There is nothing more satisfying than reading a book while sipping a hot cup of tea.
After the rather tepid last read of 2022, Frank Baker's The Twisted Tree, which ended on a disturbing note, I wanted to start 2023 with something much more cheerful. LO had borrowed this book from the library and I read it today. The book features some of the most well-known and loved authors of India: … Continue reading First Read of 2023: The Puffin Book of Funny Stories (2005)
Sanskrit is one of the most ancient languages of the world. I am in awe of the power of its words as manifested in the innumerable mantrs, strotas, and raags. It is a matter of regret for me that in school I never tried to learn the language properly and now can only rely on … Continue reading Classics Club #A1: Dasa Kumara Charitam by Dandin
Every passing moment makes us suffer, though differently with different people. The very act of passing through life entails some bruises which nobody else can see. Though I had heard of Indian Punjabi author Ajeet Cour I hadn't read her work till LO brought her book from the library, thinking that the title: Dead End, … Continue reading Literature of India: Dead End and Other Stories by Ajeet Cour
Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore is one of the foremost poets and philosophers of India. However, he was an excellent author of prose too. This collection of his contains ten stories, and virtually all of them showcase his genius. The collection begins with his most famous and anthologized story, Cabuliwallah, where an Afghan seller of dryfruits … Continue reading Literature of India: Stories from Tagore (1918)
I am happy that Adam @ RoofBeamReader has brought back his TBR challenge. The challenge is to make a list of 14 books (12 on the main list and 2 alternates) from which you commit yourself to reading at least 12 this year. Specifying it further, Adam writes, "Each of these 12 books must have … Continue reading Sign-Up: The 2022 TBR Pile Challenge
This week in Top Ten Tuesdays hosted @That Artsy Reader Girl, we have been asked to name top ten (or more or less) new authors whom we discovered last year. Well, last year I read a host of new authors from those whom I made a special point to read like Reginald Hill and Shelley … Continue reading Top Ten (+4) Tuesdays: New Authors 2021
@ Hindustan Times Cinematic legend, Satyajit Ray (1921-1992) is renowned all over the world for his filmmaking skills, especially for his Apu trilogy. Not many people know that he was also a very keen reader of detective stories and that his own creation, Prodosh Chandra Mitter [more famously known by the sobriquet Feluda] is one … Continue reading Friday’s Forgotten Book: The Adventures of Feluda by Satyajit Ray (1988)
Top Ten Tuesdays is a hugely popular weekly meme @ That Artsy Reader Girl. This week's topic involves listing ten (or more) 2021 releases that one was excited about but couldn't read. I have twisted it a little and made a list of thirteen books that I got last year and wanted to read but … Continue reading Top Ten (+3) Tuesdays: Books I got in 2021 but couldn’t read
Of the three young men who were hanged by the British Colonial Government on 23rd March 1931, a lot is known about Bhagat Singh (1907-1931) with many books written and films produced on him. The same however cannot be said of his two comrades, Rajguru (1908-1931) and Sukhdev (1907-1931) who died alongside him. https://mobile.twitter.com/sauravk1890/status/1128521900383096832 Professor … Continue reading First Read of 2022: Shahid Sukh Dev by Malwinder Jit Singh Waraich (2016)
2021 is not ending on a good note and my last read of the year too was pretty grim in places. The Andamans are a group of islands in the Bay of Bengal off the eastern coast of India. Separated from mainland India, they are still home to the indigenous people who have been here … Continue reading Last Read of 2021: In Andamans: The Indian Bastille by Bejoy Kumar Sinha (1939)
a hot cup of pleasure 