Keep Off The Grass by Karan Bajaj

I had read many serious books lately and thought I could take a break. That’s when Keep Off The Grass by Karan Bajaj came into the picture.
Brought for me again by a friend who had this time read it himself and recommended the book as a great fun read. So I decided to give it a shot.
(Even though I thought I was done for life with the books written by the IIT/IIM types. Nothing wrong with the books though, in fact I really liked some of them specially Earning The Laundry Stripes by Manreet Sodhi Someshwar. But the decision was just that - a decision based on wanting to read a book that came out of a mind that doesn’t produce twirling tales of action that resulted due to suffocation by the trivialities of the rigorous IIT/IIM routines or because they just weren’t doing well at the course and had lots of time to smoke up, get wasted and write books. I mean, of course they all know what they are in for before taking admission there but still they enter and then they whine and struggle and whine more about it through their books. And publishers line up at their doorsteps and then people like us have to read those melodramatic almost the same sounding accounts of the ultra competitive rat race in their books just because some IIM graduate has written it.. oh c’mon! I thought I was done with that)

Book Review: Keep Off The Grass

A refreshing account of the escapades of an 'ABCD' Wall Street investment banker who quits his job, leaves his country and comes back to India to join the IIM in search of his roots and who he is within. Sure enough life as he finds it is not only very different but also difficult at IIM along with being a complete contrast from his high achieving spell at Yale. Throughout the process of breaking through within himself the protagonist makes friends and brushes past various incidents with aghorees at the ghats of Banares, auto rickshaw drivers doubling up as pimps and drug peddlers, the predictably corrupt cops and earnest promoters of Vipaasana in the Himalayas to being locked in a prison cell, knocking on Ruskin Bond’s door and anecdotes about many other lesser lives trudging along towards the grades glory at the IIMB. The incidents are witty, surreal and in a funny and strange way all credible.
The fast paced nature of the book takes you through a humorous joyride with a hint of mellow excitement as the author delves deeper into contact with his real self.
Keep Off The Grass by debutant novelist Karan Bajaj is available at leading bookstores for Rs 195/-

Curfewed Night by Basharat Peer

Bashrat Peer who is currently based in New York after a series of reporting stints with Rediff and Tehelka and after having written for various publications including The Guardian, Financial Times, New Statesman and Foreign Affairs, recently released Curfewed Night.

It was gifted to me by a dear friend who thought I love reading depressing and sad non fiction books (which might actually be true).

I truely enjoyed reading the book and would reccomend it to all the people who appreciate reading a book that is a result of the author's honest and heartfelt rendition of the stories from his much beloved native village in the troubled Kashmir valley.

In the book, being the author's first, he writes beautifully yet matter of factly about the troubles that besiege the valley and how every man there lives in fear. He certainly has avoided any kind of melodrama or self pity in the narrative while rendering the lived experiences and deeply touching stories of the many unknown mothers, sons, poets and millitants from Kashmir.

Without presenting a political picture of Muslims versus Hindus, or Islamic fundamentalists versus secularists he has brought to light the situation of an agonised people whose lives have been torn asunder by factors beyond their control.

A wonderful and insightful read, Curfewed Night is available at all leading bookstores at Rs 395/-

Many thanks to my friend who picked it up for me :)

The spring has finally arrived..

I am a person of abounding big plans, ideas and musings and can easily be described as lazy. To tell the truth I am extemely happy with myself today for atleast initiating what I had been comtemplating ever since i.e. blogging!

Writing has always proved to be therapeutic specially for people like me who are very expressive and have almost always atleast something to say about anything and everything. Like I said before, lazy as I am, typing is what I found more convenient than writing and therefore here I am.

At this point it is difficult to predict the future of this blog and what literature it might dish out. It will atleast be full of trivial things that I fancy from time to time. The blog will mainly chronicle reviews on any new and interesting books I read, any new places I visit, reviews on restaurants, clubs, pubs and stores & salons and anything else that perks up my attention.

Wishing you a happy diversion from your hectic/sad/dull worklife and hoping any information provided was atleast entertaining if not helpful!