The Curious Case of the Missing Working Dads!

Contrary to popular and the more accepted societal norms which puts the onus of bringing up children largely on the mother, I have believed that both parents are equally responsible for it…I find it disheartening that a woman needs to choose between a career and motherhood most of the times when this choice does not feature anywhere in a man’s world…it is unheard of….and the men aren’t alone to blame, the society at large talks about working mothers but I am yet to hear anyone talk about the working father…I see organisations going an extra mile to make working mothers comfortable.. .without a thought for the workin fathers…its time we start talking about working parents…

INCREDIBLE WOMEN OF INDIA

First things first, this wasn’t what I set out to write. It was supposed to be a piece on working mothers. The quintessential supermom who aces at work, manages kids like it’s a child’s play, cooks up the most healthy and tasty meals without a hair out of place. Yeah, the kind legends are made of; the kind you keep reading about but never see. So to avoid what all had already been written about, and to unleash upon the world my very own never-before-heard-of ‘gyan’ I shunned the internet and got to writing it. But then it struck me, where the hell are the working dads? Uh, well correction ‘Indian working dads’. Because apparently if you go by the internet, it’s the woman who does everything. She is the one who needs to know how to bring up a child, how to balance work- life, how to know what…

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Confessions on an Island

Confessions on an Island is the debut novel of Ayan Pal. Published by Readomania, this 2016 novel  is a thriller set in a picturesque island, where  a girl has been held captive. As she grapples to find the reason behind her abduction and captivation, the novel takes us on a journey far and wide across India and into the lives of both the captor and the captive.

What is most interesting about the novel is the narration style. The suspense unfolds in the form of several stories [much like the Russian Matryoshka Dolls, the little dolls that mysteriously appear one after the other from a single doll], stories that the captor and captive tell each other. While the abductor chooses his stories carefully, the girl is left with a bunch of newspapers and the previous story with which she needs to weave a new one while being beaten and abused.  She struggles, like the readers, to make sense of it all, to discover the reason for her captivity, to try and put together plans for escape, wondering what her next punishment is going to be. But the author skillfully keeps her and the readers guessing. As the suspense unfolds, right at the end, you are taken aback. Even till the last story you are left clueless as to where all this is leading to.

As suspenseful as the journey is, even the end takes you by surprise [though you might find it a little bollywoodish with the love angle thrown in ;-)]. While a couple of the stories did leave me a little unimpressed, yet the author deserves appreciation for trying out a new style of storytelling.

What I also found interesting was how the author uses the island beautifully as the third angle in the narrative, taking us deep into the minds of both the captive and the captor.

I must however warn you that the abuse and violence at certain instances is very hard hitting. There were parts which grossed me out completely. If that’s what the author aimed at achieving, well, I must say he was successful.

Overall however it’s a worthy debut, fresh and innovative storytelling powered by a fast paced and skillfully woven tale of suspense, this is a roller coaster of a novel, which with it many highs and despite some rare lows, packs quite a punch

Let us Mock, Stalk & Quarrel

Anupama…captures the essence of the book like no one else…😊😊

AkkaAcerbic

A wikipedia would define Satire as a genre of literature in which the vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings of individuals, corporations, government, or society are held up to ridicule, ideally hoping for an improvement. A feature of satire is strong irony or sarcasm. Although satire is usually meant to be humorous, it’s greater purpose is constructive social criticism, using wit to draw attention to both particular and wider issues in society.

We are seeing some solid society churning. In such times, a true writer uses the pen to echo the turmoil around.

Whether it is the gentle mocking at the wax figures who masquerade as role models, 

or the goddesses mulling over festering sores of gender inequalities 

The domestic drivels or the mismanaged familial relationships or the idiosyncrasies of our daily humdrum

When knowledge acquisition suffers a collateral damage as you go chasing degrees, 

When even after 70 years of…

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Have you Mocked, Stalked and Quarreled yet?? — bookhippo

Friends, Indians, countrymen Lend me thy ears This Friday, the 25th of November, a very important book is due to be launched What, you ask is, special about it? Well, well, I would love to tell you all about it, but Big Brother is watching It’s a Catch-22 [29 to be precise] situation you see, […]

via Have you Mocked, Stalked and Quarreled yet?? — bookhippo

Have you Mocked, Stalked and Quarreled yet??

Friends, Indians, countrymen

Lend me thy ears

This Friday, the 25^th of November, a very important book is due to be launched

What, you ask is, special about it?

Well, well, I would love to tell you all about it, but Big Brother is watching

It’s a Catch-22 [29 to be precise] situation you see, so I will just tell you that it is a book of satirical tales by 29 wonderful writers

If you wish to know more you need not travel to any Animal Farm, but to the IIFT Campus

You can make it, can’t you? If Gulliver could travel the world, you can surely come to support us

By Jeeves, you can!

So before anyone uses a Magoj-dholai [brainwashing] machine to dissuade you

Mock them away, let laziness not stalk you

I Promise we won’t Quarrel, just entertain you with lots of humour, and maybe shake you up a bit

Your presence will make us feel high up in The Clouds

So come over, we will talk Of Mice and Men and other things under the sun

Did I mention it’s this Friday, November the 25^th? No not 1984, 2016 it is!

Stalk us at

To Mock [with] us, like our Facebook page:

Mock, Stalk & Quarrel

But don’t you Quarrel, we have copies available on Amazon for you to buy:

http://www.amazon.in/dp/9385854267/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1479930476&sr=8-1&keywords=Mock+Stalk+and+Quarrel

Ashvamedha

Ashvamedha – The game of power, is the debut novel of Aparna Sinha. Published in 2016 by Srishti Publishers, Ashvamedha is a political thriller set in present-day India. The story encapsulates the journey of Ashwin Jamwal from his college party office to the corridors of power in Delhi and beyond.

The story starts offs brilliantly, a plane crash in the midst of a desert in Rajasthan which kills the occupant, a Union Minister.  As the television channels play out the breaking news, there is another person apart from the country and the political parties keeping tab on all the news, Hades. The death sets on roll a huge upheaval in the corridors of power, heralding Ashwin Jamwal into the limelight.

Ashwin Jamwal, 30-something, honest,  dashing, social media savvy, smooth-talking, dark glasses sporting PM face of the Nationalistic Party who wants to bring change,  enough to herald him into the seat of power? or maybe not…

Almost parallel to Ashwin runs the story of Hades, a shrewd, anonymous man with a twisted brain, who is planning the destruction of the world or is he?

I must admit that when I picked up the book, I assumed it to be just another political thriller, haven’t we all seen and read enough already? I was wrong however; the author very deftly weaves a nail biting tale with enough twists and turns to keep the reader engaged.  Not only is there enough politics at play, but she takes the stakes much higher with an impending virus attack that Jamwal needs to save the world from [her skill lies in making all of it convincing] and amidst all of this she throws in a tale of friendship, loyalty and love, A blockbuster won’t you say? While you might find certain aspects predictable and stereotypical, but she still manages to keep up the suspense till the end.

Though overall the novel is well written, I felt the author wasn’t able to handle some of the twists early on in the novel with as much elan as she does towards the end. Her characters are very well written though, her eye for detail is commendable and helps bring the characters alive in your mind. The last few chapters are especially racy and I was not able to put it down till I finished it.

Do I recommend this book? Ofcourse, who would mind a 30-something dashing Indian Prime Minister, someone who is rumored to be having an affair with the US president [Oh yes, the glass ceiling is finally broken], well that’s what the fictional grapevine says atleast 😉

A Thousand Unspoken words

A Thousand Unspoken Words is Paulami Dutta Gupta’s 4^th novel. Published by Readomania, this 2015 novel, though essentially a love story, is also a poignant tale of courage, idealism, failure and redemption.  Though I read the book a couple of months back this year, this is one review which I kept pushing, afraid that I might not be able to do full justice to its brilliance

The book cover is a beautiful mustard with the half hidden face of the hero and the Hoogly Bridge in the background.  I have a thing for beautiful covers, on many occasions I have picked up a book only because of the cover.  The title is almost poetic but what drew me to the book was the blurb ‘journey of a hero who falls’. The story begins with a miserable Tilotamma wondering where Musafir was. Musafir, a writer, a hero, her hero, who dared to write against the establishment. Nobody knows who Musafir is, nor does Tilotamma, but that does not stop her for being in love with him.

A chance encounter brings her face to face with her Musafir, but she fails to recognise him. Their paths cross again after a couple of years but as Ridhhimaan, the one who despises Musafir as much as she still loves him.

The writer pens a soulful love story taking us deep into the minds of Tilotamma and Ridhhimaan. Just as the idealist Tilotamma is not able to let go of Musafir, Riddhimaan struggles to come to terms with the new he. It becomes not just a story of finding love but also about discovering oneself. Though both Tilotamma and Ridhimaan are flawed and relatable, they are also larger than life. The writer succeeds in creating characters that will stay with you long after the book is over. But do not mistake it to be simply a love story, it is also a scathing take on the convenient communism we see in on display today.

As the story progressed I found myself completely engaged, I felt rage and despair as I saw Ridhimaan moving away from Musafir, I, like Tilotamma hoped that he would sooner or later make his peace with Musafir. As Tilotamma pined away for Musafir, not realising how much she was distancing herself from Ridhimaan, I like Ridhimaan, wondered if she was ever in love with him.  So much so that when the story ends I cannot decide whose side I am on,  Ridhimaan or Tilotamma.

Not only is it a great story, it is a great read as well. The writing is evocative and engaging, the scenes pan out in front of you as if you are watching a film. The language is lucid and beautiful, the pace just perfect.

This definitely is one of the best books I have read this year and as a little birdie tells me that a sequel is in the making I cannot but wonder if Tilotamma will ever go ‘knocking at Ridhhimaan’s door’