Books and more: Mum and Princess go spying – by Payel Bhattacharya...

Books and more: Mum and Princess go spying – by Payel Bhattacharya...: A few weeks back, a true-life Warrior asked me to read a book. I agreed and searched all over for the book. Being a hard copy person,...

Mum and Princess go spying – by Payel Bhattacharya

A few weeks back, a true-life Warrior asked me to read a book. I agreed and searched all over for the book. Being a hard copy person, I was disappointed to know that the book is available on Kindle.

Nonetheless, I ordered since I had made her a promise.

Today I am glad I did. The book ‘Mum and Princess go spying’ by Payel Bhattacharya is a sweet, innocent and surprisingly thrilling book. I say surprising because how can a sweet, innocent book also be a spy story and a thriller!

Written by Payel Bhattacharya, the book starts off with a birthday gift that the protagonist Princess receives from her brother who is not in town. She sets it up in her balcony and passes her time looking at people on the road, in the parks and in the buildings opposite her house. Following the lives of her neighbors or the people on the street, princess is able to help the police crack cases and solve mysteries with the help of her ever loving and caring mother.

The book is short and written well. It is filled with innocence and will make for a wonderful book for children to read. I recommend this book for its short narrative.

Payel Bhattacharya

What interests me more is the author Payel Bhattacharya. Payal was struck by a rare disease early on in her life known as VHL or von-Hippel Lindau disease. She underwent countless surgeries which interrupted her studies, despite which she studied and collected her degrees with pride. She has written a book on a long poem “The Warrior Princess” to describe the way she is combating the dire situations. She has also written an autobiography of the same name and has two more books to her credit. 

A true go-getter, she is an epitome of courage and strength and for that I bow down my head to her.  

Still Alice by Lisa Genova

If ever we take things for granted then we must read this book Still Alice by Lisa Genova. 

The book is about Dr. Alice Howland, a Professor of Psychology at Harvard. She is at the prime of her career, is extremely talented, well respected, has three children who are settled in their lives, has a husband who loves her and like her is a Professor; and well she has a perfect life. Or so we think!

When frequent bouts of forgetfulness disrupt her otherwise well scheduled life, she blames it all on menopause; till one day she forgets an out-of-town conference she was to speak at! Doctor visits and multiple tests later she is diagnosed with an early-onset of Alzheimer. Talk about the earth shattering or sky falling down!!

The book is a painful account of how an incredibly intelligent individual slowly forgets all that makes her who she is. From being an independent, opinionated woman she becomes a dependent, desperate and forgetful being. All that she worked for slowly gets erased from her memory and she struggles to keep her salinity intact till it matters no more!

Lisa Genova has very sensitively dealt with the disease and its fallout. As a reader we empathise and then sympathise and finally cry out in despair for this wonderful woman who was dealt a bad deal by her mind.

This is a must read for all those who have friends or family who suffer from the Alzheimer’s decease. It is a must read for all of us who take life, its pleasures and our family for granted.

I rate this book a high five stars because it is worth every star. 

The book has also been adapted into a movie starring Julianne Moore as Alice Daly Howland and Alec Baldwin as John Howland. While I do not really like watching movies adapted from books; this is one movie that I want to see.

Lisa Genova

Books and more: After the Crash by Michel Bussi

Books and more: After the Crash by Michel Bussi: If you are looking for a read that's interesting, keeps you hooked and keeps you asking for more; then this is it. After th...

After the Crash by Michel Bussi

If you are looking for a read that's interesting, keeps you hooked and keeps you asking for more; then this is it. After the Crash by Michel Bussi keeps you rooted to your couch or bed or wherever you love reading books from.

The story follows the events that followed a plane crash on the Franco-Swiss border on the night of 22 December 1980. Of the 169 passengers onboard only one survived – a tiny adorable three month old baby girl. The book revolves around the fight legal or not so too by two families who claim that the child is their granddaughter. Is the child Emilie, born to a financial poor family or is she Lyse-Rose, grandchild of an affluent and popular rich family?

The story unfolds through a book/diary written by private detective Credule Grand-Duc who has been appointed to unearth the truth. The child’s true identity is revealed only on her 18^th birthday through some twists and turns and major action towards the very end.  

For all those who love a good mystery, then this is it.

Michel Bussi 

Books and more: Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

Books and more: Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell: Elanor and Park is a book about two misfits who get drawn to each other despite their inhibitions. It is about two teenagers who c...

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

Elanor and Park is a book about two misfits who get drawn to each other despite their inhibitions. It is about two teenagers who come together and find love amidst ridicule, bullying, troubled broken homes and mixed race families.

It is simple, engaging and touching to say the least. Set in Omaha, Nebraska from 1986 to 1987 it follows the lives and love of two youngsters Elenor and Park who find their first love in each other. Different from the rest of the kids in their school, each is a unique individual with likes, wants and desires of an average teenager.

It has a beautifully and simply told narrative and makes for a relaxing read.

It is a book for young adults and I am sure that people that age will relate to and definitely love the book. Many might even identify with the protagonists.

Elenor with her fiery red hair, curvy body, and men's clothing and Park with his mixed race upbringing in a family that consists of a Korean mom and an Army vet dad, his love for the colour black and his obsession with music and comic books. 

If I were a teenager today, I might have rated this as the best book ever, but I am not and hence all I can do is smile at it indulgently and sigh at all the memories of my teenage days.

I would not rate it as a ‘Must read’; but I’d definitely recommend it to those who love a simple love story.

Ahh be still my beating heart...be still!!

Rainbow Rowell