Banaras And The Other By Ashwani Kumar

There is nothing lecherous about it(the book)... in fact Banaras is famed to be the city of salvation - where people come to die. I met Ashwani Kumar sir and his fun-loving personality coupled with his zestful frivolity immediately brought a connect.

His soul drives the wheels around(in the book) in different directions as it strives in search of meaning, it takes past nuances of great men and history and mythology and many such other works to derive and gain a sense of contentment and peace.

As I open the trench of knowledge, I'm embraced by the winds - influential and seductive as they appear to be, seem to tempt me to dip into the ocean and experience the impressions that Banaras has made on the poets senses and expressions.
In his book, Banaras and The Other - I not only visited Vara Nashi but also learnt the soul of the poem - " Anatomy of Baranassey" depicts a melodious Karuna - inflicted upon a life having smelt, seen, heard, touched and tasted the vibes of zillion deaths.
The morbid reality, which the city thrives upon that people from all over the world go there to die - to attain moksha - created (a serene polished illusion in the minds of visitors to the city ignorant about) the scars of undoable marks upon its inhabitants - one of which perhaps has been the poet.

Its beautiful!!
I learnt a lot from the " Saturn in the Sixth House" to the meaning of the words like perineum to waning moon 14th night of the Waning Moon to "spewed lies, more lies - until they became cobalt truths."

The quotes in the blank pages in this book is very thought provoking.

The poems breathe life into you as their groundedness bleeds out moments frozen that are 'dead' todayand yet due to the desirous hearts wanting that those moments be never forgotten create history books merely for awareness.

The phrase " Spat a mouthful of tobacco" was eye catching on page 17.

The "spirit" in the Lemonade B**ch (poem)

The thought fragrating mixed cultures and blurred identities in the "Second Portrait" is commendable.

The poems have a very vivid visual narrative too that turns the ignition of visual memory on.

Eye catchy as the visuals describe a ' moon lit darkness' with a ' hunt for dragonflies' in The Last Poem.

I adore the thought of " researching the DNA of our parents" the thought behind these words is very sharp in many selves.

Superb poem as it ended with  - I resembled you, I me and my many selves.

I learnt a new word today called Palaeontology, a branch of science studying fossils to learn about history of life on Earth.

A beautiful dedication made to Alan and Ghalib Khurdi, may their memories remain timeless within the pages of the book.

The feelings a reader voyages through whilst reading the poems in the book truly puts them into your element or your element into them.

I taste the playfulness of life, smell the frivolity in the words and I hear the living beats of your heart distinctly as my eyes read and browse further on.

The movement named 'Femen' is very provocative and interesting to hear about as people make their own life's purpose this one certainly goes back timelessly back to the ancient days.

Most of the poems in the book are of 'past time' thus setting the undertone as seemingly factual and incontrovertible.

There is a motley of lot of things put together in the book. The good part I'm pointing at is- it does not drill into or let the reader stay or even for a moment attach themselves to a belief or feeling.

'Eating Fathers Flesh' rebels a notion into a poem with life nuances that are dews of momentary experience.


With this I come to the end of my review. 

The Catcher In the Rye By J.D. Salinger

So, what the hell!! I must've lost it to go by the 'words' of other people to actually sort of even waste my time reading this holy crap. Now, first of all, the thing is the 'buzz' about the book is far better than the book itself. I mean come on, is Penguin really short of good manuscripts or did the editor fall in love with the ADHD language and call it a 'big sellout' ..

Actually the thing about this book is that its become passe as the concepts in the book are obsolete in today's world. So for one thing, it ended up missing the bus of being called " Timeless" coz if anyone reads it in todays era not knowing the book was published in 1951 will surely spell - YACKY .. all over the amazon reviews.

Now, you can't expect all my reviews in this blog to blab positive stuff, there is something about my life that is very valuable to me above all and I'm sure its the same with others so I'd rather save that valuable element .. its called TIME.. this book spells crap to a completely new grade. I mean come on, I've got better things on my plate to do.. if the writer can't keep me interested and glued to the book the author has not just lost me as a reader but a whole lot out there who I would've gone upto and recommended the book to.

Except the unusual aspect about the protagonist being kicked out thrice everything was so  picky that I literally pushed myself to read on for a while, optimistic, things would get better but then finally I decided to drop it and watch the movie that was made of it someday when I'm feeling upto it. Perhaps the movie would instigate me to read where I left off from in the future.

The book is freaking slow, well thats ok you know, it really is!! As long as you keep out the dumb things that are as good as not stringing in to lead on anywhere except simply just stalling the movement of the story with words, expressions, emotions and all the tosh that one's psyche can pump out of their system.

One thing that the book is good with is atleast it defines the framework within which it is operating, in other words it captures the heart of the time and thoughts of the bodies which existed then quite well.

I swear!! I really found the facts that came up about the protagonist very interesting and I was really pumped with the curiosity to KNOW what he makes out of it and fish into his 'sense of being' but somewhere down the line the writer just grinds it for too long into you, wherein after a point you decide - OK! So now lets move on to the next book and let this piece of shit fizzle away coz .. Goddamit!! Whats the whole point the author is trying to make?? Perhaps what the character went through was quite extraordinary in his time but now its a universal phenomenon. It ain't anything elusive that one would actually invest into reading it.

Is the author sort of challenging the reader.. can you get till the end of this book??

I think I've given a fair idea about the book to those of you who were highly recommended but paused a moment to look up some reviews on the pages filled and bound that they hold in their hands or were thinking of holding in their hands.

Now you've received a fair warning, you choose whether you'd like to grapple with the risk.

ALL THE BEST !!

Eternity And A Day

The first most striking aspect about the book is its presentation.. its done in a way which is sensitive to the moods of a reader, realizing the ability ( testing their patience)  of a reader to dwell on a single page - depending on the thoughts that that page is carrying the burden of.

The cover design, pardon me, for my nonchalance in leaping into the book directly before commenting on the cover -  is so perfect that drove me ecstatic to see what lied within without a moment wasted.

The title of the book : Eternity And A Day - when I read it - came across exactly the opposite of what the poet meant as he verbally expressed its meaning inside. Where the author implies to add a day  after eternity has passed... to me, it came across as - a comparative where ... eternity conflicts with a day as though a day can hold within itself eternity and vice versa. 

I simply finished the book in full within an hour literally. I think the poet mutely expresses his respect for the readers time and values it heavily. He understands his poems are such that they simply need a touch, that's all, for the essence of his thoughts and motives to spread afar.

I attended the book launch too of the poet. It was at Thackers in Mumbai on 29th October 2017 Sunday  and was eloquently done gracing the guests with an enjoyable evening with exchange of muses.. his mother who is a singer also performed melodiously in the show despite her sore throat.

I'd like to quote few excerpts of the book :

"Man aches when he learns -
he is a slave to nature

A mere vessel in the scheme of eternity... "

Expresses the poets surrender wherein elsewhere in the book he himself speaks of -
one knows grief due to having tasted laughter and joy in the lap of sorrow.

Another  such quote is  -

"woman is the best thing that happened to man.
she speaks and soon,
how soon he forgets the boredom of work
and takes pleasure in gazing at cows"

this one taps the wit of the drunken poet who uses a simile, wherein,
he is associating a woman to a cow.

hats off to Kartikey for gauging the flow of the emotions within the reader
 and inserting perks of jokes
to keep the reader going..

Few other words that will string a chord within you can be found on page - 52, 54, and 58.


With this I end this review and wish the poet the very best!!

Can Love Happen Twice?

I'd been meaning to read this book for a while now. However, what it basically does is shares a diary of an ordinary person from North India. Lots and lots of cliche things happening in this book. Deals with attachment issues of not just the character playing lead role in the book but even the writer faces attachment issues as there are many places where the writer leaves dialogs and situations, unexplained, where he assumes its just so obvious what comes next that he would not NEED to put it in words and thus -
leaves a reader confused about what happened next. ITs a BIG drawback on the authors part to be frank to leave the reader unattended and floating in the air of possibilities of what really happened.

Escapism in the writers writing style is clear, where he slides through many circumstances without giving a detailed account. The purpose behind writing this book is more egoistic than anything else. The purpose needed to be enriched and made deep before starting off writing this novel.

Let me ask this question to the writer  - Do you think you created a happy ending for the book? Do you think you resolved all the issues you brought up or created causes for in the book?

My guess is, you think its a happy ending. A 'perfect ending' .... but the fact is its a 'imperfect ending' to the book.

A lot of places one finds some fresh seeds being sown in the plot but they are then forgotten as if the writer is throwing ideas, sowing them and then walking away or on in your words to another direction, as though pulled by bliss of the next moment forgetting the baby you had just sown moments back.
The reader sees this and finds it irritating to read the novel in some places when they clearly see the
" WRITER does not value his own words." 
The only reason I completed this book is because am aware that when I begin reading a book and finish it come what may. Does the author really think people are going to continue reading the novel after receiving such jerk offs in regular intervals. They may continue once at most thrice but then many people will give a poor rating and move on leaving the book half read - MY POINT IS - there needs to be a turning point in the story to drive the reader to explore further. Like previously said -the purpose needs to be enriched.

By the way, I just played a song on Youtube recently which goes well with the moral of this book. 

Check it out here : Ruk Jaana Nahi Tu Kahi Haar Ke

Btw, there's one more thing in the book that catches the eye - the target audience the author has kept are just Indians. Clearly so, because, when you open the book to read there are so many Hindi conjunctions and expressions and dialogs which no foreign reader will be able to understand and yes, its a big assumption to think they'd atleast know that the language except English used here is Hindi because those who are unable to identify what a language written is saying also do not know the name of the language which is saying it.

I wish the author all the best with the book.
I've been very generous with this book by putting it for display in a 'Little Free Library' my Cooperative Housing Society created outside on my suggestion. Books get exchanged from this library frequently.

Chandna by Sunny Chandel

I would like to pen a poem of mine over here, its a cinquain :


That Love
Of Poetry
Digs the inner recess
Of my mind to explore and learn
And rest.


The book is the fruit of the drive and spirit the poet is innately gifted with. It expresses a pool of emotions with the groundedness of thought very predominant.

It captures the emotions and dreams with such simplicity that a reader finds themselves in the small town environment where fresh feelings and freedom blooms into something beautiful.

The cover design is simple and straight forward.

The book is not officially published and is simply a record of the work the writer has collected, which makes it somewhat a private journal. That is also a blessing in disguise for the poet as that gives him a better first timer opening. It is not available anywhere online for purchase.

There are a few words that are repetitive which gives a smooth serene feeling to the book. It also expresses the love of the author towards those few words when he is penning a new poem. Repetitive use of words in different places in varied perspectives stresses an emphasis on those words for a reader making the reader realize a better purpose beyond what the words intend to achieve. This skill is very seductive and enriching, it makes a reader enjoy the book more.


The language of the book is in Hindi.

With this I wish the author all the best for his book!!

Songs of a Ruin By Scottshak

ISBN : 9781946641304 

This is a poetry book published by Notion Press. 

It is always a soulful experience to dive into another's baggage of feelings. This one takes you to moments which describes a phase in a persons' life which one always holds dear and spends time remembering in latter years. These are times of confusion and mixed feelings where a person is high on curiosity, questioning every aspect of life that went by and that is is follow onwards. 

There is a motley emotional flow here, where the reader is swung to awaken and thrown into another emotion the moment a person starts enjoying and going deep into feeling a particular emotion. It is difficult to time the moment right and this book achieves that. 

The cover design looks like a guitar is disparaged by a storm or crushed into a scintilla. The title appears to warn the reader that what one is about to read is brambles left over where once a forest farm existed. 

some of the poems I liked include : 

1. Tears of Earth

2. Curses of a Faineant Lover

3. If You Were Everything 

There were poems which I liked and then there were poems I didn't understand. There wasn't anything in between.At the outset, I was on a lookout of a theme or message that the book might be putting across but I think there is none. The book is simply a compilation of work which the poet has experienced or penned down and wishes to share with the world. 

Having known the poet briefly, I'd add a personal touch by saying the poet has voyaged a long journey before being labelled as a published author. His path was strewn with many obstacles that his emotions triumphed over  which were kept shunned in a treasure chest but now that they are out they seek solace, acceptable, appreciation and love.  

The work gone behind the first book is most crucial. Sometimes, the extra time that goes before entering into a new stream  may appear harsh and brutal and frustrating and impossible and extremely challenging but in the end - it pays a lot more than the counterpart. 

The book overall is a good read. 

To encourage the poet, click on this link and purchase their book : 

http://www.amazon.in/Songs-Ruin-Scottshak/dp/1946641308/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1489053102&sr=8-1&keywords=songs+of+a+ruin

Into My Heart By Kartikey Sehgal

The hard work which pores through the writers' pen and transcends through the readers heart, elevating the interpreters' sense of vision, to a level where there is no higher place to be or go - is extremely clairvoyant in these pages. 

The reader enjoys getting mesmerized by the sheer selection which the poet has made.  Above all, the writer inspires the reader to such lengths that they, even if its for a mere second, will have this thought cross their mind - "I too should pen a poem, perhaps!" 

I ask all my friends and followers to go ahead, pick this up and elude themselves into being sensitized for those few moments for the journey this book will take thee. 

Link to the book :https://www.amazon.in/Into-My-Heart-Kartikey-Sehgal-ebook/dp/B01N9WFWYO?_encoding=UTF8&deviceType=desktop&keywords=Into%20my%20heart&qid=1488461207&redirect=true&ref_=sr_1_1&sr=8-1#customerReviews