I have been reading novels for forty years. I know there are many stances we can adopt towards a novel, many ways in which we commit our mind and soul to it, treating it lightly or seriously. And in just the same manner, I have learned by experience that there are many ways to read a novel. We read sometimes logically, sometimes with our eyes, sometimes with imagination, sometimes the way we want to, sometimes the way the book wants us to and sometimes with every fiber of our being.

- Orhan Pamuk, The Naive and the Sentimental Novelist.

The disappointment that the movie was...

Blame the overdose of social networking sites, online reviews and people discussing animatedly on the sadness of the last potter movie. i too am sad that harry potter as it was, will never be seen again. J.K Rowling may be expanding the idea laterally, delving into the past of some principal characters. she has already started Pottermore. but as a fan of the book, the movie was very very disappointing. because it is hard for me to judge the movie objectively. as with any adaptations from books, David Yates has taken many cinematic liberties. and rightly so. this is about a movie, with a limited number of frames, a budget and time. so it isnt possible to show every angle of a character and every bit of magic. but i felt, in this movie, he has taken one too many liberties which have meant that some characters were not really depicted properly. in fact, i would go on to say that they were butchered.

1. Harry's interaction with Ollivander:

The movie depicts the interaction as almost hostile. harry accuses him of lying. harry is not like that.

the book says that ollivander knows only about wands, as he is a wandmaker. he has no idea about the idea of deathly hallows and harry trusts that he is being honest. harry is a forgiving person, who understands that ollivander had to tell voldemort about the elder wand under immense pain and torture. in fact he takes a liking to the wandmaker.

2. Voldemort's character:

the book depicts voldemort as not only dangerous and ruthless, he is also cunning and calculative. he does not take over the ministry or hogwarts, but installs his followers. he never leads from the front, does not think twice about letting his best followers to die for him. only when harry (his biggest nemesis) is dead, does he lead his pack of death eaters into hogwarts.

movie: one too many scenes about voldemort with his death eaters stading on top of a mountain, as if he is going to lead them into the hogwarts battle. this is murder of voldy's character as a leader.

book: voldemort never feels the physical pain when a horcrux is destroyed. he cannot feel pain. he only has anger and fear when he realizes what harry is after. this is an essential element about his character. his soul is so damaged that he cannot feel pain or weakness.

movie: harry says i can feel he is getting weaker !

3. Nagini:

harry never mentions nagini being the 7th horcrux to Neville, who eventually kills it. i guess it could be justified as wasting two more frames in the movie, but then why tell Hermionie and Ron ? the script could have showed harry telling all the three of them together.

the movie shows nagini roaming about freely and voldy fighting-off harry, a true hero-villian (think Matrix or closer home, Main Hoon Na !) style. well, i will get over with the latter one. but nagini roaming freely ? this again depicts voldy's character incorrectly. voldermort did fear for nagini's life once he realizes harry is after the horcruxes. he keeps nagini close to himself and only after he thinks harry is dead does he release nagini from the protective sphere. harry afterall managed to scare voldy.

4. Elder wand:

I thought the story behind elder want is one of the most fascinating sub-plots JKR created. the most powerful wand, so powerful that it chooses it own allegiance. a wand that also brings death and destruction in its wake. the wand is almost like a separate character. and the movie did not do justice to it at all. in fact, in the end, harry just snaps the elder wand into two, as if it were any other wand. if so, then what happens to his own wand ?

the book very beautifully depicts the longing and greed the wand creates. harry repairs his own wand with the elder wand and then returns it to its original place. the elder wand is a magical wand, which cannot be merely snapped into two.

5. various conversations that bring-out characters:

in snape's memories, the bit about petunia writing to dumbledore, to be accepted at hogwarts is never mentioned. it is an important aspect of petunia's dislike towards harry and his dead parents. why did she dislike them so much, but not enough to leave harry to grow-up at an orphanage ? petunia's anger was as much due to the "freak" nature of her sister as well as not being able to have the talent of magic.

**

harry never mentions to aberforth that albus dumbledore always regretted his actions during his teenage years. up untill then, aberforth has been a ring-side viewer to the battle. but that conversation might have been a big reason why aberforth too joins actively in the hogwarts battle.


**

Kings Cross: this is where harry truly understands dumbledore's actions and his anger goes away. this is also where dumbledore is humble and almost child-like and asks harry for forgiveness for not trusting him enough. this interaction is so important. one of the best part about the characters created by JKR is that the good characters are not all white. they have made their mistakes and have had a grey past, but they have made amends. sadly the movie missed this part completely.

**

these are just some of the differences from the book, differences that are important enough to change the sketch of a certain character or narrative. i am not even going into other numerous mistakes in the movie. i will admit that at the end of the day, the movie was made for a larger audience, and i am being too finicky about the finer details in the book. but then it could be done without making some of these glaring mistakes, which are bound to fall in the eyes of an avid book fan. as i mentioned earlier, there are times when you would want to overlook certain aspects as "director's vision", but at the end of the day, this is a movie made from the book. not inspired by it. there is a difference, a big one at that.

As Kenneth Turan, a film critic with LA Times said about the book fans watching the movies:

We don't turn to these films for thrilling or original cinema, we look for a level of craft, consistency and, most of all, fidelity to the originals -- all of which we get.

Sadly (for me) this movie gives a wide berth to the quote. Sigh.

The Beauty of Urdu

Lessons were in conversation rather than a lecture. Text was enhanced by context. Alam introduced my grandfather to the nuances of Urdu. "As the prophet said, wit is to speech as salt is to food."...."You cannot understand or speak Urdu without wit. Not laughter, wit. A belly laugh is too coarse for our language. Wit is the smile of an equal. Even repartees must never be unkind, for rancor is foreign to the spirit of Urdu. You may pierce your opponent's defenses, but you cannot wound him; it is a duel with blunted rapiers.".... When my grandfather heard he was going to get lessons in guttural, palatal, dental and labial enunciations, he decided he had had enough.

Excerpt from M.J.Akbar's Blood Brothers.

Can i not lend my books to you and still be friends with you ?

When you lend a book to someone, all you have left is luck. you have got to be lucky to get back the book. and luckier if you get back the book in good shape (assuming you kept the book in a good shape). initially you are hesitant to ask about your book because you are being polite and gracious. but there is no guarantee that your graciousness will be returned. and then after a sufficient amount of time, when you think they might have been done with the book, you realize they have actually done away with your book. here's how it might happen:

* the book joins their collection of books. here again, there might be a chance of recovery. when i gently point it out, they give a sheepish grin and (finally) return my book.

* the above case, with the claim that the copy is theirs. and i am left to twiddle my thumb and bid a silent and mournful goodbye to my book.

* they lend your book off to someone else. that someone else gives it to someone else and so on. and before long, your book is gone. after all this, they say: okay, i will buy you a new copy. seriously ? when will they get it that it wasn't just a book. it was MY book. i bought it with my money, after a lot of thought and consideration and discussion and deliberation. (whee ! i do that with books, not clothes :D).

* they think they have returned your book. unfortunately it is my word against them, so this is the saddest thing to happen. 

* then sometimes you get back your book but you hardly recognize that it was yours. it would have gone through a harrowing time in the hands of its last reader.

I've had a friend who lost my Wodehouse omnibus and tried to placate me with a tiny single Wodehouse ("its the same author!"). i lost my Feynman. the person i lent it to, gave the book to someone else and that someone else doesn't remember the whereabouts of the book anymore. my new copy of  The Inheritance of Loss  was returned to me with dog-ears and tea-stains. the person didn't even realize it. i have lost my White Tiger and have no clue who has it. these are just a few of them. i am not going into others.

probably it isn't fair that people understand this, but for me, the books i have are a part of my identity. the way i keep them is an extension of my own lifestyle. to lose them is like losing a small part of myself and that can never be replaced. i do not have an unlimited source of money. so i try to read-up a book before buying or trust very very few people on their opinions about books i haven't read. so that i don't waste my money on books i don't like.

so the next time a friend (with a "history" with my books) asks for a book from me, can i politely decline and still be friends with this person ? Hmmm.

P.S.: i do not have the habit of writing my name on the books, but i am doing that now, often. guess i learnt it the hard way.

Two of my favourite authors are dating ! Orhan Pamuk and Kiran Desai....way to go !!! :)

Its the time for annual book fair in city i am currently living. my last post on books already read or to be read was this . have i been able to read all of them ?

nocturnes - kazuo ishiguro - a charming collection of short stories. reminds me to add "remains of the day" to my list of books to read/buy.

short stories by franz kafka - i need to give him some time to grow on me. i will give him a few more chances. i am not so accommodating with writers. my simple theory is - there are so many books to read in this world. why waste time on one writer if he/she isnt able to fascinate you in their first shot ?

note: An embarassing confession - my "fascination" with kafka was with his personal life, especially his last few years with his partner Dora Diamant and her daughter Franziska Marianne (who wasnt fathered by Kafka but named after him).

papillion - henry charriere - not even halfway through the book. i blame it on the fact that i own the book. i always think i will have enough time to read my own books.

the world is flat - thomas friedman - not the most interesting book on the changing world and globalization.

thousand splendid suns - khalid hosseini - read it, mulled over it and dedicated a blogpost on it.

the white tiger - arvind adiga - another casualty of "i own the book, so will have enough time to read it". i have lost my copy now. hmpf.

In my defense of this tiny list, i have also read a lot more that i hadnt included in the list. they would be:

Ramchandra Guha's India After Gandhi

Anjum Hassan's Lunatic in my head

Richard Yates' Revolutionary Road - Whattey book ! i saw the movie much before reading the book. i dont have words to say about sam mendes and his brilliance at casting winslet. it felt like yates had winslet in mind when he wrote the character of april wheeler. normally i dont have too much faith in books being made into movies, but this one was certainly among the few exceptions. (now now...am i raving about the book or the movie ? err...)

Margaret Atwood's Handmaid's Tale

Homer's Illiad - just to give a pat on my back, that i too can read this book.

Peter Pan, Alice in Wonderland, Little Women - read these books again and again and again. 


Here goes my next list.

M.J.Akbar's Have Pen, Will Travel.
Ishiguro's remains of the day
Rushdie's Luka and the Fire of life
Ian McEwan's Atonement
Rohinton Mistry's A fine balance, family matters
Nehru's Discovery of India
Vikram Seth's (non fiction) Two Lives
Obama's The Audacity of Hope - the title is reason enough to read the book.

these are some from the top of my head.

i have the strongest urge to write when i am really really caught-up with work and when i really really shouldnt be doing anything else, forget blogging. but i have to write it out before i can concentrate on my work

so, for now, i am done and i can rest in peace and get back to work.

forget non-fiction, biographies, post-modern concepts, political theories. i am in mood for reading chick-flicks. is that so bad ? erm..well...

Bookstores and Airports

realized recently that i have read quite a few books only in the bookstore and in my transit during traveling ! these are books that i have never bought. my sincere thanks to Borders, Oxford, Crossword and all the airport bookstalls.


Books read in bookstores:

Man, woman and child - eric segal

strong medicine, final diagnosis - arthur hailey

towards zero, they do it with mirrors, postern of fate - agatha christie (yes, i "revise" her books time to time)

lost symbol - dan brown

zoya, amazing grace, sisters, matters of heart - danielle steel

The confession - grisham


airport books: although by definition, they ought to be fast-paced and interesting, for me they are called so because i will never spend money to buy them, and i will never pick-up these books if i have lot of time at my disposal in bookstores. i have put myself through them as they have come highly recommended from some quarters. needless to say, you cannot always trust people's judgment on books ;)


who moved my cheese

i moved your cheese

the monk who sold his ferrari

count your chickens before they hatch

three states of my life

Magical Realism

This is why he is called a magician, or an author who can spin a web of magical realism:

"The Shah of Blah lost his Gift of the Gab and fell under the evil spell of the Prince of Silence and Foe of Speech".

his son complained to him that he wrote books for everyone but children. and then came this book. a father who had to leave his family and go into hiding, writing to his son, teaching him through allegorical stories about darkness, loss, pain, hope, faith, laughter. i havent come across a book that is so powerful in telling us the importance of stories and dreams. there is a healthy dose of reality, albeit without cynicism.

he dedicates this book to his son, Zafar with these words:

Z embla, Zenda, Xanadu:
A ll our dream-worlds may come true
F airy lands are fearsome too
A s I wonder far from view
R ead, and bring me home to you.

India After Gandhi - Ramachandra Guha

Never been so excited about a book before reading it ! So much so that i am not even starting it in a hurry ;). it rests on my table among the India Todays, Time, Newsweek...in all of its 950-page glory. thank god it isnt a hardback !

950 pages..it is going to be a long time before i finish that book. who knows, i might even stop blogging by then ;)

Personal opinion about a book

i was crying by the end of the book. yet something stops me from raving about the book.

the story of Afghanistan is out there for all to know. the plight of women and children in particular. it needs world attention, i dont deny that. i am sitting in a far-off country and commenting on it and i admit i cannot  even imagine the horror of everyday life there. but i am digressing from my point. what i am trying to say is  that if you take-out the Afghanistan part of the story and try to juxtapose it somewhere else, i think it will not be so effective. the sheer desperation of the lives of the people in the country is what makes the book. and that is a fact. other than that there is little else. he's no Vikram Seth who creates a beautiful languid story out of places that have only a historical importance. nor is he like Rushdie whose writings feels like he is weaving a magical thread of story around you. what i mean to say is the writer here has only Afghanistan and the real happenings there to convert into a work of fiction. not much of imagination.


yet, in all fairness, with this book, he has reached-out to more people than a Nat-Geo article or a news piece in CNN, BBC or any other news channel can. when one reads the detailed horror of life that people have to go through, then it is hard to stay impassive and just treat it as a piece of news article. page after page of vivid description compels you to think, feel, form an opinion and perhaps read more about them. probably that's why it is definitely an important piece of literature.

and yes, i did buy this book after reading a copy from a friend.

Why I love this book

Vikram Seth's A Suitable Boy

- post colonialism, post partition, free India. it would be an understatement to say the book is set in one of the most interesting times.

- has the social, political and historical backdrop of the country. the ignorant can learn a lot about those times. the knowledgeable can enjoy the vivid and charming descriptions.

- set in few of the most beautiful, ancient, historical and my favourite cities of India - Lucknow, Calcutta, Delhi.

- no melodrama, no high-tension plot, not a strict page-turner. you cannot hurry to the end. this is a book that is like life. keeps going on and on and on. with ocassional spike of something interesting. then again settles down in its languid pace.

- 1350 pages of close-spaced, times new roman font, size 10 (meaning: really small) writing. if you read multiple books at a time, you can read this book in the background. take your time to read it. 2-3 months.

- on a lazy holiday afternoon, with a nice cup of tea or coffee, if you are not in the mood for brainstorming, mysterious, life-altering writings, then this is the perfect one. you have already read the book once. you can still pick-up this paperweight of a book and open any random chapter and read.


- this book fits my perfect description of trying to have a library where all the books occupy the shelves because you have read them, loved them and then bought them.

oh ! did i mention Kabir Durrani ?! Sighhh..... ;)

Books read since last 12 months

book of laughter and forgetting - milan kundera
calcutta chromosomes - amitav ghosh
watchmen - alan moore
shadow lines - amitav ghosh
numbers in the dark - italo calvino
persepolis - marjane satrapi
lost symbol - dan brown

pathetic number :(

to be read:

nocturnes - kazuo ishiguro
short stories by franz kafka
papillion - henry charriere
the world is flat - thomas friedman
thousand splendid suns - khalid hosseini
the white tiger - arvind adiga

Persepolis

We can only feel sorry for ourselves when our misfortunes are still supportable....once this limit is crossed, the only way to bear the unbearable is to laugh at it.

It is fear that makes us lose our conscience. it is also what transforms us into cowards.

- Marjane Satrapi.

Got a dose from ma again. from feeling sad, hurt, guilt, tears etc, i have started to think that she does it is more for herself, as an outlet. so now i only sigh and make fun of the situation (but not her, of course !). because humor is all i have left. cant let it go. i need it for my sanity.