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This is not my latest read...but of the "most-times-read-books" during my school days :
http://www.ebook-downloader.com/down...elman-46210819
Of course, I read the Thamizh translation only and never the English translation that is in this link. (Original was possibly Russian as the writer is Yakov Perelman, the Thamizh version was made in erstwhile USSR and of top-quality material, distributed by NCBH in India those days).
Go to the "pdf" tab to read in that format. I would recommend jumping to PAGE 98, for a very thrilling story!
(Old Indian King rewarding the inventor of the CHESS game)
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The Kite Runner: A really absorbing read. Got a virtual view of the Afghanistan while reading the book.
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Finished reading 'The Lightning Thief' by Rick Riordan. My 4 grandsons(between ages 13 and 8-all avid book readers) goaded me read it! My dil warned me about it not being my cup of tea! But the kids' recommendation was overwhelming- I can't help pampering them! Well, my dil was right, after all. But it happily carried me to my college days when my subject(literature) introduced me to Greek and Roman mythology. It is awesome to see the kids learning about mythology so early, thanks to the games they play and their curiosity kindled to know more from books and net. The action novel reenacts Greek mythology in modern context. Great imagination connecting us to the past with relevance and clarity. What I liked best is the author's sarcasm about Americans. It was a revelation to me to know the bed of Mississipi is also filled with garbage and the polluted Pacific waters. The juvenile delinquency described and many other casual description of general life there made me ponder over the blindly rosy American dream of our people!
My grandsons want me to read the whole series- about 6. I firmly said NO. one sample is enough I've told them. Next they want me start reading the '39 Clues' series. Again laughter from my dil. I've promised them to read one sample, the 1st of the series-'The maze of Bones'. My endeavours to keep abreast of the new generation is challenging and adventurous! It is interesting for me and them to tease each other about how 'stupid' or 'kiddish' are the games the other loves to play online!
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Finished reading 2 books of the '39 clues' series. Much better than Percy Jackson in Rick Riordan's series of Greek mythology. These books were really enjoyable- in a way resembled my pleasure of a few decades ago of reading Perry Mason, Sherlock Holmes and Hercule Poirot novels! I'm eager to finish all the books of the series. Before that I want to finish my favourite author, Robin Cook's "Brain'.
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A doctoral thesis about dance in pakistan. It is mostly about Indu Mitha (nee Banerjee) ai one time one of the two bharatanatyam teachers in Pakistan. There are some excerpts from it in my blog and it is available online
http://www.escholarship.org/uc/item/8km963tz
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Reading off and on 'The Sources of Social Power' by Michael Mann. Read volumes 1 and 4, parts of 2, and now reading volume 3. The first volume is impressive.
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Just finished 'The Flaming Feet' by D.R.Nagaraj. Liked it very much.
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The Catcher in the Rye (JD Salinger),
Appointment with Death (Agatha Christie), Fifty Shades of Grey (EL James) are some of the recent reads.
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Still reading "How Asia Works" by Joe Studwell. A review http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/2/e3fd2...#axzz2VvZXzLmT and an extract http://www.asianreviewofbooks.com/new/?ID=1463%23!#! and a log discussing the book http://howasiaworks.wordpress.com/ Though This is not about India, it seems very relevant to Indian development discussions. Even thouigh, I am only halfway through the book, I strongly recommend it.
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Over the course of the last few weeks:
1. Public Enemies by Bryan Burrough. An account of the bank robbery (called yeggs) menace in 1930s America and how the fight against them made the FBI. Very racily written, very engrossing for a non fiction, non autobio book.
2. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte. Nothing much to say about this classic except that I was surprised by the sheer zest with which it was written, making me overlook a fairly predictable storyline.
3. Psmith in the city, Galahad at Blandings, Summer Lightning by P G Wodehouse. Again, nothing much to add if you are already a Wodehouse convert (these were re-reads for me in any case). If you haven't read his books and you love humour, it's def worth a good try.