Deepa

I'm conflicted. I loved parts of this book, hated other parts and was discomfited by others. For starters, this is a book for the “ambitious” and I'm not one. That immediately puts me at odds with the author of this book.

The first few chapters seemed like a re-reading of Rhonda Bryne's Secret. Since this book was published much earlier, I presume Rhonda was totally inspired by this book. The next few chapters challenged my opinions quite a bit, and I found myself disappointed with the contents. In contrast,  the last few chapters were quite brutally honest and pricked my conscience far more than I was comfortable with. 

Lots of gems of wisdom throughout the book. I've highlighted extensively and perhaps, I'll someday read the last few chapters once again for a jolt, when I feel the need for one.

Another excellent book from Allen Carr. It has definitely inspired me to eat better. I love the author's logic-based argumentative approach to eating healthy. The logic is certainly un-refutable. I'm planning to introduce fruits, vegetables, fruits and nuts into my meals as well as drastically reduce the carb content and overall portion sizes. Book review turned life plans... oh well!

Disturbing, to say the least! I roughly knew the Jekyll-Hyde story; so that was no big surprise. What shocked me were the “other tales of terror”. They were far more scarier and sinister, even. The Jekyll-Hyde story itself is quite short, but for some reason, the publishers have included two large chapters at the beginning AND at the end, dissecting the tale. That got pretty tiring, real soon. Overall, the book is a scary scary read. 

Another fun book. An even more  complicated plot than usual. I totally loved the body-switching idea. Laughed my way through this book, too. Wodehouse books are always a scream. 

A crazy, funny, deep book. There were so many parts that I read and reread, to fully absorb the meaning. I loved how the author was poking fun at humans and their strange ways. The chapter about the businessman was so dangerously close to the truth, omg! So was the chapter about the trains. A quick read too.    “It is only with one's heart that one can see clearly. What is essential is invisible to the eye.”

An old, old favourite. One of those books that I can escape into. A world of magic and wonders. A definite part of my childhood, I don't know what more I can say about it. Love it. 

A fun, fast, justice-served kinda book. I do feel like the author has stretched reality a bit too far in places. Yet once I overlook that aspect, it was a fun ride. Amber, the computer whiz is most certainly the star of the show. Pen, the classy author, was interesting too. 

It was a great book; I liked the story very much. The characters were interesting and the suspense was excellent too. Her writing is great too. I'm surprised and upset that I've never read Mary Higgins Clark before. I'll probably try to read more of her works soon. 

The books that 5 year old me used to “read” and love. I know all these stories by heart and the drawings are etched in my mind forever. Love Phantom and his wild, wild world. 

“He who lives by the sword shall die by the sword” - Old Jungle Saying 

I had watched the movies before but the book was just so scary. Incredibly horrifying scenario! All the cruelty towards animals in the name of science suddenly turned grotesque, when the tables were turned and there were humans on the receiving end. The ending was awesome too - scary, but awesome. 

It has been a while since I last read a Perry Mason book. I had totally forgotten that this was no gentleman lawyer; he is a tough guy, with a very loose idea of “the right way” to do things. The plot was slightly confusing in parts and I found it a little difficult to concentrate. But overall, it was a great book. I am thinking that I'll catch up with a few more of his books soon. 

Both the books Little Women and Good Wives are stories out of a lost era - where goodness, kindness, chivalry, truthfulness, sincerity and loyalty were valued and appreciated. So also were womanly qualities like homemaking, gracefulness, demure-ness, agreeable-ness and surrender. Books like these are always a great reminder to strive to be better. It is good to be reminded to be good. Idealistic, yes. But good, nonetheless. 

A book that is a part of my home library for ever. I just finished reading this book and the peace I feel is indescribable. I have dabbled in eastern philosophy and so, Wabi Sabi is not a new concept to me. And yet, reading about the three basic principles of imperfection, impermanence and change reveals new depths every time. A great book to be read slowly and savoured in peace. 

A great sequel to The Immortals of Meluha and ending with an equally perplexing cliffhanger. Many questions left unanswered in the first book are well explained here, but now there are new mysteries and new questions to be answered. On to the next book 😃

A truly fun book. There are cats around, but do not play any active role in the sleuthing business. Our mfl is a witch in trouble and she manages to cast enough spells and brew enough potions to bring the criminal to justice. An easy read, a fun read, a cozy book indeed. 

An all-time favourite book. Love the illustrations in this book. I could feel Goddess Parvati's pain when her brilliant son was killed through treachery. I love how her anger forced the Gods to repent their actions and make reparations. A tale that depicts the immense power of the Goddess, both for creation and for destruction. This was the Indian concept of womanhood in ancient times. 

I'm reading this book as part of The 52 Book Club Summer Reading Challenge. For the Biography of an Olympian, I started off with another popular book. Guess I'm not cut out for sports biographies. To me, it was extremely boring. 

This book, on the other hand, was easy to read, even interesting. So glad I switched to the comic format. Amar Chitra Katha books have always been such fun to read. 

This book sure cured me out of a reading slump I'd been in for a while. Each chapter is a short article on one specific Harry Potter incident/character/topic that is explored more thoroughly with additional back stories. I loved it, and I'm glad I bought this book. Now, on to volume 2 of the series 😀

At only 12% in, I was enjoying it tremendously. Lady Eleanor Swift is amazingly progressive and sassy. She has also inherited a funny, elderly bulldog Gladstone and I was roaring with laughter at their little walk-and talks. But then the story started dragging quite a bit. I feel that this book could've been reduced to half its length and that would've been perfect. It picked up pace towards the end, though. I liked the vibes of the book very much and would definitely consider other books in the series - if it works for any of my readathon prompts. 

To this day, this one is very much an unputdownable book. And to think, it was written so many, many decades ago. The writing is quaint and there were occasional terms and phrases that I could not understand fully. The dialects used were also quite unintelligible to me. But the story, the characters, the atmosphere were all so on point. One totally feels the sense of urgency and terror throughout the story but more prominently, during the final chase. Many literary classics are a pain and a toil to read through, but Dracula is one among the few that are literary masterpieces and yet a breeze to read. 

Professor McGonagall's backstory is detailed and awesome. The story behind Remus' turning into a werewolf is sad, and yet I enjoyed it, too. A wonderful collection that explains so much more than the original books.  This book was another great read from J K Rowling. And frankly, I want some more 😀

A book that is to be read and re read again and again. In today's world where moral deprivations are being celebrated, here is a book that encourages its people to be really good and true and honest and caring and to strive to be better every day. This is one book I'll keep in my bookshelf forever. 

Liked the book very much. It almost felt like we were living Kinsey's life. I loved her many quirks, her thriftiness, her care and concern for people, her equation with her landlord. One thing I did not much fancy was that there were several parallel mysteries going on. But nonetheless, it was a great story. I'd love to continue with the rest of the series soon. 

Another one of my childhood favourites. Loved the beautiful ladies dresses and used to swoon over the illustrations as a kid. The story of the kind and forgiving Vidyutprabha (and how awesome is that name - I used to imagine it meant the Light of the Lightning) is one of the best from the Amar Chitra Katha series, imo. 

It was nice to read about how the famous Ellora Cave temple was built. A Rashtrakoota Queen refused to eat even a single morsel until she saw the top “kalasha” of the temple. To fulfill the vow, the temple was built from a single large rock - from the top down - so that the “kalasha” was completed first. I do wish the story was more well-fleshed out - even the name of the queen is not mentioned. However the rise to power of the Rashtrakoota empire is well explained. The Amar Chithra Katha books are such a treasure trove of Indian culture and history. Thank you, Uncle Pai. These comics are a great idea to introduce youngsters to Indian culture, mythology, folk tales, great scientists, historical figures and so much more.