Immortal India: Young Country, Timeless Civilisation

This book is for the ones who have read books by Amish Tripathi before, and for those who haven't yet. If you belong to Category 1, you are bound to have your opinions about his writing style, and his attempt in presenting Hindu mythology in a simple story like narration. You would have many questions too.

This book is a collection of various articles and speeches written by him, interviews, etc which have appeared in various magazines, literary festivals and alike. They have been arranged intelligently to form a flow that keeps the reader glued to the book. 

Over the pages, one is introduced to Amish as a person.. from his days as a banker with a handsome job to his becoming a best selling author. He introduces the reader to the new age India by touching upon the rich cultural past.

There is a lining of positivity in the chapters, where Amish says that the intolerant youth of today is actually India's future, who are willing to question and innovate. The country's culture is an inclusive one, where religion and casteism go hand in hand but unfortunately, have been misinterpreted over time. There is a gentle mention of social issues such as women empowerment, homosexuality, etc.

The book instills hope in the reader, ensuring him that there's hope in the path ahead. Almighty is there amidst us, integrated in our own souls, and the onus is ours to learn from His teachings. 

The Benfits of Failing Successfully

This is a book which I would rate six stars instead of five, if I can. It is a book that can be enjoyed by everyone, of whatever age. 

The storyline is a narration of the author's life, his failures and how he could use that to his benefit. Dr. Chaturvedi rightly points out that all of us make mistakes and come face to face with failure at various junctures of our lives, and the key is not to get depressed by these non-achievements. Instead, we should accept it and work towards capitalizing on our shortcomings. Failures are indeed the building blocks of success.

Along with a very interactive narration, illustrations by Pranay Arun Kumar enhance the reader's imagination.

Although the author stresses that each one of us is different, and come face to face with very unique challenges, you would be able to identify yourself with the author, and find yourself smiling and nodding as you cruise through the book.

It is a crisp book, which can be finished in two hours, but it leaves an evarlasting impact.

A book recommended for everyone.

English Bites!

Having studied in institutes that taught in English all through, I held high opinions about my grip on the language. That is, until I read "English Bites!" by Manish Gupta. 

Some of my classmates in college did not know English well, and I have seen them struggle with the language. I can identify the difficulty in studying and conversing when you do not know the language. This book starts from a similar background - it is the author's own journey from not knowing English at all to knowing the language inside out?

As children, you too may have wondered how strange a language English is - Why is CUT and PUT pronounced differently? Why is the P silent in PSYCHOLOGY? Where is the vowel in RHYTHM? Similar questions may have come to your young mind, but you had to accept these idiosyncracies and move on in life.

Manish, however, is not someone who would let go. While he learnt the language, he would dig up the etymology of each word, forms sentences or phrases to remember their meanings, finds out different ways one can use a word, what its synonyms and acronyms were, and whatever possible was there about a word!

He has compiled all his findings in this book, and narrated it in the form of a hilarious tale. There are notes and sometimes exercises for those who want to learn more. Read the book slowly, and you would enjoy it immensely. If you try to rush through it, it'll appear like an English word book. 

Unless you are a facuty or student of English, you would find in this book words you had learnt once upon a time but have forgotten due to unuse, words whose exact meaning you dont know but have guessed from the usage and words you absolutely haven't come across. Even if you are someone whose life revolves around English, there would be something in this book for you to discover!

In my childhood, my Granny used to advice me to note down new words in a copy whenever I learnt one. Needless to say, I did not do any such thing. This book appeared like a job done to me!

I will give full five stars to this book, for it achieves its purpose to the hilt. My Dad also read this book, and loved it much more than I did!