Blink : The Power Of Thinking Without Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell

Malcolm Gladwell is a journalist and it shows in this book. I read all of it with interest yet I had this feeling of being cheated of something. Well, 'cheated' is a hard word so let us put it as something missing instead. I figured it out soon enough and from then it was not bad at all. You see, the book reads like a bunch of articles sewn together. He did make certain names appear here and there for the sake of continuity but in essence the chapters were articles. That does not mean it is not a good read. In fact I did not skip over any part and did read all of it. I am just ambivalent about the reading experience that is all.

I am sure almost everyone has heard of the phrase " First Impressions Are The Best Impressions". Gladwell has written a book on this with ample examples to prove his point. I agree with most of what he says and since he himself did a good job of creating a good first impression on each of his 'articles' you will finish each with pleasure. See here and here for more on the book and here for more on the author.

Added on July23
Well, Gladwell has managed to make me conscious of what normally is an intuitive feeling. So read him at your own risk. I am adding this to write about how he does truly have a point and my recent experience just proves it.

You see, I work at this company where they have these huge conference rooms in the lobby with full paneled glass doors that everyone can see into and back. Most job interviews are held here because there will always be at least one or two of these rooms available. The last few days, as I was walking past one of the rooms I began noticing the same group interviewing with different people. Sometime two on the same day etc. I started slowly being aware of these candidates quite unconsciously and decided on one particular one as the most likely to be hired. It was arrived at almost as soon as I glanced at the candidate through the glass doors. Thought to myself that if I were to hire, I'd be hiring this person.

So...... guess who got hired in the end? Yes, "my" candidate. So the group didn't need to waste their time and money. All they had to do was to put the candidates in a lineup and ask me to point to the one:-))

Just checking in

I haven't gone AWOL guys. Just that my 'Luck' seemed to have run out finally. I know, couldn't have lasted that long. eh? The last few books from the Library were disappointments. Yup, nothing to write home about. But I do have some interesting reading going on and will update once I am done. Till then bear with me and Happy Reading!

Kamala Das- Madhavikkutti - Kamala Suraiya

I was away from the blog/net world and can't believe to have come back to this. This iconoclastic writer that I admire much has passed away. Any Malayali who likes books could hardly miss Madhavikkutti's books. Had to leave this quick but respectful note remembering this great author's life and contributions. I still have many books left to read. Her childhood memories are the ones that I love the most among her works. Read more here, here and here.

The Soloist by Mark Salzman

Nope, it is not the movie based on the life of Juillard's alumni and homeless musician Nathaniel Ayers which indeed is a compelling story. This rather is the book by Mark Salzman about a child prodigy who failed to blossom into the great Cellist that he was to be. Renne Sundheimer's present life is sort of aimless. He rigidly practices everyday on his cello, yet doubts of ever being able to give a concert. At this time a young Korean boy, Kyung-hee enters his life who reminds him a little bit of himself. This gives his life a momentum that wasn't there before despite his own misgivings. The interesting part is how Salzman has managed to weave into this fabric, the a murder trial of a Buddhist (Zen) monk during which Renne sits on the jury. The background of the murderer's life unfolded through the trial makes Renne more aware of how his own life is lived. Salzman talks at length of Zen myths and facts without it getting too complicated or out of place. Looking into more of his other books I see that he does add an extra dimension like this to most of his books. A serious author and a successful story teller is a wonderful find and Salzman is one. Having lived in China, having played Cello etc. must play a part in his writing.

The whole music part reminded me of my own feeble attempts to learn Indian Classical Music during my post undergrad days while waiting to get word on higher studies. The teacher was kind but much as he tried he could not bring himself to encourage me beyond what courtesy dictated. I got the message but since I had a few cohorts in the same boat we kept with it till the master just couldn't take it anymore and got himself transferred:-) Don't get me wrong though, The Soloist is all about true talent and how one so endowed lives with the hand he's been dealt.

Joanne Dobbson - A Mystery Writer of Interest

Agatha Christie, Arthur Conan Doyle and in later college years, Robert Ludlum (The Bourne books) . There you have it. These are the authors I needed for my mystery fix. Even now I am perfectly happy reading these guys or watching related movies. Daphne Du Maurier can be mysterious but I love her for the style of writing rather. I believe I have read other mysteries but cannot bring them to memory at present. "The Hound of Baskervilles" can give me the chills even now. Of course any Hitchcock movies could do that too. Edgar Allan Poe has a vague place somewhere in there.

Hordes of 'Kottayam Pushpanath' stories brought home by my brothers from the local Malayalam Library is probably what started it all. Although his stories were populist with no credible storyline or a specific style to cry for, they served to instill a craving for the mystery in the young me. How can I ever forget the "woman who looked like a statue of Venus in the dim candle light and of Detective Pushparaj always suddenly needing to break his car while driving on the narrow and dangerous Carpathian Mountain Ranges to find a dead body blocking the road while wolves were howling in the distance?" My sister and I used to have lots of fun making up similar stories by mixing and matching many such lines from those books...

Like I mentioned before, the team that stocked up our Library seem to be kindred spirits. Encouraged by my many recent finds, I decided to stop by the Mystery section this time on a fast run in and out trip there. My eyes locked on author Joanne Dobbson's collection of books. Women writers of the 19th century and set in a college campus were enough to get me interested. Took two books and liked both for the simple mystery and romance and this most interesting way this author -who is also a University Professor - has found to introduce American women writers from the 19th century of whom very little is known to the general public. As she says here, the most popular of them - Emily Dickinson - couldn't have just been born into the literary world all on her own without any predecessors. It is this author's mission in life to use the medium of her books and other tools to make these unknown and brave group of writers better known to the world. I congratulate her on this and she has completely succeeded in getting me interested in these early pioneers.

The books I read and others are listed here. Since the characters seem to have continuance, it might be better to read them in chronological order. Either way these books are fast and easy reads with interesting nibbles of info on American women writers of .. you know... 19th century. This also brought back to memory the fictionalized book I have at home based on Emily Dickinson's life that I enjoyed immensely. "The Diary Of Emily Dickinson" by Jamie Fuller.

Life Of Pi by Yan Martel

An out of the blue e-mail brought back to life memories of this immensely readable book that I had read a year or two ago. It was the orange and white flash on the cover and the use of Pi in the title that first attracted me to it. Once I started I could not bring myself to put it down except of course when one had to be at work. I enjoyed it so much so that I took to updating my husband on each day's progress. Finally when I finished this incredible story of personal perseverance and full blown adventure I had no doubts that it was a true story. I divulge this here because it actually does not take much away from your reading experience. Might even augment it a little.

Martel has done a fantastic job in making Piscine Patel (shortened to Pi Patel) and his improbable story true to life. Only when I did a little web research post reading that I realized that it was all really fiction. Aptly categorized:-) It is an incredible - did I use that already?- sea adventure that makes you sit up and pay attention to every detail. When I went to a book group meeting at the local church this was brought by someone and was received very well as a book enjoyed by all who read it. Read here to delve deeper into this Man Booker Prize winning book and its author. At the end especially after finding out that this was not based on one specific real story, I had this strange feeling that this will forever remain the author's best work. Some authors are one time wonders where the book is usually drawn from their own life which is what made it alive. This is not based on Martel's life, yet he was able to write it as if. Not sure if he can be as passionate and come alive in another such book. He will definitely need to crossover to full fantasy in the next and might be able to make it attractive in that genre. 'Life Of Pi' is rather on the cusp of being a fantasy and yet so real as to make silly me fall for it hook line and sinker! But hey, I am certainly not complaining:-)

Added Later:
Check here for a wonderful one liner from this book.

Stones From The River & Never Let Me Go

Whoever stocked up our Library this time has done a pretty good job. Most of my random picks are true blue reads. The two books that follow are just great and I will recommend them to anyone in a heartbeat.

Stones From The River By Ursula Hegi
German born Ursula Hegi has written a splendid book that is superb in content, character development and history. Hegi tells the story of Trudi Montag, a dwarf woman living in that time straddled between the two world wars in a small German town called Burgdorf. She is also a Catholic and the community is made up of Catholics and Jews alike. You know where that can lead to in Nazi Germany. I have read many books on the holocaust. This is the first from the point of view of the ordinary German from those times. Ursula Hegi has succeeded where many others have failed. To present all the sides of a particular story fairly and accurately. I can't even begin to describe the way her characters develop over the years. If you read Jodi Piccoult as an instant gratification tool for a good character, then Hegi is for when you want to indulge in a story and go deep into each character. Trudi Montag and her widowed Dad Leo Montag will feel like like family members by the time you finish the book. Together, they run a pay-library that is their main livelihood. As a Zwerg - German for dwarf - it is just humbling to know everything that goes through Trudi's mind and to feel for yourself almost what it is like to live that life. Hegi does this all with an efficient but poignant style that manages to bind you in its simple magic. A true literary achievement. Read here for more reviews on the book.

Never Let Me Go By Kazuo Ishiguro
I knew I will get all of Ishiguro's books available in the Library. This second one just stopped me in my tracks with the very haunting name. I cannot really say what the book is all about as that will take away some of the enjoyment from your eventual reading. But this is essentially the story of three friends who reminisces about Hailsham, the institution where they all had their schooling while growing up. Kathy is the main narrator and Ruth and Tommy make up the trio. Like a critic described, now one can portray the sense of loss like Ishiguro. There are some holes in the story when you look back on it but that does not take away anything from this awesome treatise on human relationships and how they evolve. A word of warning. Don't read it if you are not in a happy mood. As it is, I am still struggling to come out of the overwhelming sadness that the book evoked in me when I finally finished it. Read here for more on the book. Time picked it as one of the 100 best English-language books.