Category: Books

  • No God in Sight

    Altaf Tyrewala

    Somewhere in between a relay race and ‘six degrees of separation’ lies the narrative style of this excellent novel. And just like the city it showcases, it sets a scorching pace. But its not just a microcosm of the city, its also a take on social issues – from religion to class differences to a clash of the old and new. And somewhere in between is a subtext of man’s search for where he came from and where he is going, and the series of connected lives and the sheer weariness that prevents them from being able to think beyond their immediate existence, somehow points towards the title – ‘no god in sight’.

    From the millions that make up the phenomenon that’s Bombay, and gives it a ‘spirit’, the author manages to create a few characters that give us a glimpse of the individual lives. He begins with a seemingly nonchalant treatment of what might be considered a moral issue – abortion, and thus captures the pulse of a city and the thought process and credo of a new generation. But amazingly, there is a universal nature to it too, and more often than not, the author manages to walk this line with balance, despite the majority of characters being Muslim. Featuring the famous local trains, the cop who expounds the logic of his sense of justice, the men who share a name with a terrorist, the book is quintessentially Mumbai, and yet, from another perspective, they’re just human stories. If we juxtapose the allusions to ‘my mumbai’ and ‘your mumbai’ in the corporate executive’s story and the ‘to be comfortable with discomfort, one must banish all contact with ease’ in the butcher’s story, we see two sets of people figuring out their own ways to cope with what the city and life throws at them. Sometimes, they can’t, and all they want to do is escape, like Amin Bhai.

    In just about 170 pages, Altaf Tyrewala creates not just the characters who make Mumbai, but even manages to represent, even if its just through a few examples, how they got there. Can’t even complain about the lack of character development because the snapshots almostd efine the characters. Another great rendition of Mumbai, and a must read!

  • The Servants of Twilight

    Dean Koontz

    Refreshing to see a ‘Twilight’ book without teen vampires. But though its not a damsel, a woman in distress is one of the main characters, this time with a child, who is the cause of all the trouble. The Twilight cult, led by Mother Grace, believes that single mother Christine Scavello’s son Joey is the Anti Christ.

    A relatively harmless parking lot incident turns into a full blown chase, with Christine trying to protect her son from the cult. She is helped by Charlie Harrison, a detective, who quite predictably falls in love with Christine. Most of the book is an elaborate and vividly described chase sequence, which I found quite boring after a while.

    I’m quite a fan of the author’s later works, when he explores new concepts and then weaves in a thriller narrative. But this was quite a Terminator meets religion style mash-up, which failed to engage me after a point. I kept waiting for the Koontz touch, which, though promised to appear towards the end, turned out to be just a mirage.

    Quite an avoidable book, especially since there are many other works from the same author like False Memory or From the Corner of his Eye, to name a few.

  • The Rozabal Line

    Ashwin Sanghi

    I have quite a bit of interest in Hindu mythology, so I had a bias going in. It would be fair to say that it also gave me the patience to sit through the back stories that constantly intersperse the narrative.

    The thing I admire most about this book is the painstaking research that the author seems to have done. (all references have been diligently acknowledged) I’ve read books that require research and mix fact and fiction (eg.Michener), but in this case, the research is across cultures and religions in one plane, and across time, in another. When you combine that with the requirement of having a story that should flow in concert, is when you realise the work that has gone in.

    The other thing I could identify with was the author’s love of anagrams and wordplay. He has put it to excellent use, when dealing with the names of gods and drawing connections between cultures.

    Though the primary plot of the book revolves around what happened to Jesus after crucifixion, his bloodline and the modern repercussions including religious terrorism, it is also about the parallel themes and recurring phenomena in modern religions. (The part of Jesus-like characters in earlier religions is fascinating)

    Its a superlative read, the only possible drawback being the heaviness of the content, not just in terms of historical trackbacks and comparative religion – conversations, but the twists and turns in the contemporary story itself.

  • First Darling of the Morning: Selected Memories

    Thrity Umrigar

    Its difficult not to like a book that starts off with a reference to ‘The Sound of Music’. After all, for a generation, there are so many memories attached to that movie. It serves as a good snapshot for what the book holds in store, a ‘Wonder Years’ kind of nostalgic trip, one that I could immediately identify with, and one that supplies many lump-in-the-throat moments. The book is billed as ‘Selected Memories of an Indian Childhood’ and has done an excellent job of it.

    We are with the child when she discovers how the world has different rules for adults and children, when she thinks that she would never grow out of Enid Blyton, only to switch loyalties to Mills & Boon years later. We see her move on to Herman Hesse and becoming obsessed with Van Gogh. We are with her as she grows up and realises that the people around her existed long before her, and are part of stories she never knew.

    Though the story is primarily about her growing up, the author manages to cover a lot of other ground and link it very well with her life. The story of a city that was united across classes by cricket, the story of a middle class that is mostly in denial of the poor that surround them, but also makes unwritten rules for transactions with them. The story of the various strings that pull us, some visible, some not so.

    As she looks back on her life after finishing college and realises the paradoxical importance and unimportance of her relationships with the various people and things in her life – music, books, politics, parents, teachers, relatives and friends, and slowly tries to put them in perspective, I saw a story that could in many ways describe most of humankind and the lives we create for ourselves. And that perhaps would explain why I consider this a must-read.

  • Dreams For The Dying

    C K Meena

    The book is an interesting statement on gender and sexuality. Its also quite a compelling murder mystery, and even though it might turn into a ‘what is the connection’ than a whodunit in the second half, it retains its intrigue till the end.

    The author also manages to create a series of well etched out characters, and devotes enough prose for us to figure out their motivations and notions about the events and circumstances in their life. They remain very ‘slice of life’ but when we peer into their lives, they get interesting.

    The story is set in Chennai, Bangalore, Coimbatore and the Indian Railways, and centers around the murder of Uma, the ‘weekend wife’. Right from her purchase of Hrudayam during a journey, a magazine whose USP is forbidden love, and her figuring out that people would hesitate to initiate a conversation or borrow the magazine, her character promises to be interesting.

    A promise that is delivered, as it is with another prime character, ‘Magnum’ Mahesh, the investigating officer. I quite liked the connection made with Parvathyamma, an older character who adds to the intrigue. You might get overwhelmed with the repeated influx of characters, but it’ll pass. 🙂

    Though the book is studded with some excellent wit in the first half, it morphs into a layered seriousness in the second. The detailing is excellent, not just of characters, but of places, and events, and even the working of a person’s mind. The author manages to leap from descriptions of external phenomena to internal ones with amazing ease. It is difficult to say which is the backdrop – the murder mystery or the statement, such is the intertwining. This also means that you have to watch out for the subtext of both in the narration. All that, and the switching between time-frames and character viewpoints makes it a very gripping read.