2025 Reading Challenge discussion

So, I have read two book so far:

1. The History Of England

2. Intimacy - The review of which I am posting as follows:

You spend years making a family, trying to be the same with someone you fell in love with years ago, trying to make the marriage work, but all is futile, and one night, you decide that this will be your last. Or is it?

Jay decides to leave his partner Susan (please, bare in mind, that they’re not married) and his two sons, after several years of futile attempt at being in love with the happy family scenario and putting up with the monotonous life, to lead a more romantic sort of life, maybe to lead a life with Nina (who by the way, has been out of the picture for quite some time, which you only realise by some time into the book).

Is the book worth a read? Well, in my honest opinion, it’s got some great philosophies about love, life and family, which is quite undebatable. It should be kept in mind that stories of cheating, unhappiness in marital life or relationships almost always stems from either a history of disturbed lifestyle as a child (mostly due to parents) or something that broke off between the two partners. Or at least I think these are the two main reasons. I don’t claim to know it all. The language of the book is beautiful as well, as one would mostly expect a book based on the topic of a man leaving his long time partner in the fantasies of another woman to quite sexually explicit.

However, the negative I found in this book is of the double standards of the protagonist, Jay. I truly did feel for the man, his wife was absolutely nagging and what not. I also agree to the fact that not all human beings are meant for the family life, contrary to the popular belief of a lot of cultures in this world that seem to be instilling it into the society that marital and family life is the absolute bliss and ultimate aim. However, Jay had it in him to be a flirtatious and unfaithful guys from always, or so I felt from the way he narrated his story. He seemed to be living in two worlds at the same time, fickle minded in a lot of instances. Again, maybe that’s what the writer wished to convey about human personalities. Still, I couldn’t digest a man being this fickle minded, to the very end that too.

All in all, I would say it is a different genre of book to read, for me at least, and I found it, enlightening and insightful, about the flaws and thoughts of a human being and the different stressors in life that can make a man or woman either crazy about a person (in the good sense) or mad about a person. Like they say, the quality that is most attractive about a person, is the one that can drive you mad too. Or did I say that? Well, it is true in any case.

To read more reviews on different books, please go on to: https://surupam17.wixsite.com/website

Wishing you the best of luck with your goal Surupa & happy reading!

Great start to the year! I hope next month brings more great books to love.

3. Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic - Review:

Rating: ★★★★

So to get it out of the way, this is the first time I have read an adult graphic novel. In fact, I can't even remember the last time I had read a comic book. No, it is not because I had an inhibition about those being entitled to just kids or nerds or of them to be of a particular genre, but it is more to do with the fact that most comic books (the ones I know of originating from Manga, DC and Marvel) were all in series, and I really didn't know if I could put up with it.

So, why did I choose to read this one? Because it was in no way a superhero, imaginary, fictional world to be in or detective stories like Tintin, funny stories like Supandi, etc. This is the true story of Alison Bechdel. It is a memoir, of her relationship with her father. That is what set this book apart for me.

Also, the fact that an adult graphic novel like this was lying in the young adult section in Om Bookshop in Phoenix Market City, Kurla, Mumbai. I really don't think this classifies for young adults.

Alison and her family seem to live in a perfect home. Her father can conjure up great beauties in the house from scraps, he is a bibliophile and into the classics, and everything seems great. Or maybe not. Behind every prefect family pretence lies the dark secrets that can be unnerving, to many. In this case, it was the fact that Alison's father was gay.

Without giving out much of the plot of Alison's life, this book is truly a marvel for me. The fact that someone could write their autobiography through a graphic novel, and that too some really painstaking memories, with a sort of dark humour to it, was fascinating for me. Reading about someone's life can be quite the task, as it isn't necessary that someone can write down their life in a very interesting manner, even if it was extremely colourful and happening in the first place. Let alone someone who I did not even know about till I picked up this book.

Alison could make a connect with the reader about her family's dysfunctional relations, the want of more intimacy and acceptance with her parents, the struggle of first experiences in life, the literary relationship between Alison and her father, how she could never bring herself to hate or despise the man because of a few events, etc. despite the fact that the reader might not have gone through any of the situations highlighted in this book. And that is not an easy thing to do in a 500 paged book. Let alone a 230 paged graphic novel with lesser words to paint the life that Alison led.

Which is why, I would say this is a must read for all, because this has the perfect mix of everything a reader would be looking for in an engaging and enlightening book.

You are doing great! Hoping March is a great month for you.

A book is a dream that you hold in your hand. I hope that April brings you many more five star reads. Do you have a stand out book so far this year?

“Reading brings us unknown friends” While the warm weather is coming I hope you make some new friends in May! You are doing great keep it up!

4. The Last Children of Tokyo - Review

Rating: ★★★★

I think more than a review, this will be more of my advent into opinion writing, so bare with me while the point of this review gets a bit unclear. Yes, it is to give this beautiful piece of work a read, but it is also to draw attention to an important, but very often forgotten issue in the world, that of mortality and death, not only of humans, but animals alike. 

Today we live in a world of medical advancements, technological uprising, a fast paced life, where humans don't have the time to catch up with their own breath, leave alone someone else, or take care of any harm they might be doing - to a loved one, to the society, to nature, environment - you get my point. It's not a surprise that our previous generation seems to live a life that ends at about 70-75, on an average basis, while the X and Y generations have this varying level of mortality. Some people can't cope with stress and even seem to pass away at 21. Life is more unpredictable now than ever. 

So why does this particular Japanese fiction story hold so much relevance? For the simple reason - to start reversing what we're doing wrong. To help us assess and correct our actions. Not only the wrongdoings to our own health or well being, but also to the wildlife around us. 

 
The story revolves around Yoshiro, a man well beyond 100, struggling to keep his great grandson, Mumei, alive everyday. They live in a world where all the generations after him have perished - be it due to contamination, catastrophe, etc. and the geriatric seem to be outliving for decades to come. There is no sign of animals, except for rental dogs and dead cats. Japan is in isolation from the world, with no human allowed in or out of the country. In such a situation, a visit to Mumei's dentist brings back memories of a time when Yoshiro remembered human beings of all kinds, the animals that inhabited the country, a time when life held meaning. 

Believe it or not, this might actually be a truth a few more decades down the line. Maybe not as grave as this story was shown, but who knows? Loads of animals are nearing extinction, because of various reasons - natural and human made (poaching for example), and are now only seen and heard of in books and encyclopaedias. Human kind seems to be battling new illnesses everyday, and if not that, then we're battling each other (lets not even get started on the number of wars and fatalities, I'll lose count if I go on a world wide census). But the part that is most astonishing - is that we humans have ceased to bother, let alone do anything about this situation. Why? 

Today I see a lot of people trying their best to regain some balance in this world. The other day I saw a video of many circus animals being released back into the wildlife or in sanctuaries, so that they don't have to face the insolence of humans anymore. I see quite a few videos of some people in some societies doing their best to either raise awareness or find solutions to a lot of epidemics that our causing loss to humanity, and no, I'm not just talking about medical illnesses, I'm talking about atrocities and harm done by some groups, for their own benefits or agendas, or sometimes for no rhyme or reason. 

But is the solution to this entire problem of survival and respect, for mankind and nature alike, just in the hand of a couple of people? Shouldn't it be the collective responsibility of the global society? Of the citizens of the world? I guess time will tell. 

5. Stan and Nan

6. I HAVE A DATE !

7. The Craigslist Murders - Review

Rating: ★★1/2

Interior designer Charlotte Wolfe has dealings with the most unbelievably difficult clients in the upper strata of New York. She also comes from a difficult history with her own family. Every woman in upstate New York reminds her of her own mother. Not in a very good way. And what does she do to deal with these women living in their own personal make belief bubbles? She murders them.

As a mystery, there's really not much mystery surrounding this particular book. You know who the perpetrator is, you know who the possible victim pool is, the mommy issues are pretty much evident. It ends up classifying more as a chic lit than an actual mystery.

It can be quite entertaining in bits. The entire "bimbo"ness of the wives of the billionaires, their complete obliviousness of what is going on in the world, and their make belief problems, make for quite the laugh. However, while most chic lit books are entertaining all the way, this particular book, since it tried to be an out of the way mystery novel, failed to be gripping or entertaining, and turned out to be quite a drag.

The idea of finding the victim pool through Craigslist was great and innovative. However the execution for some odd reason didn't play out as well as it maybe should have.

Should one give it a read? As a light read, sure, why not. But don't expect too much of it.

8. I hope this reaches her in time - Review

Rating: ★★★★

Well to start off, I don’t think I’ve tried reading poetry since high school. In fact, I didn’t even like reading poetry back then. It might be because the poetry we were taught, or made to read, especially from an examination perspective, were to test our understanding of some really stretchy topic. It might also be that since I was a teenager, I didn't have the maturity to get the full in depth understanding of poetry. 
 
Growing up however, has given me a good understanding of relationships, if nothing else in the world. It's not so much of me having gone through friendships, partners, family problems, as much as those around me, that helped me get the understanding. And being a youngster, one thing that I have definitely come across, is being in the wrong relationship.
 
I know most people end up talking about a man being abusive (emotional, physical, abuse really knows no bounds) and him taking the woman for granted, but it really does happen the other way round too. Trust me I know. I've seen it happen. 

So when poetry like R.H.Sin's comes up, it really does hit close to home. It is everything that a woman (or a man) feels in at least one relationship they've been in. How many times do you feel that you're being taken for granted? That you aren't being treated right. That the moments of showering love on you, comes as a make up act of them having done something wrong, as a sorry, only to repeat it again? Answer: far too many times to even remember. So why do we end up staying back in such toxic relationships? Because we're scared. Scared of being alone and scared of hurting the other person (who by the way has hurt you so bad, you might as well not be with him or her). Why don't we learn to love ourselves, before giving away so much of us, investing so much of our time and ourselves in these people who aren't wroth our time?
 
R.H.Sin's poetry resonates with all of us who have either had a friend in a bad relationship, or been in one themselves. It is a reality check for all of us, and also an encouraging and empowering note to every person on this planet - to love yourselves before others, to put yourself as a priority than please others. 

This book is a must read for everyone of every age. Do not miss it.

Blagica wrote: "“Reading brings us unknown friends” While the warm weather is coming I hope you make some new friends in May! You are doing great keep it up!"

Hi Blagica! Sorry I haven’t been able to respond before, as I was shovelled under exams, and hence April did not have any standout books as such.

I did however just finish reading “I hope It Reaches Her in Time” by R. H. Sin, which you should definitely give a go for a common man’s poetry, if you’re into that sort of a thing!

I shall be posting my review of the same later today!

How is your reading challenge for the year coming along?

9. The Double Clue: And Other Hercule Poirot Stories

Rating: ★★★★

Reader or not, thriller and mystery enthusiast or not, every single person on this planet would have come across Agatha Christie's books at least once, and read even a few pages, if not an entire book. That's how classic this woman and her stories are. However, we only seem to appreciate her novels so far, not so much of the short stories she wrote. Hence, I chose to give it a shot. And am I glad that I did.

Of all the characters that Agatha Christie wrote of, Hercule Poirot has to be my absolute favourite. His charm, his accent, his obsession with details and perfection (no I'm nothing like that, maybe that's why I like his character), and his ability to look at everything from an angle that might seem so obvious, yet a lot of us tend to overlook it, because our minds are trained to look for the complicated solution rather than the simple one.

If you've read one of the Hercule Poirot stories, then you're in for a definite treat with the short stories. They're as filled with excitement and mystery as a 250 odd paged novel would have, in just a matter of 10 pages. My particular favourite story would be 'The Disappearance of Mr Davenheim’, where Hercule Poirot solves a mystery without ever leaving his arm chair!

This collection of short stories will make you want to train your mind to be either as good a detective as him, or at least, be as smart and meticulous of a man as him. And to those who have never read an Agatha Christie novel, this might be a good one for your "initiation ceremony" to the classic world of crime and murder. It will definitely be reminiscent of the Sherlock Holmes stories, which is what makes it good!

Surupa wrote: "Blagica wrote: "“Reading brings us unknown friends” While the warm weather is coming I hope you make some new friends in May! You are doing great keep it up!"

Hi Blagica! Sorry I haven’t been able..."

I am at 99 books in and I am enjoying my year is going well.

“I have always imagined paradise will be a kind of library.” I hope you find a corner in Paradise with some great books!!