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கலங்கிய நதி
பி.ஏ. கிருஷ்ணன் எழுதிய இரண்டாவது நாவல் கலங்கிய நதி. இதை எழுதிய நாவல் என்பதா? அல்லது மொழிபெயர்த்த நாவல் என்பதா? காரணம், பி.ஏ. கிருஷ்ணன், முதலில் ஆங்கிலத்தில் எழுதி வெளிவந்த பிறகு, அவர் நாவலை அவரே தமிழில் எழுதியது வெளிவருகிறது.
நாவல் ஆரம்பித்து நான்கைந்து பக்கங்கள் போனவுடன் நாவலிலிருந்து இன்னொரு நாவல் விரிகிறது. அதாவது நாவலுக்குள் நாவல் என்ற போஸ்ட் மாடர்னிசத் தன்மை.
மின்வாரியப் பொறியாளர் ஒருவரை அஸாம் தீவிரவாதிகள் கடத்திச் சென்று, பிணைக் கைதியாக வைக்கிறார்கள். அவரை மீட்கச் செல்கிறார் நாயகன். இதுதான் நாவலின் மையம்.
இந்த மையத்தை அவ்வப்போது கலைத்து அவரின் சுய வரலாற்றுத் தகவல்களும் இடைஇடை வருவதும், ஒன்றை விளிம்புக்குத் தள்ளுவதும், மற்றொன்றை மையத்துக்குத் தள்ளுவதுமான ஆட்டம் கலங்கிய நதி நாவல்.
எளிய வாசிப்புக்கு உகந்த நடை. நாவலின் மையப் பாத்திரம் ஒரு நேர்மையான மின்வாரிய அதிகாரி. காரணம், அவன் அப்பா ஒரு காந்தியவாதி. அந்தக் காந்தியவாதியின் மகன் செய்யும் ஒவ்வொரு நடவடிக்கையும் நாவலின் எல்லாப் பக்கங்களையும் இணைக்கிறது. காந்தியவாதி அப்பாவின் அதிகபட்ச ஆசை தில்லியில் இருக்கும் காந்தி சமாதியைப் பார்ப்பதுதான். காந்தியவாதியின் வளர்ப்பில் வளர்ந்த மகனும் காந்தியின் சாயலில்தான் வளர்கிறான் என்பது நாவலில் பிடிபடாமல் இருந்தாலும், நாவல் முடிந்த பின் இவற்றை இணைத்துப் பார்க்கலாம். நாவலின் நாயகனும் காந்தியின் சாயல் என்பது உறுதியாகிறது. அதாவது காந்தி முதல் காந்தி; இரண்டாவது காந்தி நாயகனின் அப்பா; மூன்றாவது காந்தி நாயகன்.
மொத்தமாக யோசித்தால் ஒரு பெரிய கடத்தல் கும்பலைத் தனியொருவனாகச் சந்தித்து அதிகாரியை மீட்டு வருவதும், அமைச்சர்கள், அதிகாரிகள், ஒப்பந்ததாரர்களோடு போராடுவதன் பின்னணியில் கதாநாயகனின் பிடிவாதம் வெற்றி பெறுகிறது.
இந்தப் பிடிவாதம் காந்தியின் பிடிவாதம். ஒரு கட்டத்தில் தோற்கும்போதுகூடப் பிறர் நாயகனுக்குத் துணையாக நிற்கிறார்கள் என நினைக்க வைக்கிறது.
அந்தப் பிடிவாதத்தால் பொய்மைகள் அவனிடம் தோற்கின்றன. இந்த மூன்றாவது காந்தி போலவே இந்த நாவல் மூன்று லேயர்களில் கட்டமைக்கப்பட்டுள்ளது. முதலில் ஒரு கதையின் கதை தொடங்குகிறது. இரண்டாவது கதைக்குள் எழுதப்படுகிற நாவல். அது பிரசுரத்துக்குப் போகிற தேர்வு விஷயங்கள். மூன்றாவது மொத்த நாவலையும் எழுதுவது பி.ஏ. கிருஷ்ணன். ஆக மூன்று காந்திகள். மூன்று நாவல்கள்.
நாவலில் வருகிற ஏராளமான ஆங்கிலக் கவிதைகளின் சிலாகிப்புகள் தமிழில் கொஞ்சம் துருத்தல்தான்.
புலிநகக்கொன்றை வாசித்த வாசகர்களின் கவனிப்பில் பி.ஏ. கிருஷ்ணன் தொடர்ச்சியாக என்ன செய்து கொண்டிருக்கிறார்? அந்த நாவலிலிருந்து எவ்வளவு தொலைவு நகர்ந்து வந்திருக்கிறார் என்பதையெல்லாம் கவனிக்க முடியும்.
நாவல் ஆரம்பித்து நான்கைந்து பக்கங்கள் போனவுடன் நாவலிலிருந்து இன்னொரு நாவல் விரிகிறது. அதாவது நாவலுக்குள் நாவல் என்ற போஸ்ட் மாடர்னிசத் தன்மை.
மின்வாரியப் பொறியாளர் ஒருவரை அஸாம் தீவிரவாதிகள் கடத்திச் சென்று, பிணைக் கைதியாக வைக்கிறார்கள். அவரை மீட்கச் செல்கிறார் நாயகன். இதுதான் நாவலின் மையம்.
இந்த மையத்தை அவ்வப்போது கலைத்து அவரின் சுய வரலாற்றுத் தகவல்களும் இடைஇடை வருவதும், ஒன்றை விளிம்புக்குத் தள்ளுவதும், மற்றொன்றை மையத்துக்குத் தள்ளுவதுமான ஆட்டம் கலங்கிய நதி நாவல்.
எளிய வாசிப்புக்கு உகந்த நடை. நாவலின் மையப் பாத்திரம் ஒரு நேர்மையான மின்வாரிய அதிகாரி. காரணம், அவன் அப்பா ஒரு காந்தியவாதி. அந்தக் காந்தியவாதியின் மகன் செய்யும் ஒவ்வொரு நடவடிக்கையும் நாவலின் எல்லாப் பக்கங்களையும் இணைக்கிறது. காந்தியவாதி அப்பாவின் அதிகபட்ச ஆசை தில்லியில் இருக்கும் காந்தி சமாதியைப் பார்ப்பதுதான். காந்தியவாதியின் வளர்ப்பில் வளர்ந்த மகனும் காந்தியின் சாயலில்தான் வளர்கிறான் என்பது நாவலில் பிடிபடாமல் இருந்தாலும், நாவல் முடிந்த பின் இவற்றை இணைத்துப் பார்க்கலாம். நாவலின் நாயகனும் காந்தியின் சாயல் என்பது உறுதியாகிறது. அதாவது காந்தி முதல் காந்தி; இரண்டாவது காந்தி நாயகனின் அப்பா; மூன்றாவது காந்தி நாயகன்.
மொத்தமாக யோசித்தால் ஒரு பெரிய கடத்தல் கும்பலைத் தனியொருவனாகச் சந்தித்து அதிகாரியை மீட்டு வருவதும், அமைச்சர்கள், அதிகாரிகள், ஒப்பந்ததாரர்களோடு போராடுவதன் பின்னணியில் கதாநாயகனின் பிடிவாதம் வெற்றி பெறுகிறது.
இந்தப் பிடிவாதம் காந்தியின் பிடிவாதம். ஒரு கட்டத்தில் தோற்கும்போதுகூடப் பிறர் நாயகனுக்குத் துணையாக நிற்கிறார்கள் என நினைக்க வைக்கிறது.
அந்தப் பிடிவாதத்தால் பொய்மைகள் அவனிடம் தோற்கின்றன. இந்த மூன்றாவது காந்தி போலவே இந்த நாவல் மூன்று லேயர்களில் கட்டமைக்கப்பட்டுள்ளது. முதலில் ஒரு கதையின் கதை தொடங்குகிறது. இரண்டாவது கதைக்குள் எழுதப்படுகிற நாவல். அது பிரசுரத்துக்குப் போகிற தேர்வு விஷயங்கள். மூன்றாவது மொத்த நாவலையும் எழுதுவது பி.ஏ. கிருஷ்ணன். ஆக மூன்று காந்திகள். மூன்று நாவல்கள்.
நாவலில் வருகிற ஏராளமான ஆங்கிலக் கவிதைகளின் சிலாகிப்புகள் தமிழில் கொஞ்சம் துருத்தல்தான்.
புலிநகக்கொன்றை வாசித்த வாசகர்களின் கவனிப்பில் பி.ஏ. கிருஷ்ணன் தொடர்ச்சியாக என்ன செய்து கொண்டிருக்கிறார்? அந்த நாவலிலிருந்து எவ்வளவு தொலைவு நகர்ந்து வந்திருக்கிறார் என்பதையெல்லாம் கவனிக்க முடியும்.
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First published November 17, 2011
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About the author
P.A. Krishnan
6 books18 followersP. A. Krishnan is an Indian writer who writes in both Tamil and English. He began his career as a teacher of physics and went on to serve many years as an bureaucrat in the Government of India. After a long stint of 30 years, he joined a research organization as the CEO. He later became a Senior Director with a multinational firm.
His most famous novels include The Tiger Claw Tree and The Muddy River which were also re-created by him in Tamil as புலிநகக் கொன்றை and கலங்கிய நதி. He has also written an introduction to Western Painting the first volume of which was published by Kalachuvadu under the title மேற்கத்திய ஓவியங்கள். A contributor to several Indian newspapers and literary magazines, several volumes of his essays have also been collated and published, the most notable ones being Agrahaarathil Periyar (அக்கிரகாரத்தில் பெரியார்) and Thirumbichendra Tharunam (திரும்பிச் சென்ற தருணம்).He is one of the Advisories in awards panel of Tamil literary garden organization.
(Source: Wikipedia)
His most famous novels include The Tiger Claw Tree and The Muddy River which were also re-created by him in Tamil as புலிநகக் கொன்றை and கலங்கிய நதி. He has also written an introduction to Western Painting the first volume of which was published by Kalachuvadu under the title மேற்கத்திய ஓவியங்கள். A contributor to several Indian newspapers and literary magazines, several volumes of his essays have also been collated and published, the most notable ones being Agrahaarathil Periyar (அக்கிரகாரத்தில் பெரியார்) and Thirumbichendra Tharunam (திரும்பிச் சென்ற தருணம்).He is one of the Advisories in awards panel of Tamil literary garden organization.
(Source: Wikipedia)
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
March 29, 2020
நம் நாட்டின் இரண்டு கலங்கல்களாக ஆசிரியர் பார்க்கும் விசயங்களைப்பற்றிய நாவல். மிக அருமையான நாவல். விரிவாக என் அபிப்ராயத்தை இங்கே பதிவிட்டுள்ளேன் https://thirumalaiwrites.wordpress.co...
August 7, 2023
Heard of government officials getting kidnapped in Assam, particularly those from rich PSUs but never got a ringside view of the mad scrambles, deliberations and machinations behind the attempt to get the unfortunate soul released. This book gave me all that and more in an entertaining take on the kidnapping of an engineer of a transmission company. We are treated to the sincere attempts of a vigilance officer to get him released and orchestrate the government and company response to the incident where everyone has their own agenda. Underhand, overhand, all measures are tried while having a hot and cold relationship with the wife of the kidnapped and with the media. The militants/ freedom fighters are more than the one note picture painted by Doordarshan of yore. The officer's pov is seen in the novel he is writing about this incident which has a font different from the rest of the novel. So this is a book within a book. The wife of the officer and some friends of his keep commenting on the book and on his creative takes on events. A very interesting way to layer events. Anyone from the transmission industry will definitely feel represented in this intelligent and amusing piece of work. Oh and wonder what Assamese readers make of this book...
July 5, 2012
Political fiction ideally tries to uncover the intricacies behind a complex political problem.
Layers of humanity that is ever present in any problem that seems to be unsolvable.
As we digest endless punditry from our news media on problems like Kashmir or North east we tend to understand things in abstract.
P.A Krishnan’s muddy river tries to unravel the layers of humanity under all our skins .
Set in the backdrop of assameese insurgency , a honest official tries to rescue a kidnapped coworker from an assam based terrorist group.
The novel has an interesting form, wherein Ramesh Chandran senior beuracrat writes a novel on his effore to rescue the kidnapped coworker Mr.Ghosh. Muddy river flows through the manuscripts of novel written by Ramesh shared by Sukanya, Ramesh’s wife to his friends who are themselves part of the novel.
The language of the novel is easier and the form adds a taught narrative with interesting incidents.
One cannot stop wondering at the differnce in reality and the one we percieve as reality from what we see in news media in understanding political problems. Ramesh one of a honest beuracrat, the frustrations of his endeavours to rescue Ghosh . We feel the anguish at Ramesh’s culdesacs, his honest and at times his bull dog like approach is inspiring.
The novel is emotional especially when Ramesh thinks about her daughter Priya’s loss.
The deep vibrations a husband and wife share after the loss of a loved one , especially the guilt in facing life as such.Yet Love is visible between the two , as the writer has put it aptly there is love that is felt through silence.
Gandhi is evidently visible throughout the book. The conversation that Anupama and Sukanya have through the novel remainds the absurdity of grouping people. If we are ever to be a group , every individual is a group in itself so different to lump together.
There are some amazing character shades that are original to the book, especially that of Ramesh.
The marxist turned Gandhian , (I think this is true to many of us ) honest and ever trying to make a meaningful life out of a corrupt society. He seems to have lost hope in humanity , sounds dejected and yet tries so hard to perform his karma. As one ages I guess there is no other way other than being a Karmayogi just try to do your karma.
Sukanya , Ramesh’s wife she comments on her husbands novel time and again. She initially feels let down that she is not a big character in the novel. I think Ramesh’s inspiration comes from her , remainded me of som many of our mothers who toil so hard yet are so simple and plain.
Anupama was very mysterious and the finale made her even more intriguing. I am still thinking about her and the relation Ramesh had with her.
The high point of the novel its the hope it carries and inspite of being to handle people who lack even a iota of truthfulness day in and day out. Ramesh is sans cynicism , finds inspiration in reading Gandhi’s talisman tries to be sincere to his beliefs and hope for change. I feel it may not be the greatest of ways to bring about a change, but its the least destructive we can afford.
The dreams I had when I was eighteen, of a Marxist revolution seems a long time now.
Layers of humanity that is ever present in any problem that seems to be unsolvable.
As we digest endless punditry from our news media on problems like Kashmir or North east we tend to understand things in abstract.
P.A Krishnan’s muddy river tries to unravel the layers of humanity under all our skins .
Set in the backdrop of assameese insurgency , a honest official tries to rescue a kidnapped coworker from an assam based terrorist group.
The novel has an interesting form, wherein Ramesh Chandran senior beuracrat writes a novel on his effore to rescue the kidnapped coworker Mr.Ghosh. Muddy river flows through the manuscripts of novel written by Ramesh shared by Sukanya, Ramesh’s wife to his friends who are themselves part of the novel.
The language of the novel is easier and the form adds a taught narrative with interesting incidents.
One cannot stop wondering at the differnce in reality and the one we percieve as reality from what we see in news media in understanding political problems. Ramesh one of a honest beuracrat, the frustrations of his endeavours to rescue Ghosh . We feel the anguish at Ramesh’s culdesacs, his honest and at times his bull dog like approach is inspiring.
The novel is emotional especially when Ramesh thinks about her daughter Priya’s loss.
The deep vibrations a husband and wife share after the loss of a loved one , especially the guilt in facing life as such.Yet Love is visible between the two , as the writer has put it aptly there is love that is felt through silence.
Gandhi is evidently visible throughout the book. The conversation that Anupama and Sukanya have through the novel remainds the absurdity of grouping people. If we are ever to be a group , every individual is a group in itself so different to lump together.
There are some amazing character shades that are original to the book, especially that of Ramesh.
The marxist turned Gandhian , (I think this is true to many of us ) honest and ever trying to make a meaningful life out of a corrupt society. He seems to have lost hope in humanity , sounds dejected and yet tries so hard to perform his karma. As one ages I guess there is no other way other than being a Karmayogi just try to do your karma.
Sukanya , Ramesh’s wife she comments on her husbands novel time and again. She initially feels let down that she is not a big character in the novel. I think Ramesh’s inspiration comes from her , remainded me of som many of our mothers who toil so hard yet are so simple and plain.
Anupama was very mysterious and the finale made her even more intriguing. I am still thinking about her and the relation Ramesh had with her.
The high point of the novel its the hope it carries and inspite of being to handle people who lack even a iota of truthfulness day in and day out. Ramesh is sans cynicism , finds inspiration in reading Gandhi’s talisman tries to be sincere to his beliefs and hope for change. I feel it may not be the greatest of ways to bring about a change, but its the least destructive we can afford.
The dreams I had when I was eighteen, of a Marxist revolution seems a long time now.
December 7, 2011
This second novel by P.A.Krishnan is set in Assam around the separatist movement.
Ramesh Chandran is an honest, scholarly bureaucrat who gets sent to Assam to negotiate the release of one of his department's engineers, who is kidnapped and kept hostage by the militants. He struggles between the militants, the Delhi bureaucracy and the Assamese police to get his man released. The tempo is built up to a nice climax where Chandran himself ends up as the man carrying the bounty money to the extremists for the exchange of the hostage. However, the novel ends in a way that does not do justice to the absorbing narrative prior to it. It seemed as if the author was in a hurry to finish the book.
I found the narrative gripping and the plot a refreshing one. The Kafkaesque bureaucracy, the corruption in high places, the alienation of Assam from India, the violation of moral standards by the militants have all been well brought out in the novel. Though Chandran is a Marxist in belief, it is Gandhian values which prevail in his life and the novel is clearly an endorsement of Gandhi's methods rather than Marx's. Chandran's scholarly bent of mind is brought out well in a few encounters resulting in conversations on Eric Hobsbaum, Thomas Hardy and Forster.
However, there was one jarring note for me in the narrative. In writing the novel, the author has taken the approach of blurring the lines between the story and the storyteller. This results in the novel being written in chunks and each chunk being reviewed then and there as the reader progresses through the novel. This has the effect of the reader getting the feeling that the author is trying to anticipate the reader's response to each part of the novel and discuss the possible criticisms. I felt that the novel (within the novel) stood quite well by itself and there was no further need to 'discuss' it or defend or 'explain' it. Of course, one must concede that the author might have had entirely different goals in choosing this approach.
I enjoyed reading it and would strongly recommend it.
Ramesh Chandran is an honest, scholarly bureaucrat who gets sent to Assam to negotiate the release of one of his department's engineers, who is kidnapped and kept hostage by the militants. He struggles between the militants, the Delhi bureaucracy and the Assamese police to get his man released. The tempo is built up to a nice climax where Chandran himself ends up as the man carrying the bounty money to the extremists for the exchange of the hostage. However, the novel ends in a way that does not do justice to the absorbing narrative prior to it. It seemed as if the author was in a hurry to finish the book.
I found the narrative gripping and the plot a refreshing one. The Kafkaesque bureaucracy, the corruption in high places, the alienation of Assam from India, the violation of moral standards by the militants have all been well brought out in the novel. Though Chandran is a Marxist in belief, it is Gandhian values which prevail in his life and the novel is clearly an endorsement of Gandhi's methods rather than Marx's. Chandran's scholarly bent of mind is brought out well in a few encounters resulting in conversations on Eric Hobsbaum, Thomas Hardy and Forster.
However, there was one jarring note for me in the narrative. In writing the novel, the author has taken the approach of blurring the lines between the story and the storyteller. This results in the novel being written in chunks and each chunk being reviewed then and there as the reader progresses through the novel. This has the effect of the reader getting the feeling that the author is trying to anticipate the reader's response to each part of the novel and discuss the possible criticisms. I felt that the novel (within the novel) stood quite well by itself and there was no further need to 'discuss' it or defend or 'explain' it. Of course, one must concede that the author might have had entirely different goals in choosing this approach.
I enjoyed reading it and would strongly recommend it.
December 28, 2015
This book.... is a gem.... !
I don't know how to review this one. Seriously!
Researched and written with an experienced hand, the irony of today's society, people, government and the inbetweeners. It is a telling as well as a re-telling of incidents. Difficult to describe, a bit easy to read, and impossible to review (for me.)
Complex, woven into a spider's web, contradicting and revolting : refreshing with a zealed-up style : real-life and hard hitting : with the emotions and twists at perfect places : the author reviewing himself (though you are free to judge it on your own) and providing you two viewpoints to review his writing at the end of each narration : multiple characters, each fully developed in their own skin, intense and breathing life into the story : dreams and narrations merging with each other : illustrated prose spread like butter over a maze of story.
A definite page-turner : Nothing I have read before : read like this. I believe myself lucky to have this to go through.
An overwhelming one.
I don't know how to review this one. Seriously!
Researched and written with an experienced hand, the irony of today's society, people, government and the inbetweeners. It is a telling as well as a re-telling of incidents. Difficult to describe, a bit easy to read, and impossible to review (for me.)
Complex, woven into a spider's web, contradicting and revolting : refreshing with a zealed-up style : real-life and hard hitting : with the emotions and twists at perfect places : the author reviewing himself (though you are free to judge it on your own) and providing you two viewpoints to review his writing at the end of each narration : multiple characters, each fully developed in their own skin, intense and breathing life into the story : dreams and narrations merging with each other : illustrated prose spread like butter over a maze of story.
A definite page-turner : Nothing I have read before : read like this. I believe myself lucky to have this to go through.
An overwhelming one.
February 14, 2013
One of the best books i have read in recent times.One of those books which teach you a few things without being preachy, there are no ideological grand standings. At surface, it's a story about kidnapping of an engineer by ULFA and a bureaucrat involved in negotiation, deep within it's about a multitude of things -Gandhi, insurgency, loss of a child, friends, Assam, human nature etc. I own the copy and have marked those paras ,they are gems. The characters and events are multi-layered. The book has a parallel narrative which is in a form of letters, i found it very creative, it aids the story fantastically.
If you are thinking that a book coming from an ex-IAS would be predomnantly about bureaucracy it isn't but it delivers more than that.
And yeah you will get the meaning of the title right at the end.I would have jumped into his other book(tiger claw) but the subject matter seems not so interesting to me as of know
If you are thinking that a book coming from an ex-IAS would be predomnantly about bureaucracy it isn't but it delivers more than that.
And yeah you will get the meaning of the title right at the end.I would have jumped into his other book(tiger claw) but the subject matter seems not so interesting to me as of know
May 17, 2016
ரமேஷ் சந்திரன் என்னும் நேர்மையான ஐஏஎஸ் அதிகாரி அரசு இயந்திரத்தால் எவ்வாறு அலைக்கழிக்கப்படுகிறார் என்பதை இந்நாவலுக்குள் கொஞ்ச கதையாகவும், மீதிக் கதையை ரமேஷ்சந்திரன் கதாபாத்திரமே எழுதும் நாவலில் வாயிலாகவும் விறுவிறுப்பான நடையில் கூறப்பட்டுள்ளது. பலப் புத்தகங்களைப் பற்றியும், புத்தகங்களிலிருந்து நிறைய மேற்கோள்களும் கதாப்பாத்திரங்கள் கூறுகின்றன. காந்தியின் கருத்துக்கள் நாவல் நெடிகிலும் மேற்கோள் காட்டப்படுவதுடன் அவற்றை மையமாகக் கொண்டே இந்நாவல் எழுநப்பட்டுள்ளது. நல்ல விறுவிறுப்பான மொழி நடை, எதிர்பாராத திருப்பங்கள், வித்சாயமான முறையில் கதை சொல்லுதல் ஆகியவை இந்த அரசியல் த்ரில்லர் நாவலை ஆர்வத்துடன் படிக்கத் தூண்டுகிறது...
December 14, 2011
The Muddy River is the finest book I have read in recent times. It is truly Indian and the inner integrity of the book will be clear to any reader who reads the book carefully. It portrays different followers of Gandhi in deft strokes and brings out beautifully the great man's relevance in today's corrupt, strife-ridden India. Though it is very serious book, its humor is of a very high quality. I expect the book to win a few awards next year.
February 28, 2012
A great novel. Complex, deep, amusing and enlightening. The 'novel inside the novel' aspect gas come out brilliantly. The multiple layers of personality of the main characters are presented very well, so are the outward / inward conflicts. I read the English version, but I hear the the Tamil version (கலங்கிய நதி) penned by the author himself has also come out very good.
November 4, 2015
A multifaceted woven story, fast-paced, twisty plots, uninterrupted flow..fair writing that gives out witty lines in between the scenes..good satirical humour in portions..some portion may remind you of news..fictional-yet-convincing. A good read.
September 6, 2016
This book dwells on non essentials,What could be a stunning story is turned into a lipid bureaucratic wrangle.
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