Posts

Showing posts from August, 2018

BOOK REVIEW: CHENNAI TO CHICAGO by Sriram Ramakrishnan

Image
LIFE IS MORE CINEMATIC THAN A CINEMA, THIS MEMOIR REMINDS ME THAT! Book: Chennai To Chicago Author: Sriram Ramakrishnan Genre: Memoir/Autobiography Release Date: 18th July, 2018 Blurb:  Is there anything permanent at all? Anything that I can lean on to in this world? What is life? What am I doing here? Growing up in the 90's in India, hearing people going to "States" as software engineers, I wondered why people were so crazy about America. Without the internet or the zillion TV channels we have today, I had my own fantasies on “States”. Thanks to a Doordarshan Tamil drama in the 90's, "Marriage in Washington", I remember as a teenager sitting in front of the Television religiously every week with a yearning in my throat, "I should go to America someday". I didn’t know how that would happen, I had not even traveled in an Air Conditioned compartment in a train. But I knew, someday, I will go to America. And that someday arrive

BOOK REVIEW: 'Mandodari: Queen of Lanka' by Manini J. Anandani

Image
A Soulful story of a daughter,wife,mother & then a queen! A Brilliant Retelling! BOOK: Mandodari: Queen of Lanka Author: Manini J. Anandani Publisher: Penguin Books Release Date: Genre: Mythological Fiction/Epic Blurb: Borrowing from Sanghadasa's Jaina version of the Ramayana, Mandodari-one of the least known characters of the Hindu epic-is finally given a voice. Considered to be one of the most beautiful apsaras, she was married off to the mighty Ravana, the legendary king of Lanka. In her story, she speaks about her struggles after her marriage, her insecurities and her pious nature that challenged her husband's growing aspirations. She narrates the rise of Ravana's power and the blunders he made that ultimately caused the downfall of Lanka. Despite her husband's faults, Mandodari loved him and advised him to follow the path of righteousness. Ravana's defeat in a thirteen-day war turned him into a villain. But what if he were the real hero on hi