Indian Readers discussion

I think journaling and documenting your reads inspires us to read and explore more, and also stay on track despite of life throwing all kinds of hurdles at us.
This is a simple reminder to myself about how much I enjoyed reading and how beautiful the experience can be.

Sorry for the melodramatic start. I can be like that, sometimes. ;-)

TBR for 2024:

1. The Thursday Murder Club
2. Yellowface
3. A Little Life
4.Ego is the Enemy: The Fight to Master Our Greatest Opponent
5.The Complete Adventures of Feluda, Vol. 1
6.The Ministry of Utmost Happiness
7.The Fountainhead
8. The Insufferable Gaucho
9.The Lives of Others
10. I Want to Die But I Want to Eat Tteokbokki
11.Sakina’s Kiss

Books read:

1.
-Completed on 12.01.2024; 4 stars.

2.
-Completed on 09.02.2024; 3 stars.

3.
-Completed on 07.03.2024; 5 stars

4.
-Completed on 28.03.2024; 3 stars

5.
-Completed on 07.04.2024; 5 stars

6.
-Completed on 28.04.2024; 3 stars

7.
-Completed on 30.04.2024; 3 stars

8.
-Completed on 09.05.2024; 2 stars

Just finished The Thursday Murder Club today- my first book of 2024. I took a little too long to finish the book, I admit and hence ended up losing the initial charm.
Nevertheless, it was an amazingly smart and funny read about a group of veterans working on murder case files. The combination of both seems unlikely, but one shouldn't underestimate their wit and wisdom, something that comes only from years of experience.
If there was a choice, I would love to spend my old age being part of a club that solves similar mysteries. Kindly let me know if there is an opening of such kind. :P

Some quotes:

“In life you have to learn to count the good days. You have to tuck them in your pocket and carry them around with you. So I’m putting today in my pocket and I’m off to bed.”

"It was a community, and in Ibrahim’s opinion that was how human beings were designed to live. At Coopers Chase, anytime you wanted to be alone, you would simply close your front door, and anytime you wanted to be with people, you would open it up again. If there was a better recipe for happiness than that, then Ibrahim was yet to hear it.”

Started Yellowface today.
Promising start, looks like it's headed for either a massive knockout or a massive downfall.


"People always describe jealousy as this sharp, green, venomous thing. Unfounded, vinegary, mean-spirited. But I've found that jealousy, to writers, feels more like fear. Jealousy is the spike in my heart rate when I glimpse news of Athena's success on Twitter- another book contract, awards nominations, special editions, foreign rights deals. Jealousy is constantly comparing myself to her and coming up short; is panicking that I'm not writing well enough or fast enough, that I am not, and will never be, enough."

It's cover seems to very weird /spooky .I can't look at it.

Btw what genre is it

Mansi, hahaha. That was funny. It looks normal to me though.

Mansi wrote: "It's cover seems to very weird /spooky .I can't look at it."

Hahahaha is that so?
It's not horror though, rest assured.
Comes under Literature and fiction. It talks about the publishing world and plagiarism.

Meaning of Yellowface (a/to Cambridge) :
The practice of white actors changing their appearance with make-up in order to play East Asian characters in films, plays, etc.:

Used metaphorically here.

Finished reading Yellowface. Good writing overall, though many parts felt repetitive. The ending was abrupt, however and sort of underwhelming. I don’t know if the author intends on writing a Part -2 and hence the sudden ending.
Rather I would have loved if the story concentrated more on developing the last subplot instead of leaving it as a loose thread; would have been more interesting than the repetitive self-loathing by the protagonist.

Highlights about gaslighting, cancel culture of social media that is so prominent today- one of the reasons why this book was so gripping to read.

Started with The Fountainhead by: Ayn Rand . Was long overdue. Have high hopes for this one.

Good one! All the best!

Gorab wrote: "Good one! All the best!"

Thank you, Gorab! :)

Reached around 8% of this tome. Good start to the book, loving the writing style. Some of the descriptions are a bit elaborate, specifically the ones talking about the architectural designs and interiors of the buildings they work at or happen to visit - would be a reading feast for architects.

Loved how they compared the two buildings - The Bank Building by Francon boasting of regality and classicism vs The Dana Building by Cameron built on simplicity and functionality.
And how people/critics often preferred flamboyance, as opposed to practicality.

Liking how the story is progressing. I'm reading at a rather slow pace, but things are moving fast. The simple fact as to how their individual choices at a crucial point in their career are shaping both Roark's and Keating's life is a pretty strong storyline. I'm excited to see how things unfold.

Feel sorry for Henry Cameron- the disappointment, the repeated rejection that slowly killed his personality, his love and passion for architecture and the fervour with which he trained Roark despite all odds is truly inspiring.

"When we gaze at the magnificence of an ancient monument and ascribe its achievement to one man, we are guilty of spiritual embezzlement. We forget the army of craftsmen, unknown and unsung, who preceded him in the darkness of the ages, who toiled humbly- all heroism is humble- each contributing his small share to the common treasure of his time. A great building is not the private invention of some genius or other. It is merely a condensation of the spirit of a people."

Finished Part 1 of Fountainhead. Though the tiny font scared me at first, this book so far has been nothing but enjoyable.
Loving the character progressions in this book- how Roark and Keating both starting from a common standpoint ventured out in life in polar opposite directions, in regard to their ideals. Though the author speaks about the universal beef between conventionalism and modernism in architecture, one can't stop noticing how the analogy can be extrapolated to people, their personalities and how the public view 'change'- perhaps that was the aim.

There was a particular instance where Roark mused about some of the clients that came to him, whom he eventually refused - that they were a conglomeration of the opinions of others, devoid of their own individuality, their own thoughts closed into a box and tossed away and shielded by a facade that would look or sound appealing to the public eye. Or they were mere ''remnants, long dead, of the people inhabiting a particular place", who wished to build something in order to possess a piece of nostalgia, and refused to see it as a new, separate entity cut away from the bonds that hinder its progress.

If agreed to, this change of perspective would be such a shocking but impactful step in their progress.

Then again, I wonder what choice I would have made, if I had one. Build something that reminds me of something precious to my heart or break through the comfort zone and get something modernistic, practical constructed.

Something laughable to note here is that, Roark though denounced by the world as an utter failure- his drawings are what bag the awards in competitions, as long as they appear to come from someone renowned in the world of architecture. Double standards much, dear society?

I was today years old when I learnt that Ayn Rand is the founder of "Objectivism" in the world of philosophy. I knew Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged talk about Objectivism, but didn't know that she was the creator.

From Wikipedia:
"The name "Objectivism" derives from the idea that human knowledge and values are objective: they exist and are determined by the nature of reality, to be discovered by one's mind, and are not created by the thoughts one has."

"...According to Rand, attaining knowledge beyond what is given by perception requires both volition (or the exercise of free will) and performing a specific method of validation by observation, concept-formation, and the application of inductive and deductive reasoning. For example, a belief in dragons, however sincere, does not mean that reality includes dragons. A process of proof identifying the basis in reality of a claimed item of knowledge is necessary to establish its truth."

Why does Ellsworth Toohey reminds me of Robert Downey Jr.'s character- Lewis Strauss - from Oppenheimer? Both are exceptional masters in the art of manipulation.

I thought he was an observant, mostly out of curiosity, but he actually preyed on people and the gaps in their personalities to be used for a time when they were at their rock-bottom. Someone aptly said that he "fed on sores."

He really played a foul prank on Roark and it's astounding as to how someone could actually bring down a person's career and not even have the courage to do it from upfront. Such is the humanitarian soul, poof!

Also reading The A.B.C. Murders by Agatha Christie with some fellow buddies. Long time since I read a Poirot, so definitely looking forward to some whodunnit mystery!

Love how the book starts with a warm conversation between Hastings and Poirot.. Feels like I'm meeting 2 friends of old after a long while, yet no time seems to have passed. :D

Reading update:
Fountainhead seems a bit unrealistic for me right now. I'm hoping, really hoping that this is temporary and things will take a good turn. Really pissed at Dominique and her marriage to Keating and whatever justification she gave Roark.

On Part 3: Gail Wynand right now. Let's see what Wynand has to offer. Probably something sinister, because Cameron disliked him quite a lot.

ABC is going real fun. The serial killer is a fan of alphabetical order and alliterations. The plot is getting more interesting every second. I really like how Poirot is focused on getting to know the motive and learning the killer's mindset first, unlike others.
Don't like Crome at all and he even comes close to a suspect, seeing how desperately he wants to one-up Poirot.

Finished ABC. It was a fun, fast paced, light read. Loved how Poirot solved the mystery by trying to understand the mind of the murderer and the motive behind it, rather than focusing on the person who did it.

Fountainhead - probably the last one third left. I'm in 2 minds about Gail Wynand but in a world where everything is either copied or manipulated, he does stand out. But don't understand why he would need Dominique as a wife though.
Is it the collective animosity towards Toohey that brought them both together? Or there is going to be a love angle too?
I feel bad that there is not much focus about Roark as of now, considering how much his philosophies were what I looked forward to.
Also Peter Keating has just become a pain to watch. He was somewhat bearable in the early half- I almost felt pity, but now I'm simply bored of his nature. Sheer lack of ingenuity and completely no character of his own.

Reading update:

Fountainhead : FINALLY, we have something on Roark! The last part is dedicated mostly to him and his interactions with other characters. Quite to my disbelief, I'm actually enjoying Gail and Roark's friendship, mostly because of the brute honesty and the straightforward nature of their relationship. Also to see this vulnerable side of Gail, where he is deeply turmoiled by how his creation, 'The Banner' has hurt the sentiments of people he held in the highest regard makes me like him somewhat.
Found it real funny how Gail tried to own Roark and his creations, but was smoothly rejected in a way that even Gail couldn't stop laughing. Way to go, Roark!

Also started The Midnight Library by Matt Haig. Quite a compelling synopsis and part of a group buddy read. Looking forward to it.

Reading update:

Midnight Library is not really working. The writing feels juvenile and disjointed; there's no flow in the progression of the story to explain as to how the character started feeling a certain way. The start of the book was indeed promising, but the writing as well as the superficial nature of the characters made it pretty disappointing.

The chapters are kinda small, so probably will finish the book, hoping against hope that the tables will turn. Though at this point, it seems past redemption.

Most of the books that has these catchy names have always disappointed me ..as if they only had a beautiful name for a book and thats where the creativity and idea ended ..recently read and was dissatisfied with My days in the Miyosaki book store and now by your review of the midnight library or the charm is lost in the translation? Even before the coffee gets cold fell short of my expectations of the book and the hype around it . All hopes on all you need is in the library now .

Tarinee wrote: "Most of the books that has these catchy names have always disappointed me ..as if they only had a beautiful name for a book and thats where the creativity and idea ended ..recently read and was dis..."

IKR!! I don't understand what the hype was about.
Midnight Library's curve got a little better towards the ending, but still the execution was downright bad. I was struggling to keep my frustration in check, but all thanks to the buddy read that I was a part of that kept me going.

Before the coffee gets cold had promise, but the writing felt flat. Probably lost in translation. The writing style, for me, is something that I can't overlook, no matter how good the plot is. Maybe for others, it's something that can be ignored.

Sad to see Miyosaki in that category too, I had heard so much talking lately regarding that book. But I'm not very hopeful after knowing how you felt about it. :-/

I'm looking forward to reading this one! Thanks for your thoughts on it so far.

~~Poulomi Sylphrena Tonk$~~ wrote: "I think journaling and documenting your reads inspires us to read and explore more, and also stay on track despite of life throwing all kinds of hurdles at us.
This is a simple reminder to myself a..."

Definitely!

~~Poulomi Sylphrena Tonk$~~ wrote: "Just finished The Thursday Murder Club today- my first book of 2024. I took a little too long to finish the book, I admit and hence ended up losing the initial charm.
Nevertheless,..."

PJ wrote: "I'm looking forward to reading this one! Thanks for your thoughts on it so far."

You're welcome. :)
Hope it turns out to be a good read for you :)

I was of the impression that I am posting in my own thread :p

Tarinee wrote: "I was of the impression that I am posting in my own thread :p"

Haha that's okay, Tarinee! :)
I thought you had dropped another good book recommendation and the explanation as to why I should read it :P

Reading update- Finished Midnight Library some days back. The start of the book was very thought-provoking and impactful and that raised expectations to a great extent, but the book failed miserably in the execution. Flimsy and inconsistent characters, plenty of loose threads left unattended, not much emotional conceptualization for the readers to connect with the protagonist's life. It made me sad to see a story with such high potential go down the drain. The end was a tad redeeming, but simply wasn't enough to overlook the poor writing.

Also finished Fountainhead finally. I simply loved the book. Despite its lengthy nature, I found the writing to be incredible partly because it took its sweet time to embed the personality quirks onto each of the characters, so much so that even if the most trivial character showed a twitch in his/her face, Ayn Rand would make you notice it as if if you were a guest in that very room. Another aspect that I loved is her detailed descriptions concerning objectivism and the contradictory ideals.
Would definitely recommend this to every living soul on earth, who loves slowly progressing books and have a fondness for beautiful writing.

Started a new book - Five Little Pigs by Agatha Christie, as part of an offline buddy read. It's a bit different from Poirot's usual style of investigating, given that it was a murder committed 16 years back and everything needs to go through a retrospective analysis, filling up the gaps in memory of those who were related to the crime.
Also missing Hastings in this one. Don't know if he crops up later, though most likely he won't. Let's see how it goes, fingers crossed.

I have also read a couple of chapters and quite interesting case but for some reason have not progressed much 😬

Tarinee wrote: "I have also read a couple of chapters and quite interesting case but for some reason has not progressed much 😬"

You're reading it still? Can read together if you want to.
I have only read upto Ch 7.

We can do that .. am dying for a crime / suspense thriller but have recently acquired a few old/new books which have kept me busy and I have an urge to read all the books at the same time .. and have read few chapters into 10-12 books now .. need ti get rid of the habit …

Tarinee wrote: "We can do that .. am dying for a crime / suspense thriller but have recently acquired a few old/new books which have kept me busy and I have an urge to read all the books at the same time .. and ha..."

Hahaha! I used to be like that some years back. Would put my feet in way too many places and then get nothing done. :P
Now I have no mental space for even accommodating one book at a time..

Still reading 5 little pigs for now. Life has been a bit busy lately too. That aside, the book also seems less compelling than what I had anticipated from the synopsis. The narratives are a bit repetitive, because you go over the same story from 16 years back, multiple times. Also the suspects this time feel somewhat one-dimensional, as if there's nothing more to their individual personas, other than the murder of Amyas Crale.

I know that a plot of this nature would be tricky to construe; it's almost like painting a crime scene from scratch, with only 5 colors available. I'm liking the extra tidbits of info that we are learning from the individual suspects' narratives, but I would have enjoyed it more if there were more characters used, who might not be directly related to the story but somehow had something to say about the kind of people they were. And by that I don't mean the lawyers' or the police commissioners' POV, but people who were involved on a more personal level with the victim and the convicted.

Finished Five Little pigs. I did like it, though not as much as I loved ABC murders or her other bestseller books. I really missed Hastings POV in this book, because there is an element of relatability that his perspective offers to the readers.
I liked the concept of digging through the memories of the suspects and finding the process of selective recall that they exhibited to construe the entire crime scene from scratch. That was very interesting to see how the final picture was unfolded by Hercule Poirot.
I wished there were more characters who weren't really suspects, but knew the other suspects on a more inter-personal level- that would have given a more 3D picture of the individual suspects, rather than their repetitive monotone about the same crime multiple times.
Overall a good 3 star read. Not really my most memorable Christie, but definitely offers something different from the rest.

Started The House Swap by Rebecca Fleet. Bought it from The Book Box fair held recently in my city and the title caught my attention somehow. No expectations on how this might turn out though.

~~Poulomi Sylphrena Tonk$~~ wrote: "Finished Five Little pigs. I did like it, though not as much as I loved ABC murders or her other bestseller books. I really missed Hastings POV in this book, because there is an element of relatabi..."
And what about your theories ... using you own little grey cells :P any thing close ? I will finish in a couple of days, hopefully ..

Tarinee wrote: "~~Poulomi Sylphrena Tonk$~~ wrote: "Finished Five Little pigs. I did like it, though not as much as I loved ABC murders or her other bestseller books. I really missed Hastings POV in this book, bec..."

Hahaha tried to use my decaying brain cells too, but kinda missed the mark :P
Will wait till you finish to tell you my theories in detail, or might end up spoiling accidentally.
You can tell me yours though, since you haven't finished.

I am doubting her daughter :P Will expand on the idea after finishing the book

Tarinee wrote: "I am doubting her daughter :P Will expand on the idea after finishing the book"

Carla??
That's interesting. What made you think so? :P
I think Poirot forgot to include her in the list of pigs..

Because she knew poirot will unearth the truth and that truth is too big a burden to carry … will explain a lot of things including the silence of her mother / half hearted defence during the trail … Bollywood have milked these kind of stories but as it is pre BWMM , I have this as plausible plot though it would disappoint me a lot :p

Finished The House Swap in two days. Ah, the satisfaction :D
Was an average read. I was bored by the incessant lies the protagonist made up for only her husband; so much trouble could have been saved if she just stopped lying without any particular reason.

I liked how they highlighted issues with addiction and how the lives of people living with addicts also get affected in the process. Also liked the climax that steered the story in a completely different direction that what the readers would have been predicting. Another element that really touched me was how the torment of a mother who lost her child was portrayed; brief but effective.

The extra marital affair was incredibly boring to me; it was interesting at first and I did empathize with Caroline to an extent, but it just got more pathetic. Especially in the present day perspectives, when she claims to be "trying very hard" to make her marriage work but still keeps pining for her lover - I'm sorry, can't relate at all.

Will start I Want to Die But I Want to Eat Tteokbokki by Baek Se-hee next. The title was interesting enough to make me buy it as well as read it. :D

Part of a BR with some GR buddies.