Day 20. It's All In The Planets by Preeti Shenoy - Book Review

 Destiny has been approached differently by various school of thoughts. For some,

And for others

Well whatever your take on destiny and love might be, the way this subject is served in the latest novel by Preeti Shenoy, it is full of twists and turns, which are at times expected and yes there are moments when they completely take you by surprise.

When I read my first Preeti Shenoy book, ‘Life’s what you make it’, I immediately fell for the compelling story telling which keeps you hooked on to the book till you finish the last page. And once again the author has achieved creating the similar magic with her latest book, ‘It’s all in the planets’.

Blurb

Meet Aniket. Twenty-seven, techie, Mr. Average. His best friend is Subbu, a nerd who breathes, thinks and lives code. Aniket cannot believe his luck when he starts dating Trish – a stunning, sexy model, who is totally out of his league. But Trish has a list of things she wants him to work on, beginning with his pot belly and his geekiness.

Then there’s Nidhi, thirty-two, who has quit her corporate job to follow her passion. She is engaged to Manoj, Mr. Perfect – except for one aspect.

Aniket and Nidhi meet on a train, a chance encounter and she agrees to become his ‘relationship coach’. It’s a decision that sets into motion a chain of events that will have a profound impact on the lives of all involved.

One man, two women and the trap called Destiny.

Some things, they say, are all in the planets.

Writing Style and Presentation

I might be biased here because am an ardent Preeti Shenoy fan. While I am more of literary fiction buff, she continues to intrigue me through her writing and charismatic personality. But as I chose to write a review of her book, I will try my best to act like a critic.

To begin with, the blurb provided by the author, aptly summarizes the book in those few paragraphs. We know what is going to happen in the book, right from the word ‘Go’ but the journey is about knowing how it is going to happen. And full credit here goes to the author for making it an adventurous journey. The pace of the book is fast as other books of Preeti Shenoy but I loved the way she has infused a blogger’s perspective in between. Those little musings in between which give an introspected view of love as a form of indelible human emotion give us a breather from the action packed sequences. The writing and language is simple which is why her book reaches out to the common man and establishes connect instantly. The characters are from our everyday life and the situations also which lead their lives which is why we relate to them easily. Dealing with complex human emotions in today’s life can be called author’s forte but I feel there is a need for a change now. Having read her few novels, I feel an urgency to evolve now. For this book, the set up is interesting and the subject of modern day relationship has been explored well. The climax of the book which changed the entire course of the book was quite quite unexpected and can be called the highlight of the book.

Overall the book is a quick one day read. It delights the Preeti Shenoy fans but does a mediocre job on literary front. And I feel the author needs to reinvent her plot and writing style in her next book.

Characters

Amongst the characters, Nidhi was my favourite and could relate to her as she is a blogger, writer and artist. I feel she was the life of the novel which kept me bounded to the book. I wanted to read more and more from her blog which was almost like reading some post from the author’s blog itself. She was like the breath of fresh air in between when the book looked monotonous.

Other main characters, Aniket and Trisha have been well formulated and look real. The supporting cast has also been chosen with care and teams up well to take the book towards its own destiny.

Rating

I would rate the book as 3.5 out of 5. An interesting book but the author could have done better.

Interpreter of Maladies : A Book Review

Interpreter of Maladies. A book by Jhumpa Lahiri, although I read this book sometime back and kept thinking of posting a review, it didn’t actually happen. Thanks to Write Tribe for giving this prompt about writing reviews and this was my instant choice. 

This book found space in one of my most favourite books and made me an ardent fan of the compelling writing of this amazing writer. Jhumpa Lahiri possesses a magical quality of weaving tales which binds the readers, so artfully that the reader longs for the narrative beyond the ‘what happens next’ approach. This is a collection of short stories with each story such a scintillating prose, which evokes images and feelings tapping into an overarching humanism. Interpreter of Maladies, majorly a diasporic fiction, is articulated between the expected and unexpected which makes an impact through spot-on, detailed observations laced with humour and irony. It is the indelible writing style of the author which struck the cord with me. Meandered along the sharply outlined and varied characters, the simple and glinting prose presents a refreshingly unsentimental approach to the plot. In her writing, environment and food   played key roles in the story line. She derives metaphor from them and the partition which is in the background captures the cardinal emotions and makes them play a significant role. The writer has beautifully divided the characters against the others and also within themselves.  The way Jhumpa Lahiri has sashayed the elaborate reflection of life with a perfect eye for nuances and ear for irony, it makes the readers glued to the book asking for ‘more and more’. Her writing with an eye for detailing and impersonal comparison makes her a dazzling storyteller and delivers distinctive lessons for budding creative writers.

So as this book is an anthology, speaking about each story won’t be possible so I will restrict to speak about my favourite story which also happens to be the opening story of the collection, A temporary matter. This is an engaging story of a couple whose marriage has gone sour after the death of their unborn child. The darkness in their life is symbolized by the power cut in their area, forces them to enter into conversation which is about accepting few unspoken truths about their individual life. The forced darkness in their life gives them the required space to clear out the matters of disputes and other minor matters of life and helps them to bring their dying relationship back to life. The lead characters Shoba and Shukumar have their own share of secrets to share. In an almost duping end, when Shukumar admits that he was there to see their dead child and reveals that it was a baby boy, Shoba faces the truth which had become the root cause of their parting ways.

The story is a masterpiece and a must read for all book lovers with a literature bend. In fact, as you read through the stories one will appear to be bettering the previous one. Pick up this book if you have not on my recommendation.

Related Post

Write Tribe : Day 2

For Onler with Love

A must watch movie for all sports lovers and especially all mommy’s on forced or volunteered break after kids. The movie we are talking about here is the latest B town buzz ‘Mary Kom’. The movie is about the grappling comeback of the boxing legend in the squared world. Although the film captured the pathos of the struggled life of Mary Kom brilliantly, what actually struck the chord with me was the second half of the movie which portrayed the fight of regaining the lost glory. Achieving the most unachievable feat, Mary rose to earn the title of ‘Magnificent Mary’ after reclaiming the world champion title in 2008. And this was when she made a majestic restore after delivering her twins. Knowing what trauma the body of a female goes through after giving birth, the accomplishment was more than remarkable. The character has been well lived by Priyanka Chopra. The grueling workout sessions behind the scenes are substantially reflected in the power pack performance of the actor. She has given her heart and soul in being the essence of the movie which takes on the shape of an enriching inspirational biopic.

As I said for me what made the movie rather story of Mary Kom special is her immense dedication to make the glorious come back that she did. May be I could relate to her frustration on leaving her career for the family and thereafter staying at home to ply her role of a dedicated mother. But she fought against all odds with a perfect balance to conquer the heights once again which if not unachievable, would be difficult without the support of a husband like Onler. It was Onler who made her realize and believe in the dreams once again. It was his unfathomable and unrelenting belief in Mary which made him extend the immense support for her taking care of the young kids. The movie brilliantly portrays the role a husband plays in the success of his wife after motherhood. Successful career women when take decision to take a break to look after the kids, making a comeback is never easy but goes effortlessly well with moving dedication and unconditional support from the family of which husband plays the main role. Today when we speak of gender equality and role reversals, I believe raising kids is equal responsibility of both the parents. After the initial care for which the kids need their mother, if the lady wants to hit the main stream again, husbands should be equally liable to share the load and give that extra push a wife needs at that hour. I simply loved the way Onler did that in the movie. Of course Mary Kom deserves the love and respect for such a remarkable journey but I would give an extra star to love of Onler and for his unquestionable support for Mary. Definitely this makes me say, ‘Behind every successful married woman, is a loving and supportive husband’.

DIAMETRICAL WORDS

As kids, checking horoscopes or finding out the characteristics of a particular Zodiac Sign used to thrill us and bring a zing to the life. Infact those of us still in the habit of flipping through the pages of daily horoscope, it becomes a mood moderator at times. Sometimes I wonder if my extremism and rapid mood swings have got anything to do with my being a Piscean or is it attributable to having a Hypo-Thyroid disorder? Thyroid, because though at times, but it is quite capable of throwing moods out of proportion. Well whatever the reasons may be, at least today, I look at it in a way that reaps the most out of it. Here I share with you an interesting one.

I love to read. But neither have I grown up in a book laden home nor it was a childhood interest. I happened to pick it up a few years back. Once into it, I thought ‘Oh what I missed all my life!’ but then almost immediately quite offended, my inner self replied ‘C’mon, at least you started it now and hello! Life’s not over as yet’. And now I say, “Thank God, I developed this habit”. I became a voracious reader only to slow down after my kids. So recently when I got on a reading spree, I was reading these two absolutely non-connected books which once made me slip into my spiritual shoes and at other time made me put my combat cap on to delve into some thrilling action. Well I am talking about ‘Living with the Himalayan Masters’ by Swami Rama and ‘No Easy Day’ by Mark Owen. Readers who are in a habit of reading more than one book at a time, will surely agree that it is a difficult thing to do and you need to have the knack of shifting from one mindscape to the other, justifying the grasp of the subject. So let me take these one by one to speak about it.

  

‘Living with the Himalayan Masters’ takes you deep through the spiritual journey of the sages and speaks about the eastern school of philosophy. In particular, it is an autobiographical account of Swami Rama in form of anecdotes. The book speaks about the spiritual encounters of the Swami and about his spiritual growth through the Himalayan passes and meeting with various sages and yogis of different practices. Written in a very simple manner, the book dwells on the ability of any person to achieve peace within and without the need of a structured religion. What I liked the most about the book is its approach towards getting over with the negativeness of life like ego, jealousy, mistrust etc. It reveals the life experiences of Swami Rama which transformed him and helped him overcome these pull backs in life. It is the story of an ordinary man who became a Yogi. And quite an interesting read too.

Now the second one which went simultaneously was ‘No Easy Day’ by Mark Owen. In the varied versions of Mission ‘Neptune Spear’, this book’s claim to fame is being the first hand account of the operation which killed the most dreaded militant and founder of the terrorist organization ‘Al-Qaeda’, Osama Bin Laden. Written under the pen name of ‘Mark Owen’ even this is an autobiographical account of a Navy Seal but at least half of the book is about the mission which killed Bin Laden. Being from the forces I could relate to the rigors of the training and exigencies of services. But the most thrilling part was reading through the narrative of the operation itself. Going by the high profile of the mission it kept me on my edges and curious about knowing the next move of the commandos. The book has been written well and takes us on a spine tingling ride of adventure.

So now that you know about the two diametrical books, I am sure you would understand that how at one point of time I was sailing in the sea of spirituality, trying to explore a pathway to peace and tranquility and almost immediately with a pounding heart became an invisible member of the killing team through the greenish haze of NVGs. And even if you do it that well, what would you attribute it to ?