Yes, I am alive.
No, I do not have a job description that entails saving the world while looking like a million dollars
Yes, I still have my typing fingers.
No, I do not want to kiss my blogger friends goodbye
Yes, I do think I am vain enough to think you missed me
No, I did not expect the front page news to read that a street protest was staged to get me to write again.
The last month was all about mood swings that could put a cannabis-smoking junkie to shame. I oscillated between feeling on top of the world and wanting to give up eating seafood. (What? In my case, giving up eating fish is like putting a gun to my head while trying the size of the noose around my neck, just in case the gun was made in China!!)
Let me begin with the stuff that makes me want to rip out my heart and throw it to the sharks. For reasons known only to the Creator (pretty sure He's wringing his hands in pure agony at the judgement call He has made), I seem to be having trouble getting my viewpoint across to a highly skeptical 9 year old, and with growing concern, I am beginning to realize that this kid just might take after her mom - namely, Me!! On the other end of the spectrum is the toddler who proudly declares to his teacher that he will score more than his customary 'Zero' in his class assignments "jab mein bada ho jaoonga!".
I have been asking those dreaded questions.... you know, the mid-life crisis kinds...... "Where am I going? What do I want? Who am I ? What do I make for dinner? What did I deserve to outgrow my favourite jeans?......." You get the drift, right?
In addition to eating everything that is either sinfully sweet or crispy fried (the only two categories of foods that seem to have the answers to the aforementioned questions) I have also been researching on various techniques to irritate the living hell out of my colleagues and friends. Sharing some simple tips here:
Do read the reviews on Flipkart, and if you get your hands on the book, please do contribute to the reviews.
The dream book launch in Delhi made the 7 co-authors including me feel like celebrities. Signed autographs, spoke 'a few words' on my inspiration, had my photographs clicked with people who hardly knew what the commotion was all about, met really interesting young writers, who were extremely talented and focused and saw proud, contended happiness on the faces of my family (of course there were moments that made me cringe at the hollering and the sound of little running feet).
We even got covered in the Times of India article where if you are diligent enough, you can spot my name! *Smug smile here*
Now, the most interesting part ..... I have here, a contest winning which, you could ....... wait for it..... be the proud owner of this book. I have your attention now? Well lets get on with the contest then:
Step 1 : In the comments of this post, let us know the book that has made you emotional - enraged you, depressed you, caused you to shed a few tears of laughter - whatever. Also let us know what you felt and why you felt what you did....
Step 2 : Have people vote for you in the comments itself. Each person can compete once, and vote once. Or do either one of the two (i.e., vote without competing, or compete without voting) But only once each.
Step 3 : Once the winner is declared by all of us, the winner would let me know his/her address and you shall receive your prize!
Let us start, amigos!!
No, I do not have a job description that entails saving the world while looking like a million dollars
Yes, I still have my typing fingers.
No, I do not want to kiss my blogger friends goodbye
Yes, I do think I am vain enough to think you missed me
No, I did not expect the front page news to read that a street protest was staged to get me to write again.
The last month was all about mood swings that could put a cannabis-smoking junkie to shame. I oscillated between feeling on top of the world and wanting to give up eating seafood. (What? In my case, giving up eating fish is like putting a gun to my head while trying the size of the noose around my neck, just in case the gun was made in China!!)
Let me begin with the stuff that makes me want to rip out my heart and throw it to the sharks. For reasons known only to the Creator (pretty sure He's wringing his hands in pure agony at the judgement call He has made), I seem to be having trouble getting my viewpoint across to a highly skeptical 9 year old, and with growing concern, I am beginning to realize that this kid just might take after her mom - namely, Me!! On the other end of the spectrum is the toddler who proudly declares to his teacher that he will score more than his customary 'Zero' in his class assignments "jab mein bada ho jaoonga!".
I have been asking those dreaded questions.... you know, the mid-life crisis kinds...... "Where am I going? What do I want? Who am I ? What do I make for dinner? What did I deserve to outgrow my favourite jeans?......." You get the drift, right?
In addition to eating everything that is either sinfully sweet or crispy fried (the only two categories of foods that seem to have the answers to the aforementioned questions) I have also been researching on various techniques to irritate the living hell out of my colleagues and friends. Sharing some simple tips here:
- Finish ALL the papers in the photocopy machine and do not replenish
- Disclose the climax of a much talked about movie or book. (Note : here, movies like Ravan, or Agent Vinod do not count - not as effective)
- Send out explosive mails at 6.00 pm on a Friday evening (sure shot results)
- Many more that are copyrighted material - am open to sharing these for a good price
Do read the reviews on Flipkart, and if you get your hands on the book, please do contribute to the reviews.
The dream book launch in Delhi made the 7 co-authors including me feel like celebrities. Signed autographs, spoke 'a few words' on my inspiration, had my photographs clicked with people who hardly knew what the commotion was all about, met really interesting young writers, who were extremely talented and focused and saw proud, contended happiness on the faces of my family (of course there were moments that made me cringe at the hollering and the sound of little running feet).
We even got covered in the Times of India article where if you are diligent enough, you can spot my name! *Smug smile here*
Now, the most interesting part ..... I have here, a contest winning which, you could ....... wait for it..... be the proud owner of this book. I have your attention now? Well lets get on with the contest then:
Step 1 : In the comments of this post, let us know the book that has made you emotional - enraged you, depressed you, caused you to shed a few tears of laughter - whatever. Also let us know what you felt and why you felt what you did....
Step 2 : Have people vote for you in the comments itself. Each person can compete once, and vote once. Or do either one of the two (i.e., vote without competing, or compete without voting) But only once each.
Step 3 : Once the winner is declared by all of us, the winner would let me know his/her address and you shall receive your prize!
Let us start, amigos!!
Congratulations, once more!! Awesome, you seem to be on a roll. Hope it never ends and only gets better.
ReplyDeleteAbout the book, the one I read recently that fits the bill perfectly is The House of Blue Mangoes, by David Davidhar. The book is such an amazing piece of literature, it surely does encapsulate and evoke all kinds of emotions in the reader. I was enraged at how badly a prisoner was treated by the British jailers, depressed when a woman was brutally raped and nothing could be done about it - she finally commits suicide. I shed a few tears at the death of the central character, when the enigma of death is pondered about in great detail and depth by the author. I also laughed out loud - at a funny tiger-hunt attempt made by a couple of amateur hunters. A masterpiece, a wonderful book.
that was positively lovely! Votes, people! I do not see any voting happening. Sumitra, you too, can vote... please do!
DeleteFirst of all, CONGRATS!! :)
ReplyDeleteNow for the question-
A lot of books have made me cry and smile. But the one that has affected me the most is the Harry Potter series. To say that I was addicted is an understatement. I have cried when Dumbledore died, smiled when Ron and Hermoine finally hooked up, been enraged at Rita Skeeter's false stories, felt triumphant when Harry manages to steal the egg from the dragon in his first task of the Tri Wizard Tournament, wanted to slap the hell out of Umbridge, given a literal high-five to the book each time the Weasley twins pulled a new prank. Each time a new book released and I got a call from the library telling me that it has arrived, I have run out of my house to go and pick it up. So much was my excitement that my mom was worried to let me go alone, lest I cross the road without looking or something. :D And after finishing every book, I have hugged it. To me, JK Rowling is nothing short of a magician herself, who managed to hold children and adults alike spellbound with her tale of a skinny bespectacled boy who discovers at age 11 that he's a wizard. I cannot say anything more than a 'Thank You' to her.
And writing this comment, I went through each of those emotions all over again. I don't think I'll ever feel this passionate even about a person! :D
hehehe... why am I not surprised at your choice? Having said that, your comment oozes passion... great one! Now all you need at a few winning votes! And you too can vote - excercise that right....
DeleteI vote for Harry Potter and for Spiff for her tribute to the cult that is Harry Potter in the guise of a comment.
DeleteI vote for Spiff too. Rowling is beyond genius.
DeleteThat last line says it all :)
Me vote fr the Spiff Master!!!
DeleteGreat to have the celebrity author back here, I see that the blog has undergone a face lift - Great work.
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the 2nd publication - may you go on to do many many more.
As for the contest - I dig fiction like crazy and one book that blew me away was The Odessa File by Frederick Forsyth.
The very foundation of the story, slick narration and a roller coaster of emotions during the explaining of background and progress of the chapters where the central character tries to get hold of a former Nazi concentration camp captain and bring him to book for war crimes but with the boomerang like twist at the end where he actually tries to avenge his father's death kept me raving about it for months.
I love Forsyth too (I think 'the day of the jackal' is his best!) But yeah - this one is a contender too! And thank you for noticing the facelift :-) .... noe please vote and get votes for yourself too! May the best (wo)/man win!!
DeleteI vote for AS, because he's gotten me interested in reading this book now. Adding it to my must-read list!
DeleteWhy cant the competetion be easier .. not fair something else will do .. ok BIKRAM goes in as a special entry to win the booooooooooooooooooooooook :) PLEASEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
ReplyDeleteLife itself is such a lovely book that we all have we write edit update it each day all the time ..
Congrats on the publication ..
and dont say that you are missed , one does not have to shout out loud to say that :)
take care and all the bestttttttt
Bikram's
Awww..... that was so sweet! Yes, agree that life is a book too! And who knows that better than you - you seem to write so much of life in your blog! People .... this can be counted as vote-able too!!
Deleteyes yes yes yes I second that :) everyone say yes :)
DeleteBikram's
Ok... let's see. I'm choosing "Veronica decides to die" by Paulo Coelho. It's about a lady who tries to kill herself for no good reason other than she felt like it, finds out she has only 7 days and in those 7 days, realises the true value of life. It touched me deeply as I read it because we always look for the bigger 'why are we on this planet ? are we doing anything worthwhile for anyone ?" question... I could empathize at some level with the character.
ReplyDeleteOkay, full disclosure... noone vote for me please. I already have the book :) I just wanted to give my opinion here. Let some other deserving contestant get it :)
I know you have the book - ummmmmuah for that! and thanks for the post as well - since you have voting rights, please use it - vote for the 'deserving' contestant please! :-)
DeleteOh... and love Coelho - from The Alchemist, to the controversial Eleven minutes!!
Deletehmmm well well!! im unable to decide between 2 books both of which are very touching and caused me to shed a few tears (to be franks thats no big deal..i get senti very easily :P)
ReplyDeleteone of them is "A walk to remember" by nicholas sparks which is a story of two teenagers who fall in love despite their very different personalities..it is an extremely sweet and touching love story..n no matter how many times i read i still end up with watery eyes every single time!!
And the other book i found especially moving is "A thousand splendid sun" by khaled Hosseini..its a breathtaking story about life in Afghanistan and puts the violence, fear, hope, and faith of this country in intimate, human terms. Its about their lives ..their struggle to survive, raise a family and to find happiness..this story makes you think about our own lives..i mean makes you think about all the hardship that people around you are going through..and made me feel thankful of all the little things which we take for granted, which are actually luxuries to some others!
well, both of these are extremely touching stories and have a very diverse story line..im unable to decide among them and so im listing them both! hope thats ok!
personally i loved "the notebook" and "the wedding" also from Sparks... I give my vote to rc for 2 choices i agree with :)
DeleteCongrats, I'm ordering the book ASAP :) Coming to the article, are P.T your initials? :P Or M.R?
ReplyDeleteEach book I read adds something to my life. A new word, an emotion, a feeling that that book alone and it's story can evoke in me, a memory to cherish. I think that's something any book lover would relate to. So basically you're asking me to pick a favorite among my children -_-
I'll go with one author that I have idolized since I laid my hands on my first ever book - Enid Blyton. She made my childhood one with vivid colors and experiences. You see, when I read I imagine every scene, every word of the story, hence I walked around with a head full of St. Clare's and the Famous Five for long after I had outgrown the books.
Be it the scones from the Village that Fatty loved or the Kirrin Island's rocky reefs or Pam's troubles with Alice... I am what I am today, literature-wise, because of Enid Blyton.
Me too me too me too! Enid Blyton ki jai! If not for her, I wouldn't have started reading in the first place. So my vote for the PeeVee.
Delete(Nope, we don't have a mutual admiration society going on. We just happen to have similar interests. :) )
Can I vote for more than one entry?
ReplyDeleteLets make life simpler and restrict it to one vote for now... and whats with the initials (if that was a joke... i am sorry, i just didnt get it!! And if not, well my initials are actually M.B.) And Enid Blyton was one of my firsts!!
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
Delete"...if you are diligent enough, you can spot my name! *Smug smile here*" - I tried to spot your name -_-
DeleteI guess I'm late (as usual)...
ReplyDeleteI can't count the number of books I've read up until now - started reading 'real' books from the age of 10, I guess..my very first one being 'Jaws'. Yes, I know - it's quite a book to pick up at an age when you want to appreciate the color of the fish in your uncle's aquarium, not gasp at the huge fish that devors people for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Anyway, I digress. I think the author that has had the biggest influence on me till date is, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. I've read the entire collection of Sherlock Holmes a few times over. Like millions of readers around the world, I too for a long time, believed that Holmes actually existed in flesh and blood. Such was the power of Doyle's pen. I whooped in joy when a case was solved with an 'elementary' ease and a wave of Sherlock's long hands, had tears in my eyes when he dove into the deep waterfall with is nemesis Moriarty, and was 'killed' by Doyle, because he coldn't handle the character he'd created. Whooped again with joy when Doyle resurrected him.
I've read (like I said), a gazzillion books subsequently - mostly fiction though. But no book can ever come closer to my heart than Sherlock Holmes. Period.
The second guy would be Alfred Hitchcock, the 3rd - Stephen King...(I'll stop here, this isn't about a favorite list. I understand). :P
I vote for PeeVee because I liked the way she compared books to children; that is so true. Books indeed are like them, and we learn so many things with each one we pick up. Err..it's not about Enid Blyton, lest Spiff thinks we have a fan one too many of the spunky woman who made a detective out of each one of us (in our minds at least), but yes, the famous five were also among the early books I read (come on, I too was a normal kid, despite the heavies I used to read) along with Hitchcock's 'the three investigators', and these did leave an impression in my young mind.
Ooooh, thank you :)
DeleteSo addin on to ur list... you do know the ending of the hottest thriller 'Kahani', right?? Yup, the cop did it!.. ah, thank u! :D
ReplyDeleteCongrats again on ur achievement, Nirvana - really happy to hear about it.. soopa soopa news :)
The non fictional book that changed my life is called "Electrical and Electronic Measurements and Instrumentation by A K Sawhney" - I had decided to buy this book on the eve of my engineering exam so that I cud make chits to copy from but it was sold out that day and yes, it made me very emotional - enraged me, depressed me n even caused me to shed tears of laughter.. my fellow students thought I went mad… I flunked that exam the next day n it changed my life....
n sorry bout the 'Kahani' bit - obviously ppl who've seen it will agree what I've written is false - it was not the cop but the kid who did it!
ah, thank u! :D
Ok, how can I NOT vote for Raj! :D Doode, I'm sure AK Sawhney will be piroud of you if he gets to read it (and if he's still alive).
DeleteAnd don't tell lies ok. It was the chaiwala who did it.
Ok sorry, I can vote only once, and I've already voted. Sorry Raj, next time when you write about your fav porn magazine, I'll vote only for you! :p
DeleteOk!!! looks like Spiff gets it this time with 3 votes!!!!! Don't you all folks worry ... I will be coming up with a Flash fiction contest soon - with interesting give aways too!
ReplyDeleteSo.... (drum roll)..... Congrats Spiff - you know what to do, and you know my email id !!
And though it doesn't REALLY count - my votes go out to Raj and Phatichar for the sheer joy of reading their comments!
Congrats woman :)
DeleteCongrats Spiff! :)
DeleteYay!!! Thank you thank you thank you! Now I'm off to mail you. :)
ReplyDeleteOk Meena, I got to read this a bit late, and I know the competition is over... But I got to tell you, I was kind of sad that none took Erich Segal's name..... I mean, Love Story, Prizes and Class??? Guys, Acts of Love????? I just loooooooooved Love Story, especially Jenny and still can quote a lot of lines from it... Do you remember E.R. Braithwaite's To Sir, with Love? I loved tat too... Also I remember how Ms.Rasika and Ms.Pramila used to read us the entire story..
ReplyDeleteHad read The Seventh Secret by Irving Wallace during college days and felt enraged at Hitler's monsterity..
Also Frederick Forsyth... That guy is too good... Now reading Fist of God and am so impressed...
Cant forget Jeffrey ARcher's Kand & Abel too.....
Sorry, this kind of became a long comment... well, you asked for it.... :-)
Vidya
@Vidya - that is so true!! Rasika Miss and Pramila Miss were the reason I started reading like a maniac.And Braithwaite brought tears to our eyes during those years - thank you for bringing this up!!
DeleteYou just got an award on my blog :D Please do accept it
ReplyDeletehttp://maithilibhatnagar.blogspot.in/2012/05/from-beautiful-bloggers-d-d-d.html
Congrats!!
Yay!!! Thank you so much for this, Maithili. I shall get down to earning it as soon as I can!
Delete