The non-Brown me

If you have a guess on what this post is about, it is probably way off :)

Not only have I read all of Dan Brown's cheesy adventures but I have even seen both the equally cheesy movie versions in theater. In fact, I read The DaVinci Code for the second time to gear up for its highly anticipated screen version. May be it was the disappointment from the first film or my indifference after watching the second film, I was never counting down days for The Lost Symbol. However, I did find myself interested in the book whenever a friend mentioned reading it and not surprisingly, I grabbed a copy of it when I saw one at the library.

I have been on a bad slump with reading books thanks to all the overflowing things currently on my plate. However I was actually expecting to get over the slump by reading this one "at-a-stretch". I can only report that although I began reading it with enough enthusiasm, it lasted for a whole of... one page! (Eh... a little short of a page to be a bit more accurate.) Even before I finished the page I knew that if I continued, it would only be for the sake of finishing it.

Knowing how I very rarely don't finish books or movies - no matter how crappy they are - I must have been really surprised, especially since reading the Dan Brown kind is one of my guilty pleasures. However, I think I was more surprised about how fast and easily I decided to skip the book. I also realized that it had very little to do with that specific book and more to do with the genre. Considering the other non-technical books around me that I haven't given up on just yet are all either non-fiction or are very different from the Brown masala types, I think it might just be the right time to say -- Au Revoir Dan Brown.

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Freakanomics

The last time I finished a book "at-one-stretch" would be Potter's final adventures (although the first time had to do with finishing it before I chanced upon any spoilers, I read it again "at-one-stretch" months afterwards as well). In fact I had just mentioned last week to a friend that I have too many books "in progress", in parallel, which is very unlike how I used to be. So it does feel nice to note that I am done with "Freakanomics" in a single day. Of course, it did help that the book was small and interesting, but going along with the theme of the book, I should probably ponder a bit more on the "why" of it.

I may not get down to "Superfreakanomics" just yet, definitely not with the pile of books on my table. But I will most likely follow up in few months.  Some interesting notes I remember from the book.
- Incentives & cheating
- Roe vs Wade: Decrease in crime rate
- Hidden agendas of Real Estate Agents
- Spring 1987, IRS require SSN results in 7 million Dependants disappearing!
- Sumo Wrestlers & Chicago school teachers: Incentives to cheat
- Paul Feldman's Bagels
- Information asymmetry
- Using fear to advantage
- Lying to hide bias
- Klu Klux Klan and Real Estate agents
- Job Pay: # ppl willing to do the job, unpleasantness of job, specialization skills, demand for services
- Risks that scare vs. Risks that kill
- How "smart names" trickle down the "success pyramid"
- Being skeptical about conventional wisdom

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India after Gandhi

Finished reading "India after Gandhi" by Ramachandra Guha last month. The book is a pretty good sketch of the Indian political scene from the pre-independence days to early 2000s. The book was quite a fast read which I think is a huge achievement considering the topic and my disinclination to big non-fiction books.

The book pretty much divides the 1940 - 2000 time period into decades and deals with each individually. There is very little repetition of stuff covered in earlier chapters which could be a problem for someone completely new to this area, but for a book this ambitious that is probably the only practical solution; even without the appendices and acknowledgements, the book has about 800 pages of reading material.

I really loved the first three fourths of it and got to learn a lot of stuff that I didn't know before. The last part, however was a letdown. Post 90s is covered by chapters on distinct topics rather than the chronological order followed in the rest of the book. Although the author seems to have done so deliberately, I think a slightly more chronological ordering would have helped. My another problem with this period was that it seemed to just glance over several topics rather than providing a more detailed analysis. It is quite possible that being from this decade, I know more about the issues and hence expect to seem them all tied up neatly with the rest of the political history but when the author mentions in the preface that there is not a lot known about several local Indian leaders (like MGR) who have influenced people in areas as big as several european coutries, I expected the book to cover these lesser known important people in greater detail.

Nevertheless, I was quite impressed with the book and strongly recommend it to anyone with an interest in Indian history, post independence.

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I shrugged

This post is long overdue.

Finally managed to finish "Atlas Shrugged" in March. This was probably the longest I had taken to finish a book; unfinished ones don't count, obviously. The book wasn't boring, actually it was pretty difficult to put down once you started reading, but for some reason it not only took me 6 months to finish but also broke my reading record of two books a month (I could only manage to finish 2 others on the side).

What did I think of the book? It was... hmm... okay, I guess! I don't agree with a lot of the objectivism principles and feel very little of them have relevance today. (I definitely don't think comparing it with the bank bailout situation makes much sense). So reading 1000 odd pages that emphasized those principles as the be all and end all of human existence is a little hard to digest, especially when the author decides to re-emphasize the same point every 10 pages! I lost count of the number of times I must have thought "Ayn Rand, I get it. Now, go on will ya?".

A note for those planning to read the book - this is NOT a novel. It is just Ayn Rand's objectivism theory disguised as a novel. The characters are pretty much "good" or "evil" and stand to drive home the theory with their words and actions. For example, one main character's "speech" (in a radio broadcast) lasts close to 100 pages. I would strongly recommend that you read "Fountain Head" first and then take a big gap (a year or two at least) before returning to "Atlas Shrugged".

PS: How much of a dubious honor is it to be awarded the "Least edible book" in an edible books competition?

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Reading List Woes

Not that it was deliberate but reading books have taken a lower priority of late. Somehow I currently have quite a few books that I have either started or checked-out for reading but am not finding the time to finish.

The last book that I finished , Q&A by Vikas Swarup, was a major disappointment. However, I can imagine how it could be made into a stylish movie. Hopefully "Slumdog Millionaire" with the immense hype surrounding it will not be a let down.

I am currently finished with 1/10th of Atlas Shrugged. I agree (with K) that the gap between the "Fountain Head" and this one seems to be keeping the book interesting. I guess Ayn Rand's way of over-emphasizing things can get annoying beyond a point. I haven't reached that point yet.

I am also halfway through "Dynasties of China" which has been an interesting read so far. Unfortunately it seems to have brought back my old habit of underlining sentences in the book.

Also added "The White Tiger" to my ever-growing list. Will get to the rest of the books soon, I hope. In the meantime, do not recommend me anymore books :)

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Cut-Outs, Caste And Cine Stars

The book by Vaasanthi, takes a look at the "Dravidian" politics in Tamil Nadu starting from the beginning, right from EVR, until the DMK sweep in 2004.

Although the politics in Tamil Nadu, by itself, makes for an interesting discussion, the subject really is a bit complex to bring out in paper. I think the book succeeds in bringing out the "psyche" of the "tamil" people which may be completely baffling for a stranger, considering the fact that the politics in Tamil Nadu is riddled with paradoxes and controversies (sample this: how can you explain millions of people accepting a Karnataka born brahmin woman, or, for that matter a Sri-Lankan born Malayalee as the head of a party whose ideologies stand for "anti-brahminism" and "Tamil-ness"?)

The author tries to keep things simple by maintaining a non-conversational tone throughout the book. She tries to present facts rather than take a stand which works to the favor of the book.

However, I do have a few reservations about the book. I would have preferred a more chronological approach rather than the back-again, forward-again, time traveling that happens a lot which is confusing in several places. Also, even though the book tries hard to remain neutral, a slight pro-Karunanidhi, or rather, an anti-Jayalathitha vibe comes out at the end, thanks mainly to the several personal quotes of Karunanidhi that are reproduced, through which he tries to justify himself.

The author is an ex-editor of the tamil edition of "India today" and that not only adds her a lot of credibility but also seems to have helped her in getting most of inside information that she dishes out. Her several personal encounters, experiences and anecdotes act as the spices in this delicious curry of tamil politics that the author has served, and although the final dish may not have you licking your fingers, it certainly fills the stomach.

I would recommend this book to anyone who has watched and liked "Iruvar". The book is almost a paper version of the movie, with a prequel (about EVR, Annadurai, and the rise of DK) and a sequel (with Karunanidhi and Jayalalitha). In fact, the book even references the movie once while talking about Karunanidhi protesting against "Hindi" on railway tracks !!

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Reading List Updates

Finally managed to finish "The Chamber". It was just about okay. I couldn't really empathize with many of the characters and I guess it made the book seem really long. Either that, or the book really was long.

Funnily enough, the book I read right after that was "The Stranger" by Albert Camus. I really like it when I read with no expectations and the book turns out to be great. However, that happens rarely only since most books I read are recommendations from others or from yours truly :). This one was thanks to D who had this book but hadn't read it. (I would guess that the odds of him reading the book are 1:10 if not lower).

I also managed to finish the "Rising Sun" from my list. That was a pretty good thriller and surprisingly, I managed to finish it in less than a couple of days. (That is a very short time considering the fact that I am overloaded with work!!) Must try and catch the movie sometime. Anyways, might add Crichton's other works to my list soon.

Now I am reading an awesome book on Tamil Nadu Politics, "Cut-outs, Caste and Cine Stars". I am about 70 pages into the book and it is pretty damn good. And I picked this one from random list of LOC Call numbers. Guess I got lucky again!!

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Reading List

I don't usually leave books half-way through, but in the last month, I have been hopping through quite a lot of them (list below). Planning to finish them off one by one.

1. The Chamber - John Grisham
2. Sherlock Holmes : The Complete Novels and Stories Volume II - Arthur Conan Doyle
3. Rising Sun - Michael Crichton
4. Indian Summers - John Wright
5. Atlas Shrugged - Ayn Rand

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To read or not to read

I am in a big dilemma.

It has always been more fun reading the book than watching a movie based on it. Very few movies have been as much fun ("LOTR trilogy" and "The Namesake") .

Now, should I read the book before or after watching the movie?

When you watch a movie after reading its source, knowing the story (and the ending) in advance does take away some fun and excitement. (Although I wouldn't say this is the reason why I didn't like any of the Harry Potter movies. They were simply bad.)

On the other hand, reading the book afterwards limits your imagination (especially if the movie turns out to be good!!). Although I read "The Namesake" before watching the movie, Tabu was my Ashima throughout since I knew by then that she was playing the role. Also sometimes, the movie is so good that you don't feel like reading the book - a reason why I haven't read "Thank You for Smoking" or "The Devil wears Prada".

I should also confess that I prefer watching the movie if the book has a lot of action sequences (e.g.: "The Bourne" series and some Tom Clancy/Grisham novels).

So, may be it all depends on the genre. May be Harry Potter books have too many necessary details for a 3 hour film. May be LOTR works either ways because of a predictable ending and very few plot twists.

Never mind the bigger picture. I now have a copy of "The Blue Umbrella" and am also eagerly waiting to watch the movie. Should I read the book before watching the movie or not?

It is a children's book - so probably it is "okay" to read first. But, if the story is anything like the movie "Halo" (the one where a cute puppy goes missing - not sure if it is a book) then it would have a special charm the first time which would certainly be missing during subsequent viewings.

May be I should just read the book first to find out how Vishal has done it this time (his Maqbool and Omkara were mind-blowing adaptations). Even Ruskin Bond has liked the way the book has been made. May be I should just watch the movie and then read the book and then watch the movie again.

Any suggestions ??

PS: Just realized, too many peut-etre s !!

Edit 1: Halo is a 1997 movie by Santosh Sivan. Doesn't seem to be adapted from any book. It is certainly worth a watch. See more details here: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0295294/

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Deathly Hallows

No spoilers ahead :)

I was very happy after finishing the book, not because of the ending, but, simply coz the book neatly tied up (almost) everything and is certainly the best book of the series in terms of taking the story forward and giving it an exciting end. After 2 super duds ("Phoenix" and "Prince" - which I still feel should have been compressed into one) this one lives up to the expectations. The book is another 760 pager, but unlike previous bulky ones (4, 5, and 6) it is completely racy.

Of course, there are plot holes here and there, some subplots don’t get a closure, unnecessary characters abound and the epilogue is a huge disappointment. But overall the book is satisfying.

And to those with weak hearts: there are deaths - painful deaths, and not just 2 as Rowling claimed. Actually, 2 2 many more than just 2. So if you cried when Sirius died then you better be prepared right from the start.

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Pottermania

I am not 100% sure if I will have the new book on Saturday. Anyhow, I have started reading "The Order of the Phoenix" and "The Half Blood Prince" as preparation. (Btw, I am not interested in watching the new movie as I have been getting mixed reviews.)

Three big questions that I guess is on everyone's mind:
1. Will Harry survive?
2. Will Dumbledore make a come back like Gandalf? (I hope not !!)
3. Which two characters are going to be killed?

I just hope the book doesn't disappoint and that I find answers to these questions by reading the book and not from one of the several psychos I know ;) .

My three choices for the last word of the book: "lived", "harry/potter" and "wizard". ("scar" was one of my original choices which has now been officially ruled out).

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Conditions

Conditions - A Play in Three Acts by William J. Hackenbrook.

I was checking out Moneychangers by Hailey in the library and this was right next to it on the shelf. Out of curiosity, I checked out this one too and was greatly surprised at how hilarious the play was. The 90 odd pages had me in splits for the most part and I really enjoyed the Wodehouse/Crazy Mohan -ish script. It has been a long time since I had read a play and all other good ones I can think of are from my 9th/10th std English textbook. Let me know if you know any good ones.

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I want one ...

Knut.

The latest German celebrity reminds me a LOT of Jingli. See Knut in action here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZLKb_5S21E









Now, can someone fund my trip to the Berlin zoo? ;)

Want more Knut? Knut's blog is here: http://blog.rbb-online.de/roller/knut/
Unfortunately, its in German :(
The pictures and videos are awesome though.

On a entirely different note, I finally managed to finish the very boring "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time". Now, 'll have to be doubly suspicious about books recommended by Ravi.

PS: Thanks a lot, S-S-Y!!

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Good, Bad and Ugly

The Good :

1. Research going much better. I had to re-read tens of papers just to catch up but now it's getting back to normal.

2. Finally finished "The Fountain Head". I suppose all "fat" books are worth the effort. In this case, the effort was minimal.

3. Moviez worth the time - Thank you for smoking, Rosemary's baby, Client, The Cider house rules and Donnie Darko.
Watched Donnie Darko twice. Finally managed to come up with my own theory which turns out isn't even close to the popular notion. Ill probably post my theory sometime.

4. Tendulkar's Century and man-of-the-match award
It has been a long time though. Hope the form remains through the world cup.

5. Shilpa Shetty wins Celebrity Big Brother.
I started following the show only after the controversy started. Anyone who followed the show will agree that she behaved pretty well. Watching the "bullying episodes" in you tube was pretty disturbing. If you think she wasn't all that good, you should have seen the desi version Big Boss. Seems Rahul Roy outdid others in lying and scheming.

The Bad :

1. Loads of TA work.
Grading 50+ students for a grad course isn't the best job around. It has made my cell phone a voicemail box since I am in the office all the time. (I don't get signal in there)

2. Night at the Museum.
Wonder why I subjected myself to this. After a long time, I slept during a movie in theater. This one made me doze off after the initial 10 minutes itself. I also wonder why "mugger" likes it so much.

3. Serena is back?
I was rooting for Clijsters, Hingis, Sharapova and Serena - in that order. Although I have never been a big fan of Serena, her recent lack of form (and my meeting her during the Cincinnati Open) got her some brownie points. Now I wonder if she is really back.

The Ugly :

1. Heavy snow, cold winter after a pretty warm January.

2. Its Federer again.

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How Opal Mehta lied, cheated and 'internalised' -- OR -- How I fell for hype, again.

Ever since the book "How Opal Mehta..." was under scrutiny for plagiarism, I wanted to find it out for myself. I couldn't get a copy of the book (which just shows how all people fall for hype) but I somehow managed to get the books that supposedly inspired Opal - "Sloppy Firsts" & "Second Helpings".

Before I read "Sloppy Firsts", I had zilch expectations. I reasoned that if it was good enough to have a sequel ("Second Helpings"), then it couldn't be too bad. And anyways, it was only some 300 odd pages. Surprise surprise, I really liked the book. I have seen quite few American teen movies and even those that are supposedly great (like Sixteen Candles) weren't really up to my taste. However, I found the book (which has the same plot as any of those movies) really witty and charming and in many places, laugh-out-loud funny (esp. sequences involving the clueless crew).

So much so that, I was looking forward to Jessica again in "Second Helpings". And that didn't disappoint either. It was equally charged as the first one and maintained the continuity for all the characters. When I found out that the 3rd book in the series ("Charmed Thirds") was out, I couldn't stop myself. Although, it wasn't as good as its predecessors, the 3rd book was still good. Jessica Darling and her journal had me entertained throughout. Opal Mehta was still in demand and I finished 3 other books ("Only", "The Concrete Blonde" (W-O-W) and "Starry Nights") before I could finally lay my hands on "How Opal...".

I finished it in about 4 hrs. And I can say without doubt that Kaavya has more than 'internalized' from the Jessica series. (Minor Spoilers Ahead) May be since Opal is also a high school senior, it is okay to be using the same slang in the book (I distinctly remember 'dregs', 'upper crust', 'Krispy Kreme' and esp 'puh-leez'). But lifting off the entire cast of characters, the situations and the narrative style cannot be justified. Just to list out some of the many: Opal Mehta is the desi version of Jessica Darling, the clueless crew have been changed to the HBz, Marcus becomes Sean, Opal's parents are a lot similar to Jessica's, Jeff is a straight version of Paul. And, this is supposed to be a totally different book. While reading, I constantly had a sense of deja vu. You will too, because there is a lot of paraphrasing going on (see here). And did I mention that both the stories are set in New Jersey?

I do agree that the plots are quite different. "How Opal..." has a funnier polt (which hasn't been well exploited) and even if nothing else, the acronyms - PISS, HOWGAL, HOWGIH and TIP are quite funny. But they are completely overshadowed by the 'internalized' happenings which occurs in just about every page of the book.

So, what did I find out? This Opal is fake. But, going by the hype was certainly worth it (how else would I have known about the Jessica Darling series?). Now, if you prefer watching 'Zeher' or 'Killer' to 'Out of Time' and 'Collateral', then, Opal Mehta is exclusively for you. Otherwise, go for the Jessica Darling series and have some clean harmless fun.

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LTNS-2

Ooh, I wanted to write this post a lot earlier. Anyways, now I am going to squeeze in few other recent happenings that wouldn't have made LTNS-2 but for the delay.

1. Bad Movies: Bad luck. Almost all the movies I recently saw (English/Foreign/Indian) were bad. Not bad, but BAD. The last good movie I recall is POTC2-DMC which doesn't seem as much funny now. The worst of the lot was certainly Fanaa. I knew it was bad, and watched it for the sake of my cousin. But didn't think it would be as bad as it turned out to be.

2. Moving out - Moving In: I shifted to a new apartment and had to go through the pain of cleaning, packing, cleaning, unpacking, cleaning and more cleaning. However, it wasn't too bad because of two reasons - One, I generally keep my place pretty neat ('how much neat is pretty neat?' is relative!!). And two, I left for Detroit the very next day after moving and my room mate did most of the cleaning. What was actually more painful than the actual shifting process was the change in address forms that I had to go and fill out in different places. (They should simplify this process - its too much work for students). Well, the new house is great and I am almost done with taking the wrong corridors and barging into wrong houses.

3. Traveling Michigan: I went to Detroit to my Aunt's place for a week. From there, we all (Uncle, Aunt, Cousin and myself) went on a road-trip to many places in Michigan - the Upper and the Lower Peninsula. The week long vacation was really great and the places we went to were awesome. You can have a look at the pictures in my photo album.

4. The God of Small Things: Without doubt among the best of books I have ever read. It was as if I was transported to Ayemenem and the entire drama was happening right in front of me. The narration moves back and forth and had me hooked throughout. The very first chapter gives away the (sad) ending and raises a lot of 'how's and 'why's. The rest of the book answers these questions little by little. With every new bit of information you are given, you get drawn more and more into the tragedy. The only little thing that didn't go well with me was the character of Baby Kochamma. She was a bit too dark and her lack of remorse even years later was a bit hard to take in. All in all, a must read for everyone.

5. Say Cheeese: I have uploaded new photo albums in my website. These include pictures from my Michigan trip, Sania Mirza match pictures (see my previous post) and few others. You can have a look a look at them here. Because of the low space in my website account, I have uploaded only few of the good pictures and the quality is not all that great. Let me know if you want to see them all in better quality.

I guess that sums up most of it. Other posts will hopefully follow soon.

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