Detour to Canada - Sunil Nair

‘Detour to Canada’, a debut work of Canada-based Keralite, Sunil Nair has a simple storyline. An Indian student Vinu who has no focus in life dreams of going to the United States of America. But future has something else in store for him. He reaches Canada and he aspires to go to the US from there. During his stay in Canada, his life and perception changes. The elements that bring the change forms the crux of the story. The book is too simple that the question, ‘does the reader need such a simple tale at a time when technology rules the roost’, pops up. It should have been told more than 20 years ago.

Even the fact that this is the author’s debut book could not salvage him from some of the grave mistakes he had committed here. Firstly, home work, a prerequisite for any kind of endeavour is absent. Sadly, it is too conspicuous that it can halt a reader from moving ahead with the story.

There are many such instances in the book that can prove it beyond doubt. When Ramdas’s (Vinu’s father) cousin Raj calls from the USA, the former inquires about the hurricane ‘Sandy’ that has hit America. Ramdas who is unaware of the incident, would have known it from his son who constantly googles about that country. To Ramdas’s query, Raj expresses surprise and replies as follows - ‘You guys already got the news about hurricane? India sure is catching up on international news.’ This is a bit far-fetched. People of India were never that ignorant. The author should have taken pains to know the pulse of changing India. 

The other instance is Vinu dialling 911 instead of 011, the telephone code of India from Canada. Is a computer science graduate from Kochi, that ignorant? Can’t he just simply know that 911 is an emergency number? There is another instance where Vinu expresses wonder over the importance given to Mahatma Gandhi in a foreign land. The author entirely forgot the fact that even the President of the United States has a photo of Mahatma Gandhi in his office cabin. When Barack Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize, the whole world interpreted it as a victory of the ideals of Gandhi.

Next comes the language. The book lacks creative flow. Though you read English, you will feel like you are reading Malayalam. A few examples to show that: ‘You are on his side. Just tie him to your sari and keep him with you forever.’; ‘Please don’t start now.’ ; ‘They will kill me then and there.’; ‘There will be fireworks in the house now.’ (here the author is referring to the verbal duel that is about to begin); ‘He is not a typical type....’, the list is endless.

Some portion of the story is like what to do to study in the USA. It seems that the book never went to the editing table. The work of the author could fare better if it paid attention to these details.

Interestingly, even with these flaws, there a was moment in the book that could bring tears in the eyes of the reader.

Even if it’s for a second, the author could bring that emotional element. Mistakes are of course the stepping stone to learning. A big appreciation for the author who took the courage to put it out what he has.

Reading classic challenge for beginners

I have joined Classic reading challenge for beginners, 2014. As only 4 months have left, I decided to read 5 books.

1. Little Women – Mary Louisa Alcott
2. Wuthering Heights - Emilie Bronte
3. Great Expectations – Charles Dickens
4. Adventures of Tom Sawyer – Mark Twain

I am yet to decide the 5^th book

The Lowland – Jhumpa Lahiri

There are many books which I do not review purely for the reason that I love to cherish them. That's why I did not review Jhumpa Lahiri's 'Unaccustomed earth' and 'Interpreter of maladies' . But I decided to talk about her book ' The Lowland ' just because I came across many negative reviews.

Some have even pledged that they would not read her books unless she tries to break out that ' NRI cocoon'. There is no dispute over the subject that too much of the same element can make a reader form his/her own preconceived notions on that particular author. But I really do not think, in this story she had used the ' NRI element' just to create a story. Calling her story trivial on this grounds would be an absolute injustice.

Some commented that the Naxalism described in the book is not suffice. Here I would like to point out that this book does not primarily delve into Naxalism. The characters of the story start their lives' journey from 1960's. Naxalism was at it zenith during that period in West Bengal. Perhaps the only place in India which saw the repercussions of Naxalism at its worst.

The fate of Gouri altered when she left Calcutta for America. The Naxalism rampant in the state pulled the trigger for it. Lahiri spoke about the movement, Kanu Sanyal and Charu Majumdar but not superfluously . The details are enough to get a reader acquainted with Naxalism. More of it would have puzzled them. Besides, the story does not demand Naxalism in detail. It is described to form a back ground and not to talk about the pros and cons of the movement.

I have even read in a review that it is an NRI love story – an emphatic ' No' to that. It would be like closing the doors of opportunities to explore a beautiful fiction. The story revolves around a few characters – Udayan, Subhash, Gouri, Bela. But they are round characters and not flat with loads of emotions to convey. They haunt you for many days. The story starts. But does it end? It is for you to discover.

I did not feel like reading a fiction with a set format. It was a journey along with evolving emotions which was a ride in its own way.

Jhumpa Lahiri - My inspiration

Nilanjana Sudeshna Lahiri ( Jhumpa Lahiri )

Years ago, this one photograph introduced me to the world of Pulitzer and writing. Time flew by, but this single picture lingered in my memory. I never ever thought in the wildest of my dreams that I could write. But I used to read then voraciously. The above appeared on the cover of Competition Success Review. But I took years to read her books. And now I am a huge fan of hers. I have read all of her works except the ' Lowland' which I will finish soon.

new books to review

I have got these new books to review..Will do it soon...

Agni - C Radhakrishnan

One could well say at the outset that the all-pervading emotion of ‘Agni’ is violence. But as you proceed further, it is not violence alone that rules, but a strange interplay between love and violence. And this bizarre proportion could disturb the reader to the core.

‘Agni’ was originally written in Malayalam in 1963. But the political setting narrated could well fit into the current scenario also, thereby closing the gap of 51 years. Besides, it has been chronicled so vividly that it would not be a stupendous task for any reader, alien to Kerala, to feel the pulse of the state and the district where the story unfolds.

To begin with, the story is set in a village, Chamravattom in Malappuram district, which is also the author’s native place. When the story opens, Moosa, the village butcher has slaughtered his boy assistant and walked away. The severed head still lies there. While narrating the geography, politics and other associated elements which are required to set a backdrop, the author clearly explains that the place is not known for human sacrifices. Hence, when this murder occurs, one would wonder whether it is a case of human sacrifice. But it is not.

Moosa’s 17-year-old daughter Amina, who is lame, had been missing since the night before this fateful incident. Perhaps this might have irked Moosa and, unfortunately, his wrath might have fallen on the poor boy. People are frightened for they know that his fury is yet to subside. His daughter had eloped with her lover Sulaiman. The story has a few characters - Moosa, Amina, assistant boy, Mulla and Amina’s lover Sulaiman. The story revolves around them. But it is Moosa who takes the story forward.

If the reader tries to fathom the real emotion guiding Moosa, the protagonist, it is not going to be an easy task to reach any conclusion. For the book offers a lot of room to explore the undulating emotions which lie hidden in him. You could well take in the anger from an enemy but not from somebody whom you cannot segregate either as a friend or an enemy. Such is the case with Moosa. He would appear beastly. But the emotion he showers on his disabled daughter even after he discovers that she is pregnant out of wedlock would force the reader to think otherwise. But it would not take you too long to reverse the opinion.

Moosa is not totally devoid of love. But, strangely, he had taken a drastic step. The poor boy was forced to suffer a humiliating end for no reason of his own. The reader would be horrified to know that love has manifested itself in a strange and cruel way. For an English reader, who is not well-versed with the works of Radhakrishnan, this is a good introduction.

‘Agni’ was filmed in 1973. As part of the Indian Panorama of Feature Films, ‘Agni’ has been screened at major international film festivals including Mannheim, Istanbul, Moscow and Locarno.

C Radhakrishnan, the acclaimed man of letters, entered the literary scene when he won the novel contest conducted by the Mathrubhumi weekly at the age of 19. His novel ‘ Nizhalppadukal’ topped the 127 entries. Such a contest in novels was perhaps the first of its kind in the state. On many platforms, the author has said that if there were no such contests, there would not have been a writer called C Radhakrishnan.

Being a writer and film director in Malayalam, he has won accolades from various quarters. He was honoured by the Sahitya Akademi in 1989, for ‘Spandamapinikale Nandi’ and the Kerala Sahithya Akademi in 1962, for ‘Nizhalpadukal’. He won the Vayalar Award in 1990 for ‘Munpe Parakkunna Pakshikal’, and the Mahakavi G Award in 1993 for ‘Verpadukalude Viralppatukal’. His works have been translated into various Indian and foreign languages. He was also chosen for the Padmaprabha Puraskaram in 2007.

Decisive Battles and Strategic leaders by J P Alexander

Do we still have inspiring leaders to whom the nation can look up to? Can the country point out at least one leader who has a vision for the future? Do we have leaders who walk the talk? Perhaps these questions pricked the conscience of the civilian in J P Alexander. So he has come up with the book, Decisive Battles, Strategic Leaders.

“Amongst the many crises witnessed by the country, the dearth of leadership stands first in the list. Unfortunately, this crisis remains unattended,” says Alexander.

Written like a history text, it might not have the charm of a work of fiction, but it  definitely talks at length about the strategies followed by prominent leaders to win their respective battles. “Hence it would not be wrong to call this book a personality development guide to mould the younger generation of leaders,” says Alexander.

The book primarily contains the details of every significant battle in the world from 1857 to 2014. These include the battles of Arbela, Waterloo, Gettysburg, the fall of Singapore,  the battles in Vijaynagar,Bahmani kingdoms in 1560, the third battle of Panipat, or the first war of Indian independence, in 1861, and the Bangladesh war in 1971.

“All these wars are a treasure trove of strategies worth emulating,” he says.“Every war has its own strategy. When you meticulously analyse every battle in detail, the strategies become clear.”

The book even throws light on the emotions of a leader while preparing for a battle. “It is wrong to assume that leaders are without any fear,” says Alexander. “But how they channelise it, is the pertinent factor.” He quotes Napolean to prove it. “When drawing a plan of action, I magnify every danger, every disadvantage that can be conceived,” said Napolean. “My nervousness is painful though I conceal it from every one.”

For a civil engineer by profession, to have a liking for history and dates seems an unconventional passion. “I have travelled extensively and these destinations still excites me,” says Alexander. In fact, he has visited every battle site mentioned in the book, including the renowned Waterloo.

But it was the battle field of the Third battle of Panipat that has an emotional connect with him. “Firstly, I had lived in Panipat for many years,” he says. “I knew the descendants of many leaders who fought there. Besides, if the Marathas were not defeated by the Afghan King Ahmad Shah Abdali, they would have beaten the English and the history would have been different,” he says.

The Bangladesh war is yet another battle which Alexander is proud of. “93,000 Pakistanis were captured as prisoners, the largest number after the Second World War,” he says.

The book received plaudits from many included the late Madhukar Rao, former professor of Maharaja’s college, Ernakulam. “That meant a lot to me,” says Alexander.

Though a bibliography is there at the end of the book, the author says he cross-checked those books just to confirm the facts.

“The history and the related chronology is intact in my brain and I hardly needed a reference book,” says Alexander. “But you have to confirm every fact before it gets into print.”

Alexander’s sons and one of his students also helped him compile the graphics and maps. “As maps are copyrighted, I found it difficult to get the needed maps. Hence my children and a student of mine helped me with the maps suited for my purpose,” he says.

Alexander points out that the suggestions given by Lt General Thomas Mathew also helped.“I had stopped with 1971, but what about the current scenario?” Lt General asked. “Hence I wrote about the Indian Ocean and its strategic significance and how India should have a prominent role there.”

Alexander worked in the Marketing, Materials and Management Development departments of the Fertilisers and Chemicals Travancore Limited. He took nearly two years to complete the work. Justice V R Krishna Iyer will release the book on Sunday.

Veyililekku Mazha Chanju - Malayalam novel, ( review in English )

It is definitely a prodigious task for an author to write a story based on an autobiography. It will have real characters and incidents. The risk burgeons out if it is not an adaptation and the author has to stick to real incidents and characters. A skimpy or superfluous sketch could mar its real objective. But Xavier J has pulled the right strings to make "Nilaykkatha Symphony", an autobiography by veteran journalist Leela Menon, into a beautiful novel titled "Veyililekku Mazha Chanju."

Leela Menon - pic courtesy: Google

  The story starts with Leela, the protagonist being diagnosed with cancer. Slowly the life of Leela Manjari, a small girl from a nondescript village called Vengola unfolds. From a village belle who loves birds, trees and plants, she quickly transforms into a name to be reckoned with, in the field of journalism.


Leela brings to the fore many characters and incidents. Her friends Kamala Das and Sugathakumari who stood by her like a rock during her illness and Prema Vishwananthan who brought her to the world of journalism and her child-like husband Bhaskaran are significant few among them. Without diluting its essence, the author has narrated the Vypeen hooch tragedy, Aruvakkode potter women’s woes,  Sooryanelli and many other reports which once shook Kerala.


Perhaps, Xavier might have faced the biggest challenge from the original work itself. Nilaykkatha Symphony could be categorised into three parts - Leela Menon’s childhood, her life as a journalist with ‘The Indian Express’ and her life after that. How would one condense these three parts that have been written elaborately? It might definitely have been a nerve-racking job.



But, surprisingly, with ease, he has fine-tuned the original work into a novel by picking the right elements. He has compressed it so efficiently that in no way has it affected the essence of the actual work, placing the dialogue in the apt place.


Leela used to wake up in the morning by turning to her right side. It was her mother’s instruction. Otherwise, things would go go wrong, she used to say. And one morning,  blood dripped out of her right nose. Even when she was diagnosed with cancer and given a span of six months to live, it was one of her unfinished stories that haunted her and kept her moving for she felt restless till she completed it.


She borrowed a pen and paper from her doctor and sent the news to the bureau. This undaunted spirit pushed her on even while she had to encounter various hurdles in the form of illnesses from cancer, to bypass surgery and later to facial palsy. And Xavier could successfully bring out this indomitable spirit to the readers.



At the outset the work proceeds in a poetic way, but soon turns into a stubborn fiction being obstinate not to embrace any sort of creativity. Perhaps, the author had to do it as the nature of events demanded it, but it is a bit of a strain for the readers who have not read the autobiography.


The same poetic tempo is not seen throughout the work. When the novel switches over to the narration of her life as a journalist, the reader is likely to be in a dilemma as to whether they are leafing through the autobiography or a novel. It could have been avoided.


The novel starts with a third person account, but at times it slips into a first person narrative. Though it moves parallel to the original work, the novel could have been rendered in a way that it could transcend the readers.


Xavier J is a subeditor with the Malayalam daily, Janmabhumi. His other works include Kadal Malayodu Paranjathu, Zeebravarakal and Rathriyude Pakalurakkam.

- Shalet Jimmy

Bidding adieu to Tess Gerritsen

To Tess Gerritsen 

It is with great sadness that I am parting away with your books. The violence and other related meticulous details portrayed through her novels are too much for me to digest. I still remember one of my blog posts after reading one of her novels saying I felt butterflies in my stomach. It was too eerie. When I was reading her second book, I had to ask my mother to sleep with me. ( Thank God, I was at my home when while reading her book ).  I am sure, I will miss cop Jane Rizzoli and Dr. Maura Isles. I have taken this decision with utter sadness. I love your books with quirky endings. But I did not have any other alternative. The reading used to go smooth when you feel that all these sort of violence occurs only in books. But that has changed. Every day, the brutal stories you come across in dailies have literally given me a jolt. The reality is a burden and I do not need my burden to pile up.

I hope that this parting away is not permanent. I will muster the courage to read you again


With Love
Shalet Jimmy

My Story - Kamala Das

It's true that when you grow old your perspective changes. It's so true while re-reading a book too. Many thoughts becomes clear and assumes different dimensions. That's a different experience.  The recent in the list of those books which I read again was  Kamala Das ' My Story'.  I should be very specific. I am reading it for the third time. When I first read it, about 15 years ago, the only scene that I remembered from the book was when Das ( her husband ) forcibly kissing her when they meet for the first time. Yet another scene was when her cousin kisses her near a staircase. Except those scenes I remember nothing till I read it for the third time. ( I was stuck with those scenes. It might because I was studying in a convent at that time where all such conversation were a taboo) 

Coming back to the review, 

The Nalappat house, the ancestral home of Kamala provided ample resources to take a deep plunge into the ocean of writing. Her stay in Calcutta too provided ample food for thought. As the title indicates, it is her story where she did not hide behind any hypocrisy. She came out in the open without diluting her thoughts even once. Lesbianism, her frequent love affairs, her quest for love - though she discuss themin detail, I wonder whether she had taken many of those things from the world she had created for herself.  Somewhere down the line, her all romantic expectations never went beyond a certain level. It was miles away from reaching a successful culmination. I felt she was unfortunately stuck in her thoughts and her longing for love froze before fruition.  All through her work I felt her like a reservoir. The water tapped in it wanted to take its own course. But the big walls built around it prevented it. This thought broke my heart. It was not lust she was talking about but love,pure love. 

I was also surprised by the kind of relationship she shared with her husband. She describes that her husband invites his boy friend to her home. They would shut themselves in a room and would behave as lovers.  It  hurts her. But at the same time she loves her husband too. “ When I heard his heavy footfalls on the stairs, I clapped my hands in sheer happiness”.  This was when she was staying away from her husband in Nalappat house with her younger son.  When one of her love letters ended up in her husband's hands he warns her saying that she is innocent and she should keep herself away from such fraudsters. Is n't it a strange kind of relationships. Sometimes I am forced to think that Kamala might have acknowledged that her husband is a homosexual. Because of it, Das did not have any issues with her romantic escapades. ( Am I far-fetched by pointing out this). When this was published years ago, it was a shocker in Kerala. It should be. It shredded into pieces the so called built up moralities existed in Kerala.

I would like to conclude with her quote from ' My story'  “ I sincerely believe that knowledge is exposure to life. I could never bring myself to hang my life on the pegs of quotation for safety . I never did play safe. I compromised myself with every sentence I wrote and thus burnt all the boats that would have reached me to security.”

I give 9/10

Books to be read Before I wind up this year

It is already November. But I am nowhere near my reading challenge. But I am happy to say that this has been a year I delved into reading with utmost sincerity and passion. I read many good books and I am reading many including classics.

But before I wind up my reading challenge this year, I would like to complete certain books. Of course, it would not help me reach close to the reading challenge. But at least I will have a satisfaction that I read some most beautiful works this year.

Any two Agatha Christie' works
Any two Mary Higgins Clark works
I am Malala  - Malala Yousafzai
Interpreter of Maladies – Jhumpa Lahiri
The Cuckoos Calling – Robert Galbraith
Every light in the house burning – Andrea Levy

The Grandmother's Tale by R K Narayan

There was a time when grandiloquent writings gave me sleepless nights. How I wished I could use such words while writing. It was then I accidentally chanced upon R K Narayan's books which thankfully broke all my misconceptions. I knew at once that a story could be told beautifully with simple words too. My all time favourites are ' The Guide ' and ' The English Teacher'. But there are several more to explore.

Coming to Grandmother's tale, I did have a different picture before reading it. I was associating the title of the book with so many things such as pickles, Tairu saadam, the mischief of Swamy and many tales told by his grandmother. But it was not so. The book was about Bala and Vishwa, RK's great grandparents and their life from marriage until their death. Though I could read this book at a stretch, I could not relish it as I have done many of his other books.

RK's  grandparents tied the knot when they were little children. Unlike today, the husband and wife could not be together until the young wife Bala attains puberty. Once in a while, they were left alone only for a few minutes to talk to each other. Many of their such meetings went awry as they could not muster the courage to talk to themselves. But eventually, in one of such meeting, Bala somehow manages to talk to him. All she did was to point out to Vishwa, a dark patch under one of his ear. To this, he replies “ This is a lucky sign and my mother says I would be a king,” which became true.  He becomes rich but at the cost of Bala. 

 The story is all about how Bala manages to bring back his husband who left her and got married to another woman. As the story was completely told only from the point of Bala, there were many questions unanswered. Why did Vishwa become ready to desert his second wife though he loves her and come back to his first wife whom he hardly knows? What happened to Surma, his second wife when she was abandoned by Vishwa. Though he prospered after coming back to his village why didn't he make any effort to search Surma?

I grabbed this book as I was quite lured by the picture of the book where a small boy was seen sitting with his grandmother with inquisitive eyes on a swing.

- Shalet Jimmy

Riot by Shashi Tharoor

I read this book around 10 years ago. Ever since Lakshman and Priscilla Hart remained with me. Ten years after, I thought of re-reading it again. Just because I felt I can understand the emotions portrayed in the book much better.

When the story starts, Priscilla Hart, a 24-year-old American24-year-oldad. Why did she die? Was she murdered or was she at the wrong place at the wrong time?
Though there is the element of ‘ Who dunnit?’, the story is not said through the shrewd eyes of a sleuth but with a heart full of emotions.


Priscilla came to India when she was a little girl. Her dad was a Coco Cola executive. Though she had to leave India after some time, she left her heart and soul in the country only to return after a couple of years. She volunteered a population control programme in Zalilgarh in Uttar Pradesh, a place completely marred by the riots. She gets acquainted with the District Magistrate Lakshman and slowly the acquaintance blossoms to love. An abandoned ‘Kotli’ in the district is the witness of all their romantic trysts.

But Lakshman is married and could not leave his wife ( though he knew that he was not in love with her) and his little daughter. But he knew that Priscilla is the love of his life – with whom his life again bloomed. On top of that, he is in charge of a city marred by riots.

Putting an end to Lakshman’s dilemma, Priscillia was about to leave India when the fate struck its hardest blow. In the riots that broke out in Zalilgarh, there were eight people killed and her name was one among them. She is found dead in the same Kotli where she used to love Lakshman. The story slowly unravels the mystery of her death.

Tharoor has written a beautiful love -story in the backdrop of a riot-torn city.

- Shalet Jimmy