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Archive for the ‘Book Reviews’ Category

Do you see E-Books as a threat to printed books here in India?

In Books, Crazy, quote, Thoughts, Writing on November 10, 2012 at 10:56 am
English: Stack of books in Gould's Book Arcade...

English: Stack of books in Gould’s Book Arcade, Newtown, New South Wales (NSW), Australia. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

 

https://twitter.com/RHIndia/status/266775484367511552

 

 

 

Technology has opened up many fora to interact with written words. To such an extent that the print media, physical books’  existence feel threatened for the sake of ease as with the example cited above.  But the things are not exactly same with the books-e-books as with stairs-elevator case. The feel of book and reading through a physical book  and even the smell of book has no match for its digital sibling – E books.

 

English: A Picture of a eBook Español: Foto de...

English: A Picture of a eBook Español: Foto de eBook Беларуская: Фотаздымак электроннай кнігі Русский: Фотография электронной книги (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

 

Arvind Passey ‏@arvindpassey (tweet friend says…)   You can carry an entire library in your Kindle… and end up reading not a single book! That’s the truth of digital books of today!

 

There will be a ever ending debate on the space , availability and cost perspective and in most cases the the digital sibling may win over its physical brother but in the end  (for me at least) its the book in hand that matters the most…

 

 

Book Review: The Krishna Key by Ashwin Sanghi

In Blog, Book Reviews, Books, fiction, History, Pictures, Religion and Spirituality, Video on October 21, 2012 at 3:43 am

Book:  The Krishna Key

Author: Ashwin Sanghi (alias Shawn Haigins)

Publisher: Westland Ltd.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Having read Ashwin Sanghi’s Chanakya’s Chants it was delightful to receive the book from BlogAdda . His first book The Rozabal Line  is the theological thriller based on the theory that Jesus died in Kashmir and was on National Best seller Lists for many months. His second book Chanakya’s Chants  is a political thriller and is still on the Bestseller lists.

Given the background we have for Ashwin in the genre of historical fiction, it was sure delight to have this book.  The Krishna Key (TKK) is based on a mythical thriller.

His writing style in TKK reminds a lot of Dan Browns series of novels The Da Vinci Code, Digital Fortress  and others. Besides his penchant for anagrams  is similar to Dan’s.

No doubt Ashwin has poured in every bit of research he had, in the book but the good thing is that, it has never slowed down the pace of the story and has so far succeeded in riveting readers’ attention (Except for those snippets from The Mahabharata in the beginning of every chapter)

The Story is a parallel between the Lord Krishna  and the modern day drama. Lord Krishna,  as many believe could be a mythical figure or a man in flesh & blood who walked on the earth som 5000 years ago. It’s another topic of debate. Krishna  is believed to be the eight  incarnation of Lord Vishnu and the final and the Tenth Incarnation  in Kaliyuga would be The KALKI Avataar.

यदा यदा हि धर्मस्य ग्लानिर्भवति भारत ।
अभ्युत्थानमधर्मस्य तदात्मानं सृजाम्यहम् ॥ ७ ॥

हे भारत ! जब-जब धर्मकी हानि और अधर्मकी वृद्धि होती है, तब-तब मैं अपने रूपको रचता हूँ (अर्थात् साकाररूपसे प्रकट होता हूँ) ।

Story begins When the Self supposed 10th Avataar of Lord Vishnu, Kalki starts eliminating the supposed evils and a professor and his doctoral protegé gets in his way. Thereafter the quest for The Krishna Key Begins. The suspense behind the Krishna key and What hides behind those mythical Keys? brings in lots of Twists & Turns and Suspense & research in the story. A tale of treasure hunt with murders, suspects, mata ji,  underworld Don, History proff, Nuclear Assignments, genetic Research and What nots.

The Book brings in an interesting perspective of Vedic Civilization comparing it with those in the days of Mahabharata and how it would have advanced during these 5000 years. History has always been written by Winners. This books, a product of ingenious research, will definitely interest readers. Some of the Points I liked:

  • Nuclear scientist have found traces of radioactive material at every places where there is Sivalinga established. According to some, Siva linga at these places are actually radioactive and that’s why they are covered with bel  leaves, cause those leaves have ability to absorb radioactive emissions. And that is the precise reason that water out of shivalinga is termed impure  and that’s another reason  a kalash constantly sprinkles water over shivalinga to keep it cool.
  • Also, Satellite picture show that the mythical river Sarasvati actually existed, and the Indus valley civilization actually flourished around this river. And when the river Sarasvati starting to dry up around Mahabharata, People started to shift east ward and west ward.
  • if you recall how does a SWASTIK  sign actually look like, Actually  the straightened lines have become over the years. According to vedas the swastik sign is actually a graphic representation of equation X^ 4- Y^4 =XY.    Well if you compare this is what the equation looks like. Those four curves coming out from the centre actually represents the four rivers coming out of Mount kailash
  • Now this brings me to the another interesting hypothecation. Mount kailash, abode of Lord Shiva is actually a man made Pyramid. Russian researching on Mount kailash found that the angle at which stones are cut in mount kailash are exactly at 108 degree  and we Know degree 108 is of lots importance in vedic literatures.
  • Lord Budhaa was the supposedly 9th avataar of Vishnu

There are lots of trivia like this and few of them which I googled, I was surprised it to be true.

The search for the Mythical treasure starts with Kalibagan, the archeological site, journeys through The Dwarka, The Somnath Temple, The Vrindavan Temple and finally ends at Tejo Mahalaya (or Taj Mahal).

Well, The Book ends with  a message…

 The Philosopher is more important than the stone !

This review is a part of the Book Reviews Program at BlogAdda.com. Participate now to get free books!

You may order ‘The Krishna Key’ at any of these online retailers:
Indiatimes: http://bit.ly/PsDifu
Flipkart: http://bit.ly/NSB1ah
Infibeam: http://bit.ly/M6R71O
Crossword: http://bit.ly/PRAedG
Indiaplaza: http://bit.ly/Leu2Gt
Landmark: http://bit.ly/N5mkEj
HomeShop18: http://bit.ly/ShQlzX
uRead: http://bit.ly/M6RedT
Amazon: http://amzn.to/MqvUMa
Amazon Kindle: http://amzn.to/OiHBol
Junglee: http://bit.ly/MlR5VP
BookAdda: http://bit.ly/LUpVAN
MySmartPrice: http://bit.ly/PRB4r0
Dial-a-book: http://bit.ly/P64dgI
SapnaOnline: http://bit.ly/N7Rw5U
Om Books: http://bit.ly/NsmqU0
SimplyBooks: http://bit.ly/SnIpxk

You may read the first five chapters as a free preview athttp://slidesha.re/MDC5iT

BOOKS – YOUR THE BEST FRIENDS

In Blog, Books on October 6, 2012 at 8:00 am

English: Five young men sit clustered closely ...

Off late the reading habit had taken a back seat and all work … but the frenzied mind wanted some peace of mind and what else then to read something… fortunate enough i got some advice from fellow readers, bloggers and got hold of few books. One of them is the Krishna key. it was supplied by Blogadda.com – a blog community which offers books to bloggers to write their review. And trust me it was definitely a nice read. I shall update the review of the book in a day or two… Currently it is saved in draft and needs a rework.

Secondly, I had ordered two books from flipkat.com. 1) Indispensable 2) the long tail. About the second book, I had read an extract about it in my friend’s new venture… summarytown.com (a wonderful website to read to the point abstract. do refer to it). And it got me interested and i booked a copy. Before I start this, I need to read indispensable when the leaders really matter by gautam mukunda, published by Harvard Business review press. The first few pages has caught me in it..The thing which caught my attention is the simplicity of the words in which he has tried to explain the complex issues… I shall soon update my blog readers about this wonderful book.

Till then

happy reading!

The Muddy River – By P.A. Krishnan.

In Blog, Book Reviews, Books on December 18, 2011 at 2:37 pm

The Muddy River – By P.A. Krishnan.

A Book Review

In contrast to the books I had read recently, this book by P.A.Krishnan was a different book all together. Not because it failed to grab attention of the reader but its beautiful narrative made it an interesting read.
The story is set in the background of burning North-east, ravaged by Naxals, where kidnapping and murders have become daily chores. At the same time, our so-called Navratnas are neck-deep in corruption.
This is a story of Chandran. A man who has promised to protect one of his colleagues from the clutches of naxals. The ways and means he applies to meet his ends against many more obstacles right from his own organization, who is ready to dump his engineer colleague to save some penny for the greedy babus, to the Local government and its setup.The muddy river , as the name suggests, is all about the vices the country is facing today, be it corruption, naxalism, kidnapping and murder.

The Muddy River

Book Review by Blogadda

Each character in the story is unique. Let me introduce you to few of them:-
– Sukanya, Chandran’s wife, is grieving for the loss of their only child and their marriage is on the verge of collapse. Despite all this she encourages Chandran to continue is fight against corruption.
– Anupama, Chandran’s colleague at Assam, is anti naxal  and supports Chandran in his mission.

–         Raman, one of chandran’s friend who is more interested in girls and their love & lust. His death is another twist in the tale.

–         Herbert & Subir, Chandra’s friends who support him on his narrative.

The most amazing part of the book is its narrative. It’s a  book within the book. The story begins with Sukanya grieving for Pooja’ loss. And the story goes into flashback and the scene is “ Chandran and Raman doing some chitchat”. Then follows Chandran’s courtship with Sukanya. Pooja is present for a brief period when the ever enthusiast persuades Raman and Pooja for a trip to Himalayas. After pooja’s death everything in their life goes haywire. While Sukanya is fighting at the home front to salvage their marriage, Chandran is fighting at all fronts. Kidnapped colleague on hand, Adverse boss on the other and the grieving Mrs. Gosh on the third. Things become nasty when company refuses to pay the ransom but Chandran keeps his calm and continues his effort to rescue his kidnapped colleague.  During the narrative chandran’s Ghandian aspect beacons, putting forth the never-dying importance of Non- Violence in Indian Society against all evils. The book is very apt in these times when the country is following the footsteps of Anna. Do good for the country and countrymen. For they say:

“if you have been exceptionally good during your lifetime, the spirit, on the last day, escapes through brahmarandhara, the top of the skull. On the other hand, if you have been a shit all along, the spirit too follows shit’s path and goes out of your arsehole.”

The story beams up when a new bird is to be welcomed in Chandran’s house and even in Mrs. Ghosh.  But ”Picture is  yet to complete , My friend”.

The reader shall be engrossed in the story which is spell bounding and keeps readers guessing till very last page.

Enjoy reading!

This is part of Book reviews program at Blogadda

Author: P A krishnan

Genre: Political Fiction

Publisher: Tranquebar

ISBN 978-93-80658-56-8

can buy at Flipkart

Book launch gallery

Top 5 Books

In Books on July 25, 2011 at 10:45 pm

Anything related to books grabs my attention, this was no exception. So for Today’s Topic, Here’s my List of 5 Important Books:

  1. Atlas Shrugged
  2. Old man and the sea
  3. The Alchemist
  4. Discovery of India
Atlas Shrugged was my first good read, it was suggested to me and many of my colleagues by our revered Teacher and guide. And it opened an entire new way of thinking to me.
Old man & the Sea, One of my all time favourite books. This book has taught me a lot. This is when ” Journey becomes paramount and the Zeal to meet the goal, Whatever be the result.”
Discovery of India, getting acquainted with one’s past is important. History teaches us lessons from the past. I am trying to do the same.
PS:  You must be wondering. Where is the fifth one… guess for that I have to wait.

Share with us What books has helped you to shape ‘YOU’

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