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Wednesday, October 28, 2015

The Perks Of Being A Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky


The book is a diary of a really sensitive and socially (A little) anxious teenage boy who makes friendship with his seniors and (to his surprise) is not only accepted and loved by them but also receives beautiful life lessons and advice from them as their friendship progresses.

To be honest I have such mixed feelings about this book. I 'liked' this book but I can't say if I 'lovedddd it!!'. I don't know if it was that good. Meaning on some days I loved reading it and on some days I was bored. There are various reasons I was unable to relate with this book. The one main reason being that I did not grew up in an american high school in the 90's. So I honestly don't know what it is like 'making a mix tape' and 'listening to beatles' and 'driving a pickup' and 'smoking pot'.

But yes this book should be read by every grown up who once was a very awkward & sensitive teenager.

The boy who writes this diary is named Charlie.

My guesses are he is sufferring from autism but I was annoyed by the fact that what really did affected this charlie boy was never cleared in the book.

Anyways.

So do I want to watch the movie? NO.

Would I recommend it to teenagers? YES (Particularly to boys and yes grown up MEN too!)

For every wallflowers out there I recommend 'The Perks of Being A Wallflower'

Movie Trailer:

Saturday, October 17, 2015

The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood



“But remember that forgiveness too is a power. To beg for it is a power, and to withhold or bestow it is a power, perhaps the greatest. Maybe none of this is about control. Maybe it isn't really about who can own whom, who can do what to whom and get away with it, even as far as death. Maybe it isn't about who can sit and who has to kneel or stand or lie down, legs spread open. Maybe it's about who can do what to whom and be forgiven for it. Never tell me it amounts to the same thing.”

- The Handmaid's Tale, Margaret Atwood.

This book is extremely sad and heartwrenching! It was physically painful to read this book (especially the parts where the protagonist talks about her estranged daughter and husband). It’s a sad tale about a woman caught in unusual circumstances, it is a sad tale about a women whose sufferings you can’t bear to read because they are just too overwhelming and extreme. I won’t give away too much about this book it’s afterall for you to discover. All I want to say is even though the author manages to deliver an extra ordinary tale it still leaves readers with more questions then answers. It’s sort of vague and incomplete. (Is the author going to publish The Handmaid’s Tale – Part 2?? Because the way it ended so abruptly I feel like she should and give us a closure of some sort). This book also reminded me of Anne Frank’s Diary (not that Anne Frank’s diary is a sad book. Infact it’s a book about hope and inspiration.) However the sort of living under in a trapped circumstances and wishing for escape part reminded me of Anne Frank's Diary. Honestly, I have never read anything like 'The Handmaid’s Tale' before. This book is gloomy, dark and yet true to the core. If you are a woman who has experienced loss and if you are a woman who knows what loneliness feels like and how it can get under your skin... you must read this book.

PS: I have even managed to find the trailer of the movie based on this book. Although I can guarantee you that the movie cannot capture the essence of this book. This book is not about the war on the outside it's about the war that goes on inside a woman's heart and to experience that you have to read the words first...

Friday, October 9, 2015

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson (Millennium #3)


When I read a book I am looking for elements that will make me jump off my seat, give me goosebumps and makes me ponder about things I have never ponder about before. Especially when it comes to mystery novels I expect all these elements to be present by default and this is where the Millennium Trilogy has worked for me. Was it too graphic? Was the editing too bad? Who cares? Because the story was brilliant. Being a journalist of an antiracist magazine himself Stieg Larrson was so well informed about the political conditions and dilemmas of his own country Sweden. While reading these books one gets a pretty good idea about his ideas, values, opinions and stand against the political matters. I was initially scared to start reading these series. I personally had a fear that the books were over hyped and over sensationalized beacause of the dark and graphic scenes involved in them. But now that I have read them I have to say that the books do live upto the hype. The books have everything you could possibly expect from a crime novel. Drama, suspense, thrill and reality.

I have to watch the movies now. It's pretty much obvious. I am going to watch the swedish version with english subtitles. That's the original and much better than the english version (or so I have heard). Let's see, when I can gather the courage to actually watch Miss Lisbeth Salander live in flesh and blood?

I give this third installment 5 stars. I recommend it to anyone and everyone who's in a cozy mood to read a mind blowing thrilling story.