Ladies Coupe by Anita Nair

I had heard about renowned writer Anita Nair but to meet her  and read her book was an all together different experience. She spins tales with such eloquence. The stories flow seamlessly from one to the other weaving a rich tapestry of words and fictional tales.

I started with her acclaimed book ‘Ladies Coupe’ and liked the story of Akhilandeshwari, Akhila for short and her incredible train journey in the ladies coupe. She meets fellow travelers Janaki, Margaret Shanti, Prabha Devi, Sheela and Marikolanthu from whom she discovers life hearing their incredible personal journeys in life along with her interactions with Katherine who introduced her to the ‘egg’.  Akhila discovers life outside her rigid Brahmin life…

You are transported into the individual worlds of these travelers, giving a glimpse of their lives from the past and continue to live it accepting things for what they are as status quo…often trying to cope with it… and when not satisfied fighting for their share of warmth in the sun.

Can a woman stay single and be happy, or does a woman need a man to feel complete? This was the question that bothered Akhila day in and night as she played the role of a provider, sister, aunt and daughter to its hilt neglecting her inner desires and passions.

“Anita Nair’s tale is light enough to relieve the tedium of a long journey yet filled with the incantatory power to burn up the tracks to seek a new destination, to challenge” – India Today.

At the Penguins Book celebration of the 10^th anniversary of ‘Ladies Coupe’ at Page Turners there was a Panel discussion with Shiney Antony, Vijay Nair and Suresh Menon acclaimed authors in their own rights.

Excerpts:

AN: “I didn’t think the book would make it this far. It became a success. I am still soaking up the feeling. It must have struck a chord with the readers in India.”

Suresh Menon: What as a writer do you think has the universal appeal 10 years later?

AN: The reason is the questions I raised in the book which are probably the questions readers are grappling with even 10 years later in India

Vijay Nair: I re-read the book and must admit it is a compelling read. There is so much music in the lines bringing out the poet in you.

AN: It is a bleak story of a woman grappling with her life and I had to make it more lyrical and less tedious. Hence the poetic intonations in it.

“It is a character that vexed me a lot. ‘Get a grip on yourself and move on’ is what comes to my mind and I use it very often too on my colleagues,” said Anita Nair.

I liked the book. I happened to meet Anita Nair again at a Kathakali performance and discovered her passion for Kathakali. That reflects in her next book Mistress which I started reading and  am enjoying reading it.

Both Ladies Coupe and Mistress are recommended…

Anita Nair with Shiney Antony, Suresh Menon & Vijay Nair at the Panel Discussion  during the 10th anniversary of Ladies Coupe

One Amazing Thing

 

By Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

I was wandering the aisles of the bookshop at a mall in Bangalore when I chanced upon this book sitting atop a shelf. The title was inviting and I reached out for it. I read the first page and wanted to read the second and the third and before I knew it I was in possession of the book. The book was good company on my flight back to the US, both engrossing and interesting.

Chitra Divakaruni is a well known author of 15 books. Her award-winning short story collection Arranged Marriage was equally interesting in addition to her wonderful books The Mistress of Spices and Sister of My Heart. Two of her novels have been made into films and her works have been translated into 18 languages. She is the Betty and Gene McDavid professor of Creative Writing at the University of Houston.

One Amazing Thing captures the imagination as it flits through the lives of a bunch of people trapped at a consulate after an earthquake strikes. They begin to tell each other stories from their lives which are personal sharing things they have never revealed to anyone before. Their tales are magical, interesting, sometimes tragic and life-affirming, revealing what it means to be human. The reader is caught in the story; living every one of those amazing stories and making one wonder what could be that ‘one amazing’ story in our own life, that added color and stood the test of time in our memories.

I finished the book , put it down, closed my eyes and started remembering all the amazing stories that I went through too and how every one of those experiences added on a layer- beautiful like a tapestry of memories!

A short book that can keep one hooked to it until the very end, that I would  gladly recommend to other readers.

Imagining India

By Nandan Nilekani

I have been a fan of Nandan Nilekani for quite some time and had the pleasure of meeting him and talking to him too. When his book was out naturally I didn’t waste much time in obtaining a copy of it. I sat glued with it for hours late into the night reading it and enjoying it.

 I can only say that the book is a journey and I loved the way Nandan describes every aspect of India. The past, the present and the future of India according to him and so many of my thoughts are similar to his that I found myself almost nodding away reading it.

If you do find time this one is definitely worth a read if you would like information about current India and historical India too with his perspectives.

 A Paragraph from the book:

 “At the end of the day, therefore, when it comes to our policies and ideas, I would rather be right than righteous, and put aside emotion in favour of rational arguments I hope I have done that in this book. And I hope that this book is read by my peers, by people in business, media and government-even if they only brandish it above their heads while loudly refuting my arguments. I would welcome the debate.”

 Related Links:

• The official Website – http://imaginingindia.com/
• Mr. Nandan Nilekani’s Blog – http://imaginingindia.com/blog/

Tuesdays with Morrie

 By Mitch Albom 

An old man, a young man, and life’s greatest lesson…  

 If there is ever a book I would gladly gift the whole world as a ‘must read’ it will be this one. 192 pages of delight, simple, lucid, touching one’s heart and mind leaving an indelible impression regarding ‘living’. It is not to be ignored as another self-help book on the shelf. A book to be kept in the glove compartment, on the coffee table and gifted on occasions to near and dear ones or to a stranger even.

A story of the heart as told by a writer with soul.

 A story that can be read aloud.

The relationship of a teacher and student.

“A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops.” Henry Adams

 Do I wither up and disappear, or do I make the best of my time left? Asked Morrie…

 Study me in my slow and patient demise. Watch what happens to me. Learn with me…said Morrie

 A book that cleanses the soul and thoughts; re-thinking life and its priorities and striving for simple pleasures in life.

 A must read…

Broken Verses

 

By Kamila Shamsie

Kamila Shamsie the author of 4 novels. Twice short-listed for the John Llewelyn Rhys Award and the recipient of other prizes lives in London and Karachi and is a visiting professor of English at Hamilton College.

The book is engrossing since it has my kind of humor, the kind I find entertaining with satire and wit. The story revolves around Aasmani working in an independent TV station in Pakistan. The arrival of a secret code that she deciphers  taking her on a journey, unraveling the mind- boggling mystery behind it. A mother-daughter story narrated so well. Her philosophical musings are beautifully interwoven into the narrative.

Her book ‘Kartography’ might be interesting also set in Karachi. I plan to read that eventually and update it here.