Book Review - Upside Down Fitness

Title - Upside Down Fitness

Author - Manisha Israni

Genre - Wellness

Publisher - The Write Place

ISBN - 978-9-38728-257-5

Are you a fitness freak?

Are you a wellness buff?

Are you the one who would love to workout?

If you fall under any one of the above category or does not fall under any of them, this book is for you.

I have read books on wellness but got bogged down by boredom on various occasion. When I had this book in my hands, I knew for sure that I am going to enjoy reading each and every page of this book and my intuition was proved correct.

This book is a combination of Food+Exercise+Yoga. Yes. You read it right. The book focuses on all the aspects by touching base on all tho give three major aspects since, in real life, we tend to give importance to any one or at the max, both.

The introduction itself gave a perfect opening which evoked interest on this book instantly. Author talks about getting our routine changed since we all need a fresh perspective, a one that is enjoyable,doable and manageable in our over-committed busy lifestyle(I have reproduced these lines as it is from the book). The book is divided into 10 parts and each one gave a different dimension to the respective headers/title.

What did I like the most?

This book would never make you feel bored.

You would end up reading the book in one-shot.

Clear mention about the products/methods without taking us on a round about.

Easy procedures which could be followed/implemented.

Practical examples/methods which could be practised/followed.

The book talks about Being Realistic and about SMART REWARDS which I liked the most. I was also surprised to find the mention of various diets with an explanation in detail along with their disadvantages. Then comes the mention about Balanced Meal which is the need of the hour. The Pyramid of this Balanced Meal would give you a fair idea as to what you should have and when.

Smart Food Choices have been dealt in detail in this book. The Seven Chakras Chart, Digital Detox, Laugh, Things you could do and most importantly, the "So What?" factors would give you a different way of approaching the life. 

Smart Supplements and Smart Meals will be an instant hit among the foodies. Author has given Smart Breakfast/Tiffin/Dinner Recipes for Non-Vegetarian, Vegetarian & Vegans are well researched and given in a easy to understand way via tabular columns.

The book also has a Smart Workout Plan, 10 Week Meal Plan coupled with Smart Fitness Advice from Professionals around the World which would make us get a peek through on how these professionals maintains their body so fit which make others envious.

Last but not the least, the book has Beginners Yoga Guide which has the mention of various Yoga Asanas which has been depicted with pictorial representation carrying the pics of none other than the author herself.

I would recommend this book for all who would wish to live a long and healthy life. Who doesn't want to have one?

My Rating for this book would be 5/5

This book is available on both eBook and Paperback formats on Amazon

Book Review - The Stalker

Title - The Stalker

Author - Sandeep Sharma

Genre - Thriller(Fiction)

Publisher - R9Books & Anybook

ISBN - 978-938790621

Sandeep Sharma is back again with another thriller. What I liked is the way he takes the story which gives you an hint in the beginning and when you thought you hit upon the clue, you would end up seeing the twist in the tale.

His writing style is simple which makes even a person who is not so good in the language can understand the story well/easy. This story revolves around Randhir Kamat and his girl friend Rupali when the latter starts getting death threats from Deepali. Please note that you need to follow these two names carefully as you may end up getting confused with both the names - Deepali and Rupali.

While the initial investigations proves that Deepali was behind the death threats, things takes a different turn when Rupali starts getting threats again - despite of Deepali being warned.

Who was behind these threats?

What was the motive?

How does it get revealed?

Read this novel to find out more.

My Rating for this novel would be 3.5/5

Th\is book is available on Amazon

The Care of Mother in the form of Wipes from Mother Sparsh

Mother Sparsh has been the trusted name among the Mother's for some time now. They have always delivered the safe and quality product which has helped the newly born to stay fresh, soft and supple as their wipes have been used very effectively to cleanse their body till date.Keeping the baby clean is a Himalayan task. Gone are the days of using clothes since they may not be good enough to address the baby's sensitive skin thereby resulting in rashes.

A baby needs utmost care. They tend to get untidy without their knowledge. While we can avoid it most of the time, it becomes imperative to cleanse it as soon as we see some spillovers. Even if the baby remains tidy all through the day, it is better to cleanse them once in a while as we cannot bath them every now and then. This is where, Mother Sparsh Water Wipes comes into picture.

On my previous blog posts, you have seen as to how much care has been taken in manufacturing these wipes and the major content of it - which is nothing but Water. I had also performed the candle test and proved that this product does not have a polyester content in it. After seeing it, many of my friends had personally contacted me to let me know that they started using it and found it real effective since they did not face any issues on their baby's skin any further.

Mother Sparsh water wipes are safe and is made of superior medical grade cloth. These water based wipes are unscented and is perfect for hand and mouth cleaning.

The 99% water based wipes by Mother Sparsh now comes with Moisture Lock Lid which means, the moisture on the wipes are kept intact. Hence, even when you use the last wipe, you can be rest assured of the moisture content on it without having to worry about using the dry wipes on the baby.

These wipes are made of high grade material and they are unscented which means, your baby won't have to smell any unwarranted perfume which he/she may or may not like it. It is time to say "No" to towel since we usually wash it with detergents which may not suit well for the baby's sensitive skin. It is time to embrace water based wipes which are 3 times thicker than ordinary wipes is always friendly to the skin, even if it is sensitive. Needless to say, a baby's skin is the most sensitive skin and needs utmost care.

                                    

Now that you have heard about this new variant, what stops you from going ahead? Go and grab you pack now and see your baby smile infectiously without having to contract one :-)

As a Mother, it is also the imperative duty for those who use the wipes to ensure its disposal after use. Mother Sparsh Water Wipes are made of biodegradable material which ensures that the product can be safely disposed after its use without effecting the environment.

The wipes are dermatologically tested and is also examined for rashes and infection. When you use this to clean your baby’s hands, you are ensuring about removing the dirt on their hands without having them exposed to chemicals.

Mother Sparsh is the name. Keep using it and feel the real difference. When you have the best product out there, you need not have to think twice. The product is priced at Rs.299 for a pack of 72 wipes and Rs.499 for a combo of 2 packsand is available on Amazon, Flipkart and Firstcry.

Book Review - The History Wars

Title - The History Wars

Author - Stuart Blackburn

Genre - Thriller/Fiction

Publisher - Brown Dog Books

ISBN - 978-1-78545-385-4

A thriller which is coupled with sudden turn in the events which would keep you captivated till the end. The fact that the story is written by a person who is not of Indian origin deserves a special applause. It is a well researched subject which brings out the stark reality in front of us. I wasn't surprised about the fact that going in search of truth which involves some deep research involving various scenarios would lead to a real threat to life.

I usually do a dissection of the story and various characters on my review but here I wouldn't be doing it as I may end up revealing more than necessary. The story revolves majorly around two characters Ravi, a journalist from Delhi and Peggy, an American researcher.

While Ravi ends up investigating the complicate case of demolition of a mosque, he comes into contact with Peggy who finds a mysterious "Rosetta Stone" gets to know about the crucial information which came with it. 

What information was hidden?

How was it deciphered?

How did it go on to endanger the lives of Ravi, Peggy and others?

What role did Mrs K, Mrs Hart, Khan, Sharma, Alan, Professor Hill, Sylvia,Jim and Alice play?

Read this novel which has been written with intricate details making use of all the characters in an effect in an effective way coupled with some unexpected events. Though the novel is little lengthy, I felt that this was very much required without which a proper justification to the story wouldn't have been done by the author.

This book is available on Amazon in both eBook and Paperback version.

Book Review - Distress to De-Stress

Title - Distress to De-Stress

Author - Vikas Kakwani

Genre - Self Help / Personality Development

Publisher - NotionPress

ISBN - 978-1684665259

Are you in stress?

Do you think, you are one among the select unfortunate to be facing stress at work or in the family?

Are you looking for some intervention to help you overcome your stress?

Are you seeking a way to come out of your stress?

Most importantly, do you need help or seek an advice to help overcome your present situation?

If your answer is YES to any one of the above, this book is the answer to that.

There are lot of self help and personality development books available out there but I can certainly vouch that this book stands apart. Vikas has used the examples from day to day life to put forth his observations/points. You may wonder as to what this book has to offer which other books hadn't but when you finish reading this book, you can feel yourself being light and has also found "The Light at the end of the tunnel".

The book is divided into two parts. 

1. Reasons for Distress

2. Ways to De-Stress

I liked the pictorial representation of how a combination of various small acts would trigger the distress to its peak(Page No.75). The difference between Needs-Wants-Desires has been clearly outlined and how each stage(from 2nd level) is responsible for causing distress. From the desire of owning a house which gets fulfilled by taking up a mortgage and end up paying them for a longer term to personal relation ship problems has been very well explained in this book which could give you a hint as to where you were failing. Despite having one of the lowest divorce rates in the world, India still ranks in the bottom end when it comes to Happiness Index which shows that married people are not always happy.

I learnt about Kanban through this book. We all know about the Padman Arunachalam Muruganandham but how many of us know about Afroz Shah? Do you know about 1-2-Ka-4 Meetings?

Read this book to find the answer for all and share it with your friends/relatives too.

Last but not the least,try taking up the test online at www.distress2destress.com to find out where you stand.

This book is available on Amazon on both Paperback and eBook formats.

Why Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava is not just a movie for Jr. NTR fans

What comes to your mind when you think of a hyper mass movie that is full of super massy scenes? I don’t need to make a wild guess to know it is ‘Tollywood’, but the first thing that hit my mind was N. T. Rama Rao Jr. Our very own young tiger is known for his action flicks around the world, especially among the Telugu audience. Despite being a regional star, Jr. NTR is very popular among the North Indians too for his larger than life movies.

But all this changed when Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava hit the theatres. The movie not only managed to pull in some great reviews from the movie critics but also left the Telugu audience slack-jawed. Sitting on the edge of the seat as the movie was nearing the end, I knew one thing for sure that this movie will do wonders not only among the Jr. NTR fans but also general audience.

So, I’m going to give a couple of reasons as to what separates Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava from other Jr. NTR movies.

1. The Storyline - Before I get started with what makes it different, let me first give you a little gander into Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava. Veera Raghava Reddy runs away after his father is murdered to stop the factionalism that has been prevailing for 30 years in his village. The central conflict of the movie itself is very different from any other movie that Jr. NTR has been a part of and the fans couldn’t be any happier. Here, the protagonist, Raghava (Jr. NTR) wants to stop the factionalism prevalent in his region without shedding any blood which kind of contradicts the popular factionism movie narrative in Telugu.
2. The aftermath of factionalism - While a lot of Telugu movies have already covered factionalism, they failed to show one thing that became one of the selling factors of Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava and that is the ‘aftermath of factionalism’. With many deaths being attributed to factionalism in his region, the protagonist Raghava is compelled to think about the consequences of factionism through the course of the movie.
3. The dialogues: There is a reason why Times Of India called it an emotional drama disguised as a commercial movie, and that is because of the writer, Trivikram Srinivas.  Rightly referred to as‘Guruji’ by fans, his philosophical perspective is evident in the thought-provoking dialogues of Aravinda Sametha too. In the process, Trivikram has set a new benchmark for the future action flicks to come in Telugu.
4. Pooja Hegde as Aravinda: Of all the characters that played a huge role in the movie, it was Aravinda played by Pooja Hegde that stole the show. While many complain about actresses being mere props to sell more tickets, Trivikram makes Pooja’s character Aravinda the voice of reason in Raghava’s life. By presenting such a powerful role, Pooja and Trivikram are sure to inspire female portrayals in future Telugu movies.

These pointers are like the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the cinematic experience that Aravinda Sametha provides. So, if you are looking to watch a Telugu movie with some food for thought, I would definitely recommend you to check out Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava on ZEE5.

Book Review - Kill Code

Title - Kill Code

Author - Clive Fleury

Genre - Science Fiction(Dystopian)

Publisher - TCK Publishing

ASIN - B07JZX5VV2

When I was reading this novel, I could sense a slight resemblance of few Hollywood movies (which I do not want to name)  with this story line. However, I can very well say that this novel offered a complete different approach in the end. Initially, I thought that I could tell you the story in just two lines but the sudden turn in the events during the midway of the story made it a unique one.

The story is set in the future. The story revolves around Hogan Duran, Ruby Mason, Jake Teerman, Max, Beecham, Jerry Anderson, Gen Stoker, Sandman(I guess I covered almost all the characters here). During this time, only the rich could afford good food and other facilities. There was this faction called Krails who had been a constant threat to the law and order of the region. However, their threats were nullified by NSC(National Security Council).

Hogan, who has served in the army earlier and also as a cop had to resign from his job but that did not deter his ambition to apply for a job in NSC. He along with other candidates like Ruby and Jake had to go through various vigorous tests for the selection.

Who among these had made it to the list?

What was their profile?

What did NSC do, in general or otherwise?

Where did they get their funding from?

Who were these so called Krails and why were they on loggerheads with NSC?

Read this novel which promises you of unexpected twists in the tale coupled with rage,anger,treachery,conspiracy which has been blended on a right proportion coupled with science fiction element added to it. This makes this novel, a compelling read.

This book is available on Amazon on both eBook and Paperback formats

In search of a pollution free home

Naresh wakes at 3 AM in the morning and searches his wardrobe. He doesn't find “it” and runs towards his laptop bag to search for it. Found it! But…when he held it a moment longer, he felt the emptiness in it. He realized that it got over two days back. He was not weak yet, but the thought that it is empty made his body shiver. He slowly walked back to the bedroom when his wife came out of the bed in search of him. She had seen it before, and she asked him if she should go out to get it.

Naresh shook his head no and quickly took his Scooty out. He woke up the pharmacist running a 24x7 medical shop inside a small hospital.

"Inhaler, please." Naresh requested, as he puffed out his breath heavily.

His hands were shivering and no wonder he behaved like an addict waiting to feel the Asthalin spray into his lungs. He got relieved the moment he puffed it into his mouth. This is a typical scenario with many living in the city. Just like diabetes and BP, wheezing is part of the lifestyle now.

If you don't believe what we are saying here, check out the report -"Air pollution killed 1 in 8 people." A report by the India State-Level Disease Burden Initiative, 6.7 lakh death in 2017 was due to outdoor particulate matter (PM), and 4.8 lakh was due to household air pollution.

Where have we gone wrong? We look for everything within the city limits. For example, we think that life is beautiful only if we stay near Mount Road, Anna Nagar, Adyar or Tiruvanmaiyur.

The reason being, access to movie theaters, beach, malls, hospitals, schools, and sports facilities. What most of us fail to understand is that we also get an additional baggage called, "Pollution."

Many move to the outskirts of Chennai in search of fresh air for their kids, adults and senior citizens in the family.

As a team, we visited many places in Chennai to measure the pollution level of multiple communities. As we passed through the Old Mahabalipuram Road, we entered the Eden Park. The serene community very close to Siruseri IT park had access to everything one would look for in city life. Without getting into details, we tried to check the pollution level and realized the difference. Not only our device shouted “Healthy”, but our nostrils did too! With easy access to the workplace, malls, hospitals, a school within the community and world-class sports facilities, it was a wonderful experience for our team to walk around the place.

We would like to capture a statement from the report

"In 2017, 77% of the population was exposed to PM2.5 above 40 μg/m3, the recommended limit by the National Ambient Air Quality Standards. The nation's mean ambient PM2.5 exposure of 90 μg/m3 in 2017 was one of the highest in the world."

Here is the Real-time Air Quality Index (AQI) of some of the important places in Chennai:

• Alandur Bus Depot, Chennai: 221 (Unhealthy)

• Sardar Patel Road, Madhya Kailash: 119 (Unhealthy)

• Near Gemini Flyover: 169 (Unhealthy)

• Manali: 298 (Unhealthy)

• Velachery: 146 (Moderate)

Let's now explore another article about the air quality in Chennai. 

http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/chennai/2018/feb/04/air-quality-in-chennai-unhealthy-levels-of-toxic-metal-55-per-cent-higher-than-in-2017-study-1768227.html

The air pollution in Chennai is mainly due to the construction work going on as part of metro work, building construction and flyover work. An alarming amount of Manganese and Lead were found in the air. 10% of the pollution was contributed to vehicles that are buzzing around the city. The other pollutants found in the air were a higher percentage of aluminum, iron, and calcium.

As a responsible citizen, we should support initiatives to reduce pollution in our atmosphere. It wouldn't be long before we reach an alarming level that we all have to carry a mask while walking outside.

This article intends to kindle the thought process in all the readers about the pollution level and at the same time highlight places within Chennai like Eden Park at Siruseri where the pollution level is low primarily due to the number of trees around the region and builders following the safety norms while constructing their buildings.

While it is fun to go outskirts of Chennai or a hill station in search of fresh air, why not live in a place surrounded by fresh air. Come and explore Eden Park at Siruseri, a premium sports Community project by Pragnya.

Book Review: Piku & Viru (A Fan-Actor Drama) by Priyanka Agarwal

Book Title: Piku & Viru (A Fan-Actor Drama) by Priyanka Agarwal

Author: Priyanka Agarwal

Format: Kindle

Total Number of Pages: 420

Language: English

Publisher: Amazon

Publishing Date: 2018

This story runs like a movie for me, probably it has a movie star in it. As the story opens up I got introduced to our lead character name Piyanjali Kumari aka Piku. She is a content writer – mainly write travel stories for a website that deals in travel and lifestyle kind of stuff. I always had the impression that content writers in Mumbai get well paid as compared to other cities. Her story reveals something else. Her boss and a few other members do not sound co-operative to her. May be she is smart, extra talented, or better than them in creativity. In nutshell, it is revealing that her life in office isn’t that good. She thinks of leaving the job but lacks the temerity. On the other hand, she is worried about her age, as she is brooding for marriage with a right partner. Her last ex – Homi – isn’t there for her. They have issues. Also, she isn’t getting any good man on dating apps as well. You can see that she is surrounded with desires and competency and not so good results. The kind of life she portrays is a typical metro city life – in these city people can live without food but not without a partner – they need someone with whom they can share or enjoy or look forward. I understand the kind of city life staged in this novel is something that makes one lonely and reclusive – the intensity is higher if someone is into a creative sort of a job. I mean to say there is a lot of background coverage for the overall story, though much sweeps and anecdotes and history is associated with Piku.

Piku falls in love with Vian Rustom, who is a popular TV actor. If you see TV soaps I hope you can understand how he must have looked – tall, fair, smart and immaculate dressing sense. Isn’t it that nowadays TV stars are more beautiful than the mainstream movie actors? To make the story movable, we have this angelic voice of ‘H’ with Piku. See, the story stretches over 400 pages, till midway you will find the story getting repetitive in its outlook. As the events and thrills and actions all take place around Piku, we often go to her office, her basic tussle while traveling and at home with a younger sister and of course with parents. For me, the story sounds moveable when she finally happens to meet the man of her dreams or say her celebrity crush: Vian. In her strange yet credible fantasy world, she renames Vian as Viru. It’s not Jay and Viru from Sholay. It is Piku and Viru. People in love often name each other reverently, nothing to be felt offended.

It is often said that celebrity people are lonely because they are self-obsessed. May be! And here, in the characterization of Viru I see the veracity of that statement. The author should have explored why TV celebrities are alone and mean and all that. She should have shown some reasons and sweeps and subplots for that. Viru is always busy with shooting – he is starring quite a number of serials.

The moments that they together spent are enthralling, especially the film studios ones. I loved that part, the author intricately put forward as what goes in there – on the sets, in the make-up van, small allocated rooms for actors and actresses, and most importantly about the ambience and the tenacity of people working there.

Talking about second part of the novel, it deals with Piku’s life after the heartbreak. As it’s given in the blurb. Had the story written in third voice narration, it would have leveraged the author to put a lot more about Vian, after all he too is an important and equally lead character in the story. It is a good and lengthy novel that you will begin liking after reaching midway crises. Priyanka’s humours suppressed tone makes it worth reading. In snatches the intensity of the book may push you for melancholy otherwise it is a light read.

Book Review – Gift of Confidence by Rohit Narang

Title - Gift of Confidence

Author - Rohit Narang

Genre - Motivational Fiction

Publisher - Partridge Publishing India

For a student, what’s the biggest fear? The most probable answer is, that be it any kind of student, bright to average to poor, they all fear failing in exams. From a student our society expects a lot, especially our parents always hope that we should always finish the line first. This novel, Gift of Confidence by Rohit Narang is based on a student’s phase where he fails to clear his CA final exams and thereafter what all events unfold that drastically change his life forever. The book is all about that change and discovery!

Like most other relevant novels, this too possesses a question: as how to be confident in life and how to utilize that confidence for achievements? And we get all answers through the explicit characterization of Pancham, the CA final year student. Pancham is on a quest – he needs answers on as how to handle failure, how to brace up for battle that results in win, how to regain everything after a shock of failure, how to advance in life confidently and many other questions related to study and exams and grades.

I finished reading this book in one sitting i.e. 4 hours. The author has written the story in very simple and yet expressible form. I never felt bored because the book is short, point to point, covering everything crisply in well-prosed seven chapters. Though the book is motivational in its stance, however I have mixed feeling as I found it an incredible combination of fear, confidence, faith, and spirituality contrasting each other.

However, for me, spiritual angle stands tall above all the elements, as you can see when Pancham begins visiting the Gurudwara he subtly expects to find solutions to his problems. The kind of faith he and his mother shows in the grace of god is worth attention. The smiling man aka Vandit Ji comes forward to ease Pancham's tension and to some extent helps him in preparation for his exams.

The author has quoted relevant and easy-to-understand examples for building confidence, faith on oneself, faith on abilities, faith on god, etc. As a student we must have come across such examples and teachers who took great efforts to push our malleable minds into constructive avenues. This book has come up at a very right time and going to stay useful for many years at least for the student community, who have tendency to hop from one source to another to overcome the fear of failure in exams.

Without any spoilers, I would also like to say that other than useful points about confidence and faith and exam preparations, there run two concurrent stories – one is of Pancham, and the other of Vandit Ji. You must read the book to get access to their stories. Their struggle and strength of character in the adversity not only encourage you but also delight your heart.

This book is available on Amazon and other leading online stores.

Read it like a BOLT or shall I say at "Lightening Speed"?

Are you a reader?

Do you love reading books?

Have you had the habit of reading  books real fast while you were a kid but witnessed the speed dwindling to record speed as you grew up?

Whatever we have read or learned till date would hardly make a fraction of the resources available out there. We have got Google to refer to our queries but don’t you think that we cannot depend on them all the time – 24/7?

Information is equivalent to GOLD. I am sure you would agree to this for how many times have you let your favourite book go despite of watching them on “Lightening Deal” on Amazon or Flipkart. 

Due to lack of time, you felt that you wouldn’t be able to read it due to your packed schedule or you couldn’t afford to spend 8-10 hours to completely read the book?

You could overcome this. Are you surprised? I was also surprised when I stumbled upon something. This isn’t a MAGIC or some rocket science.

Enough said – there is something called as PhotoReading Workshop being introduced in India for the very first time by the renowned International Coach – Connie Larkin.

Wondering what is in store for you?

By attending this simple yet powerful workshop, you could see yourself transforming yourself to a super being from the otherwise normal one. What if I said that once you master this technique, you would be able to “mentally photograph” pages at 25,000 words a minute. This is something which is possible only when you travel at the speed of light or get sucked into a black hole which facilitates time travel.

IT IS NOW OR NEVER…

Come and attend this first of its kind workshop happening in Mumbai and get to go through the books 10 times faster with better understanding. If you are a #BookReviewer, I am sure you wouldn’t want to miss it for sure since you can review 10 books at a time, in the place of 1.

HURRY UP!!! If you haven't booked your seats already, log on to @BookMyShow https://in.bookmyshow.com/events/photo-reading-workshop/ET00090487 or visit https://connielarkin.com/mumbai/ to register.

Book Review - Wild Things

Title - Wild Things

Author - Leena Saldanha

Genre - Poetry

Publisher - Leadstart Corp

ISBN - 978-93-52010-78-3

This is one of the exemplary collection of poems I have read till date. The book revolves around various aspects including Love, Nature, Hope, Motherhood, Dignity, Childhood, Prayer and many more.

The book has a collection of 86 poems which has been divided into 4 categories namely - Deserts, Forests, Mountains & Ocean. Though I have liked all the poems, I would like to touch upon few which really moved me.

From DESERTS, I liked India's Daughter & Sands of Time where in the former, the author/poet has brought out the stark realities of a girl child in India - where we worship women in the form of Goddess but also see them as a material of lust. The country which has witnessed some gruesome rape incidents like Nirbhaya, has been captured very vividly in the poem which would leave you in tears and also to ponder as to how this could be addressed effectively. The latter is one of the longest poems which is very much self explanatory through its title.

From FORESTS, I liked Cooking Up A Story, Hypocrites and The Drug Addict. The first one talks about a very unusual subject which is a Pickle. Yes. You read it right. While we read the history of various events day in and day out, the poet feels as to why there is no mention about our own Pickles which has been passed on from generation to generation, without a note but is still executed with perfection. Hypocrites has the mention of these lines in the end

"They call me mother and sister and love

While their own eyes strip me bare"

How true were those above lines :-(

This poem is somewhat similar to the one in Deserts - India's Daughter in terms of context and feel, it invokes inside you when you finish reading it.

The Drug Addict is not exactly about the addiction to drug but talks about another addiction which is even more dangerous than that. You must read it to find out as to which addiction the poet has highlighted through her yet another powerful poem.

From MOUNTAINS, I liked Anagrams, Blame Games and Peace. I loved the reference of EARTH as HEART or Vice-Versa in the poem Anagram. The Blame Games would make you think for sure as it is about how we blame others for our own fault or incapability. The reference used in the poem was nothing other than a Treadmill. I am sure, by now, you would have got what the poet intended to convey. Peace has these powerful lines at the end

"Pray

If you must

If you must pray

Pray a prayer

Of love"

From Oceans, I liked To My Daughter where the poem ends like this

"Make a world, my girl

That no longer needs

Women's Day"

What I liked in general is the way in which these poems have been penned. While some are real short, some are lengthy. The wordings used were so powerful that you would feel like living those characters in real. Each and every poem conveys a story/message that would make you feel that you have read a good collection of poems after a real long time...

The book is available on Amazon