Thursday 19 March 2015

BOOK REVIEW OF HARMONY AND HOME ALONE BY AABHA VASTA MIDHA.




About the Book
 

Harmony is the author's debut as a published poet. An anthology of 38 poems, it is a collection of contemporary poetry which is both delicate and bold. The poems have a wide milieu, ranging from the dipped in love, 'My first Lover' to the 'The Empowered Woman' giving a call to women to rise above patriarchy, from 'Harmony' gently warning man about the dangers of Artificial Intelligence to 'Gratitude' asking the reader to court one's blessings in life.

The contemporary poems written in free style will both delight and make you ponder about the message s locked in each poem. Harmony has all the attributes of a desirable poetry product.

About the Author

Aabha Vatsa Midha is a post-graduate in Pure Sciences based in Faridabad. She is an ex-teacher, a blogger, a poet and an author. She grew up in Allahabad and Zambia imbibing diverse cultures. Her first published work is a travelogue on Amarnath titiled Barfani Baba, To Amaranth Happily which was published in 2013. She is a quintessential lover of life and is married with two daughters.
You can reach her at aabhavatsa@gmail.com



 Review

 "Harmony" begins with a preface that sketches the journey of the poet that led to the penning of her poetry book. After her stint at poetry as a kid, it was a couple of years back that she started writing poems, again.

This book contains 38 poems of varied themes - from nature to devotional, social and personal. What stands out in almost all her poems is the refrain. They have at times served the purpose of emphasis, but at many places become unnecessary repetition...which could have been avoided.

The poems are easy to understand. They are short and to the point. Belief in self and in the divine, the power of the stoic soul, of finding happiness within, being a mother...these are some of the themes that are repeated.

For me personally, The Empowered Woman is one poem that stood out. It has a powerful message to the society keeping in mind the current social scenario.

"Do not take away
My right to think
Do not take away
My right to walk with freedom

I seek no master
I seek no approval
All I desire
Is my voice be heard."

With life passing us by in a speed which we cannot comprehend at times, we keeping wishing for a break either in form of a vacation or just some time spent with ourselves...Interlude is one such poem where the poet who has been searching for this break finds it, reveals in it and has the wisdom to accept that it is short lived and waits for it to pass by again. We can sense her child-like glee in this poem.

"You seemed
Like
The sweet fresh wind
As I gathered
My wits.
I decided
Your gentle ways
Were meant for me

I took advantage
To the full
As if running
In mustard fields
My heart full of
Gaiety."

You Sang to Me is a romantic poem and it tugged at my heart in a way we all can relate to this feeling making you caught up in this whirlwind yourself.

"You sang to me
The love song
In a language
Alien to me
But I felt my heart flutter
To your melody."

Verdict
Aabha is an upcoming poet with a lot of potential. This book makes it a light read. 


  • Paperback: 96 pages
  • Publisher: Authorspress (2015)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 8172739710
  • ISBN-13: 978-8172739713

HOME ALONE.




 About the Book
 

Home Alone is the author's second poetry book. A melange of 34 poems ranging from prayers to mindless slaughter of cows in Nepal.

The book starts by invoking the Goddess of learning, art and music, Saraswati and covers a spectrum of topics. From the intense 'Lost Passion' to the happy 'Picnic'. From the though provoking 'Prejudice' to the delightful 'The Orchard'. From the warm and glowing 'Home Alone' to the sell motivating 'Awake! Arise!'. Home Alone will delight and appeal to one and all.

Review
This book too has varied themes but a few poems are written about her daughter who recently got married. The book starts with an invocation to Goddess Saraswathi.

Since her first book, the poet shows a marked growth and touches the right cords. But again the refrains are too many and repetitive.

Scars is a poem that again deals with the plight of the women in general. The way we are expected to sacrifice our dreams and aspirations for the sake of others just because we are women.

"I know of many scars
Of cheated practices
Of undermined appreciation
And forgotten dreams."

Towards Light is about the realization of self-worth and breaking free.

"Sifted through controversy
And heartache
No more of your
Capricious tantrums
I choose to walk in light
Walk towards light."

The Burden again is a woman centric poem which highlights the plight of women who are made to hide behind the veil...and the veil does not actually mean anything except oppression.

"Would she ever get freedom
Like her enviable counterparts?
The Purdah
The Veil
The Scarf
Heaved a sigh of wanting
Would the burden ever be released?"

Verdict

The poet has done a good job of talking about the women and the societal status she has in many religions. Aabha has a way with portraying sensitive issues and it hits you hard. There are some spelling mistakes in both the books though which has to be looked into. A good read.


  • Paperback: 88 pages
  • Publisher: Authorspress (2015)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 935207002X
  • ISBN-13: 978-9352070022



Sunday 8 March 2015

BOOK REVIEW : BREACH BY AMRITA CHOWDHURY.



Breach 
by 
Amrita Chowdhury


The Blurb

How secure are your secrets in the virtual world?  Weeks before pharma-giant Acel is ready to file a global patent application for cancer wonder-drug Colare, its offshore data centre in Mumbai is hacked. The charismatic, young leader of its Indian business, Dr Udai Vir Dhingra, finds himself being blamed for negligence and breach of security. Battling market pressures, media scrutiny, livid American bosses and crumbling relationships, Vir must find the perpetrators, or see his career – and his life – spiral downwards. But the deeper he gets dragged into the shadowy world of masked online identities and muddied digital footprints, the more Vir discovers that nothing is easy or obvious, and everything has a price. Set across Mumbai, Washington and Guangzhou, Breach is a compelling and edgy cyber thriller that explores the dark and dangerous underbelly of our increasingly virtual existence

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My Review:
This is one book that measures up to the International standards of story telling in terms research, plot and detailing. 

This is the first cyber crime thriller that I have read which is written by an Indian Author  and was completely drawn into the world of computers, codes, data and the ugly underworld of hacking and of course its repercussions.

As the Title suggests, there is a Breach in the computer data collecting system that holds the data for the new wonder-drug Colare, which was supposed to cure pancreatic cancer. This Breach could cost millions of dollars and a loss of patenting the drug for the pharma giant Acel which would push them back in the race and competition.

The story starts in Rockville, Maryland and takes us on a roller coaster ride around Mumbai, Washington and China yet there is no confusion in following the story as each chapter is just 2 or 3 pages keeping it short and to the point.

There are many characters in this novel and given the extensiveness of the story, this was needed. Dr. Vir, a doctor of bioengineering and the head of the Acel in India comes across as a typical, handsome, Ivy League hi-fi executive with class and the ability to show his mantle when both his career and his personal life are spiraling down.

I was fascinated by the cyber talk, the darkness of the hacking world and how it is easy to seamlessly blend into someone's life by just entering their computer! The online names, the games, the passwords and the hidden messages, the easiness and the readiness of the younger generation to explore and be drawn into this dark world...it is scary. It was also shocking to know that this is common, very common. 

I got so involved in the story that I could feel the tension myself and because I lack the technical knowledge, it was frustrating :)

But all this technical explanations slowed me down as I wanted to understand them with regard to this story. Somewhere I felt the author went overboard with this extensive explanation because it does not really matter to a reader without  science or computer  knowledge.

The story gets a bit tedious towards the end. Tracey, Vir's fiancee's Goan holiday, or the chapter where Diti is introspecting herself, few chapters about Raghu, Suv, Madhu and Ankita added nothing to the story. The end could have been more dramatic given the adrenaline high of the chase.

Verdict : An interesting and an engaging read. Go for it.

Watch It 




Meet the Author



Amrita Verma Chowdhury is the author of Faking It, an art crime thriller about fake modern and contemporary Indian art.
She holds engineering degrees from IIT Kanpur and UC Berkeley, where she was a Jane Lewis Fellow, and an MBA from Carnegie Mellon (Tepper Business School). Her work as an engineer in Silicon Valley led to seven US patents for semi-conductor fabrication – something to show for those bad-haired days. She has done Strategy Consulting and Board Effectiveness work in the US and Australia and has spent long nights fitting five-syllable words inside two-by-two squares. She has worked in the rarefied bastions of Ivy League education bringing together ideas and people. She currently works in publishing.
She lives in Mumbai with her husband Sumit, their two children Shoumik and Aishani, and an assortment of pets including a cocker spaniel, a guinea pig and two turtles. She loves travelling, baking cupcakes with her daughter and hearing from her readers.



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Tuesday 3 March 2015




Book Blitz 

Saved In Sri Lanka 
by 
Devika Fernando

Some People Are Destined To Meet 





Blurb 


Some people are destined to meet.

It sure feels that way when Sri Lankan tour guide Sepalika meets Daniel. The mysterious tourist from Ireland steals his way into her heart and makes her question everything her life is built upon. Instant attraction turns to love – but does he feel the same? And what about the secret she’s hiding from him?
Follow the two on their quest for a happy ending amid the beauty and wonders of the tropical island paradise of Sri Lanka.

Grab Your Copy


About 
Devika Fernando


Almost as soon as Devika Fernando could write, she imagined stories and poems. After finishing her education in Germany and returning to her roots in Sri Lanka, she got a chance to turn her passion into her profession. Having lived in Germany and in Sri Lanka with her husband has made her experience the best (and the worst) of two totally different worlds – something that influences her writing. Her trademark are sweet, yet deeply emotional romance stories where the characters actually fall in love instead of merely falling in lust. She draws inspiration from everyone and everything in life. Besides being a romance novel author, she works as a self-employed German web content writer, as a translator, and as a faithful servant to all the cats, dogs, fish and birds in her home. What she loves most about being an author is the chance to create new worlds and send her protagonists on a journey full of ups and downs that will leave them changed. When she’s not writing, she’s reading or thinking about writing.



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