#ReadABook - The Dalai Lama's Cat by David Michie

Around two years ago I signed up for a book review program with a well known website. As a part of this program I would sign up to review books every time they had a new one out, receive it in the next couple of days if selected, read the book and post a 500 word review within 7 days. While it sounded exciting to get new books in exchange for just a blog post (and I reviewed quite a few books), I found my interest dwindling. I am not a speed reader. I take my own sweet time between travel to and from work to finish a book. So, I stopped. The main reason was spending time and energy reading below average books while I have a whole wishlist of brilliant books to read. 

So I decided to continue writing about books, but the ones that I love and would recommend to fellow readers. The first book of the series is The Dalai Lama's Cat written by David Michie.

Summer Heat and a Pile of Comics

While scrolling through my twitter timeline casually in the morning I read about the death of Pran Kumar Sharma, India's popular cartoonist better known as the creator of Chacha Chaudhary. Soon there were obituaries; people remembering their comic reading days, their favourite Pran characters and comics. I couldn't stop myself from revisiting the good old days of summer holidays spent reading the pile of comics, again and again.

I grew up in a small city where foreign comics like Archie, Hardy Boys, Marvel etc. hadn't penetrated the market yet. We grew up on a steady dose of Diamond and Raj comics. More of former than latter because of the pure innocence of the characters and stories. Parag, Champak, Nandan, Samrat and Tinkle made for perfect children’s magazines. 

It was an ideal summer holiday which started with buying a stash of Chacha Chaudhary, Billoo and Pinky comics or even better, renting them out from the local library. Even in my Nana-Nani’s village, where we’d go to spend a month, there was a shelf dedicated to our comics and books. I would read them repeatedly, year after year.

The comics that Pran wrote weren’t complicated. They didn’t include flying heroes or dark villians, except Raka. His characters had their traits and well defined ones; Sabu’s anger which made volcanos burst or Chacha Chaudhary’s mind which worked faster than computer. Pinky’s knack for notority was lovable and her neighbour Jhapatji’s frustration was real. The thieves always had black stripes on their faces and Bajrangi Pehelwan would always wear a checkered lungi.

The jokes were silly but I still loved them. The stories linear but kept me interested. It was all a part of my growing up years. And then, I grew up. Moved on to international comics, Calvin and Hobbs and Harry Potters. But a part of me still wanted to go back and read those comics. A part of me still wanted to know about Sabu’s family on Jupiter, see Billoo’s face behind those hair and whether Raka will finally die or not. I guess it’ll remain a mistry now. RIP Pran.

Of books, films and blogs: The year that was

2012 was the year of a lot of learning and meeting new people on twitter and in person. It also included a lot of reading thanks to Blogadda's book review program I signed up for. Here's a post dedicated to the year that was with a list of my 3 fav films I watched, books and blogs I read in 2012 (in no particular order).

Films:

Gangs of Wasseypur I & II
I don't need to talk much about this film. GoW gave a new wave of storytelling, actors and film making to Hindi cinema and despite people accusing Anurag Kashyap of indulgence I think that this was one of the best works of Indian Cinema. Read my review Here

Paan Singh Tomar
The film has it's flaws but Irrfan Khan makes up for them. It is impossible to not love an actor who can give you goose bumps with just an expression of his eye. Read my review Here

Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro
Of-course I didn't see Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro for the first time but watching it in the theatre for the first time was a different experience altogether. The satire is as relevant today as it was when the film released. Here's my post that I had written after watching the film in the theatre thanks to PVR.


Books:

The Secret Of The Nagas by Amish
While I finished the first part The Immortals of Meluha in 2011, the second part got over in Jan 2012. I find The Secret Of The Nagas more fast paced than the first book. It is darker and keeps you on the edge. Of course some overly melodramatic sections can be easily edited out but apart from that the book tells a brilliant story. I am now waiting for the third part of the Shiva Trilogy, Oath Of The Vayuputras slated to release in March.

Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro by Jai Arjun Singh
I picked up this book after a movie buff friend recommended it on twitter and it's a gem for those in love with the cult film Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro. I will not say much about the book in this post and will take you to an earlier post that I wrote after reading it. Here

Raag Darbari by Srilal Shukla
Raag Darbari was on my to-read list since a long time and finally I picked it off my brother-in-law's shelf who swears by it. The book doesn't have a set story and is in fact a description of life in a small village in the post Independence India. The language is full of sarcasm and Awadhi slangs and will keep you in splits.

Blogs:

Calcutta Chromosome
I came to know about this blog through a book I reviewed for blogadda.com. Diptakirti Chaudhury, the author of Kitnay Aadmi Thay, the book and Calcutta Chromosome is a Hindi film buff and it is a lot of fun to read through his lists, agree and disagree with them and add your own favourites.

Sumthinz Cooking
A food blogger, baker and a friend Reema Prasanna who I met this year thanks to my profession. I love reading her blog for the simple recipes she shares and all the stories she weaves around food. Reading her posts are more fun if you know her personally because then you can picture her expressions and mannerisms in your head. And yes, we share a common hatred for khatti jalebis. Follow her on twitter @ScrollsNInk to learn from her #BakingGyaan

Going Bananas
The 17 year old Paloma Sharma writes about issues on her blog that we so called adults try to shun. She is bold, atheist and is ready to take flak from the so called protectors of religion. Follow her on twitter @PalomaSharma and @GoinBananasBlog to discuss all the issues that in her words "plague us all".

10 day YOU challenge | 4 Books

1. Midnight's Children
I was an avid reader as a kid but the habit took a backseat as I grew up. It came back to life once I read Midnight's Children. I love Rushdie's style of writing and his imagination.

2. The Fountainhead
For the philosophy it delves into. I usually take time to finish a book but this one I finished within a week.

3. The Godfather
 Godfather is a masterpiece. I had already seen the movie when i read the book still it was equally gripping. 

4. Harry Potter Series
Yes, I am an adult and in love with HP series. I like the wild imagination and the whole magic thing. Feel like a kid again.

10 day YOU challenge | 5 Foods