Tag Archives: Political

The Tree with a Thousand Apples

08 Thursday Jun 2017

Posted by in Fiction

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Sanchit.jpgAuthor – Sanchit Gupta

Rating – 5/5 stars

Number of Pages – 282

Publisher – Niyogi Books

‘If a criminal was once a saint and a saint was once a criminal, then who is the criminal and who is the saint?’

The tree with a Thousand Apples

‘The tree with a Thousand Apples’, a hypnotic and enthralling tale is a story of three childhood friends Bilal Ahanager, Safeena Malik and Deewan Bhat. Inspired by true events this story comes from the turbulent place they called paradise becomes a battlefield and they are forced to choose a side.

Bilal, Safeena, and Deewan grow up in an atmosphere of peace and amity surrounded by lush mountains, serene lakes, and colorful bed of flowers and vegetations everywhere they eye in Srinagar, Kashmir until one night which changes everything for once and for all and forever. Deewan left with no other option to flee from his home abandoning his friends and his place. Safeena’s mother paid the price to give refuge to a neighbor in her home and Bilal has to walk the path from where there is no turning back and the path itself took him nowhere.

Twenty years later, destiny brings them together once again. But, they are no longer the same Bilal, Safeena, and Deewan they used to be. Will they stand together this time or time separate them once again? Will the three friends now choose to become sinful criminals or pacifist saints?

In the backdrop of the books is the valley of Kashmir, this book is a work of fiction but I can say there is a truth hidden behind the veil of fiction after reading many non-fictional books on tormented Kashmir in recent past.

The book is a must read and must reach to the wider audience. The book is a rollercoaster ride and the ending will take you by surprise. It is a fight of demons of mind and angels of heart. It is one of those books you want to keep reading to see what will happen next and you can’t foretell what will come next. A surprise package quiver you from inside out. A must not miss book.

Author Bio

Sanchit Gupta began his career as a copywriter with an advertising agency in Mumbai. He went on to co-found his own theater group, worked as a freelance film screenwriter and as executive producer-fiction for a leading television network. He worked for All India Radio as a talk show host and regularly features in poetry recitals at Prithvi Café, Mumbai. This is his debut novel.

His works explore his fascination for global cultures, societal structures, vagaries of the world and the human mind. Know more about him and his work at sanchitgupta.in.

You can reach to him at Twitter@sanchit421

Buy this Book Here: Amazon

‘I received a copy from Writersmelon in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.’

The Persecution of Mildred Dunlap

31 Wednesday May 2017

Posted by in Fiction

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51q0487gGFLAuthor – Paulette Mahurin

Rating – 5/5 stars

Number of Pages – 202

Publisher – CreateSpace

‘It is absurd to divide people into good and bad. People are either charming or tedious.’

Oscar Wilde(Playwright, Novelist, Essayist and poet)

‘The Persecution of Mildred Dunlap’ is set in 1895 when the world stormed with the news of the conviction of one of the most successful playwrights, novelists, poets and short story writers and noted celebrity Oscar Wilde sentenced to two years of hard imprisonment after being convicted of “gross indecency.”

The story is of two women Mildred Dunlap and her cousin Edra is a subject of gossip for the people of Red River Pass, a small town in Nevada. The life of two women impacted by the news of conviction of Mr. Wilde who finds themselves in the similar circumstances. Mildred being the reason of persecution all through her life and people find reasons to talk about her. Her looks, the way she dressed, her wealth and even her relationship with Edra brought her constant criticism.

The book is worth every penny and every second you give to this book. The book makes a point from the opening chapters and concludes on a note. It is a thoughtful writing and slap on the biased and judgmental thinking of people who loves to subjugate other people and wish to find faults based on their life choices.

The time hasn’t changed since then as the world still finds it a matter of their concern/gossip of person’s sexual relationship. The story is based in 1895 but it reads as it talks the present time.

The book is well written as plot and subplots of the story are intelligently designed. It is a beautiful story capturing the struggle of human rights and how love and friendship bring strength and healing in the life of two women.

Author Bio

Paulette Mahurin, an award-winning author, lives with her husband Terry and two dogs in Ventura County, California. Her first novel, ‘The Persecution of Mildred Dunlap’, made it to Amazon bestsellers lists and won multiple awards, including best historical fiction of the year 2012. Her third novel, To Live Out Loud, won international critical acclaim and favorite read book of 2015.

She practices women’s health in a rural clinic and writes in her spare time. She is an animal advocate and has been involved with dog rescue, along with her husband, for the past twenty-eight years. Profits from her book sales go to help rescue dogs from kill shelters.

You can reach to her at thepersecutionofmildreddunlap.wordpress.com

Twitter@MahurinPaulette

I hope you also like ‘The Seven Year Dress’ by Paulette Mahurin sets during the time of WWII. Read the review Here.

Buy this Book Here: Amazon.com Amazon.in

‘I received a copy from Author in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.’

Singha Durbar

26 Friday May 2017

Posted by in Non-Fiction

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51l-nnCeWkL.jpgAuthor – Sagar S.J.B. Rana

Rating – 5/5 stars

Number of Pages – 450

Publisher – Rupa Publications

‘If there is a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, you must be the one to write it.’

-Toni Morrison (Novelist)

‘Singha Durbar’ illustrates the history of the beautiful and troubled land of Nepal. The land has the fascinating, high and lush peaks of the Himalayas. The book narrates the history of the land of Prince Siddharth who later renounced his status to lead an ascetic life and founded Buddhism and came to be known as Gautam Buddha.

The book is written by a descendant of the Rana clan. The period is among one of the most vital parts in the history of the country. The author presented a detailed material regarding the pre-Rana history in Nepal and also the Rana regime founded by Jung Bahadur.

The Rana regime in Nepal began with Maharaj Jung Bahadur Rana in the mid-nineteenth century and ruled the kingdom for slightly over a century which comes to a close in 1951. They ensured that Nepal remains isolated from the winds of change coming from India for democracy and complete freedom for a whole century. The year 1940 is crucial in this regard when the anti-feudal movement began which resulted in the toppling the Rana regime in 1951.

The author painstakingly researched for years to bring this book and it is evidently seen when you read and come across the details and not every book can present with such barefaced and forthright. This is a wonderful book for history readers and all those who are interested in knowing one of the episodes of history which covered more than a century of Nepal. The book also is an excellent read for historians and students. This book is as detailed as it needs to be and as brief that it won’t take ages to read and apprehend the ‘Rise and Fall of the Rana Regime of Nepal’.

Author Bio

Sagar S.J.B. Rana was born in 1938 in Baber Mahal Palace, Kathmandu, Nepal. He holds an MA in Jurisprudence from the University of Oxford. A descendent of the Rana family, he and his brother were also actively involved in the Nepali Congress party, the principal democratic force that opposed the politically active monarchy. He was a member of the Central Working Committee and the Head of Department of International Affairs of the Nepali Congress in the critical years, 2003-2006. He is the founder chairman of the Federation of Handicraft Association of Nepal. He is currently the Vice President of Nepal Art Council.

Buy this Book Here: Amazon

‘I received a copy from Publisher in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.’

The Baba Ramdev Phenomenon

11 Thursday May 2017

Posted by in Non-Fiction

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61+vF0YOyVL._SX311_BO1,204,203,200_.jpgAuthor – Kaushik Deka

Rating – 4/5 stars

Number of Pages – 184

Publisher – Rupa Publications

A boy from a small village in Haryana to a businessman. From Ram Kishen to Baba Ramdev. From village school to the Himalayas to yoga guru to public icon to businessman to politics. From a common man to most influential individuals of the decade.

Baba Ramdev, the face of Patanjali and Yoga in the country was born to a marginal farmer family, at Saidalipur, a nondescript village in Haryana. His father, a devout Hindu, named the boy ‘Ram Kishen’ as a devotion and gratitude to Lord Ram. He was intelligent and bright and excelling in his academics. The family had huge hopes that one day this boy will change their life and bring pride to the family. But, tragedy struck soon. It was a paralytic attack which resulted in his permanent disability.

The book is a detailed account of the life of the most sought-after India’s Yoga Guru Baba Ramdev, who started his journey from two disciples who come to learn yoga for health benefits to become the face of the Patanjali Ayurved; an unpaid brand ambassador.

‘Patanjali Ayurved has turned out to be the most disruptive force in the Indian FMCG market. It witnessed a whopping annual growth of 146% in the fiscal year 2016, grossing a turnover of US$769 million.’—Assocham–TechSci research report.

The book is a life account showcases his journey from his first brush with Yoga to cure his disability to become a Yoga icon of the country and a promise he made to cure and prevent people from diseases and ailment. A will to stand on his feet after paralysis to determination to change the picture of the country by making everyone healthy from in-house made products

The book also has little tit-bits of his close acquaintance Acharya Balkrishna; the brain behind Patanjali’s rise. The book does not attempt to give him a larger than life image or try to portray him in the positive limelight or clear out the smoke of controversies surrounded him. The book is not an all praise story rather an honest account of a boy Ram Kishen to Baba Ramdev, ‘From Moksha to Market’.

Author Bio

Kaushik Deka is a Senior Associate Editor with India Today. He hails from Tihu, a sleepy town in lower Assam. An alumnus of the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC), New Delhi, Deka has earlier co-authored the book ‘The Secret Killings of Assam’.

You can reach to him at Twitter@KDscribe

Buy this book here: Amazon

‘I received a copy from Publisher in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.’

An Era of Darkness

24 Saturday Dec 2016

Posted by in Non-Fiction

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32777063Author – Shashi Tharoor

Rating – *****

Language – English

Number of Pages – 338

The Author, Shashi Tharoor, is an Indian politician and a former diplomat who is currently serving as Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha.

The birth of the book is the speech made by the author at Oxford when author was invited as a speaker at Oxford Union. After praises, criticism, trolling over internet, the speech made its way in the heart of masses. The book is not his written speech; it is differ in many respects. This book is not about British Colonialism as a whole, but simply tells about India’s experience of it. It does not tell a story of British Raj on India but makes an argument.

Starting from 1600 when British Charter forms East India Company, who once entered in the country as traders and then eventually ruled the country till 1947 – India gain independence on 15th august, partition of the country, Britain exits India. Brief history of the dark phase of Indian history and their impact on India and over Indians from the eye of author.

During the period, the India becomes mere exporter of raw material to Britain and its export market of manufacturing goods declined considerably. British Raj extracted the wealth in the name of taxation. Britain’s Industrial Revolution was built on the destruction of India’s thriving manufacturing industries. Factual figures are also stated in the book.

There is nothing new, which, one haven’t read before about Indian history but book neither trashing British Raj. It evaluates the impact of Colonialism and how India made progress after independence to one of the world’s fastest growing economy.

The Four Patriots

07 Wednesday Dec 2016

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31928304.jpgAuthor – Sumit Agarwal

Rating – *****

Language – English

Number of Pages – 306

What Would you likely do to see your country in a better state?
Do you want to make a change?
This book raises many questions as such and also suggests a resolution, this is about fighting against odds.

The four dynamic and enthusiastic youths, Varun, an NRI software engineer; Salman, A CEO of coffee moments; Raghav, a virtuous politician; Aditya, an altruistic businessman, they all are doing great in their respective fields but circumstances brings these four lives together to fight against India’s long standing relationship between corruption and politics. They want to bring change in Indians politics and take the charge of the current situation and provided ideas for the development of the country and not just vocal about the problems. Everyone is equally responsible for the country’s state but only few took the charge.

Sumit Agarwal’s story is like a fresh breeze in disguise. The characters are very well woven. Author written the book with a positive approach to the problems our country currently facing.

It’s a great read. Simple yet enthralling. An unputdownable.

A Crown of Thorns

29 Tuesday Nov 2016

Posted by in Non-Fiction

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31821405Author – T.C.A. Srinivasa Raghavan

Rating – *****

Language – English

Number of Pages – 49

*Book available only in digital edition.

We all are aware of the facts when Reserve Bank of India(RBI) came into existence and when our Central Bank become nationalized, who is the first Governor and who is the present one.

But do you know who initiated the idea of nationalization of Banks and why the Banks had been nationalized at all and is there was any one who stand against to the idea. Why the first Governor(Sir Osborne Smith, who was not an Indian) resigned before completion of his tenure and he is not the only one to do so, so far. Total of four Governors resigned before their tenure comes to an end.

RBI has always been in news, than and today and surrounded by rumors and controversies for political intrusion, appointment of its Governors and list is as long as you take it. The book does not put statistical data of the working and performance of the RBI and economy which makes it readable even by those who have little and no knowledge of day to day affairs.

Everyone has their own way of looking at things. Author is a senior journalist who puts his mind and years of his journalism into this book. Book is worth a read and in my words MUST!