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Tag: BOOKS

  • Post Pandemic Era: Must-Read Books For July

    Post Pandemic Era: Must-Read Books For July

    If you are reading this, then we have something in common…. Whether it’s a love of getting crafty, meticulously organizing or making fun-shaped snacks! …writes Siddhi Jain.

    There is no speculated time for reading, but the pandemic era is surely a chance. As the world unlocks, there is a need to upgrade and upskill oneself. Let these books be your companions and coaches in a post-pandemic world.

    ‘Keep Sharp: How to Build a Better Brain at Any Age’ by Sanjay Gupta

    An exciting new science-driven guide to protecting your mind from decline. This book includes a 12-week brain training program. An essential guide to keeping your brain young, healthy and sharp from neurosurgeon and CNN chief medical correspondent Sanjay Gupta. Keep Sharp is the only owner’s manual you will need to keep your brain young and healthy at any age!

    The Comfort Book by Matt Haig

    With an IKIGAI like magic, Matt Haig’s reflections on hope, survival, and the messy miracle of being alive wraps around us like a warm blanket on an ice-cold night. The book is a collection of life rafts that have kept the author afloat and he hopes with utmost sincerity that some of them would carry us to a dry land too.

    ‘You Can Coach’ by Siddharth Rajsekar

    Currently ranking in the top Amazon Book Bestsellers, You Can Coach aims to redefine the education system by creating a new breed of teachers, coaches, and mentors who will be implementers. The book decodes all the steps for experts to successfully plan, launch, and grow a digital coaching business to six-figures a month. Siddharth is one of India’s top digital coaches and wants to change the way we learn after his own experience as a student. Filled with practical strategies and principles, this information has already helped over 11,000 experts from across the world and created numerous success stories. Apart from his own experience in digital coaching, the book also draws on the experiences of the world’s best coaches and mentors through interviews with Jack Canfield, Brian Tracy, Blair Singer and Dr Demartini among others.

    ‘Tap to Tidy: Organising, Crafting and Creating Happiness in a Messy World’ by Stacey Solomon

    If you are reading this, then we have something in common…. Whether it’s a love of getting crafty, meticulously organizing or making fun-shaped snacks! I find it hard to sit still but losing myself in a craft project or tidying a drawer is my form of meditation. It’s a chance for me to forget about the things going on in the world around me for a minute. I hope this book helps you to lose yourself for a moment, too — and that you enjoy reading it and even having a go at some of the bits inside.

    ‘Get Out of Your Own Way: Overcoming Self-Defeating Behaviour’ by Mark Goulston and Philip Goldberg

    In Get Out of Your Own Way, authors Goulston and Goldberg unmask deep-seated self-defeating behaviours rooted in our childhood experiences of being alone and defenceless. The underlying causes of self-defeating behaviours are explained with simple action tips to achieve the victory of impulse over awareness, immediate gratification over lasting satisfaction and relief over resolution. While it may not be easy to recognize or admit that we get in our own way, and harder still to take responsibility for getting out of our way, if we are smart, resolving life issues can be achieved with simple, yet powerful and proven strategies without visiting an expensive therapist!

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  • Five books for your summer reading list

    Five books for your summer reading list

    ‘The Rape Trial’ begins with the revelation that, many years ago, Rahul Satyabhagi had indeed raped Avni Rambha…writes Siddhi Jain.

    Reading is one of the most joyous activities to the people especially during the pandemic era. From poetry on the vibrance of ‘letting go’, a reference guide on married lives, and a sprinkle of self-love and even mythological fiction, these five books by forthcoming authors are on our bookshelf this summer.

    ‘Ceasing to Disown’ by Sunny Ramesh Sadnani

    ‘Ceasing to Disown’ is the very persona of the similar antithesis that life is. It is a collection of poetries that serve as a reminder of what we have found solace in or maybe continue to hopelessly endure, not for a few moments or days, but for perhaps years and decades and what we choose to not let go regardless of the consequences. Maybe even feel vibrant about it! In this book, Sunny has attempted to relay his emotions with respect to family, parents, romantic alliances, failure, redemptions, loneliness, anger, sex, the natural environment, diversity. And then some more.

    ‘The Rape Trial’ by Bidisha Ghosal

    ‘The Rape Trial’ begins with the revelation that, many years ago, Rahul Satyabhagi had indeed raped Avni Rambha. Rahul has long since been acquitted and Avni had left the country for her peace of mind. Now, it looks like he’s about to get away with it again. Rhea, Amruta and Hitaishi are beyond furious. What unfolds is a thriller worth a read.

    ‘The Last War and Other Stories’ by Sambhit Daspatnaik

    ‘The Last War and Other Stories’ is a collection of science fiction stories written by Sambit Daspatnaik. In the main story “The Last War”, the author takes his readers back to a time of post Mahabharata War era, featuring the descendants of the Pandavas, a mammoth invasion by the Gandharvas and a desperate attempt by the protagonists Senapati Agrasen and princess Charulata to save the city of Moenjo and Hariapa. The rest of the short science fiction stories cover different genres of sci-fi from space travel, solar systems to alien planets.

    ‘Love Your Wife’ by Soumitra Singh Thakur

    An insightful reference manual to have a joyous married life. This companion of love and devotion will invoke deep thoughts in you. It will reveal the true husband inside you, a husband, who you don’t show to anyone, not even to your wife, maybe. This book will share such an insightful perspective of human relations between a husband and a wife that will give you an outcome of joyous married life in this materialistic world. If used effectively, this book will serve as a lifelong practical reference manual and a workbook for all the world’s erring husbands and all eligible bachelors to efficiently handle all the difficult phases of their married lives.


    ‘Self Love — The Power Within You’ by Aaira Kaurr

    This book makes you aware of a miracle ingredient necessary for your flowering and becoming the best version of yourself, self love. If you don’t love your own self first, you can’t love anyone else, be it a person , a profession or anything else. No matter, how much effort you put in or how good or brilliant you are, you will be disappointed in the end in all your ventures, in spite of your high achievements. Without self love, others will enjoy and exploit your talents, you won’t. This book not only explains the concept of self love, but gives you a systematic framework for imbibing it in your life. In fact you already have it in you, you just need to turn it on.

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  • Ruskin’s ‘All Time Favourites For Children’

    Ruskin’s ‘All Time Favourites For Children’

    Bond’s ‘All Time Favourites For Children; is published under the Puffin imprint of Penguin Books. The 232-page volume is suitable for readers above 9 years of age and is priced at Rs 199…writes Siddhi Jain.

    Ruskin Bond and his creativities are very familiar and accepted for most of the Indians. Writer Ruskin Bond has brought forth a carefully curated and handpicked collection of his short stories in a new book titled ‘All Time Favourites For Children’.

    The Landour-based veteran author, who is also the recipient of Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan civilian honours, will release the book on his 87th birthday on May 19. He was born in pre-Partition India in 1934 in Kasauli (Himachal Pradesh). Bond grew up in Jamnagar (Gujarat), Dehradun, New Delhi and Shimla.

    His first novel, ‘The Room on the Roof’, which was written when he was seventeen, received the John Llewellyn Rhys Memorial Prize in 1957. Since then he has written over 500 short stories, essays and novellas (including ‘Vagrants in the Valley’ and ‘A Flight of Pigeons’) and more than forty books for children.

    Bond’s ‘All Time Favourites For Children; is published under the Puffin imprint of Penguin Books. The 232-page volume is suitable for readers above 9 years of age and is priced at Rs 199.

    ‘All Time Favourites for Children’ celebrates Ruskin Bond’s writing with stories that are perennially loved and can now be enjoyed in a single collectible volume. Curated and selected by India’s most loved writer, this collection brings some of the evocative episodes from Ruskin’s life, iconic Rusty, eccentric Uncle Ken, ubiquitous grandmother, and many other charming, endearing characters in a single volume while also introducing us to a smattering of new ones that are sure to be firm favourites with young readers. Heart-warming, funny and spirited, this is a must-have on every bookshelf.

    It is a keepsake edition with 25 stories, a mixed bag of his most cherished stories like ‘Rusty’s Adventures’; ‘Grandfather’s Stories’; spooky tales along with a diverse set of new stories like ‘Goldfish Don’t Bark’, ‘Friends from the Forest’ and many more. These much-loved stories from the writer on the hill come with excellent and quirky artwork that makes the book an even more fun read.

    Bond, who is a favourite among children and youth alike, took to Instagram and shared a fun image of him holding a soft drink and sporting a fake ‘new mustache’. He said he’s celebrating his birthday month.

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  • Have a brand new beginning with these books

    Have a brand new beginning with these books

    ‘Brand New Start’ teaches you that a lot of success at the start of your career hinges on how well you understand, articulate and present the most important brand you can work on you…writes Siddhi Jain.

    Of course, this is a break time for people to think and move forward with brighter steps. From navigating career misadventures in the corporate world to building a personal brand or navigating one’s own thoughts and feelings on the prolonged ‘new normal, here is a list of titles to choose from, while you stay at home.

    ‘Brand New Start’ by Mainak Dhar

    Studying in college or business school and wondering what it takes to land your dream job? Early in your career and wondering how to set yourself up for success? Feeling off-track after just a couple of years of working and wondering how to find an opportunity that fits you better? If you find yourself nodding to any of these questions, then this is the book for you. ‘Brand New Start’ teaches you that a lot of success at the start of your career hinges on how well you understand, articulate and present the most important brand you can work on. You.

    Combining the wisdom and experience of a CEO gained over two and a half decades in the corporate world with the accessible and engaging storytelling of a bestselling novelist, the book is unique. It will make you reflect, smile, rethink some things you’ve taken for granted, and ultimately equip you with practical advice on how to build a more authentic, more compelling and more differentiated personal brand as a cornerstone of success in your career.

    ‘The Hopeless Romantic’ by Arnab Chandra

    It is a collection of poems and short stories where each piece gives you a glance into the author’s world of imagination. Each poem describes a feeling which is not often talked about or sometimes too much. A book without a sense of direction just to justify the statement, ‘Art is chaos and chaos is art’, it narrates a journey of a soul who is hopeless enough to question life and its dark necessities. Life can be tricky sometimes and it can beat you down, but then, never forget to mourn, to suffer, to cry before you get back up and ‘smile’.

    ‘Career Misadventures And How To Avoid Them’ by Anjali Ahuja

    Many aspire to have a successful corporate career, but in the grueling journey to the top, most of them get stuck at a point and never grow thereafter. Why? Do they lack the ability? Not always. There are invisible black holes along the way that gobble up dreams and careers. Anjali Ahuja is here to shed light on them. Anjali joined the corporate world in 1992 and has since worked for a number of Fortune 500 companies for over two decades. As an HR professional, she had an opportunity to witness the journey of people at various stages of their career. The lessons she shares are backed with intriguing stories of successes and failures, some that of her own, and some that she has witnessed over her journey to the top. If you have recently started a corporate career, or reached a stage ahead but clueless how to navigate your career further, this book has some valuable guidance for you.

    ‘Little Me in Everyone’ by Eddyee Singh

    Every human is born with a “genius”, a guardian spirit allocated at birth. Our whole life is inside our mind, which is a prism refracting the light of everything around and within us. Caged in this mind is the ‘Little Me’ helping us, talking to us, questioning us, and nurturing us all along the way. Every time we indulge in self-doubt and self-pity, the ‘Little Me’ loses a little bit of its brilliance but eventually it thrives on the knowledge we acquire in life and assists us to transform it into wisdom. In pursuit of maintaining our outer self we get so engrossed that this little me gets abandoned in the wilderness of darkness created by us. In this book one will find the reflections of everyone’s ‘Inner Self’ and ‘Little Me’, thus guiding us to learn and rejoice every moment of being alive despite the perplexities of life.

    ‘To, the Bravest Person I Know’ by Ayesha Chenoy

    From growing up with dysfunctional families to coming of age, from dealing with heartbreak, pain and grief to learning to accept and forgive, ‘To, the Bravest Person I Know’ is your guide through every difficult situation. It is modern therapy delivered to you through a series of poems and a letter in verse that runs as a footnote from the beginning to the end of the book. The poems explore the whole construct of ‘normal’, of that which was created to make people feel less normal if they don’t fit in, to make them feel ‘abnormal’. The book tells us that depression is normal, as is fear; feeling insecure is normal, as is hurting people. And bravery is about facing all of this–it’s about facing everything life throws at you every day. ‘To, the Bravest Person I Know’ cuts through rainbows and self-righteous dross to provide a vaccine of truth, liberating and reminding us that we are all in a tunnel, and that it’s normal to feel like we may never get out. But there is light at the end of it.

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  • Walking every day to deliver books at doorstep

    Walking every day to deliver books at doorstep

    She keeps a regular register of the books being delivered and manages according to the guidelines of the Library Council of Kerala…reports Asian Lite News

    K.P. Radhamani, a 64-year-old woman, works as a librarian at Mothakkara in Kerala’s Wayanad district. What makes her unique is that she walks 4 km every day for home delivery of books.

    The “Walking Librarian” as she is fondly called lives in Mothakkara, Vellamunda in Wayanad which is dotted with lush green forests and hilly terrain. She delivers books on fiction, history, politics, travel, movies, in a shopping bag.

    She works as the librarian at Prathiba Public Library in Mothakkara which boasts of around 11,000 books but after the flow of people to the library decreased owing to their commitments in farm, domestic work and other livelihoods, Radhamani decided that she would take the books to them.

    She keeps a regular register of the books being delivered and manages according to the guidelines of the Library Council of Kerala.

    In a shopping bag, the frail woman with the passion to deliver books, carries 25-50 books and gives two books to a family and takes them back after eight days.

    The registration fee to join the library is Rs 25 and the monthly fee is Rs 5. Radhamani feels that by delivering books to people with various reading tastes, she herself is getting hooked to these books.

    She recalled, “I used to narrate stories to my father when I was a child and used to read anything which I could get my hands on including the paper which was used to cover clothes or provisions and there is no life for me without letters. After getting this job with the library, I became an avid and voracious reader taking books from all sections and increasing my knowledge.”

    Wayanad being a backward district with a huge population of tribals, Radhamani has delivered books at the doorsteps of many tribal homes and kindled the passion for reading among their children and women.

    She recollected how the tribal children used to call her after finishing reading the books she had delivered within a few days and waited for her next visit.

    In the shadow of Covid, the number of books being delivered in a month has come down to around 350 from 500.

    She has also doubled up as a tourist guide as several tourists flock to the hilly terrain. For being a guide, she has devoured books related to travel, history and society of Wayanad so that she can properly guide the tourists.

    Radhamani, who studied only upto the 10th standard, said that some books suggested by her readers have remained imprinted in her mind for life.

    An example is one of the bestsellers in Malayalam literature, “Aadujeevitham” by noted writer Benyamin. As she said, “The character Najeeb in that book will always be inside me and will always give one determination and high spirits as how he scripted his own return from an alien land from a remote desert in Saudi Arabia.”

    The books being delivered by Radhamani are of use to several aspirants for civil service examinations. Sajini Damodaran, a housewife in Wayanad who has benefitted from the books being delivered by the “Walking Librarian” said, “I took books which are for competitive examinations and thanks to her, I have written a few public service examinations of the Government of Kerala and am confident of making it.”

    The Walking Librarian who started in this profession in 2012 is now earning Rs 3800 a month, which is a paltry sum given the living indices.

    She said, “I get Rs 3800 a month now but its not the money but the passion for this job that drives me ahead. It’s a very interesting job and I can see light in the eyes of several women while getting new books from our library.”

    Radhamani is now also working with the Green army of the state government, “Haritha Karma Sena” which collects and recycles plastic bottles and lives with her husband Padmanabhan Nambiar and son Rijilesh who is an auto-rickshaw driver. Her daughter is married and living in Tamil Nadu with her two children.

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  • Gender inequalities on art of writing

    Gender inequalities on art of writing

    “Most of the famous writers and outstanding literature in the world is created by women. Most famous best sellers are women. Women are vocal, expressive and creative.”…writes Siddhi Jain.

    As more and more women take to writing as a career, do they still feel reminded that they are female writers? Five authors reveal the kind of comments they have received over their years of writing, relating to gender or not, and how they dealt with them.

    Kavya Sharma, All Seasons Alike

    “People judge you not only for your art and the kind of profession you’ve gotten into, they also assume as a woman you have it easy and this presumption is what creates discord. Some people also assume that as a woman your experiences are limited which further limits your writing arena. There are these huge writing groups who favour a few over others and those same set of people keep getting seen at various events and launches.”

    “Some people said ‘ahh, the privileged sex, you can of course afford to become a writer.’ Some people have said ‘People will only buy your book for how you look, you can get away with bad writing’. Honestly, it did initially bother me a lot as it would anyone who works hard on their art. I answered back and fought with a lot of people for such things; but as I matured I realised that none of these people matter and I cannot waste my energy trying to make them understand. The best way to fight them was to continue working on my art.”

    Anuradha Prasad, Two Winters and 365 Days

    “Most of the famous writers and outstanding literature in the world is created by women. Most famous best sellers are women. Women are vocal, expressive and creative.”

    “I must say women have to work ten times harder than men to create a niche for themselves in a given profession. It’s more challenging, as they are not only working outside, they are working inside the homes too. Women are tugged emotionally on all levels. They are torn between their families and work places. I experienced the same struggle. I handled criticism in stride. Took it easy and improvised on the pointers levelled at me from time to time. Sometimes identified criticism as baseless work of art and moved on!”

    Raina Singhwi Jain, The Golden Bird 2.0

    “As a working professional, one has to deal with criticism. It is however upto us to pay attention only to constructive criticism that can help us improve our skills. My father was the inspiration behind this book. A lot of the ideas mentioned in the book were a result of active debates with my father. I was fortunate enough to be surrounded by highly supportive family and friends who enabled me to focus on the book.”

    “Don’t be overwhelmed by your ambitions and goals, just take the first step and new opportunities will automatically start coming your way.”

    Janhavi Bhat, Ashes of Desires

    “Struggles are a part and parcel of life. Without hardships it is impossible to reach anywhere. The biggest hindrance in my journey was my failure to realise my self-worth. Often times when one chooses a different path and sees a future that’s inconceivable by the majority, a sense of negativity looms over. I always keep an anchor thought as my inspiration.” My anchor thought is my reason to choose writing – express with utmost authenticity and honesty.

    “Authenticity is a deep value in itself. Be fearless and honest. It might be difficult to find people who will support you. Nonetheless, go after your dreams and the right people are sure to accompany you.”

    Arushi Vats, Oasis in the Desert and Other Stories

    “When I was following the path of my dreams, there were many people who made every attempt to belittle my dreams or discourage in some way or other. They would give their unsolicited opinion of how being an author wouldn’t do me good. Nonetheless, I cared less and turned a deaf ear to them. I was confident in my ability to go after my dream of becoming a published author and I am proud that I never bothered to hear those harsh words and demotivate myself.”

    “When I decided to publish my first book, there was no one to give me prior guidance of how to find a publisher or pitch your story. There’s always room to improve. But, the thrill of doing things on your own with all the struggles and experiences gave me some confidence that I can be a writer. I realised that with time writing skills get sharpened and you only get better. Never underestimate yourself, you have the potential and the calibre to do it, so go ahead and do things with unwavering strength.”

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  • Somini’s one shot intro to vaccines

    Somini’s one shot intro to vaccines

    The informative text is accompanied by colourful and quirky illustrations that we hope will take the pain out of the prick even as it highlights the importance of vaccination for children.”…writes Siddhi Jain.

    Kids of current generation is To help children understand the world of vaccines deeper, a new children’s book ‘V for Vaccine: A One-shot Introduction to Vaccines’ by author-journalist Somini Sengupta will attempt to answer some key questions: “What is a vaccine? How is it made? Does it hurt to get a vaccine?”

    children walking in street during covid 19 surge in us

    Through three fun characters, Veni, Vidi and Vici, who love talking about things that start with the letter V, like vaccines, the book answers who invented the first vaccine, whether animals can get vaccines too, and other ways to build immunity and stay healthy. Readers can even create their own vaccine card.

    People line up to enter a mass COVID-19 vaccination site at the United Center in Chicago, the United States,

    The book is published by HarperCollins Children’s Books.

    According to Tina Narang, Publisher, HarperCollins Children’s Books,”for children it’s been a year filled with many new words, starting with corona, coronavirus and Covid, and now more recently, Vaccine — the word that is on everyone’s lips if not on their arms”.

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    “So we are happy to announce ‘V for Vaccine: A One-Shot Introduction to Vaccines’, a book that will introduce children to the how’s and why’s of vaccines and vaccination through an easy-to-understand question and answer format. The informative text is accompanied by colourful and quirky illustrations that we hope will take the pain out of the prick even as it highlights the importance of vaccination for children.”

    “Understanding how vaccines work is the first step to building confidence in science and all of its potential. This engaging and appealing book leads us through questions and answers that show how we can use vaccines to protect us,” says Indian virologist Gagandeep Kang, who is a Professor of Microbiology at Christian Medical College.

    With easy-to-understand information and colourful, quirky illustrations, this book is an engaging and informative look at the importance of vaccination.

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