Fish in a tree - Review

I think all the kids should read this book.  Not just kids every adult should also read this book.  Of course its an uplifting novel with a fairy tale ending, but what sets it apart is the bravery of the kids.  It deals with the world of Ally who is the protagonist and who has a different learning ability.  When the parents are busy to deal with the kids (well, not intentionally), the kids have a hard time dealing with big problems posed their ways.  And when a kid is called dumb umpteen no of times their whole life, they starting believing it and they also have a hard time to face their world.  Not just kids, I think everyone has the same psychology.

The story starts cold and dark with the many problems Ally has been facing all her life in school.  But I did not understand why she doesn't ask for help.  Not even to her mother.  And she is in sixth grade, so I think these kind of difficulties could have been caught a lot earlier.  Maybe that is why the author mentions that the family has been moving a lot.  Still I think its kinda late.  But her courage and creativity are something to note.  Later when I read the epilogue I understood that the author has gone through a similar, if not the same, problem and Ally just mimics her strategies.

I thoroughly enjoyed how the kids handle constant bullying, not just the protagonist, but every kid their own way.  And its not just bullying, the author shows many different problems a child's world can pose.  But the good thing is without being preachy, the story leaves a subtle message.

And the most important message is that the marks don't define if you are intelligent or dumb.  Creativity and problem solving go a long way, far from marks and assessment.  The author draws inspiration for Mr. Daniels from her own teacher Mr. Christy, which is touching.  Because a good teacher can shape a child's life for better.  Maybe parents, students, even teacher can take a point or two about how to handle kids with difficulties.

I just know when a child with dyslexia read this book, or rather hear it,  he or she can readily place herself in Ally's shoe and feel uplifting, hopeful and bright.  I recommend it to 4th to 6th grade children.

A movie with the same theme was Taare Zameen Par.  It was released in 2007 and was an eyeopener about dyslexia (atleast to me).  Similarly Aamir Khan potrays a teacher who change the life of Ishaan the boy with dyslexia.  Watch it if you like this novel.  It sure will leave a warm feeling.  

Amal Unbound - Book Review

Amal leads a very content life and dreams about becoming a teacher one day.  But the powerful Khan family rules over her silent village and life takes a serious turn when she finds herself a slave at their enormous estate.  The story set in Pakistan is very much like what happens in India too.  It is so heart wrenching to learn about kids who take on the family burden when they should be enjoying their childhood and pursuing their future.

The author has portrayed Amal very mature and responsible.  But I wonder if a 12 year old kid would be so mature, maybe because their life is very different from ours.  What we take as granted is a luxury for them.  There were episodes which were provocative and portrayal of some violence, but nothing too gruesome.  It sure is a kids read with gripping facts about the nature of crime all around us.  It gives the idea of indenture servitude which still exists in our modern world.  It showcases stereotyping and gender discrimination along with socio-economic status quo.  But as with any children's book, this too has a fairy tale ending which brings a mood uplift.  I think this would be a inspirational read for middle grade kids

Dear Mrs.Naidu - Review

Dear Mrs.Naidu is a letter that a child writes to the late Mrs Sarojini Naidu, the freedom fighter.  If you are wondering why, the child draws more and more inspirations and strength from her life, the life we all know so little about.  We would think we had learnt about our national leaders sometime in our history class.  But we are wrong.  It was for marks and nothing else.  Learn, vomit and forget.  I had never had such insight into Sarojini Naidu's life like I had from this novel.  Also the author has made effort to bring the story and the life of Mrs. Naidu parallel so that our protagonist draws her will and inspiration from her. 

The whole book is based on the Right to Compulsory Education act of 2009.  This book has brought a whole new light on how this act has been drafted to help the community and how the schools are made to participate and how they escape using loop holes.  Though what I have said can be rather boring, the book makes it interesting.  The author has made a very good effort to educate and hook the readers disguising the educating part very well.  Though it is a children's read, it can very well be enjoyed by the adults too. 

The author has also made an effort to elaborate the meanings and usage of idioms and words in an attempt to educate the children.  It is in fact a  worthy mention as this is a children's novel.  The author deals with issues that we normally shun ourselves or downright neglect to look at.  The book deals with the life of people below poverty line and that makes us think if we can take a step forward to make their lives better.  What we take for granted is something they work really hard for. 

The society has stereotyped these economically weaker section as a bad influence and this book explains how those children would feel when they are treated unfairly and denied opportunities.   Here we are trying to convince and coax our children to cut off the screen time and be more proactive towards creativity and learning, whereas these poor kids are more (street) smarter and are drawn towards books and learning like a bug to a flame.  But the irony is that they never have the opportunities or the money.  The end is predictable but thats what happens if it must inspire the young hearts.  I would not categorise it as just a children's novel, it is a light but informative read for the adults as well.

The Lucky One - Review

This was one of my impulsive buys a decade earlier.  Since it was Nicholas Sparks, I didn't even go through the summary before buying and I hadn't regretted it.  Now its these Corona lock down days and I ended up reading it again.  I remember how much I liked reading the intro of each character, especially how they got introduced into each others life.  And each chapter is named after the main character, so we are totally hooked and never realise the pages or the no. of the chapter.  when I first read it, it made me think if I am going to cry after reading this. (FYI: I cried buckets for a couple of days after reading The notebook).  But as predicted one of the main character did die, but it didn't leave a painful feeling at the end (like nights in Rodanthe or a walk to remember). 

The human emotions and bonding which is the forte of this author has been peppered through out this novel.  Be it the bonding between the mother and son or between two lovers or between two ex or even be it the dog and its owner has been well portrayed.  The logic as to whether to believe in luck or not, forms the crux of the novel and towards the end, it is simply a test of faith. what I mean is the author didn't go too overboard and handled 'the luck or lucky charm' part very well.  The plot, even though being predictable, has its own kind of twist and turns.  I remember reading the epilogue with bated breath to see who lost their lives, because Mr. Sparks tends to kill a protagonist at the end.  If you are a sap for romance or Nicholas Sparks novels go for it.  Though its kind of too late, I still have to watch the movie part of this novel.  I heard it is as good as The notebook or Nights at Rodanthe.

A House for Happy Mothers - Review

I had read Amulya Malladi's The mango season when I was in the US. I loved her work then and picked this kindle version when it was available for free. But this novel is not what I had expected from her.

The concept was something new, surrogacy in India and the premise of the novel was set good. But then the ugly side of the exploitation takes shape and it was kind of depressing to read on. I frankly don't understand the title of the novel when all the surrogate mothers are stressed that they would never see the baby again. I kept reading the novel because I am 29 weeks pregnant and thought something would be alike. There is nothing happy in the house for those mothers. Though the house portrayed here was kind of okay, the author does mention that others are cramped and dilapidated.

The life of Priya, the donor mother, is not as emotional as the Indian mother. Her life is very comfortably revolving around her husband, her friends, his friends and the parties their friends throw where everyone goes around judging each other. Sometimes she comes off as shallow. The backdrop though a valid one could have been more sensitive. The author does revive the emotional bonding between the american couple through the way they get over their misunderstandings, miscarriage and everything in between.

The novel however ends abruptly. They give each other hope (the surrogate mother and the client) and they are never going to be in contact with each other. The author substantiates each other's decision because they each get something in return to look forward to. This was how the surrogate and the donor mother cope with their decisions to hire or become a surrogate mother against their conscience. The ending could have been more concrete so that it could have tied all the characters together.

Because of Winn-Dixie - Review

The beautiful thing about a children's novel is that we get to see the world that beholds the eyes of a kid. It somehow masquerades the harsh truth and gives a coping mechanism. I believe it is called the moral of the story. Not all stories have a moral and yet they beautifully teach kids to handle the emotions and their own little world through the characters.

One thing a children's novel needs is a beautiful character sketch, be it with with flaws or their strengths. It gives a take-away or a memento that is going to be etched in the memory of the kid forever. Someone they can relate to. So it is apt that many of us would remember India Opal for the way she transformed and touched the lives of everyone around her, be it the dog Winn-Dixie to the musician Otis. But she is graceful enough to think that it all happened because of Winn-Dixie (And hence the title).

The valuable lesson for the kids and the adults alike is to love one another without being judgemental. When there is a fear of losing someone or a emptiness around you, the book summaries it beautifully:

"There ain’t no way you can hold on to something that wants to go, you understand? You can only love what you got while you got it."

A very simple yet realistic story that is deliberately spun around friendship, hope, sorrow and many more human emotions tied together beautifully by a dog.

Everyone has a story - review

Boy meets girl story with an atmosphere set for romance. But the story fails miserably because the plot was not strong. The story did not get me hooked even after a couple of of chapters and I should have known to close it. I don't know how the amazon best seller tag was attached to this nonsense. The story stops making any sense after a while. Even the supporting characters have a better past and strong character build, but the main two protagonists are not built solid.

The character of Vivaan is not at all steady. He yearns for Meera and when he is back he never declares his love. The author just lengthens the plot unnecessarily with added drama. It could have been handled better. Well one can guess the need for Vivaan to travel or 'escape' as the author puts it. It is no suspense that he is running away from his past, and that alone does not qualify for his mysterious persona. Seriously, I don't understand how Meera thinks she can get a good novel out of Vivaan just because he said he wanted to travel.

And Vivaan had to travel thousands of miles to get some serious 'gyan'. And that too foreigners would open up to him like he were some old friend and offer him advice. That is not how it works in the reality. When we are strangers we are just acquaintance at the best and not some one dearly. Healing of Meera (from the heart break) was the understatement of the year. She mops around all the time and one miraculous night she heals. She goes around and grooms herself. The author could have been more elaborate with this. Speaking of healing, when Meera was in the ICU, I don't know how her parents never visit her. Or even her closest relations. It was bizarre but again the characters were not etched solid.

The only consolation so far from this novel is the philosophical and romantic lines written beautifully and briefly.