Top 5 Books I Wanted to Start Yesterday

This blog post is where we, I, candidly confess how terribly I've been slacking on my book challenges.
 Mentioned will be some books that will for sure generate some gasps and 'haww' from all my readers. Trust me when I say that I WILL get to them this year.

5. Mortal Instruments Series by Cassandra Clare

This book series is what was all over the booktubing and book blogging community for all of 2014 and me, the attention deficit that I am decided to read the Infernal Devices trilogy instead. Again, LOVED IT. Probably one of my favorite series ever, so by default I should probably keep an eye out for Cassandra Clare's work. We are almost done with April and I haven't even picked up the first book yet. And I intend to finish this series this year. Talk about being realistic.

4. Catch-22 by Joseph Heller

I only recently acquired this book from the local second-hand book store for a steal. A lot of people have quote this book enough around me to make me annoyingly curious. I am hoping my TBR Jar will spit out the 'Catch-22' chit soon enough.

3. L.A Confidential by James Ellroy

Everyone knows of this stellar Russell Crowe starrer and the enticing mystery movie it was. Unfortunate for impatient me, I watched the movie in fast forward with minimal interest. For longest time, I had absolutely no idea this was book till I spotted it at a thrift market. Now I intend to give it a fair chance.

2. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

The most shameful act of my life ever. I bought this book in a massive book fair at Holiday Inn Muscat when I was in the 8th grade and have not read it yet. 9 years or so and it lays abandoned. Fail, would not even cut it. A must-read for a feminist writer for me I'm aware and I am determined to get to it. Soon.

1. To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee

An iconic book and a pioneer in civil rights era based literature. Just recently my father watched the film and said it's worth every word of the hype. As a literary enthusiast, missing out on this book would be like a cardinal sin in the book blogging community. however I do feel I would want to spend a good amount of time reading this.

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What books have you been eyeing to read ?

Book Review: Learning to Live Again by Dori Lavelle

Brace yourselves, this is going to be a long one.

Okay, so it has been years since I read something romantic like the series I am about to review.
Do you remember in your school days, when you'd be ill in bed, reading Mills & Boon. Yup, nostalgia hit me pretty much right in the face.
  Since this is a trilogy, I will divide my review in three parts within the same post.

Book 1 - To Live Again

Read on: Kindle

Pages: 93

Goodreads Rating: 3.97/5

Review: Kelsey moves to a quant little Irish town to start her life afresh. Little does she know, that her next door neighbor is this elusive and handsome stranger that might make her a hot mess (Literally!). And that's where it all goes tumbling.

Considering that the series are fairly short, It was a good break for me to get into something moving that my regular reading challenge which you'll know I'm doing poorly at if you follow me on Goodreads. I didn't have an issue with the pacing of the book, however I did feel that for a keeper of secrets and supposedly being so discreet, Shaun was more forthright and oncoming than Kelsey herself. I expected Shaun's past to have a huge looming shadow on his personality, someone majorly flawed yet irresistible.
Maeve is a local girl who befriends Kelsey and is often her go-to person when she has to endure Shaun's hot and cold moods. Thankfully, Maeve isn't a typically shallow girl, she gets straight to the point without hesitation. She's probably my favorite character in the whole lot.


Book 2 - To Love Again

Read on: Kindle

Pages: 101

Goodreads Rating: 4.42/5

Review: After striking a 'deal' with Shaun and assuming the fact that she can handle the situation well, Kelsey tries to flout in and out of Shaun's life, hoping for him to still open up to her despite the adversities.

This one was my favorite in the series. We get a good look into Shaun's past and the darkness that lures in it. His first wife, Carmen is such a prominent character. The incidents that ruin her life keep following building up her trauma. Shaun tries his best to do as he can but he kind of has a clue as to where it would all lead to. Carmen's actions are justifiable in their own way and the consequences endured by the one left behind, i.e. Shaun, was expected. Their story is well detailed and narrated. Again, like I mentioned before, all that Shaun had to deal with should have left him all the more scarred, something I had a hard time believing in the first installment of the series.


Book 3 - To Breathe Again

Read on: Kindle

Pages: 101

Goodreads Rating: 4.68/5

Review: The final book was a bit of a let down because it was so rushed. The point of Serendipity's anger towards Kelsey, Carmen's family's hostility and the scenes that follow were expected but not in such a predictable way. Kelsey's pain is heightened by her natural female instincts, she loves a man who may no be able to shed his past and she has to accept it as it is.
After paying homage to his first wife, Shaun tries to go through life with Kelsey realizing that he wants to be with her. He starts proposing to her, I say starts because he's done it twice already and continues to indulge in her which I found was a bit corny for a man who endured so much. It made me feel unsettled.
Instead if they had a quiet or solemn proposal or decision and ended on that not, then it would have been a perfectly natural ending. This would have been perfect so that there was be an unspoken reflection of all that they had gone through earlier and the seriousness of Shaun's decisions would come through. It would seem genuine to take it further with Kelsey.

Having read the series rather quickly, the author's style of writing is descriptive and witty. It's what make it so easy to read through and I thoroughly enjoyed those bits. Fair warning: this book does contain graphic adult content.


All in all, I enjoyed the wave of nostalgia it brought me. I would ideally recommend this to people on the go, who don't have much time to devote to reading since it's such a quick light read and ardent romance novel lovers.

Final Rating: 2.5/5

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These Constellations We Call Scars

“The wound is the place where the Light enters you.” 

― Rumi

Take off my clothes and stand in front of a full sized mirror. I can't even observe my body for a good 5 minutes without complaining.  Stripped down, not even a speck of concealer or mascara, I stare at my face and body, my imperfections glare back at me.
He doesn't miss a chance to call me beautiful, even when I'm scrubbed down of makeup. I have a hard time believing him. He could be saying this to keep my heart, sweetheart that he is.
My teens have marked me. I thought they would stop right there but I kept accumulating them year after year. My back is so stained, there's isn't an inch of plain skin. Backless clothes are off-limits for sure.
On my quiet days he declares back rubs. I cringe a bit. He doesn't say a word like absolutely nothing is wrong and here I am, lying face down, losing my sanity. ' FOR GOD'S SAKE, SAY SOMETHING!!!' my mind shrieks.
Décolletage. So delicate, so feminine. Not for me. I'm stained there too. I wear plunging necklines nonetheless, but I know when someones gaze does drift to my bosom its because they are staring at my marks.
In queues or crowds, people standing around whose eyes couldn't miss scars so prominent, would wince or randomly ask me what happened, followed by advice and dermatologist reccomendations.
Trust me when I say this, there's no fun living with insecurities.
Teenage Mehreen would have tried everything possible to get rid of the scars. Everyone said ' Time will fade them '. Fade them. Not erase them.  It takes a lot to be able to finally accept your imperfections as what defines you. In my younger days, I was surrounded by people who aimed to be flawless and just like sheep in a flock, I thought that was the only way to be.
Self loving came from a unprecedented corner. Months ago, a taller stranger stood behind me and exclaimed quite loudly. 'your scars are beautiful!'. I turn around to source the voice. ' they're absolutely amazing ' *snap* he immediately takes a picture and shows it to me.  I gaze at the camera screen, completely bewildered. ' You shouldn't hide them, you know. Show them off more often '
What a strange piece of advice! Such peculiar compliments.  I stood there stammering and stuttering unable to decide if I should thank him or deem his as moronic.
Days go by, drenched in my heavy schedule with minimum time devoted to beauty rituals. The scars on my body are the last thing on my mind and in the past few months, I didn't do much to them either. If they were the last thing on my mind, then what does that mean? It really isn't that important.
Self acceptance had begun for me even before I realized it and I fully intend to keep it that way.
Our scars and imperfections are our character. It's what makes us different. They design us, define us, enhance us, complete us.
How can you get rid of something if it's such an integral part of you? The fact that we aren't so perfect is what makes us human.

So now if anyone has a problem with my flaws, it's going to be their problem. Not mine.

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Book Review: The Silent Scream by Siddhartha Garg

Pages :  199

Read on : Kindle

Goodreads Rating : 4.43/5

Review: Anyone and everyone who knows me, knows that one of the core themes of my writing is feminism. Women's and children's issues are something I bleed for with words. Although I must admit, I haven't put my foot into something as raw as 'The Silent Scream'. 

Whatever I know about feminism and child rights, comes from my formal education in journalism and everything I observed during my trips in India. We are stringently told how vile child abuse is, we write stories on them, we read stories about them, we hear of them, yet we fumble when it comes to handling them because of how fragile the victim is. It's like trying to erase angry permanent marker lines from a whiteboard. Rub, rub, rub but it still leaves the stain.

'The Silent Scream' is a compilation of similar gruesome tales of the unimaginable adversities no child should ever face, yet it happened. I have ever so often mentioned on my blog, how crimes are not as simple as they seem. Reading this book felt like repeated punches in my gut. There were times when I would get chills and urge to put it down, just so that those heinous crimes would be out of mind but I couldn't. This is reality and this exactly what it feels like. May be even worse. For the sake of knowing more, I had to go on.

It's a fairly quick read, the stories are short and gripping enough to concisely address the severity of the issues looming currently. The author tries to address the concept of abuse from every possible angle there is. However, its known to us that if we were to get into the different forms of abuse that follow, a never ending series would be in order. The language is simple enough, with ample introductory explanations of all the possible crimes a young one might be exposed to. The author tries to delve into how and why people commit such crimes. The conflicts that push these perpetuators to carryout the impermissible, how to identify the possible perpetuators and the first signs of abuse that show in the behavioral shift of your child. Everything that you need to know first-hand is in the book.

 What I find as a major plus in the book are the last few chapters that focus on how parents can shelter their children from such harm, what can be done to avoid the lurking risks and most importantly, how to be open and available to your children when they reach out to you. I say this because till the 90s, Indian parenting was pretty hard. If we look back to our younger days, we are now better equipped to assess what was right or wrong or how we should have handle it.

On another note, even though 'The Silent Scream' is written in third person, I did find it a tad bit more opinionated than how it should have been. Too many opinions at times could be seen as assertive and angsty. Also, as far research content goes, I was expecting stronger and streamlined sources. Details are graphic in places required with which I feel is necessary just because the nature of the crime is so.

I wouldn't call the book a novel or self help. It could probably fit the category of long-form journalism. Just an FYI. 

Nonetheless, I urge people, yes, everyone. Read it. Have an understanding of how simple thing escape our eyes. Its definitely a good place to start.

 Final Rating : 3/5

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Book Review: Suspended Animation by Shweta Ganesh Kumar

Pages :  116

Read on : Kindle

Goodreads Rating : 4.75/5

Review:  Lately I've been on a time crunch and if you are someone who is in the same boat as I am, you will welcome 'Suspended Animation' as a breath of fresh air. For several reasons.I'm a sucker for anthologies. Short stories to me are what summer flings are to most people. They pack so much in a few pages while keeping it simple.  I dream of starting my writing journey, IF ONLY someone approached me to contribute to an anthology. 

'Suspended Animation' as of now, stands to be my favourite.The stories are of ordinary people, like us, stuck in a loop or some memory or in search of something they desire, may be not aggressively in all cases, but still in a rut. It makes me reflect on some incidents that might have occurred in my life, even though they happened years ago, it still managed to imprint my mind and I found more reasons to bring them up in conversations with strangers. This book encapsulates those instances precisely!

The trick with short stories is that you really have to understand the theme behind the words. What the author is trying to convey. They mostly carry the air of emotion with as little description as possible. Focus has to be tight. Here are people who are still living in an unfinished memory, still anticipating closure or completion while time is zooming past by. Yet it is hard for the them to get out of this lull. There's waiting, for something, anything to happen, good or bad and the uncertainty running parallel. 

My personal favourites were all the stories that took place in Kerala, because Southern India makes gorgeous backdrops with added character and the one that takes place in Scotland. Anthologies are quick in reading nature, since they are so concise, the urge to keep going is very high. However, I do feel that one or two of the stories could be exempted from this collection, just to stay as close to topic as possible.

 On another note, it definitely is a highly relatable read, we know the characters, the people and situations very well in all our lives. I'll be re-reading 'Suspended Animation' for sure. Recommended to all.

 Final Rating : 4/5

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Top 5 Books That Make You Think

Sometimes these 'TOP 5' lists really challenge me to crunch everything I read and love. Every time I skim through my Read list, I realize I love more books that I'm allowed to mention.
For books that make me think, I've tried my best to stir things up a bit and offer you guys as much of a variety as I could. So here goes:

5. Suspended Animation by Shweta Ganesh Kumar

Probably my most favorite anthology ever. These simple stories will leave you thinking about how people are stuck in time even though the world is whizzing past them rapidly. Often we hold on to incidents for too long and find the smallest reasons or excuse to talk about them or bring them up.  Few life reflections were made on my part. Review to be up on the blog soon!

4. Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

Although I wasn't as big of a fan of this series as the other booktubers and bloggers, I've got to say, it did make me think about the whole concept of beauty and the possible extreme levels it could reach in the future. In this world where perfection and beauty are the highest demand with lurking government agenda, being average or normal with flaws is the only way to keep your sanity. Again, if you are someone who is intrigued by concepts like 'who is beautiful and by what standards,' you should definitely check this out.

3. The Moor's Last Sigh by Salman Rushdie

Why a Salman Rushdie book you may wonder. We all know the man is anything but simple. Characters so beautiful and intriguing even in the most hurtful ways makes me want to jump into his stories. However, the reason why The Moor's Last Sigh lingered was for Uma Saraswati. Not a big role but a pivotal one. Enough to wreck havoc like no tomorrow. It's a case that just cannot be closed in my head. She loved him,  she controlled him like a master puppeteer, then why did she hurt him so much? Why did she want to be with him and then ultimately drink poison for her wrong doings? She's one female character whom I could never understand and never forget

2. 1984 by George Orwell

Of course. How could there be a list without me mentioning 1984 by George Orwell. It does make you think for ample reasons. The technological advancements, the security system and the control over people. Forcing them to stay in the system in pure misery void of any personal development, growth or remote chances of encouragement. A genuine pioneer in the dystopian genre. It wouldn't hit you when you read it but once you are through, the severity of it all will stay with you.

1. Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov 

Like I've mentioned on some of my older posts, this is not an easy one to digest and thats what also makes it my favorite. Here's a book, written decades ago that makes you feel for a Paedophile. What most people fail to see is that Nabokov is not glorifying his protagonists. They're awful people with terrible choices, he wants you to see that, understand them entirely, feel for them and eventually hate them for what they do. Its a real challenge to just read Lolita and thinking about it after is a different roller coaster ride by itself. Nonetheless, I will not be able to forget this for years to come.

What books made you think? I'd read your favourites.

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Top 5 Books I'd Save in a Fire

Feels like it's been eons since I did one of these. The minute I knew of this week's topic, I had to get to it.  The list is fairly strange for once and mostly here due to the sentimental value they hold.

5. The Help by Kathryn Stockett

I loved everything about The Help. Loved the movie as much. Each character was so poignant irrespective of what kind of role they played. I haven't really professed my love for this book as much I probably should do. Stockett has written this keeping in mind the Jackson, Mississippi accent and also doesn't shy away from switching viewpoints. The Help will make you laugh, make you cry and it will touch your heart for certain.

4. Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

I just got this book! The timing couldn't be anymore perfect. I was heading to the mall to buy this, saw the parking situation and opted to buy it the next day. Little did I know that the very next day I would receive the same as a gift! Just my luck I'd say! I've heard nothing but fabulous things about it and can't wait to get on with it!

3. A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth

The reason I'd save this in a fire because it's the biggest book I own, also something that wouldn't burn easily. I've only read it halfway through since it manages to either suffocate me because of my reading stance or requires relocation in order to pursue it without interruptions. Nonetheless, I can't say I haven't enjoyed his writing so far.

2. The Client by John Grisham

One of my very first reads that made me feel like I had evolved to better literary material. Fun fact: do you know how in 12th grade you had to get all your dues cleared in order to get your finals hall ticket? Turns out I did not returned this to my school library and surprisingly the Librarian didn't even know! Ha! I still have that book with all the library tags on them! So that deserves the 2nd position.

1. The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran

How. Just how is it possible that something so simple and short could be the perfect life guide?! I neglected this for the longest time and now I even got a beautiful burgundy hard cover copy of The Prophet for my dad since he's been such a heavy endorser and promoter of it. He says that this book is based on the verses of the Holy Quran but a simplified version of it, written in a format that is relatable to anyone regardless of their beliefs or what they follow. That too something that was written in the 1920s!

What books would you save in case of fire? I'd love to know.

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