Perpetually Perplexed

When you are in a difficult situation, you need a friend. That's what every one says. And I have one. The books. They talk to me endlessly. In a language I am fond of. They converse in my wavelength. They do not  try to condemn and insult me. On the whole, they make me feel that there is some one who still understands me. So this book by Saul Bellow is about a strange closeness between the narrator and his uncle Benn. Kenneth has a womanizing father. Having put up with this nature for many years Kenneth's mother leaves him and goes to Africa as a volunteer. Rather than a Casanova father, Kenneth feels his unworldly scientist uncle understands him. So he leaves Paris and moves to America to stay close to his maternal uncle. His Uncle is caught in a Maya in the form of a woman. Kenneth wants to save his uncle but is unable. I have realized that I should restrict my reading to few authors whom I really like. And Saul Bellow is certainly one of them. I am still ...

For once I have something to blog about. Not just whining and blaming others. Or posting some silly quotes which only I found hilarious, and reposting it. Ok. The day I saw about Arundhati Roy's book "the ministry of utmost happiness" I read more about her and read part of her article in Caravan. I realized we share some common enemies. Isn't that how friendships are formed - based on whom you hate or dislike? OK, why don't I buy her book. Amazon order was prepared. Luckily they had some offer on hardcover book. So that went into shopping cart. Because I did not want to pay 50 rupee delivary charges, I browsed through suggestion Amazon provided and selected "Kafka on the shore" by Murukami - a Japanese writer. Now both books have arrived and I haven't yet removed the plastic cover of Roy's book. Instead I am reading Kafka... And interestingly enough, I am proceeding quite well. Though two other book which I was trying to read few pages a...

Did you know that Harper Lee's second book will be released very soon. The book "Go set a watchman" was Lee's first attempt in writing novels. But the publishers asked her to improve on it and she wrote the highly successful "To kill a mocking bird". She has not published any book since then. Lee is now 89 and lives in assisted living facility in Alabama. Lee had thought that this book was lost. She found it recently. Many of the characters from "To kill a mocking bird" are also present in this book.  The book is available in amazon.

  Continued to read A fine balance by Rohinson Mistry. Narration of Emergency period is continuing. As is mentioned in the story, I vaguely remember the days when there was slum demolitions to beautify the cities.   One more thing I remember about the 20 point programme is that, there was this slogan. Bete ka char, ma ka bees , dono milke char so bees. I think later the 4 point program of Sanjay Gandhi was changed to 5 point program.     After the elections when Indira Gandhi lost the elections, in our town  which was bordering Maharashtra, the locals had organized the procession, wailing "amchi ayi geli (our mother is gone)"     One good thing which came out of Emergency period was the Janta party. It is a different matter that now it is split into infinite number of divisions. And there was a true leader Jayaprakash Narayan. I do not remember much about him except that he was supposed to be true Gandhian type of leader. Doesn't our count...

   I am losing the habit of reading. Only once a week for about half an hour i am reading. Very very bad. Let me read everyday.    Started reading Passage to India. Well quite an absorbing book. Takes us back to that era. And also lets us see from their (English) viewpoint.    Let me atleast complete this book before weekend.