From the time I know, I have been in company of books. Beginning with casual strolls in my father’s library and running my tiny fingers over the book spines to sampling one on a fine afternoon and falling in love with its tribe, I have hardly ever left the book-country. With passing years came new … More An year when Books begot Friends! 🙂
Autumn by Ali Smith My Rating: 3.5 of 5 stars [Originally appeared here.] She has done it in the past; and she does it again here. Ali Smith’s fixation on, and a visible mastery of, story-telling across timeline, in no particular order, shines in this experimental, breezy novel as well. Centred around the 30-something Elisabeth … More Book Review: Autumn by Ali Smith (2016)
The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway My Rating: 4 of 5 stars “He was full of resolution but he had little hope.” And often, like a seductive oasis, this little hope beguiles the heart to endure battles of gargantuan magnitude, letting seep every second the realization of the effort turning as much … More Book Review: The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway (1952)
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck My Rating: 4 of 5 stars It takes courage to stand up and speak. It also takes courage to sit down and listen. These are the words on one of my most favorite posters. What always keeps me hooked to these lines is the validity of the trait, … More Book Review: Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck (1937)
The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes My Rating: 5 of 5 stars I was sitting on the lower berth; ambivalent yet observant. The view from my window seat was appealing. On the parallel track, a train had just pulled on. The neighboring compartment was a dynamic collage of people, suitcases, trolleys, food and … More Book Review: The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes (2011)
Embers by Sándor Márai My Rating: 5 of 5 stars My fingers were interlocked around my Baba’s arm and my head was resting on his shoulders. I was stealing a glimpse of his face every now and then, convinced that the lines of exhaustion were going to creep upto his tongue any moment, tendering me … More Book Review: Embers by Sándor Márai (1942)
English, August: An Indian Story by Upamanyu Chatterjee My rating: 4 of 5 stars Indecision will be your epitaph. As the statement rung in my ear for more minutes than I cared to count, I stared at the mouth that just uttered it. No, it was not Agastya, the hero of this story but his … More Book Review: English, August: An Indian Story by Upamanyu Chatterjee (1988)
The Ice Palace by Tarjei Vesaas My rating: 5 of 5 stars When a few dotted lines can cuff my heart into a promise and bind my palms over it in sombre armory, keep me lain in its pristine shadows for hours and yet freeze the time in crystalline imagery, I beam at the prospect: … More Book Review: The Ice Palace by Tarjei Vesaas (1963)
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