The year that went by...

Tomorrow is the dawn of a new year. Am recollecting the year that went by. It was nothing short of awesome, considering the fact that my LO turned 1 and is blossoming into an adorable little girl. But when I drift my focus from the happy picture am holding too close to my eye, I see the world, the world that is becoming scarier and more frightening by the day. Its been more than a year since I moved to the US and what is happening around us is building up my fear quotient considerably. For one, I haven't mustered up enough courage to venture outdoors on my own yet. A spike in the crime rates in the neighborhood isn't helping much either. People argue that it is not just the US, robbery, cheating, sexual assaults are on the rise in India too. Whatever the statistics say, when I look back at 2014, the one thing that comes to my mind is Fear! I wish 2015 brings Peace and Harmony!

P.S:  In the year 2015, am again participating in the blogathon organised by Seema/. I don't want to start the new year on a negative note, hence this post is here already :)

Ganges Boy

Ganges Boy by Archana Prasanna

Nice things first - The story telling is neat. Archana is really good at convincing the reader with exactly the right amount of details. Like, I never had any bothering questions in my mind about Kabir's parents or about the reason behind Sanskruti's death(which is revealed later) or about Kabir parting with Arundhati.Certain portions like when Kabir is orphaned melts my heart. This book is not a page turner but I feel the urge to get back to the book especially after the grandfather enters the scene.

Vallamai thaarayo

Subramaniya Bharathiyar - Mahakavi, Freedom fighter, Journalist, Social reformer. But to me, one word is all that comes to my mind - Pioneer! He was not just a pioneer in action but also in thoughts. As fate would have it, he was not understood let alone be celebrated during his time.
How tough should it have been to feel out of place, how frustrating to be forced into a ridiculous bubble of mundane existence - no wonder he derived pleasure in his rebellious acts. It is indeed clear from his life that he saw no fruits for his efforts but that never stopped him. All he had was visions for the future - Free India, Empowered Women, Equality and more. And his dreams were no ordinary, they were vivid as if it was screened for him, exclusively.

வெள்ளிப்பனி மலையின் மீதுலாவுவோம் - அடி 

மேலை கடல் முழுதும் கப்பல் விடுவோம் 

பள்ளிதளம் அனைத்தும் கோயில் செய்குவோம்

எங்கள் பாரத தேசம் என்று தோள் கொட்டுவோம் 

ஆயுதம் செய்வோம் நல்ல காகிதம் செய்வோம

ஆலைகள் வைப்போம் கல்விசாலைகள் வைப்போம்

ஓயுதல் செய்யோம் தலை சாயுதல் செய்யோம்

உண்மைகள் சொல்வோம் பலவன்மைகள் செய்வோம்

Sure, he had some low moments yet he resorted to asking for strength.

சொல்லடி சிவசக்தி - எனை

சுடர்மீகும் அறிவுடன் படைத்து விட்டாய்

வல்லமை தாராயோ - இந்த

மாநிலம் பயனுற வாழ்வதற்கே

சொல்லடி சிவசக்தி - நில

சுமையென வாழ்ந்திடப் புரிகுவையோ

Sounds like he had realized his potential and roared against those who ridiculed him

தேடிச் சோறுநிதந் தின்று - பலசின்னஞ் சிறுகதைகள் பேசி - மனம்
வாடித் துன்பமிக உழன்று - பிறர்
வாடப் பலசெயல்கள் செய்து - நரை
கூடிக் கிழப்பருவ மெய்தி - கொடுங்
கூற்றுக் கிரையெனப்பின் மாயும் - பல
வேடிக்கை மனிதரைப் போலே - நான்
வீழ்வே னென்று நினைத் தாயோ

Although my life is a speck of dust compared to what this great legend had experienced, I derive immense motivation from him to see beyond the moment and believe in what I do, however small, irrelevant or out of the ordinary it might seem today.

Heaven is for Real: A Little Boy's Astounding Story of His Trip to Heaven and Back

Heaven is for Real: A Little Boy's Astounding Story of His Trip to Heaven and Back by Todd Burpo

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I don't know why I picked this book in the first place. I mean am not a christian and I generally don't tend to pick books on religious faith. But I did because it appeared on someone else's to-read shelf and the book had less than 200 pages and the synopsis sounded interesting. I was curious to know what it was all about.

I don't want to question someone's faith by the name of a review. Other than that, the part where Colton was fighting for his life was really touching and I could feel the pain of the parents. And yes, I really got interested how Akiane and Colton claimed Jesus would look like and went ahead and googled Akiane's painting. That's a really heart-tugging painting.

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How I Braved Anu Aunty & Co-Founded A Million Dollar Company

How I Braved Anu Aunty & Co-Founded A Million Dollar Company by Varun Agarwal

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This book is a true story as narrated by an uber cool dude, the author and Entrepreneur Varun Agarwal. He starts off with the disclaimer that he is no hemingway but just a story teller, which becomes quite obvious within the first few pages. Rather, he could have warned us about his being uber cool. How does it matter, you may ask!

Random thoughts on blogging and aspiring writers

I had been blog-hopping today and as always, was feeling overwhelmed at the number of super good blogs I stumbled upon. Every blog was well maintained, every post well written, every idea conceived with clarity! And that brought me back to the ever-gnawing question of what I am doing with this blog. It is neither focused(on specific area) nor is it updated regularly. Still, why should I blog? Shouldn't I be abandoning it? That moment, one of my favorite quotes flashed in my mind.

The woods would be very silent if no birds sang except those that sang best.

On a similar note, I was pondering upon the world of possibilities blogosphere has opened up to aspiring writers. When I read books of an amateur(err, should I say aspiring?) writer, clearly, there is a huge scope for improvement in their work. And when I read a post by Ashok Rajagopalan, I couldn't agree more on how rewriting helps a lot! I wish I could share it with every aspiring writer looking for feedback. But I doubt that it might be mistaken as plain rude and since I don't have much authority on books-authoring-and-such-stuff other than reading and sharing my views in the blog, I share the post here :) Rewriting to make it louder and funnier

Felt dress up

As I have already mentioned in another post, an off topic post is better than an idle blog! So here is a felt dress up as a gift for a little girl. I had so much fun making it :)

Play station ;)

No, not that kind of a play station, LOL! I have been making a play kitchen with cardboard boxes and finally, I brought it to a logical end recently. Here it is :)

Love, That Shit!

Love, That Shit! by Chandru Bhojwani

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

When an old couple were asked how they managed to stay together for 65 years the woman replied, “We were born in a time, where if something was broke. You fixed it… not throw it away”. This piece of wisdom was making rounds in social networks sometime back and it had me pondering about it now and then. Love, that Shit by Chandru bhojwani is a light-hearted take on both fixing and throwing away as the case needs be. It is neither cliched nor preachy. It lets you step back a little and look at your relationships with renewed perspective and sense. Every chapter starts with a nice and apt quote followed by the author`s humorous and mature handling of the content. I really liked the way the author points out issues like high expectations and less tolerance. Another credit to the author is that he spoke for both gender without indulging in any over-hyped feministic theories.

Haveli

Haveli by Zeenat Mahal

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

It's always a pleasure to read a Indireads novella, the winning point being its quality. So far, I have read four and I never had a complaint about the characters, writing or the the story. The stories, being a novella, are just a slice but still you can get a hang of the whole picture. The characters aren't flat but have depth. The writing is undoubtedly above average, infact a few novellas make a distinct mark. I am now confident that Indireads is doing a sincere job handpicking deserving stories and author.

Talking about Haveli, its all that's mentioned above. The lead character Chandni comes across as a confident, egoistic women at the surface but she reveals her naive, dreamy little girl side to us, the readers. Orphaned at birth and brought up by her grandmother, she goes through a phase of illusioned love. The 'literary' conversations between Chandni and Taimur are interesting but would have become a overdose had it not been a Novella. Another aspect which of course did not bother me while reading but left me wondering later on was the story's setting. It's set in Pakistan in 1970s but that makes little difference to the story. Overall, another quality work from Indireads.

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Oleander girl

Oleander Girl by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

My rating:  4 out of 5 star

Oleander girl is the second book am reading, by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni, after Palace of illusions. And am thoroughly convinced what an excellent story teller she is.

The Eyes That Drowned Uyuni

The Eyes That Drowned Uyuni by Prashant Chopra

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The eyes that drowned Uyuni is a short and captivating read. The narration beautifully swings between the present and past of Parag, of how he lost his beloved wife Mriga and how he had won her. The portions expressing Parag's love for his child tugs at your heartstrings. I also loved the way the author brought out the intimacy between Parag and Mriga without getting into too much details. On the contrary, with its enigmatic end, this paranormal romance, or so I believe, had me reading it twice over because I wanted to make sure what I understood was what is implied. And in the process it made me speculate a little! (And a trivial observation is that the author tends to describe and express everything thrice, in different forms and ways).

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Love's Labor

Love's Labour

Andy Paula

My rating: 4 out of 5 stars

I enjoyed reading this book at one go and later wondered what kept me glued when the story is such a simple, typical one. It's definitely the author's storytelling skills. The blossoming of love between Sathya and Piali, the way they take it forward and their families stance are realistic and never appear cliched. A couple of conversations between Sathya and Piali are actually cute. I would have loved to read more of their sweet nothings :-) And this novella definitely 'captures the very essence of being South Asian', as Indireads claims itself to be. On the flip side, I felt the book ended a little abrupt.

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Yay! (BM #28)

The Blogathon is over :-) And I posted every single day from the time I took it up. And I have been enjoying it immensely. This was inspite of the fact that my laptop failed me few weeks back. I had been posting through my iPod touch and it did come with its own limitations owing to which some of my posts had bad formatting and I couldn't read other blogs and comment enough. And auto posting of reviews from goodreads too failed and I couldn't figure out why but ended up posting reviews manually. There were 61 other bloggers taking part in the marathon and I wanted to read all of them. Unfortunately, I did not even cross 20 approximately.

But am so glad that I managed to post everyday and am going to continue with this trend as much as possible. So, as I had mentioned in my post here, am starting off with 'Characters of Mahabharatha' in a couple of days. The couple of days is for me to prepare myself. Still am planning to post updates on this tomorrow.

Another good thing is I enrolled for the online course in Coursera 'Crafting an effective writer' which starts on feb 7th. I hope to complete that too and make my writing a little better because when I read my old posts (especially About me section), am not really happy about the job I had done. 

Putting my objectives in writing definitely makes me more focused :-) and 'Yay!!!' once again for the successful Blogathon and 'Congratulations!' to everyone who pulled it through.

Pinterest(BM #27)

Warning: Cheater post ahead!

One of my recent addictions is Pinterest. http://www.pinterest.com/gaya3manikandan/

Few snaphots of my boards. Join me if you like what tou see :-)

 

Laughing till you have tears (BM #26)

Picking up Maya's prompt for the day :-) This is one of my favorite things to do but amn't lucky enough to have such moments often. I would be extremely jealous if someone said they do it almost everyday or even often. Definitely, laughing-till-you-have-tears would top my list of 'Happiness is...' meme.

I had my not-so-recent memorable laughing-till-you-have-tears in an unusual place. Yes, in a hospital! Not getting into lots of details, we were a bunch of ladies, acquainted at our gynaecologists place, pulling each others legs and laughing like crazy. We looked idiotic, I suppose. But none of us cared.

The next closest thing was when I recently narrated to my hubby how my daughter was trying to suck her thumb holding onto the little tail of a toy puppy(she wants to hold onto a cloth when sucking thumbs and trying to sleep) and it looked so funny. But my hubby couldn't make out what I was trying to tell amidst all that laughter. So that laughing session was one-sided. Sigh! 

Am waiting for the next moment!

The Palace Of Illusions

The Palace Of Illusions by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

My rating 5 out of 5 star

To start with, I love the title The Palace Of Illusions and the way it was used as a metaphor to Draupadi's earthly body when she was dying. Coming to the story, one reason we read Mahabharath over and over is the beauty of its characters, rather their complexity I should say. The palace of Illusions is one such reason to re-read Mahabharath - the story told from the view point of Draupadi. 

ABCs of Mahabharatham(BM #24)

We are just few days away from completing this marathon. And I loved it throughout. Most of the days, I will keep contemplating about the subject for the post during the day and by end of day, I will do a post. I don't want this to end and I have taken it upon myself to carry on with the marathon. 

On a different note, I just completed reading The Palace of Illusions by Chitra Banerjee Divakurani recently. I am loving the depth and complexity of the characters in Mahabharatham and I want to read more on this epic.

So,

• Starting February am going to do a A to Z post on Mahabharatham. 
• Since I have not read more on the epic yet, February will be a A-Z on Mahabharatham characters, that is I will pick a character with name starting with A, say Arjuna, Abhimanyu and so on. Am just planning to put down my thoughts about the character.
• March will be a A-Z on emotions depicted in Mahabharatham say F for Friendship, R for Remorse and so on.
• I hope I will do more reading this way and will have something to think about during the day :)
• Since there are only 26 alphabets :-P, I will take off from blogging on random days ;-)

For now, this is my plan. Let me test my perseverance, dedication and reading skills. An 'epic' task, truly!

You Brighten My Day(BM #23)

Because bloggers(read me) check stats every minute after posting

Because encouragement is the only way to complete a blogathon

Because one shouldn't fool oneself writing unread/unfollowed public diary

Because Maya and others confessed here that they are not sure what to comment on certain posts

Here is an idea. Read a post, close your eyes, touch one and put it as a comment :-) 

P.S: If that's too much work, type :-)

Image source: Google

Against All Odds

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Against All Odds by Jazz Singh
My Rating 3 out 5 star

Against all odds, a simple love story with its lifelike characters and vivid narration is a compelling read. As the author unrolls the canvas, the characters spring into life as though they have been living next door all this time. Every character has an accurate portrayal irrespective of how big or small their role is.

What didn't work for me though are the portions depicting the intimacy between Sanjana and Abhimanyu. Its my personal opinion that premarital sex shouldn't been advocated in a book. It is still a taboo in our culture. There are exceptions in the society. Exceptions cannot define rules. Exceptions might soon become the norm. But let us not make it sooner. Books, these days are  increasingly having such obscene stuff. Let us spare another Sanjana in a small town to imagine it as a 'cool' thing taken lightly by the city-bred. Overall, a quick and relaxed read.

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Little Emperor(BM #21)

Let me start with a disclaimer. Just like sun sign traits that work with most people, this Single child Syndrome works with most I have met, not ALL.

Raised as a single child, these people develop a sense of being in their own world. Not introvert. Not silent. Loners, to some extent. May be, I can say they are not accommodative enough.

This is also referred to as 'Little Emperor Syndrome', it seems. What an apt name!

Are you a single child? Do you agree with the stereotyping? 

Why I blog? (BM #20)

Zeus(Olympians #1)

Zeus(Olympians #1) by George O'connor

My Rating : 4 out of 5 star

This is my first venture into Greek Mythology and there couldn't have been a better book to start with. Mainly because it is a graphic novel and the size of the book is not intimidating. Though I think it is too concise to contain a story of this proportion. Having read this book, I get a vague idea of greek myth but I can't recollect most names. There is a whole bunch of gods of various sizes and shapes crammed into a single panel! 

But, as I said, this is an excellent starting point. Had I picked up a big regular book, chances are I would have shunned the idea of reading greek mythology any further. But this book, with its recommendations for young readers and adults , has succeeded in convincing me to read more. 

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TAO Forming a Habit(BM #18)

The Art Of Forming a Habit,

• Be determined when trying to make something a habit. Don't fool yourself.
• Reward yourself when you stick to the habit and punish yourself(not literally, be creative) when you break it. 
• Stick to a schedule, as in Go to the gym at the same time of the day, read before going to bed etc
• Involve like-minded, determined people. 
• Don't stress yourself over it. 

If you still fail, its important to isolate the problem area and find an alternative. Lazy? Bored? Taking it easy? Lack of Time?

Read what is TAO here

Hobbies bucket list (BM #17)

A bucket list of hobbies. Not just for pursuing randomly but learning methodically. Let me come back to check if I do atleast one in 2014.

• Learn a new language. The topper in the list is always Hindi. May be Sanskrit, French, Italian are other choices.
• Know the mythology of various countries, greek myth to start with. 
• Learn a new cuisine. Italian, Mexican are the choices.
• Gardening.
• Learn drawing cartoons.

This is my current list. I feel I should revisit this more often to update(there is not even one outdoor hobby,sigh!) and to remain focused.

TAO Putting a relationship at stake (BM #16)

The Art Of putting a relationship at stake

• Take advantage
• Give unsolicited advice and suggestions
• State your opinion on everything
• Act superior
• Portray a wrong image among kith and kin
• Force into doing something together
• Demand to know details of every mundane chore
• Interfere with official matters
• Assume your choice is the best
• Pass comments about one's weakness

Read what is TAO here

Perseverance is the word...(BM #15)

...when participating in a blogathon. So, grabbing the opportunity for a tag from JanusRamblings .

1. Are you named after anyone? Nope. The name was given by my father's sister(Aunt), I understand. So, my mom gave me a nick name and that stuck unofficially :)

2. When was the last time you cried? I don't make a note :-P though the major breakdown, recently, was when my baby was few days old and I was overwhelmed with the responsibilities *facepalm*

3. Do you have kids? Yes, a well-deserved one :)

4. If you were another person, would you be a friend of yourself? Err..hmm, depends on the person, really. Am not someone difficult to befriend but am certainly a tough one to sustain.

5. Do you use sarcasm a lot? Runs in the blood(read, Tanjore) *evil wink* but used only if the receiving end deserves it.

6. Will you ever bungee-jump? NEVER! What would my baby do without me? :(

7. What’s your favorite cereal? Am a VIP(Vadai, Idli, Pongal) person :-D.. okay, I lifted that funny acronym from a drama! Few months back, when we moved to the US, my hubby told me, don't take so much trouble, we will have cereal fir breakfast and I stuffed the abhistoo's mouth with Idlis (Note to self - read that book Salt, Sugar and Fat at the earliest opportunity)

8. What’s the first thing you notice about people? Looks and Attitude.

9. What is your eye colour? Brown. How does it matter? Is there any personality trait associated? :-P

10. Scary movie or happy endings? Happy endings ALWAYS!

11. Favorite smells? Rice thats getting cooked, Baby, New books, Filter Kaapi, Coriander leaves, Smoke from a Homam,  

12. Summer or winter? Something in between :-/

13. Computer or television? Computer, Computer, Computer - one that works at the speed of my mind.

14. What’s the furthest you’ve ever been from home? Bangalore. My family was in Chennai. That was for my first job, then I got a transfer in some 3-4 months :-D

15. Do you have any special talents? Nothing that is special.

16. Where were you born? Chennai. Chennai. Chennai. That is all my life is about!

17. What are your hobbies? I dread this question! Few years back, I suddenly had this realisation that I should have an answer when someone ask me this Q and started reading books for which I already had some liking. And am happy am pursuing it. But seriously, I regret that I haven't taken any hobby seriously since my childhood and now dream of taking up gardening, going for a crash course on Italian cuisine, learning a language and more.Wait, this deserves a post :-D

18. Do you have any pets?  No, anything that wiggles when held are scary! (A baby is an exception, ofcourse)

19. Favorite movie? Abiyum naanum, Vasool Raja MBBS, Vinnai thaandi varuvaaya, Mozhi, Kaadhalika neramillai, Ethir neechal, Server sundaram - to name a few randomly.

20. Do you have any siblings? Yes, an elder sis!

21. What do you want to be when you grow up? To be grown up! In all aspects.

Why are Myths retold? (BM # 14)

Why are Myths retold? Why do we read Myths over and over?

Is it because they are ancient? 

Is it because they involve gods, demi-gods and the like?

Is it because they have morals formulated for humankind?

Is it because of the beauty of narration?

Is it because of the plethora of characters offering a multitude of views and perspectives?

Is it because they portray or might portray the ways and lives of our ancestors?

Is it because they provide the perfect canvas for fantasy?

Reading challenge IQR (BM #13)

Am entering the IQR again this year with a target of 15. Hoping to finish it atleast this year! 

TAO Getting distracted (BM #12)

The Art Of Getting distracted

• Keep adding books to to-read list maniacally when all you want to do is read a book.
• Drool over recipes of food on blogs  till you are too hungry to make that dish for which you wanted the recipe.
• Watch a program on tv, standing with books in hand, on the way to your room to study.
• When you talk to someone you know, watch their facial features keen enough to realise they seem unfamiliar
• Start going through slam books, old collections, certificates of merit you got in kindergarten when clearing up clutter.
• Have a small talk until its too late to pursue your morning/evening walk
• Think about EVERYTHING when you want to meditate

Read what is TAO here

Nostalgia - Comics and stuff (BM #11)

Am not typing a long post. Let the pics do the talking :-)

My 'cultural' bucket list (BM #10)

Here is my bucket list that is culturally inclined. These are mostly simple ones, unique to our culture that I shudder at the thought of being forgotten. I hope I will do atleast a few before I kick the bucket!

• Put Kolam(rangoli without the rang :-P) everyday. Its a simple one but I can give you umpteen reasons why I don't do it. Aren't they unique to our culture?
• Have a Tulsi plant in a proper Tulsi maadam(pot designed for keeping holy tulsi)
• Keep grand kolu every year :-D This one I have no problems doing except that there is some sentiment against keeping kolu in ILs family. But am slowly getting a nod for it :-)
• Visit temples that are few decades old atleast once a month!
• Celebrate every festival(there are atleast a dozen that is important in our family in a year) following the tradition(kolams, food, pooja) properly and with understanding.
• Wear the tambrahm style saree(madisar) on occasions that require it(believe me, people skip it)
• Support indigenised products - local produce, handicrafts, dolls, cloth etc(What an Irony, am saying this sitting in USA! But this is a bucket list, hmmm)

This is all I could think of now. Am sure I will be updating this list. So, what's yours? 

TAO Staying motivated (BM #9)

The Art Of staying motivated,

• Dream about the result. Dreams and feasibility are mutually exclusive
• Stay away from negative energy - people who pull you down, that lazy afternoon nap, anything that you find draining your energy
• Be updated about what is happening in your area of interest. 
• This one is my personal favorite. Don't discuss unless you are ready. While questions, criticism, opinions and suggestions can open up introspection, a unprepared mind might turn it into apprehension.

Read what is TAO here

Unsettled

Books and Movies are reflection of a society, a frozen piece of life and culture. Indireads aims to do just that, record the life and times of South Asian community. When I picked up the book Unsettled by Neelima Vinod , I had least expectations. For one, everyone has a story these days, humble or otherwise, and wishes to share it with the world. The mode of reading, the audience, the publishing industry everything has flourished in ways unimaginable. That said, even if the boom means a never ending to-read list , bring it on, I say! 

Unsettled by Neelima Vinod

My rating : 5 out of 5 stars

Unsettled, the story of a couple and their visit to a haunted house in hopes of saving their marriage is an excellent read. Just few pages into it and am convinced I have a good read at hand and with every page I feel that it is surpassing my expectations. As the story progresses, am just traveling with it, eager to find what the story is all about. Both the story of the couple and that of the yakshi are convincingly narrated. Considering that it is a novella, the Author gets across the characters emotions crisply. 

She wanted to trust, to forgive his transgressions, not because she was a doormat but because their love compensated for all foibles 

She was like the words he(a poet) chased elusive yet necessary 

The author's brilliance is reflected in her narration. Few samples that I really enjoyed,

Their love was sweet and young and cut unripened  

Death had only magnified his presence as though he were broken shards of glass everywhere

...Quicksand is not good bedding 

Libraries as large as the folds of our brain 

Overall, its a very satiating read. Just one trivial point, I would have preferred a better title! Am looking forward to reading more from Indireads. By the way, I have strict standards for a book to enter my favorites list. Not that am a voracious reader, a literature freak or anything, its just that there is some unexplainable joy and excitement that only certain books evoke in me. And there goes Unsettled, into my favorites list :-)

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Introducing Manu (BM #7)

 Introducing MANU, my soon-to-be 8 month old Baby Girl. ****DRUMROLL****

Image Courtesy: http://www.wallcoo.net/

Ofcourse, Manu is not  her real name, its not even her nick name. I stuck to this name(a combination of my and my hubby's name -don't think too much about it, i have a nick name and hence the combination) when I was pregnant with her and created a goodreads account for her. Yes, why not? Am opening up the lovely world of books and imagination to her. It's upto her to decide if she loves it or not. Just that I did it a tad bit early!

Anyways, coming to the subject of this post, I was waiting for her to grow up a little bit so that I can make her differentiate between a book and a toy. I am not sure if she is ready yet but I visited our Library today and was so excited looking at the children's books and I brought her around 8 books :-)

Also, whenever I get excited with a Baby/Children book that I come across, I add it to Manu's goodreads account hoping she will pick up this habit and I can provide with age specific books.

So here it is, the official goodreads account of Manu's linked to my blog, on the side bar and in this post :-) I will update her review errr reactions about the books over a period of time.

Paradise Lost (BM #6)

“I have always imagined that Paradise will be a kind of library.” ― Jorge Luis Borges

One such paradise happens to be near my home. What's the big deal with having a library in the neighborhood, you might ask. Having grown up in India, my only access to library in my childhood days happen to the one run by the government with not much of collection to boast of. My mother was a pretty much regular visitor and would check out tamil novels from there.

Later on, the most sophisticated library I had access to was my college library but then that was full of academic books. I badly wanted to visit Anna Centenary library at Chennai but somehow I never managed to.Then we moved here to USA and I found a library near my home. There are libraries in every locality and it is like a part of the local community. 

The first time I visited the library, I was awed at how big it was for a local library, the neatly organised shelves and reading area, self check out and return facility, a 100 books at a time, online catalog and access. What more? A membership gives you free access to check out e-books from Overdrive and you can request for any book from the network of branches and they bring it your branch for pickup. And they conduct storytime, fun sessions, informative sessions for children and adults everyday. There is a bookclub too that meets regularly I believe!

All this raving might seem overhyped but its actually my desperation of what we miss in India. People of India, the government or whomever - we need these first and the McDs, Subways and Walmarts next! 

Reading BINGO (BM #5)

I came across this Bingo reading challenge and it sounds total fun! So am taking this up this year. Details at http://www.retreatbyrandomhouse.ca/2014/01/reading-bingo-challenge-2014/

A tryst with the Almighty (BM #4)

Not long before, there lived(and still lives) a young shy girl. She was born in a community where Lord M in his C avatar was worshiped fervently. She once overheard her father comment about her being an atheist. This was when she was too young to have any opinions but she believed what her father said. Therefore, she grew up an atheist. 

During her primary school days, she was one among the favorites of her teachers so they dragged her into the prayer sessions. She had no choice and would simply be the black sheep in the flock. And finally the day came when she was out of the primary school. She felt relieved and entered the secondary school with a pride that she is all grown up and can now opt out of such prayer sessions.

Alas, the secondary education curriculum had compulsory lessons on Lord M and He contributed a small portion to the overall marks and again she had no choice. She attended the classes without trying to comprehend anything from the lessons because she was an atheist. On the day when students were tested on the subject, she hoped no one else heard her answers. 

But then one of her primary school teachers joined the secondary school and she roped in her ex-students to prayer sessions. With a hesitant mind, she joined the prayer sessions again. On one such session, the teacher found that the prayer wasn't effective enough. May be the teacher knew that someone was not praying whole-heartedly. Not wanting to hurt anyone, she gracefully told her students that non-believers are free to leave. Grabbing the opportunity, she walked out of the hall herself not wanting to hurt the sentiments of others. From then on, she never budged to anyone's cajoling to join them in their madness, madness like that of Gopikas dancing around Lord Krishna. 

As fate would have it, she married a follower of R avatar of Lord M and most of their leisure time was spent listening to Lord R's teachings and hymns. As a couple, they started enjoying the Aham Brahmasmi show on their favorite channel and started giving opinions, jokingly, about the prayer of other devotees. And then she was pregnant and advice poured from everywhere about how her non-stop prayers during her pregnancy is going to have a positive effect on the Baby. Like every mother, she tried her best to give the best to her unborn baby. She started listening to mantras on Lord C, which only a born-believer could understand, she thought. Nevertheless, she tried her best. But deep within, somewhere in her 20s, she had already started accepting that Lord M is the ultimate reliever of pain and misery and bestows peace upon his devotees. Now she yearns to become an ardent devotee but she has distanced herself so much from Lord M that now He is beyond her reach.

P.S: The 'she' is yours faithfully and Lord M is Music!

Glossary

C avatar - Carnatic

Atheist - Gnanam venum gnanam venum doi...

Prayer sessions - Choir

Madness - Antakshari

R avatar - Raja Sir (Ilayaraja)

Aham Brahmasmi - Super Singer on Star Vijay

And yeah, me and my hubby pass comments such as 'sruthi serala', 'gamakkam seri illa', 'sangathi vizhala' when watching someone sing on TV with NIL knowledge of the above mentioned technicalities :-)