Kabira khada bazar me mange sabki khair; Na kahu se dosti na kahu se bair.

Chanakya Neeti: With Complete Sutras by Chanakya My rating: 4 of 5 stars “Peoples happiness should be King’s happiness. Welfare of people is King’s welfare. For a king, there is no task which is only individualistic and pleasurable to him only. It is king’s utmost duty to look after progress and welfare of people of his country.” Kautilya (also known as Chanakya aka Vishnugupt, c. 350-275 BCE) was an Indian statesman and philosopher, chief advisor and Prime Minister of the Indian Emperor Chandragupta, the first ruler of the Mauryan Empire. Kautilya belonged to the Brahmin caste (the priestly class), he was originally from Northern India and a professor of political science and economics at the University of Taxila. He was fully knowledgeable concerning the Vedas literature and it is also believed that he might have had some knowledge of Zoroastrianism. He mentored Chandra Gupta Maura (a Shudra Low caste person) to become king. With Chandra Gupta he r...

Carthick's Unfairy Tales by T F Carthick My rating: 4 of 5 stars “You think fairy tales are only for girls? Here's a hint - ask yourself who wrote them. I assure you, it wasn't just the women. It's the great male fantasy - all it takes is one dance to know that she's the one. All it takes is the sound of her song from the tower, or a look at her sleeping face. And right away you know - this is the girl in your head, sleeping or dancing or singing in front of you. Yes, girls want their princes, but boys want their princesses just as much. And they don't want a very long courtships. They want to know immediately.” ― David Levithan, Dash & Lily's Book of Dares As the quote suggest fairy tales are not so innocent after all. These have implied sinister meanings below the pretty façade. Carthick tried to bring to surface these implied meanings in his book. This book is an attempt to see the classic tales from the hidden pers...

A Time To Burnish by Radhika Nathan My rating: 3 of 5 stars “India is not, as people keep calling it, an underdeveloped country, but rather, in the context of its history and cultural heritage, a highly developed one in an advanced state of decay.” ― Shashi Tharoor India is a poor country having a rich cultural heritage. We are the oldest civilization. The diversity in cultures and rulers across the ages and width and breadth of the country the legacy is huge. We have temples, caves, palaces, idols and much much more in terms of historical legacy. This book is story of one such idol. Nataraja the dancing Shiva’s idol of Chola empire times is at the centre of the book. There are three main characters in the book. Josh and Tom are brothers and Vidya is a friend of Tom’s. Tom is affable and makes fired easily. He is studious and devotes time to ancient artefacts. In an unfortunate accident he became wheelchair bound. Vidya is his online friend. They kno...

Tied to Deceit by Neena H. Brar My rating: 4 of 5 stars “God has given you one face and you give yourself another.” Hamlet by Shakespeare. Tied to deceit is a whodunit primarily. The strength of a good murder mystery that you should not know about the identity of the killer till the last scene. The conflict in story comes from the weaknesses of human character. Here this book works big time. Unsuccessful marriages, greed, philandering and blackmail: you name it and it has it all. Dr Rajinder Bhardwaj and his wife Gayatri are a highly respected upper class couple in a small town Sanover. Dr Bhardwaj runs a hospital and has ancestral wealth too. His brother had exogamous marrige for love and was disowned by their father. His nephew Rudra has no such moral dilemma and he is ambitious. He works for him and dreams of inheriting his vast wealth one day and Dr Rajinder is issueless. Dr Rajinder’s is an unhappy marriage in reality but Gayatri gives it an app...

And So Can You! by Dr Roopleen My rating: 4 of 5 stars Dr Roopleen is an eye surgeon among other things. She is an accomplished writer. So why she wrote this book? Because she wanted to read it and it was unwritten. Many books on achievers have been written but none on doctors. So, to fill the vacuum she wrote this book about 17 doctors. These are chosen from many special fields and across the country. Everyone has different story and background but one thing common: love for medical profession and desire to serve others. Dr Sundaram Natarajan (never say die) was born to a doctor and raised in a village. He was a cry baby in childhood. He joined Madras Medical college. He believes in four Ps for success- passion, perfection, precision and perseverance. Dr Anita Panda (resilience) was born in a remote village of Orissa. She read scriptures and mythology in childhood. She joined PG at AIIMS. Her being the woman was never a handicap for her though she h...

Ramayana: The Game of Life – Book 4: Stand Strong by Shubha Vilas My rating: 4 of 5 stars “...the secret of the Great Stories is that they have no secrets. The Great Stories are the ones you have heard and want to hear again. The ones you can enter anywhere and inhabit comfortably. They don’t deceive you with thrills and trick endings. They don’t surprise you with the unforeseen. They are as familiar as the house you live in. Or the smell of your lover’s skin. You know how they end, yet you listen as though you don’t. In the way that although you know that one day you will die, you live as though you won’t. In the Great Stories you know who lives, who dies, who finds love, who doesn’t. And yet you want to know again. That is their mystery and their magic.” ― Arundhati Roy, The God of Small Things The Ramayana is the greatest epic ever told (at least one of those). This is my second book of this series. The first book I read was “The Stolen Hope”. I l...