On War

Book Name : On War

Author : Carl von Clausewitz

What is it about : An "atomic" approach to the Subject by breaking down to the most elemental matters, all things related to military affairs, including war definitions and planning, battle preparation, supplies, training, psychology, diplomatic conducts, historical references, geographical aspects, mathematical angles and postures of attack and defense, the ranks and files formation, manoeuvres to out-flank the adversaries, the Do's and Don'ts in popular up-rising, guerrilla warfare pre-requisites and tactics as well as troop spirit and morale management. Examples given by the author would be mainly from the Napoleonic era, so readers should expect cannon balls, cavalry, mass deployment of soldiers, close quarter combat and Generals on horses in the book's description; not our present day drone strikes, laser beams, fighter aircraft and snipers shooting from a mile away.

Some thoughts after having read the book : Apparently all military personnel around the world had to slog through one of two books of this nature, the other one being the Chinese classic -The Art Of War by Sun Tzu (孫子兵法) dating back to 500 B.C. ! Well, our man Carl here waited long enough till the 18th Century, to come up with an European equivalent of sort. One important insight which I gained from reading the book, would be the author's emphasis on the superior difference in nature and outcome of Defense over Attack, which having thought deeper into this matter, I managed to comprehend the many examples in ancient and present wars relating both to Military campaigns and Trade barbs and the most important but often overlooked aspect of such engagements - Waiting and Timing; that would be, let time do its magic work by exhaustion of the Attackers, letting diplomacy and negotiation time to implement, enduring the blows until public opinion changed, making use of the emerging opportunity windows and finally dealing the fatal counter-punch.

Would I recommend this book to you : Dry as dust ! A hard read to start the year, although most of the book was a tough uphill struggle, I still managed to gain enough pleasure even though it meant the occasional re-read of paragraphs through a mounting headache. I would recommend this book for the purists and if analysis of all things military are your thing, then you should perhaps even own your private copy.

Meltdown

Book Name : Meltdown

Author : Ben Elton

What is it about : This work of fiction could very well be based on real life characters in the euphoric and dejected days of the "Noughties" - the years leading up to the financial crisis in 2009 triggered off by the US sub-prime mortgage debacle that swept the world and revealed those "not wearing swimming pants when the tides went out" as famously coined by Buffett. A bunch of friends who were Sussex University mates sharing a house in the student days who then went their own separate ways to become a Member of Parliament (Labour), CEO of a High Street bank, a Stock Trader and an Architect, kept in touch throughout those years and shared laughters and tears as they enjoyed the high-flying life and subsequently fought the crisis head-on, succumbed to debt and despair and rose from the ashes to drink to another day.

Some thoughts after having read the book : The author cast a keen eye on those years of free flowing champagne, mega City bonuses, over-the-top 5 bedrooms town houses (with an in-house lift to the underground car park with enough space for three 4x4s) followed by utter financial ruin through betting the savings on Ponzi schemes which promised astronomical returns of capital and re- and re-mortgaging which ended up with negative equity. The characters involved rediscovered what was important to life - a sound marriage, a sympathetic father who never said "I told you so" and the breakdown of prejudice social barriers; these Sussex mates would also experience the cold hard truth of "Every Man For Himself" when the faeces hit the fan, the blood-hounding of the media and in the case of our disgraced banker, Rupert, the past caught up with him in the form of a university fresher whom he unceremoniously pushed out of the shared house and now had a score to settle.

Would I recommend this book to you : I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Dialogues and set-pieces which real people would have lived out and the whole book was full of memorable wit and the author clearly demonstrated that he understood the signs and mood of those heady days and years. The flipping backwards and forwards of the events pre- and post- crisis gave a colorful contrast to the life style before the crash and the anxiety one would face after the crash - yes, Jimmy on paper still owned "a street", David's over the top half-finished architectural masterpiece remained an eye-sore on the London skyline and yet still no punters for Lizzie's O-So-Lovely butter-knife silver holder (500 Pounds a pair thank you). So what if the latest craze was Tulips, Dot-Coms or beautifully designed and packaged toxic Securities; somehow, human weaknesses would raise its ugly head and return one day to another "this time it's different" boom and bust cycle. A highly recommended book.

The Utopia Experiment

Book Name : The Utopia Experiment

Author : Dylan Evans

What is it about : The real life story of our forty-something Dylan, a graduate who specialised in robotics, the proud owner of a cottage in the Cotswalds and seemingly enjoying life with Socrates the pet cat. During a trip to Central America, deep anxiety surfaced about how he might be contributing to the end of human race as "machines" would take over and apocalypse followed. Upon returning to England, he sold the cottage to fund for his Utopia Experiment in remote northern Scotland to test what life would be like if all civilisation had been wiped out - no instant noodles, oven-ready pizza and definitely no toilet paper. Dylan would become gaunt and depressed out of guilt, sense of failure and poor diet and ended up in a psychiatric ward to recall better days.

Some thoughts after having read the book : I enjoyed the candid style, with no dramatic scenes, just the way he felt about the world and how he would want to get away and experiment with an alternative. I was somewhat shocked at how such an intelligent person went about destroying his world so wholeheartedly and seemingly not leaving himself a backdoor to escape or even a pot of money for his post-Utopian life or more sensibly starting with a "mini" version of the Utopia Experiment to test the waters - why not first go about life (in his cottage) without toothpaste, soap and electricity for a month and see how he would cope. But no ! Our man Dylan dived right in to the deep deep end by first setting up a leaky yurt in windswept Scotland, then he witnessed the comings and goings of fellow like-minded thinkers, some weird, some committed, some for a few joyful weeks and others left after taking a look at the mess that was the Utopia encampment. Dylan was definitely taking on too much too quickly, without a clue on the ins' and outs' of vegetable growing, leadership inspiration and relationship management.

Would I recommend this book to you : I would recommend this book to all those going through a mid-life crisis and thus itching to start afresh and create a brand new life - take note, if your ambitions and effort went too far, well beyond your comfort zone, you might just end up like our man, Dylan. An insightful real life story to appreciate how far we, the human race, had gone down the road to get "civilised". Reading Dylan's odyssey was like catching up with an old friend who really had a Story to tell.

One Hundred Years Of Solitude

Book Name : One Hundred Years Of Solitude

Author : Gabriel Garcia Marquez

What is it about : The many myths and legends of the Buendia family, whose humble beginnings and the co-founders of the swamp village of Macondo somewhere in south America, came to prominence through the family members' (mis-)adventures into wars, politics and feuds. Macondo could only be described as semi-developed with scorpions in the bathroom, surrounded by banana groves and only just recently had its first trains arriving; the village however did house a movie theater where teenagers snugged up on their first dates. The first half of the book described the central players who went through the plague of insomnia and temporary loss of memory of the entire village, encountered wizards and gypsies who came to the village with objects yet-unknown to the villagers which included ice, magnet, mercury, flying carpets, telescopes; also the ghostly presence of the wizard Melquiades would ensure the Buendia family's continuous effort in de-ciphering the mysterious ancient parchments. The second half of the book mostly concerned Aureliano the General who fought 32 battles, as Liberals against the Conservatives (Government) and who eventually surrendered to the government for the sake of peace. The next generations of the Buendia members were also introduced : the boisterous Jose Aureliano Segundo and his o-so-uptight wife, Fernanda and his attractive concubine Petra Cotes; Aureliano Segundo's twin brother Jose Arcadio Segundo, a seemingly rather straight laced sort of chap burst on the scene and led the banana workers' strike against the government and ended up as the sole survivor of the massacre. Macondo would eventually go through a period of continuous rain of 4 years, 11 months and 2 days, followed by 10 years of drought before being completely destroyed by a hurricane. Confused yet ? The last 5 pages of the book would unravel the fate of the Buendia family as the secrets of the ancient parchments revealed themselves. So read on ...

Some thoughts after having read the book : I could bet my bottom dollar that the readers would not be able to recall the immense details after reading each ten pages, as this prize-winning laureate sure knew how to spin a tale of incredible imagination. If only I had been warned of the delicious and enjoyable confusion throughout the book's many mini-plots; all loosely bound but yet closely knitted, it would have saved me the initial huge headaches in trying so-very-hard to piece together these mini-plots in logical and chronological sequences. I particularly enjoyed the little stories of the 17 sons our general Aureliano seeded all over the country and who all came back one day to the village of Macondo. The book just kept coming up with delightful and colorful characters such as the ever-so-slowly-aging grandmother Ursula lived to more than 122 years and who solely knew where the 7,214 gold coins were hidden, somewhere within a radius of 388 feet from her bedroom, Aureliano the respected General, Crespi the handsome and love-sick Italian pianola player, the simple-minded Remedios the Beauty, Fernanda the fallen aristocrat, Pilar Ternera, the madam in the brothel, Jose Aureliano Segundo who guzzled on champagne and life was just a long feast, the traumatised twin Jose Arcadio Buendia who took the only true version of the massacre to his grave; and who could forget the tragic and horrifying fate of the last Buendia baby (fire ants involved here).

Would I recommend this book to you : I would recommend reading this glorious book in ten pages' sittings as the reader would need good quality time to digest and appreciate the magical and mesmerising story-telling and the wild imagination and creativity flowing out of the pen of this great author. No need to bother with any logic, flow or understanding of this great book, just let the book take you through the glorious landscape and the weird but sublime characters ! Upon finishing the book, the readers would have an intimate understanding and be merrily confused about the happenings of this eventful village and its community; putting down the book was akin to leaving the Macondo world and would leave a huge void in the readers' coming weeks; a bit like having spent a great sojourn in a remote vacation spot and missing it even before one had left. A Big Book, A Stunning Finish and A Must Read.

The Girl In The Spider's Web

Book Name : The Girl In The Spider's Web

Author : David Lagercrantz

What is it about : Commercial espionage in the field of artificial intelligence through cyber-hacking would take centre stage in this new adventure of our heroine Salander and the now-down-but-not-out crusading journalist Blomkvist. Oh, also an autistic child with photographic memory and genius drawing ability would pull together all the loose-ends and characters in this story and Salander's twin sister, the o-so-cool and beautiful Camilla made a surprise mid-book appearance.

Some thoughts after having read the book : Perhaps because a different author had been contracted to write this installment of the Millennium Series after the original author's death, so the prose, style and pace differed greatly from the previous stories. Then again, the theme and chemistry of Salander the punk cyber-hacker criss-crossing paths with the investigative reporter, Blomkvist felt somewhat tiresome, exhausted and deflated and this story offered not much intrigue and I did not find dramatic exciting climax and moody build-up along the way. Also, one rather annoying aspect in this book was that, after having spent pages describing a certain character about his life, background, pets-hate, job etc. and the readers thus established an understanding and even an affinity to that character, the author would abruptly kill off the guy in a shoot out or something; so the whole book felt disconnected and the pace scuppered with these guys emerging slowly and dying quickly.

Would I recommend this book to you : I would recommend the earlier three novels by the original author; especially the first installment which had much more drama, atmosphere, mystery and depth. Go read that first installment : The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo and see how the "real" Blomkvist really dig into his investigations and Salander the cyber-punk cum martial arts killer could really kick some bad ass.

Partners In Crime

Book Name : Partners In Crime

Author : Agatha Christie

What is it about : A series of mini-plots showcasing this famous crime writer's logical thinking, talent, scene-setting skills, a keen eye and sharp sense of where and how a potential crime could be committed. Taking charge temporarily of the flagging Blunt Detective Agency, the stand-in crime-solving thirty-something married couple, Tommy and Tuppence, helped Agatha Christie sew together some intriguing whodunits which included Hunting down the Russian agent code-named Number 16; Breaking the un-breakable alibi alleged by a pair of twins; Seeing through the double disguises in a fancy dress party; Uncovering a treasured pink pearl hidden in a bar of soap; Straightening out the poltergeist in an ancient old house to find a long lost inheritance; and many more.

Some thoughts after having read the book : Very entertaining to see the creator of the well-known detectives Poirot and Ms Marple, amongst others, exercised her intellect and plot-thickening skills. Written in 1929, when gentlemen had manners and ladies behaved lady-like, the "old-time" English dialogues were delightful and "most civilised". The stories were made more interesting with the vivid supporting cast which included old Albert the butler taking up the role of a front-desk office "boy", keenly announcing the arrival of prospective clients requiring detective work done; the various walk-in big wigs from Scotland Yard, the local Chief Constable and Inspector General, all puzzled and clueless in their respective cases, but still all talked the authoritative talk, emphasising "... all's well and under control ..." and "... of course, I knew it, the villain/rascal/swine was never far from view ... splendidly done old chap ...".

Would I recommend this book to you : Definitely one of those how-to books where one could learn concise writing with witty and dramatic, yet down-to-earth conversations as well as scheming a plot and completing a jolly ending with the smoking gun revealed and the main characters escaped unscathed. Perfect book to while away the Summer lazy days.

The City Of Devi

Book Name : The City Of Devi

Author : Manil Suri

What is it about : In this work of fiction, the city of the goddess Mumba Devi, Mumbai or alternatively, the city named by the Portuguese as "Good Bay", Bombay would be destroyed in four days by an atomic weapon launched by India's fierce neighbour. Amidst the chaos of religious fervour and racial tension, a thirty-something Sarita set out amongst the bombed ruins, fallen buildings and wrecked trains in search of her husband, Karun, armed herself with the only pomegranate she could buy from the market, a symbol of her love as well as the cure and aphrodisiac for Karun's apparent impotent performance on the marital front. Sarita was joined by Jaz, a self-confessed homo-predator where all men with swinging buttocks, regardless of creed and belief would be his potential prey. Jaz, prided himself as the boinker and since his teenage initiation during a wrestling match with his cousin, Jaz had boinked his way around the world; men of all professions and nationalities had all been his boinkees. Karun happened to be one of these boinkees. Unknowingly, Sarita set out with Jaz in company, to search for their common lover.

Some thoughts after having read the book : Extremely good characterisation which left the readers in no doubt of where Sarita, Jaz and Karun stood in their respectively emotional corners. My personal favourite was the campy and colorful Rahim (Auntie), the all-so-gay cousin of Jaz, he was endearing, sophisticated and made a corner-stone impact on the story; the way he teased Jaz by dropping names like Jaz-mine and Jaz-Bond were some of the funniest moments in the book. Having said that, the promising start for the first two-third of the book with delicate and deft descriptions of the bi-sexual love triangle, somewhat degenerated into a farce - when Sarita and Jaz were taken up close to the human-goddess, Devi ma, a deformed eight-year-old with three limbs, to attend the goddess's little fireworks-filled fanfare of a religious celebration; yeh sure man, in amongst the bombed ruins and hungry masses just outside .... ha hum ... not exactly believable.

Would I recommend this book to you : Strictly PG Certificate with explicit and graphical scenes depicting debauchery and decadence. Plus one more warning for the homo-phobic and religion-minded readers, your stomach might just turn at reading a few of the set-pieces; the last third of the book was hard-going with the Bond-Villain theme and would be better off with a tragic-comedy ending. Otherwise, the book exuded wit, humour, street-wisdom and an engaging original story line. I would recommend the book on the basis for its odd and unique story line as well as foreseeing or offering a glimpse of our present "post-truth" information era - filled with half-truth, fake news and "alternative facts". PG Certificate.

The Feng Shui Detective's Casebook

Book Name : The Feng Shui Detective's Casebook

Author : Nury Vittachi

What is it about : Our Feng Shui master C.F.Wong, hailed from Singapore and his crack international squad of two : one nail-polish-yet-to-dry secretary - Winnie Lim and one cocky teenager assistant - Joyce McQuinnie, stormed Asia and solved the mysterious, illogical and mind-boggling cases of : murder by an explosive can of beef, car theft through architectural brilliance, kidnapping of fame-hungry Thai movie stars and tropical fish turned into deadly hobbies. Through his geomancer expertise of Yin-Yang, chi and numerous Chinese ancient methodology and techniques of force fields, wind directions, placements of meaningful objects, the color of the door mat and the positioning of the dining table etc., our man-about-town, C.F. Wong and his team solved the most difficult cases and helped out the local Asian police forces; all these crime-busting were done whilst not forgetting to bargain for a suitable Feng Shui consultancy fee before he casually passed judgement and gave answers on the murder cases.

Some thoughts after having read the book : Extremely witty and unique in that the stories combined Oriental and Western attitudes and viewpoints towards "real-life" incidents. Also, the characterisation of the main actors was clear and definitive : our Feng Shui master who had a "business" to run, was obviously concerned first and foremost with the budget, daily rate and prompt payment and to keep his biggest client Mr Pun happy; Wong's favourite past-time would be the daily review of the company's invoice and payment records which always brought a gratifying smile to the start of his day. Our teenage Joyce was the spoiler and mischief maker who was more concerned with making flirty eye contacts and lunch conversation topics with those muscular gym trainers and suspects or the smug exotic local detectives than in solving the cases for her boss. The final touch of the comical situation would be the occasional appearance of the trio of Miss Lim, who's nominal contribution to the stories would be her finishing off Wong's curry fish balls breakfast.

Would I recommend this book to you : Definitely a book for the beach and holiday when one would not want to be bogged down with heavy philosophies, brain-draining efforts and picky words and cumbersome plots - just a cold beer, the sun and the readiness for an all-out laugh !

The White Tiger

Book Name : The White Tiger

Author : Aravind Adiga

What is it about : Coming across a piece of news over the TV, our bottom-of-the-heap man from the Darkness (poor, under-developed and rural areas) Balram Halwai (The Lowly Sweet Makers caste) found out that the Chinese Premier, Wen Jia Bo would be paying a visit to India and was especially keen to meet a few of the famous Indian self-made entrepreneurs in Bangalore. So, over a period of seven nights, Balram regaled in a long letter to The Chinese Premier, how he too became one of these entrepreneurs; firstly, by being the smart guy in his class, like the legendary White Tiger which only appeared once in a generation; secondly Balram became the Primary Driver for a local rich family in the Light (flourishing corrupted Bourgeoisie and upper castes) by ousting the original driver over a nasty ploy and then, through tenacity, grit, brown-nosing, shamelessness, the murder of his American-educated mean master, and eventually through bribing the local police chief, our man Balram rose to become a respected member of the Bangalore business community and operated his own White Tiger Drivers Services.

Some thoughts after having read the book : Extremely entertaining, dark humour, cynical, downright ugly even, when the low-down's of India were given to the readers in a bare-knuckled and full-frontal assault style. Full of intriguing insights from the India's perspectives - especially the often-mentioned competition and comparison with China "... we may not have sewage, drinking water and Gold medalists, but we do have democracy ..."; "... parliamentary democracy, we will never catch up with China for this single reason ..."; " ... in Beijing they've got a dozen ring roads, here we have one and nothing is planned ...".

Would I recommend this book to you : One hundred percent YES - especially if your career would involve nasty business, shady deals and murder. See how a lowly Indian driver whose job profile included performing foot massage for his masters, fighting with other lowly drivers in the queue to fetch whisky from the liquor shop, being scapegoated for a hit-and-run traffic incident and generally being 24x7 available to his master's every whim to, become a master himself, through murder, paying off road victims, bribing officials and thence, the very quintessential streetwise Indian entrepreneur !

封神演義 巧讀

Book Name : 封神演義 巧讀 (The Creation Of The Chinese Gods)

Author : 許仲琳 明朝

What is it about : A classic work of fiction from an author in the Ming Dynasty (明朝), bringing together all the ancient legends and myths into a story of heroic proportion where the vain and corrupt Shang Emperor (商朝 circa. BC 1,600) was defeated by the uprising of the clan of Chau (周朝 circa. BC 1,100) where good gods battled against evil gods - essentially the history of 武王伐紂. To name just a few of the all-so-familiar characters and relevant figures in the story - 太上老君, 太乙真人, 姜子牙, 申公豹, 哪吒, 雷震子, 妲己, 土行孫, 誅仙陣, 萬仙陣, 哼哈二將, 狐狸精. These Chinese Gods had legendary abilities such as riding clouds to battle fields, submerge and escape underground when the battle heated up and the going got tough, killer beams coming out from their eyes, charging at enemies on monstrous fire-blowing beasts (often with a few heads and multiple limbs), extraordinary weapons such as flags which made your opponents faint when you waved the flags at them, nets and blankets thrown up in the air which would suck the weapons off your enemies' hands, mirrors which showed up the evil spirits (such as centuries-old tree, rock, bull, centipede, python and swine monsters) hiding behind their human forms ; and of course, those magical pills which took a thousand years to produce which would make the dead live again.

Some thoughts after having read the book : Extraordinary fantasies and way-out-there imagination could best describe this well-known Chinese classic. The heroes and villains involved in the story had all been familiar figures in every Chinese's childhood. One could think of the equivalent of X-Men where each "gifted" person would utilise their extraordinary abilities to zap, freeze, blow-away, electrocute, burn and vaporise their nemesis at the drop of a hat or a click of her fingers. On the one hand, this story was told with liberal embellishment and a satirical theme of well known historical incidents; on the other hand, this classic was told less in a fashion of bloody gore and glory but with more family fun in telling the interesting origins of each hero and villain, descriptions of dramatic entrance for the colorful characters into battle-field and the book conveyed many of the Confucian moral lessons in life. 

Would I recommend this book to you : It was pure joy to catch up with these fabled tales one had been so familiar since primary school days. Go ahead, re-live those magical moments when this book got your imagination all fired up. For non-Chinese readers, sorry, a bit of an uphill struggle for you to bridge the cultural divide - try reading and see for yourself. What's more though, one could learn many "Four Worded Idioms (四字詞)" which originated from this popular Chinese classic, examples included : 香消玉殞, 心血來潮, 背暗投明, 垂名竹帛, 凡夫俗子, 隨聲附和, 露面拋頭, 顛三倒四, 思前想後, 汪洋大海, 心血來潮, 陰陽交錯, 左道旁門, 出口傷人, 鏤心刻骨, 趕盡殺絕, 酒池肉林, 眼觀四處, 耳聽八方. Wow !

Imperialism - The Highest Stage Of Capitalism

Book Name : Imperialism - The Highest Stage Of Capitalism

Author : Lenin V.I.

What is it about : In a precise and matter-of-fact manner, Lenin penned this great insightful and clear-eyed work with his analysis on the state-of-play of Capitalism during his time, and he foresaw how logically following on from the initial intention of free trade, Capitalism would lead to the formation of monopolistic cartels, syndicates and Finance-Combined (mega banks with mega influence) and ultimately the inevitable rise of Imperialism where peace would be nowhere to be found in the world as imperialistic "groups of countries" would compete or go to war to satisfy the increasingly parasitic citizens of prosperous coupon-clippers, speculative share-holders and hopelessly needy welfare-seeking voters. Lenin also made a brief remark toward the end of the book, stating "... there is created a bond between imperialism and opportunism ...", of course - Opportunism, sadly now a prevalent political reality in our present day Western societies.

Some thoughts after having read the book : Lenin put together a masterpiece and an o-so-accurate dissection of Capitalism with succinct passages and analysis which came studded with bells and whistles - full of facts, figures and quotes from people-in-the-know (Marxists, Socialists, Capitalists, Imperialists, Reformists, Bourgeoisie alike), during those tumultuous times in the late nineteenth century of great mass awakening and enlightenment. Much of what he presented as well as the phenomena he described still permeated our present-day societies and would still ring true resonance this very day. In the Chapter headed The Division Of The World Among The Great Powers, Lenin quoting a then Imperialist-leaning British advocate " ... If you want to avoid civil war, you must become imperialists ... ", especially rang true to those present day informed readers in tune with current affairs, who viewed daily news with historical perspectives and hindsight. 

Would I recommend this book to you : Surprisingly easy to read and follow - not so much a book on ideology, but more a sober reflection and brutal attack on what he saw that was prevalent in his days and since, on the subject and implementation of Capitalism. A must-read for all political science students as well as anyone wishing to gain a clear insight in what actually had been going on this century. A most informative read !

Every Day Is Mother's Day

Book Name : Every Day Is Mother's Day

Author : Hilary Mantel

What is it about : The two main threads of the story : Mother and daughter Evelyn and Murial grind out their claustrophobic lives in a suburban two-up-two-down where mysterious events took place - Murial became pregnant inexplicably, the kitchen and the spare room often being occupied by "Them" and became a no-go zone and Clifford Avon, the long-deceased father of Murial had secret scandalous deeds in the garden shed. Second interleaved thread of the story : Our concerned social worker / case officer, Isabel, had more than her fair share of frustration when dealing with the mother and daughter, and was at one point being forcibly locked up on the attic by the increasingly paranoid mother, Evelyn; Isabel's other pre-occupation was her dead-end adulterous affair with Colin, father of three, who at the very least helped her recover the lost case file from the now-famous Christmas party.

Some thoughts after having read the book : Sub-plots perfectly interwoven with mind-boggling contrast - on the one hand, a weird family of mother and daughter driving the Social Service workers mad with fear and on the other hand, our suburban History teacher Colin having a mid-life crisis and hoping to escape by having an affair with one of these social workers, Isabel, whilst his poor, rather big-feet unattractive wife was pregnant with their latest. Just as an example of the amusing yet spooky little episode in the story : Evelyn (the weird mother) went shopping for meat in her local butcher's and met up with her neighbour who knew about Evelyn's "side-profession" of being a Spiritualist/Medium-To-The-Other-World and proceeded to tell Evelyn that her Uncle Reggie passed away a few weeks back and the family could not locate his insurance policies and could Evelyn be so kind as to drop by the house and call up Uncle Reggie and ask him where he had hidden the policies ! 

Would I recommend this book to you : Tightly written with excellent scene-setting and insightful depictions of the suburban life. At times, the book appeared to be a mystery with inexplicable events, and at other times, chronicles of the hopelessness and aimless lives of our present society. The 30 pages or so set-piece of a drunken, boisterous and insult-hurling Christmas party, ending vaguely with a nude treasure hunt around the house (!), was for me the best-ever running commentary of how a gathering of inebriated adults slowly degenerated into a farce with the inevitable morning-after. Highly recommended !

The Glass Cell

Book Name : The Glass Cell

Author : Patricia Highsmith 

What is it about : Our hard-done-by Carter had the bad-luck of poor company and was wrongfully caught up in a scam where he was made the scapegoat because he carelessly signed off a few of the invoices. He then spent six years in jail, tortured by the prison guards, resulting in deformed thumbs on both hands; during his term, he mixed with friends and foes from all walks of life and even once got away with murdering an inmate. Carter's life turned for the worse when he returned home to find his wife involved in an ill-fated affair with his best friend.

Some thoughts after having read the book : The story was told in no fanciful, dramatic and gory fashion but rather read like a prisoner's journal - you know in prison, I was tortured, I made friends, I helped out, I ate, I exercised, I was visited by my wife, I watched movies, I behaved, I rioted, I was beaten up and all that sort of things. But the most niggling and incredulous aspect of the whole story was that Carter had the immense patience and clear head about his wife openly admitting she was still seeing and sleeping with Sullivan, Carter's best friend AFTER Carter was out. Carter was like saying - right, let me just sit down and think about all this and I would go later over to Sullivan's house and talk him out of bonking you dear; and meanwhile, would you mind watching over the stove in case the souffle got toasted ? Honestly, which husband anyone knew of would behave that way ?

Would I recommend this book to you : For the first half of the book, I could not feel the menace, the guilt or innocence, the dreariness of prison life; the second half picked up a bit with Carter feeling betrayed and plotted his way to action. Good to know about prison life if that's what you're after, but surprisingly quite a boring book. Best to take out one of her Mr. Ripley books to get the thrill.

Monsignor Quixote

Book Name : Monsignor Quixote

Author : Graham Greene 

What is it about : One would think a tale about two middle-age men travelling in Spain cramped in a temperamental old car did not have the dynamics to develope into an interesting story  - but if the characters turned out to be a communist and the other a priest, both riddled with doubts about their respective faith and belief; and the story was penned by the strokes of a genius writer, think again ! Monsignor Quixote received a promotion unexpectedly after having given shelters and a meal of horse meat steak to a religious big-wig and thus began his motor journey across Spain, using his faithful old car, "Rocinante" with a mayor of communist-leaning ideals. Along the way, the two would share bottles of wine, making themselves suspicious to local policemen, giving a lift to a robber and would at the same time, exchange their view points over religion and politics.

Some thoughts after having read the book : The author's wit and intelligence came to mind immediately when I came to write this little amateur review. Running parallels between Communism and Religion could easily backfire if the subjects were to be treated without care and resulting in disappointment and dismay from both camps. But GG did the job of delivering the contradictions and similarities between the two camps admirably and with sure-foot confidence; with tons of laughter and memorable set-pieces along their motor journey across Spain. To name a few of the hilarious scenes, a confession of a dishonest funeral undertaker, took place in the male lavatory ; the Monsignor and the mayor trying to out-wit the ensuing local policemen ; the two men went into a cinema watching a soft-pornography film with vastly different attitudes and expectations - the mayor hoping for a more overt version whereas the priest found it hard to figure out how such a film can be named "A Maiden's Prayer". Enlightening, thoughtful and amusing but not the laugh-out-loud kind of book.

Would I recommend this book to you : Read a Master at work, effortless and plenty of wit ! Greene also threw in his two-cents sideways, on the topics of Communism and Religion, making excellent arguments as well as mockery of both camps. The mayhem at the festival in the last 40 pages would stay with me for a long while - hilarious yet unexpectedly shocking.

The Silent Patient

Book Name : The Silent Patient

Author : Alex Michaelides 

What is it about : Alicia shot her husband Gabriel five times in the face and refused to utter a word ever since. She was charged murder by reason of insanity / diminished responsibility and was sent to a psychiatric ward, The Grove, to be "further analysed" and "mentally assisted". Out of reasons only he knew better, psychotherapist, Theo,  himself a victim of parental abuse and a failing relationship, came in to The Grove, to attempt rescuing Alicia from this damaging downward spiral, only to find himself being drawn into a dark past which he had no escape.

Some thoughts after having read the book : To become the present day best sellers, one would need to write the story in easily-digestible chunks of 5 pages to no more than 10 pages per chapter - just as not to be over-taxing our present day attention-lacking general reading public; so they could have an easy read with the occasional check for their incoming SMS or get themselves a refill of wine and so that the book would not hurt their brains too much with over-length development which they failed to cope and would eventually give up - instead with the book divided into simple chew-able bits and in reaching the end of the book, they would reflect : "oh, that was a pleasant, wonderful straight-forward read, I would give it high marks.". The style and structure of this bestseller deployed exactly such technique; so in my case, my train of thoughts and concentration were constantly disrupted by the shortness of story development and I felt rather annoyed at the lack of substance to feed my curiosity and hunger for a solid read. And yes, of course I could have read more pages in one go, but in that case, the book would be finished quickly without much to mull over.

Would I recommend this book to you : The book would receive a good "Pass" grade from me, although the story-telling had an artificial feel to it and did not flow easily since the book was divided into too many short sections, as I had mentioned above. The rather shocking ending would make up much of the frustration but it still lacked the "oomph" to mesmersie the readers. Perfect book for that lazy holiday by the pool - a bit of barbecue, a sip of beer, a quick cool-off in the pool and a bit of reading to catch up on the story. Relaxing !

The Family Upstairs

Book Name : The Family Upstairs

Author : Lisa Jewell 

What is it about : At 25, Libby received a lawyer's letter, informing her of a family fortune, in the form of a 12 bedroom-mansion in fashionable Chelsea, London - valued at something like 6 million Pounds. Libby then decided it would be fun to team up with the investigative journalist who reported on that case of "cult mass suicide" and even the discovery of a wrapped up "mummy", in that very same mansion, all those year ago; Libby reunited with her remotely-related half family members later on and had a good old chin-wag about old times.

Some thoughts after having read the book : The technique used in this book would be the predictable 10-Pager set-pieces : the scene of Libby talking to her solicitors, 10 pages; the scene where Lucy plucked up the courage to borrow money from her wife-beating ex-husband, 10 pages; Lucy killed her ex-husband, 10 pages; the scene where Henry regaled his nightmare discovery that the hippies would be staying for years, 10 pages; the scene where Libby confided with Dido, her workmate, about the weird findings in old newspaper cuttings, 10 pages; Phin and Henry took an Acid trip, 10 pages and so on ... Promising to begin, with a seemingly sinister cult suicide-pact sensational start which went all the way downhill, ending with a jolly family re-union with those turning up splitting the spoils of a few cool million Pounds each, ha hum ...

Would I recommend this book to you : The book read like a collection of serialised pieces from glossy magazines, where one could easily have picked up the story development at any page. A book for the beach, as a companion to the post-lunch no-brains-required afternoon snooze. Or just read the last 20 pages, where like those annoyingly confusing whodunit movies, the detective would summarise in almost a monologue for all present (including the readers and audience) the in's and out's and whats-not's.

Lolita

Book Name : Lolita

Author : Vladimir Nabokov 

What is it about : An open written confession of a perverted child molester in every meaning of the word - forbidden passion, admission of guilt, a plea for clemency, frank disclosure of dark desires, self-justification yet insistent of any wrong-doing. The tale of Humbert's lust and desires exploded over a twelve year-old tomboy / maiden / nymphet - Lolita, during his sojourn in an American provincial town. This stay was cut short following the road death of Humbert's all-so-righteous and rather un-attractive religious wife (Lo's mother), "father and daughter" then embarked on an American motor trip (twice !), staying in Nowhere-ville, Insomnia Lodges and One-horse-towns; making these guesthouses and country houses their love nests. Alas, after two years of mindless travelling, Lo left without a word, leaving nothing but grief and anger to the vengeful forlorn Humbert. In hot pursuit, could Humbert catch up with Lo and slay the fiend who helped her escape ? The final execution style gun-shots and scuffle was a piece of masterful writing ! Read on.

Some thoughts after having read the book : Normally, in the local Library when I successfully plucked up my courage and picked out a "Classics" as supposed to go for a commercial joviality of an easy read, a range of emotions and reading expectations would pass through my thoughts, heart and body - in no particular order - awe, challenge, dread, hard slog ahead, elation, reward, satisfaction and eventual triumph. Literally - no pain no gain as were the cases of my perseverance over Tolstoy, Greene, Golding, Pushkin, Chekov, Kafka etc. And it was with such expectancy in mind as Lolita, with its heavy hard cover, tiny prints and rather numerous pages, landed in my check-out basket. Yes, a good few weeks of laborious grind and concentration awaited. But alas, Lolita turned out to be that rare hybrid, an up-roaring entertainment as well as a heavy weighted Classic !

Would I recommend this book to you : A book for you if you had always wanted to know the twisted morality and warped mindset of a person scarred by childhood losses and his psychological dissection of un-controllable lust and perverse thoughts and actions; read this book for its beautiful and witty prose ("... my mouth to the dentist was a splendid cave of priceless treasures ..."). But if offensive depiction of bare encounters, sexual exploitation and gross depravity against minors disgusted you, stay away !  Or better still, why not watch the film - I watched the 1997 Jeremy Irons version, the screen adaption was excellent !

Book Name : Agent Running In The Field

Author : John Le Carre 

What is it about : Our veteran secret service agent, Nat, approaching middle-age and sensing the passing of time, was posted back to London after his many foreign adventures. Nat was put in charge of the Haven, a derelict old house in Camden Town packed with a rag-tag of would-be spooks who would require his expert guidance of navigating the London Centre bureaucratic traps and jumping over budgetary hurdles as well as honing them the black art of spying and other operational trade craft. In came Ed Shannon, a dashing and gangly twenty-something who would turn Nat's life upside-down, but not before beating him in the game of badminton and over a few post-match beers, talking the serious talks over Brexit and the current "We Come First" US administration. Ed's a Europhile and his passion and actions would eventually lead him and Nat into a quagmire of national dimensions.

Some thoughts after having read the book : All Le Carre's treasured hallmarks were on display - the trays of whisky (and soda fountains) over clandestine secret meetings with all parties having sober(!) dialogues after their frequent, respective "long pull from the glasses"; the brilliant operational setup of smoking out the traitor from within; the long dark pilgrimage to find old partners-in-crime from the distant past; and the all-so-relevant perspectives of the post-Brexit toxic atmosphere of the western world. Alas, this was no vintage Le Carre - too jovial, jolly and commercial, read more like a Jeffery Archer paperback; there was actually no PLOT, just a mega-co-incidence too implausible to contemplate and basically a lot of hoo-ha for nothing at the end. Sorry if I had to spoil it for you here, but here's a glimpse : Ed REALLY ONLY wanted a game of badminton when he sought out Nat; Ed REALLY had NO IDEA they were from sister organisations; Ed REALLY had NO CLUE he married a secret agent who was Nat's protege. I mean, honestly, man !

Would I recommend this book to you : There were flashes of brilliance from one of my favourite authors, but this book fell way way short of his darkest, poignant best. The part where the "service" set up surveillance eavesdropping on Ed's fall in grace was the best part of the book, breathtaking ! Else, I would take out an earlier Le Carre book to find out how great an author he really could be. And by the way, for those not initiated - Nat was no George Smiley - keep that in mind, then may be you could read the book with less expectations.

Coronado

Book Name : Coronado

Author : Dennis Lehane

What is it about : Murder, suspense and mystery aplenty in these short stories, all set in American small towns where seemingly town folks took matters into their own hands. The jewel in the crown amongst these stories - the hunt for a missing diamond by a conman father and his just-got-out-of-jail son; ICU detailed a man on the run from suspected government agents and ended up a regular in a hospital complex, visiting cafeteria, greeting patients and nurses (think Tom Hanks in the film : The Terminal); the improbable tale of a town employing dog shooters in a bid to rid itself of strays in order to build a friendly theme park, ending the story with the murder of a promiscuous woman. By the way, Coronado was a fictional small town often mentioned by the characters in the Diamond chase mentioned earlier.

Some thoughts after having read the book : The author tried experimenting with styles and plots and I would applaud such efforts as the stories came off resonating with menace from the many colorful, if frightening characters and the themes of small town "hapnings" provided an extra layer of intrigue where law and order seemed light years away and the events inevitably spiraling out of control. Worth mentioning - the subtle writers' art of "highlighting facts by glaring omission" was skillfully deployed in these stories; or was it - things had better be kept unsaid.

Would I recommend this book to you : I made an exception for this author and took this book out from the local library, as I had not been living in such places and so it was difficult for me to relate and feel the authenticity and resonance of these locales and scenes of crime and passions. But this author depicted the scenes with enough flare and subtlety for me to have a good glimpse into the inner workings of the big lives and events in small town America. Go read !

The Trial

 Book Name : The Trial

Author : Franz Kafka

What is it about : Waiting for his tea and breakfast one casual morning, Josef K. was visited by a few officials telling him of an offence which Josef K. neither committed nor could have the faintest idea about and he was summoned to face "the court". Thus set forward a drama played out in various settings - his bank, the advocate's office and a cathedral where he was briefed to some extent the hypocrisy which surrounded the judicial system. Our man Josef K. was made speechless and confused right off the bat from the start of the book and still confused when he met his dismal end.

Some thoughts after having read the book : The author cramped so much conversation and so little action in so few scenes, it's just amazing how great author could still convey the fear, despair and brutality of a supposedly innocent man faced against a corrupted, bureaucratic and illogical legal powerhouse. The ending was abrupt and heart-breaking when Josef K. failed to inch forward, backwards or sideways amonst the people of "the system". Well worth a mention was the role played by the "advocates" who were supposedly there to assist victims such as Josef K. but in actual fact, these advocates were part of the machinery.

Would I recommend this book to you : Containing just a few scenes in the book, perhaps not more than ten such settings and the author managed to convey, portray and dissect the drama, psychology and disbelief experienced by Josef K, our confused and head-scratching victim. Ideal material for Drama classes with in-depth dialogues - for those not into Drama, this book could well be a bore.

The Universe In A Nutshell

Book Name : The Universe In A Nutshell

Author : Stephen Hawking

What is it about : Our treasured and much-loved renowned physicist tried his best to put across in plain terms the magical universe as he knew it - String theory, P-Branes, Super-symmetry, Black Holes, General Relativity and such esoteric yet familiar topics. The illustrations were colorful, glossy and visually rewarding.

Some thoughts after having read the book : As the author put it - this book had never meant to be "The Son Of A History Of Time" and the book actually contained more advanced subjects and to my very limited knowledge, did not help to clear the technical mist surrounding the topics. Having read the book, my knowledge of Strings, Symmetries and such remained at the same preliminary levels as before I read the book. Ha Hum. Yes, I had guessed already from the outset that I had better refresh and revisit my A-Level Physics books before taking this book out as there was obviously a gap which I had needed to bridge. However, this frustration did not diminish my enthusiasm and I felt that the author took me on a strange and fascinating journey, pointing out along the way the mysterious objects and reasons behind the moving scenes and that was both impressive and enjoyable.

Would I recommend this book to you : Really a book for those in the know - perhaps first year Physics Undergraduates or materials suited for University lecturers putting together a syllabus. General layman trying to get a picture of our Universe should stay away although you might still feel entertained as your mind boggled at the very odd nature "in this version of the Universe" which we live in.

The Plague

Book Name : The Plague

Author : Albert Camus

What is it about : On an ordinary day in the French Algerian seaside town of Oran, rats came out first in their tens, then in their hundreds to curl up and died. Soon the Oran population came to the same fate and the town came under quarantine. Emotions flared up and unrest spread around town; amongst the residents, one Doctor Rieux stayed stoic, composed and began treating the infected patients whilst bearing his own worries on his family. Not only was Rieux an active participant in the crisis, he witnessed as a bystander and chronicled the events unfolding, the ugliness and high morals of individuals and the eventual triumph as the town emerged scarred, cleansed and resurrected.

Some thoughts after having read the book : The whole emotional cycle of first the population becoming puzzled, then incredulous, then despair, then courageous until solidarity and bonds formed amongst the fighters and helpers would be no news of our world of 2020 as Covid spread and conquered and hopefully finally stopped and cured. The government response, the upheaval experienced by the population of Oran, the crisis of food and supplies shortages, the torment of loved ones separated and lost all rang a bell and in fact, the reactions of our species to contagion changed little - fictitious or real life, ancient or present.

Would I recommend this book to you : A classic read from this great author. He captured the essence of a world tuned up-side-down by the overwhelming but invisible force of Nature and at the same time provided a detailed depiction of the colorful characters involved - government officials, hospital staff, sentries, religious leaders, families and even human traffickers ! I found the book even more relevant and readable in a year when we faced the pandemic of our lifetime. Not to be missed !

The Spy Who Came In From The Cold

Book Name : The Spy Who Came In From The Cold
Author : John Le Carre

What is it about : Our protagonist, Alec Leamas, once the head of operations inside walled Berlin at the height of the Cold War, now down and out, drunk and poor, ever since his team was entirely annihilated by Mundt, the ruthless strong man of the East German Intelligence unit. Alec was subsequently recruited by the East Germans in order to gain more intimate knowledge of the British operations; as layers upon layers of planted information peeled back to reveal a high-level mole buried deep inside the East German hierarchy and thus gave rise to a thrilling showdown between the spy masters. Would Alec get out of the walled city alive ? Who's actually the mole ? The readers would not know the true victim of this triple-cross plot till the very end.

Some thoughts after having read the book : The book which made the author one of the top notch writer in this field of brutal and subtle espionage tales. Of course, Le Carre went on to achieve even greater fame through his trilogy of Tinker, Tailor Soldier, Spy. In my opinion, no other authors in this genre could bring the sheer depth and intensity, the understanding of human frailty, the subtlety of manipulation, duplicity and deceit in the world of spy-craft into words that filled a book. This was the second time I had read this book, last time being in year 2,000 ! and I was amazed in how I had almost remembered the plot and yet found more hidden meaning and implications this second time around. I was pleasantly surprised to find that this re-finding of facts being echoed in the Forward written by another author.

Would I recommend this book to you : Actually the book would be a great example lesson of "How To Write" as each section was headed by the title, often just one word or a few words and thus the structure of the whole book was sketched out and Voilà ! all one needed was the talent to fill in the contents. I would definitely recommend this book for those looking for more than just a plain vanilla spy thriller - the human psychology, depth, atmosphere and audacity of the plot in this book would stir you !

The God Delusion

Book Name : The God Delusion
Author : Richard Dawkins

What is it about : Our famous evolution biologist and my favourite science writer, ventured into a side (but big) issue of evolution - Religion. The book highlighted the absurdity and blood-thirstiness of the ancient scriptures, reported on interesting experiments on mass prayers, presented eye-opening evidence on vampire bats behaviour (rewarding those fellow bats who kept a promise and punishing those who were selfish !) and hence conjecturing of how the human species might benefit from being "good" without the need for, or help from, a religious belief or establishment.

Some thoughts after having read the book : The Subject aside, the author 's mastery in presenting a case gave the readers the impression of intrigue, fascination and all-rounded-ness with no stones un-turned. Any aspiring writers out there should take note of the way a complex matter was tackled, dissected and clearly articulated. The book's presentation of the many incredulous examples of religion-related incidents in the USA only re-confirmed what I had read elsewhere - especially the extreme hatred exhibited by the would-be god-fearing church goers in that country.

Would I recommend this book to you : Ever wondered : the existence of a supreme being out there looking over your every move ? Do your prayers work ? By doing good deeds, are you enhancing your evolutionary advantages ? Want to investigate the inconsistencies exhibited in the ancient scriptures ? Want to exercise your intellect and work out a probability number for the existence of God ? Then this book might well be your best companion for the next two weeks as the author put forward interesting, entertaining and plausible explanations for all these questions. Put away your prejudice and take this book out from the local library - you would not be disappointed.

The Expat

Book Name : The Expat
Author : Chris Pavone

What is it about : A female CIA agent went from an international jet setting operative (taking out drug lords and the bad guys, two bullets in the stomach and one in the head) to a boring desk job (raising two kids, doing the laundry and cooking dinner) to become The Expat as her husband found a job in Luxembourg. Our stay-at-home-apple-pie lady soon found out her husband turned out to be a computer hacker, working closely with the FBI to siphon off millions of Euros. Her world came close to a collapse when the Interpol, FBI, CIA gave chase when her family made a quick escape into the streets of Paris.

Some thoughts after having read the book : The book spent loads of sleep-inducing coverage on house keeping chores, bland description of expat lives and communities and alas, the detailed mapping out of Parisian streets and different vacation hot spots in Europe. Out lady CIA's clumsy attempts in trying to figure out her husband's misdemeanors and the story lines were at best "let's past a few minutes on this book for diversions from other more boring activities of my day" to, at worst made me feel like throwing the book into the swimming pool.

Would I recommend this book to you : I should have bought the other book at the airport.