessly; there will be still the same wall between the holy of holies of my soul and other people; I shall still be unable to understand with my reason why I pray and I shall still go on praying; but my life now, my whole life apart from anything that can happen to me, every minute of it is no more meaningless, as it was before, but it has the positive meaning of goodness, which I have the power to put into it"

[Ahtims]

Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.
this is one of the most quoted sentences...

[Mansee]

Yeah - I know...infact when I was reading this book, I watched a movie "The last song" where it has also been used...

U have read the book Smitha?

[Ahtims]

No.

[Muddle head]

Mansee wrote: "Yeah - I know...infact when I was reading this book, I watched a movie "The last song" where it has also been used...

U have read the book Smitha?"

"the last song" as in Nicholas Sparks' novel?

[Mansee]

Yep...The Nicholas Sparks Novel

[Jyoti]

Smitha wrote: "Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.
this is one of the most quoted sentences..."

That sentence really sticks in the memory, doesn't it? I read the book recently. I must confess it was quite an effort. I liked the story and the writing. But I hated going through the long discussions about Russian society, politics, hunting, horse racing etc. For four years I've been abridging classics. And my mind and fingers just ached to cut those portions away :D

[Ahtims]

I have started Anna Karenina twice or thrice, but never gone beyond the first few pages. But I will finish it sometime this lifetime. Maybe after I retire :D

[Jyoti]

Mansee wrote: "Star Signs - Bejan Daruwala"

Have you tried Sun Signs by Linda Goodman? It's really good. After reading it, my sister decided that my mother must be celebrating her birthday on the wrong day. We unearthed her horoscope from grandmother's trunk. And guess what? My mother was wrong and Linda Goodman was right ! :D

[Mansee]

Smitha wrote: "I have started Anna Karenina twice or thrice, but never gone beyond the first few pages. But I will finish it sometime this lifetime. Maybe after I retire :D"

:P

[Mansee]

Jyoti wrote: "Mansee wrote: "Star Signs - Bejan Daruwala"

Have you tried Sun Signs by Linda Goodman? It's really good. After reading it, my sister decided that my mother must be celebrating her birthday on the ..."

Yep...I have...I read this books just for fun though....cant fathom that all people born under that sun / star sign are alike :P

[Jyoti]

Mansee wrote: "Jyoti wrote: "Mansee wrote: "Star Signs - Bejan Daruwala"

Have you tried Sun Signs by Linda Goodman? It's really good. After reading it, my sister decided that my mother must be celebrating her ..."

Well, I guess it's like creating different songs using the same raga :)

[Mansee]

No Deadline For Love - Manasi Vaidya- 3/5

A fun, breezy read!

I could relate to the corporate environment and the brand management set up and especially with Megha- the volatile and impulsive firecracker!

Somehow I felt the book ended too fast. Some more tadka at work or with Yudi would have been great, nevertheless a good read - especially coming from a first time author.

Totally Paisa Vasool :P

[Anbu]

I wonder if you'll give more than three star rating to any book.. :P

[Muddle head]

the 3 star girl! :D :D
Guess it was Dely who pointed that out??

[Ahtims]

Yes. :D
I really would be interested in reading any book which is given more than 3 star by Mansee.

[Mansee]

ha ha..I didnt realise it!! :P I do give 4 stars and 5 stars ...( Johnny gone down/Nineteen mintues/ Pillars of the Earth) but limited I guess...!! Will try and shift sometimes to 3.5 ;)

[Ahtims]

I too loved nineteen minutes. If I am a director/script writer I would film Nineteen Minutes and House Rules.

[Mansee]

@ Smitha - with the current scene of having nice simple movies based on novel concepts (Stanley ka dabba, I am kalam) being recent examples...I think we can hope for such films :)

b.t.w. I am Kalam is a good watch...

[Ahtims]

didn;t even know such a movie existed. Will be on the lookout for it.

[Mansee]

I know....its not marketed well as it is low budget film with the only known "star" being Gulshan Grover...but its a good watch...infact u can take you son along too as it is about 2 young boys

[Mansee]

Jyoti Arora - Dream's Sake- 3/5

It was a nice read. The characters were brought out well...found Abhi and Priyam too good to be true..Somehow liked Sid the most :P he was a bit crazy yes- but he acted how he felt...which I liked! The climax was a little disturbing though...all of us r so used to reading happy endings ...but I guess any other end wouldnt have been justified. Overall, a good read

[Mansee]

Saraswati's Way - Monika Schröder - 2/5

The back cover gave me the feeling that it will be an interesting read but it was quite ordinary!

[Mansee]

Of Dreams - Aditi Talwar Sodhi- 3/5 again !!!

It's about three friends- Amrita, Aarti and Payal. Its nice- how the author has developed the story - and how they meet at the end, thanks to Shaheen Khan!

Overall- a nice breezy read- infact has the potential to be developed into a low budget film as well

[Ahtims]

Mansee wrote: "Saraswati's Way - Monika Schröder - 2/5

The back cover gave me the feeling that it will be an interesting read but it was quite ordinary!"

thank GOd. I was about to buy it online.

[Mansee]

@ Smitha- dont Buy- not worth it! atleast I did not find it worthwhile

The saving grace for me is that I did not buy it- issued it from the office library!

[Ahtims]

thanks, will heed your advice

[Hriday]

Mansee wrote: "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!"

Currently Reading Tales from Firozshah Bahg....A Very very sensitive writer indeed!

[Hriday]

Mansee wrote: "13. The Last Lecture - Randy Pausch - 3/5"

A personal Fav! The video too is available online i think!

[Priya]

Hriday wrote: "Mansee wrote: "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 goo..."
I loved this one. Especially all the details.