Shadow of Life

Isn't it dangerous when you read a book written 76 years ago, and it still stands true? It was scary reading this book and knowing how falling into the footsteps of wicked people can reverse a situation. It is crucial to take note of our conscience and be aware of circumstances around us. To have knowledge about the economy, in general, is a boon that we take lightly. Also, half-knowledge is dangerous as people can cook up stories and force you to think what they are saying is true by sugar-coating facts. It shows us how a corrupt leader can ruin the productivity of the people and make them think they are not working up to their 100% capacity. It also showed the difference between autocratic and democratic economies. In one, you get to select the person and voice your opinion, whereas, in another, the leader elects himself and makes you believe it was a unanimous decision. In this book, the farm was taken over by the animals and Pigs, who think they are the smartest, become the lea...

I was very excited to read this book because this was supposed to tell me the journey of a person trying to be himself and find his place in the world where being LGBTQI+ is a crime. Things might have improved for them in the modern world, but this wasn't the case previously. So, no matter how hard you try to understand, you will never know their suffering. You can only be empathetic. While reading the book, I felt like my friend was trying to tell me his story. I have read reviews where people said it felt repetitive. But I felt like I could listen to his story over and over because, after all, isn't that what we do when someone is trying to share their grief or joy. They tend to repeat a few things and emphasize some moments more than others. The sole reason for me to read this book was to know my friend better and understand how difficult things were/are for him. It might not be the same, but I got a glimpse of everything. This book was too personal, as the author has poured...

Poetry books are always beautiful because they speak more with fewer words. To grasp the underlying meaning, you need to reach the depth of the expressions. They make you feel things that you have forgotten about and make you forget those that you don't want to remember. Poetry is a wordplay where you like some and love some a little more than the others. Lullabies take you to places from where you do not want to come back. I really loved a few pieces of poetry. They spoke to me in a language which I'm unable to express. Some were too distant for me to reach. It might be because of the way I approached them or never had that kind of experience to get those. It is a combination of poetry and excerpts. I have always loved Lang Leav's posts. Hence, the book came with a familiar aura of wishful emotions. If you are a connoisseur of poetry, you should definitely try it. It might not be best, but it will provide you with something useful. Rating - 3.5/5 Genre - Poetry

It was an interesting read as it puts across the concept of good and evil in a person. It is like good and bad both are part of the same coin. So every person has both sides of a coin. For some, goodness is on the heavier side, whereas for some, evil takes over everything else. How you balance it or maintain it depends on you and your willpower. This book is a perfect example of this. It shows how for the smaller gains, we become greedy and let our evil side rule to get some attention or please our ego. But in the longer run, all these things become petty and make us terrible human beings. Even if we want to become better, it becomes hard to let go of our habits. It also shows how our ego plays with us and how we become a slave to it. The relationship between Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde is like two inseparable friends who don't like each other but can't stay without each other. On a bigger scale, you need to keep your emotions in check and never give a free hand to greed. Because onc...

Some books make you feel so many emotions in a short period of time. They are like those friends who you always admire despite their shortcomings, who you love unconditionally. There is nothing wrong with them, and even if there is, you would easily forgive them because they are the epitome of happiness for you. Though this book talks about pain and suffering, even that feels like a melody to my ears. I witness so many beautiful moments in between where I see how we humans crave for few bondings. When a daughter leaves a house, she takes along so many memories with her of the house and the family. To separate herself from that part of life is the toughest part, and on top of it, if your family refuses to accept your new relationship, she is heartbroken. It happened with Rukmini. Her family has cast her out. Here, you will get to see the bond of a girl with each family member; be it her father, mother, brother or uncle. Each bond is precious in its own way, and any issue with any of the...

It is the final book in the series with some action-packed sequence that will make you hold your seat tight. It was fun reading this one. I really enjoyed the first one, A Flight of Broken Wings, but it topped that as well.  It takes further the connection between ariels and humans. You will see how things have changed over a while, for better or worse. The main characters are Ruban (Human) and Shwaan (Ariel). They don't like each other. But as the story moves forward, you can see two strangers becoming best of friends. The best part I liked in the book is anybody alive has a conscience. So no matter what, there will be a part of them that will always root for what is right. Here, you will see a different side of Ruban, where in the first book, he was strict and a no-nonsense man. In this one, he is more empathetic and understanding but looks irritated most of the time. Shwaan is the coolest guy in the town. He has various conspiracy theories that always work in his favour. If you ...

The book starts with a story of two couples who are trying to cope with the modern lifestyle. They want to pursue their dreams but end up doing something else in order to sustain themselves. Later, it shows the journey of a person who has nothing, but with the help of his hard work and luck, becomes rich and famous. Then how his lineage turns out is covered in the book. As the story progressed, I felt the title of the protagonist also changed from one person to another. It was so seamless that I stopped bothering about the previous one, but I could feel their presence throughout. The book revolves around waste management and how it can affect our environment if we won't start taking a step toward reducing waste. It gives you a feel of a dystopian novel where everything is going wrong. You get a glimpse of the amount of waste we are creating at an individual level. And how industries and the developed countries try to take advantage of it by dumping everything to small and developin...