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The Calcutta Chromosome: A Novel of Fevers, Delirium & Discovery by Amitav Ghosh
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Ok, this book is one of the most confusing books I ever read and most unpredictable too! I'm used to having definite thoughts about the plot of the book after it ends but when this book ended, I was left utterly clueless. I understood bits and parts of it but can't connect it completely even now. When I googled its reviews, I met with similar reactions and was then assured that I was not the only one. This book combines sci-fi, black magic, mystery, thriller, fantasy all in one and maybe is an overwhelming read for people like me. I get that it's any author's heart's desire to leave readers to conclude in their own way but the reader has to reach to a certain place from which there are few definite paths to follow. My opinion is that this book fails to take readers to that place. I'm hoping this book has a master plot still not known to the reader and I wish to ask Mr. Ghosh one day when I meet him, hopefully.
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The Idiot by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
So, this book! I have rarely read classics which are more than 100 years old and this book was a culture shock for me. What a loquacious book! My exact feelings were why this man is spending 2,3 pages writing the stuff which could have been explained in one paragraph, but then I live in a different era and am brought up with modern literature. it was so different reading paragraphs after paragraphs and pages after pages reading conversations which (from my point of view) were not even important in the narrative; reading them was so tiring. Characters of this book are all very eccentric and uncommon as I can't imagine anyone of them being seen as normal in this generation. It was like experiencing a high energy play with a lot of verbosities.
Dostoyevsky certainly has mastery over words since this book is filled with so elegant sentences and philosophies that one can highlight half the book just for its beauty. Some conversations were eye-openers but some really were over the top. I'm left with mixed feelings about Russian authors as I had a similar experience with Maxim Gorky; but then, maybe it's the culture of a particular country and I am still not evolved yet in a literary sense to appreciate these fully. I'm certainly looking forward to reading more Dostoyevsky and other Russian authors.
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The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I rarely read thrillers, but I had heard so much about this book and now a movie is coming out, so I decided to see what all the fuss was about. This book consists of a very limited number of characters which is good for a newbie reader to understand. Author maintains the suspense till the end despite having so few characters. A particular thing I learned from this book is the protagonist need not be a strong, firm character. Author takes the worn out, drunk and (some may call it) a loser Rachel as the chief protagonist with equally important characters of Megan and Anna. All three characters are narrating the story and author being a lady, it feels more authentic and realistic to read all three women voices. Author has certainly played her strong points. Though the ending didn't match my expectation, it was already sky high, so no let down there. Although, me not being a staunch thrillers fan, I thoroughly enjoyed the book.
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Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
As Neil Gaiman says in the prologue of this book that he wanted to write an 'Alice in the wonderland' for adults and he has done it in a very compatible way. He takes us in two worlds; similar yet very different in many ways; London above and London below and also in each of these worlds belong, two protagonists, Richard and Door (yeah, an actual name of a girl). One is a regular chaotic, monotonous world that we live in and the other is the magical world of which we all dream of at some or the other point of time in our life. In Gaiman's fluid language I travelled through extraordinary lives of its characters. The best part of reading this book was listening to it in Neil Gaiman's voice in my mind (after having listened to so many interviews and talks of Neil), his dreamy voice was an added benefit for me. I'm a Gaiman fan through and through now.
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Em and The Big Hoom by Jerry Pinto
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I picked this book up because I liked its cover and binding. I saw that it has won awards and title seemed interesting. This book was not at all what I had presumed; it's a tale of a nuclear family living in Mahim in 1bhk flat and the mother is mentally unstable. I could not find right words to describe this poignant story of Em, Big Hoom and their two children. How a son copes with his mother going from ups and downs of bipolar, schizophrenia, manic depressive states, how a love story starts just as a flirtatious gesture and goes on to become a great one, how a woman goes from eccentric to mad, how a husband keeps his calm and becomes a rock to his unstable wife. It's a story consisting of many stories and is made of real, hard-hitting emotions and practicality. Mr. Pinto, I can't even imagine how much of a soul you had to put in this story. Stories like these take something out of you, books like these change you. It did change me.
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1Q84 by Haruki Murakami
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Magnum Opus of my favourite author! How excited I was to start this book and how happy I am after reading it! This monster of a book was originally in three parts but was later converted into one book for readers' convenience. This book tells stories of Aomame and Tengo and how mere handholding at the age of ten set off events in a butterfly effect. This also contains parallel storylines of supporting characters. This book is for saturated Murakami lovers and they will truly savour it. It doesn't bore you a bit. As per my experience, Murakami books should not be read for the conclusion but for the enjoyment of its prose. Murakami books almost always end on a slightly happy note, and that doesn't break your heart. There are so many things that are constant in every Murakami novel, like cats and good music. I'm looking forward to reading all of Murakami's remaining novels.
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Batman: The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
After reading Batman: Year One and The Killing Joke, which were short issues, this one was a proper novel and boy did it blow my mind. One of the best storylines I have read till date. Batman is old and tired and slower but he's still batman. This book gives batman a human touch it so needed. One of the best things I love about batman is that he's a human; a normal human with honed abilities and what better way to show that than he's also affected by aging as all of us. Still, the spirit remains, the fight remains. This one is one of the darkest batman comics I have read, besides the killing joke. End of the days, death, sorrow, rage, duty and fear! All hail batman!
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