Endymion Spring - Matthew Skelton

The story of a boy who discovers an ancient book that supposedly has the answer to everything . He has a know it all sister called duck and a researcher mother separated from their father back in America. Oxford is the setting and the story moves between now and the times of Gutenberg and Faust. Two boys seprated by centuries find a secret book that only they can read (with a little blood involved). Both have to ward off evil adults who want the books power for - what else - evil.

Its an ambitious novel, with children as prtagonists but somewhere along the line the author got too adult on them. (The too smart, too complicated situation syndrome) The authors love of fonts, books and libraries is more than apparent. Its a good read although a bit tedious at times.

 4/10

The Longshot - Katie Kitamura

If you love boxing, you will love this book. Full of descriptive bouts, each sentence shows how much the author is in love with the sport. I have absolutely no clue about boxing and can't stand to watch and felt the same way about some of the descriptions. I couldn't bear to read them. Yet I was strangely pulled into this violent world and as the author may have meant to convey, found some redemptive and courageous qualities to the sport.

With my little knowledge of boxing gained mostly from this book, the entire story that weaves around the two protagonists - Cal the boxer who almost got it all and his trainer Riley seems to be almost like a boxing match. Wearing the reader down to the last gut wrenching yet strangely satisfying moments. You could almost taste the air of Tijuana - where the action happens and smell the sweat and blood. It is a slow book. But as I said earlier - strangely satisfying.

6/10

Drink Play Fuck- Andrew Gottleib

A lot of women like Eat, Pray Love (for reasons I don't exactly understand) and I have a strange feeling a lot of men will love this book. Its plot less, moral less and just a string of "good times" interspersed with some funny stories. Nobody discovers anything except that there are Indian women who fuck for the sake of it and then move on, hidden undiscovered, unbookable paradise resorts in Thailand, a workable strategy for winning in Vegas and above all your gym trainer may be the next best thing to god! It's a fun timepass read and maybe the only good thing to come out of the Eat, Pray. Love phenomena.

6/10

Frida's Bed - Slavenka Drakulic

I came to know about Frida Kahlo and her extraordinary life though the Salma Hayek movie. It led me to an approximately two week run of obsession with Frida. I couldn't decide which was more colourful, morbid and captivating - her life or her work. The same conundrum occurs when you read this book. A first person fictional account, Slavenka tries to get into the pain riddles artistic mind of the artist. No new facets of Frida's life is revealed. The pain, the surgeries, the loves and the emotions and experiences leading to most of her famous paintings is meticulously covered. Sometimes a little too meticulously.
Its a life and a book filled with pain, sometimes getting too caught up in its own little whirlpool of describing the agonies.
All in all a good read for Frida fans.

5/10

Quarantine - Rahul Mehta.

Touted as a book written by and about 'gay' relationships, I was a little vary about reading it. Hype about anything other than the writing itself, almost always means bad writing. But I was pleasantly surprised. The tales explore relationships, displacement and move at a dark lazy pace that draws the reader in. There are some patches that are plain boring, but never does the author try the 'gay shock and awe' tactics that most gay writers seem to do nowadays to draw attention. There is a bit of sex but always where necessary. What he excels at, is describing the Indian diaspora, the slow crumbling or building of relationships. In one story, an achingly lonely young man pretends to be interning at Vogue while staying in a family friends house and connecting with the lady of the house even through language barriers. In another a grandmother is gently forced to apply for citizenship, so she is not 'thrown out' of the US. Every character is gently sketched and closely observed.


Now all the author has to do is move out of this close sphere he has constructed for his writing and experiment. Waiting for his next work, hopefully one that goes beyond the sexual orientation of the characters or the author.

7/10.

Red Riding Hood 2011

If you have read/studied the basic of psychology, this movie is no surprise. If you haven't, then too its no big surprise. The moment I heard Twilight director, should have stayed away. But I ended up dragging myself and 7 other poor members of the public to the theatre. Amanda Seyfried is red riding hood that sleepwalks and uses to blue blue eyes every five minutes to glower, glamour and glance seductively at everyone around. Everyone else seems incidental including the two leading men who do anything but lead.They seemed to have endlessly watched Rob Pattison and then reproduced his single expression all through the movie.What Gary Oldman is doing in the movie is a mystery, even to Gary Oldman himself. The only cool thing in the entire movie - that beautiful scarlet cloak and Gary Oldman's silver nails.
All in all - Avoid at all costs!
3/10

Known Turf - Annie Zaidi

I first came to hear the name when she won a poetry competition, later at the local library, the name again caught my eye and since there was nothing else interesting I could pick, I picked up Known Turf.

Thank god for that. I am not a big fan of non fiction and prefer flights of fantasy that good fiction offers, but this book kept me spell bound. I even read the statistics avidly. It brought the news you hear everyday onto a more personal level. The authors dilemma's and soul searching included along with the stories flow without the usual rankle of preachiness and morality that looks down on the reader.

Empathy, frustration and sometimes a small smile for those tiny happy pauses.From Dacoits to Bonded labour and malnutrition. From eve teasing to women panchayats, each page rang true and you could almost smell the blood, sweat, tears and even the fear that went into the words. No highbrow language. Just personal tales framed by the bigger picture.Though most of these have been beaten to death, it did not sound  too stale. It felt more like a dialogue between two people, the author and the reader. (I have no other way of describing it) I closed the book with a strange feeling that I was listening to a close friend for a few hours.
Albeit one who waxes on a little too much about tea.