Parinda Joshi's A House full of Men

 

Title: A House full of Men
Author: Parinda  Joshi
Publisher: Harpercollins India
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Pages: 360
Ratings: 4/5
 

A House full of Men by Parinda Joshi, begins with the scene, where our main protagonist, Kittu was flipping some travel magazines in her travel-themed office in the Hazratganj area of Lucknow and life changing quiz drew her in.

“A Church Mouse? What on earth is a Church Mouse?” This question stuck into her head. Although she resolved her query right then but it provoked her to put life into new frame. Actually, church mouse is an individual whose entire life is spent in one location.

In her late twenties, Kittu, short for Kritidhara Pant, has realized that she has left Lucknow only on two occasions, first trip for last rites of her maternal grandmother and the another trip to a wedding where she lost her mother, after her departure Kittu was left alone in the house full of men.

‘She had lost everything to that watched moment, the womb that had created and crafted her, the hand that had fed her soul, the heart that had comforted her with the warmth of a thousand blankets, All of a sudden life had become fleeting and vulnerable and meaningless.’  

This book takes you deep inside the character’s journey and leaves you there with resonated emotions. Parinda Joshi’s A House full of Men is a dysfunctional family drama, more than that it explores many facets of human behavior, as love and misunderstandings, equality among siblings, bit melancholy, familiar loss and importance of being understood. When it comes to language, it brings breathtakingly fresh possibilities, I belong to a small town, I got introduced to a different set of people, especially their witty dialogues left me giggling out loud. I thoroughly enjoyed the tender moments of romance between Kittu and Kartik.

The second character which I adored is Kartik. He is moved from LA to Lucknow, how they met, how this bond been developed in such a short period, it was quite fun to read. There was something about Kartik that was enticing Kittu. She couldn’t stop thinking about him, whereas she is already in a messy relationship. Yet she was curious about Kartik, ‘If it was a bait? She’d almost fallen for it. He didn’t seem like a bait setting sorts though; she dismissed the cynical thought as soon as it took shape. He was a nice guy, and seemingly honest, and into her and that’s all that mattered.’

On the other side, her boyfriend, Vicky was a natural conversationalist and had a knack for turning every dull, drab non-event into a tangy spicy story. But there is another side of him; you get to know while exploring their world. It warms your heart and soul to read about their ticklish bond.

Adding to that, it also holds a serious backdrop story.  Having had to share her mother with the twins so early on in her life had not been easy on Kittu. The boys were demanding and her mother had no quality time for Kittu for years. ‘Kittu had maintained her distance from the twins initially, the miserable feeling- misinterpretation as she realized much later- of being unwanted child leaving her resentful.’

I have not talked about other family members yet, her quirky twin brothers, Nishant and Shamik, High BP Dadaji, her Ravi-shing Dad, Four legged friend,  Wodehousian thing in her room and of course, the charming neighbor. There are so many soulful characters and hilarious situations as well. I wish I could write more about the plot thing, to be honest, that would kill the charm of reading this gripping novel.

Parinda Joshi has a great command on human’s inner world and their complexities. Not a single character seemed heroic yet I found them powerful with their vulnerabilities. It is worth to spend time with a book, if you find clean sentences, clear perspectives, and a gripping story.    

All in all, I loved comic timing in prose. I would gladly recommend it to anyone who, rooting for a delectable read. 

About the Author

Parinda Joshi is a best-selling author and screenwriter. Born and raised in Ahmedabad, she now lives in San Francisco where she works for a fashion start-up. A House Full of Men is her 4th novel. Her last novel, Made in China, was adapted into a feature film. Her new screenplay, a social thriller, recently got commissioned by a leading production house.

Her M.O. is best described by Maya Angelou’s quote: “My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style.

Instagram: @parindajoshi

Website: www.parindajoshi.com

P.S. Thank You HarperCollins India  and Vivek Tejuja for sending this review copy across. 

 

Book Review: Letters to My Ex by Nikita Singh

Title: Letters to My Ex

Author: Nikita Singh

Publisher: HarperCollins India

ISBN:  9789352776580

Genre: Contemporary Fiction

Pages: 138

Source: Flipkart Review Program

Rating:  3/5

It’s an exciting idea to read letters in a form of book. When I first heard about “Letters to My Ex by Nikita Singh” I imagined a world instantly around two characters, maybe they are going to exchange letters and as the title says EX. It makes the book more gripping. Although I want to mention that book is not all about letters, you will get to read small talks, self talk, written in a form of monologue.

Basically, the story revolves around two main characters—Nidhi and Abhay. Due to some undefined reason Nidhi left her engagement ceremony. Things were not so clear initially. Not to the reader and someway not to the Nidhi too. Eventually she started writing letters to her Ex, with an intention of not sending them to respective person, i.e. Abhay. She thought at first that putting down her emotions is a great idea to healing herself. And it did work, she could fathom many unsolved puzzles of their relationship. Meanwhile she met with Abhay, She thought of moved on. And… Hey, I am not going to spoil the whole twist and turn here. You have to read this emotional tale into letters only.

I loved the idea though, how Nikita Singh explored the perspective of Abhay as well. Author didn’t take anyone’s side. She just wrote the story full of emotions. Yes, I agree with the fact that I found some repetitive sentences, and it makes you feel stretchy, but as I told you this book is more about self discovery and solving the unending questions of love and separation.

Within hundred something pages, Nikita Singh accomplished to make a bond with her reader, like she always do. Writing is simple yet communicates with reader at once. I loved few sentences a lot that I couldn’t resist myself from sharing it here. It can be your perfect weekend read.

READER’s MOMENT

I know what it was, I’m afraid to say it because once I do, it becomes real. I don’t want it to be real… and I know the first thing you will say, but please hear me out first. The reason I had to leave was because I knew, and it had become clearer and clearer to me in the months leading up to the engagement, that you didn’t love me anymore.

As much as I’d like to move on, I can’t feel anything about anyone, even if I tried. I don’t know if I ever will. When I try to imagine a time where I would be able to place all of my faith in another human being, and trust them with everything I have, I simply cannot see it happening again.

I gave you everything I had, every piece of me was yours, but you didn’t want it. It seemed like you did, you know, when you told me a thousand times that you loved me, and wanted to build a life with me and couldn’t imagine living without me. When we fought everyone and everything that came in our way in order to be together, but then, it turned out that you didn’t actually want any of that.”

If I had to, could I live without you? Yes. I would be unhappy for a while, but I wouldn’t die. With time, things would get better, and I would move on eventually. But do I want that? No. I don’t want a life without you.

ABOUT AUTHOR  

Nikita Singh is the bestselling author of ten novels, including Every Time It Rains and Like a Love Song. She is also a contributing writer to The Backbenchers series and the editor of two collections of short stories, 25 Strokes of Kindness and The Turning Point. Born in Patna and raised in Indore, Nikita worked in the book publishing industry in New Delhi for a few years before moving to New York for her MFA in Creative Writing (Fiction) at The New School. Nikita lives in Manhattan, where she does digital content and marketing for a solar energy company.

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BUY ONLINE: Letters to My Ex by Nikita Singh (Flipkart) 

Book Review: Stay With Me by Ayobami Adebayo

There are things even love can’t do. If the burden is too much and stays too long, even love bends, cracks, comes close to breaking and sometimes does break. But even when it’s in a thousand pieces around your feet, that doesn’t mean it’s no longer love …

Title – Stay with Me

Author: Ayobami Adebayo

Genre: Fiction, Romance

Publisher: Canongate Books

Pages: 300

Rating: 5/5

Frankly speaking I celebrated reading with STAY WITH ME. With her debut, Ayobami Adebayo hooked me at the first page, in fact first lines that say “I must leave this city today and come to you. My bags are packed and the empty rooms remind me that I should have left a week ago.”  

After exploring few more pages, I stopped for a bit, took a deep breath, and silently thanked to the Author for weaving such beauty.

When it comes to story, I would say it is an intense tale of love, care, grief and loss. Plot sets in Nigeria mainly 80’s. When country had been suffering from some political issues as well, that was all in backdrop.  Basically Story revolves around a couple named Yejida and Akin, who were struggling and finding a way to conceive, somewhat same scene we find here in Indian families, How  dramatic Mother-in-law and her tantrums turns the story, In a way after introduction of second wife gives pace to the story. I have to confess here, I could hardly put down the book. Author explored the beauty and drew attention towards respective culture, customs esp the bitter truth of Polygamy and some health related issues as well. She crafted them so sensibly, I am just left in awe.  

"I became known as ‘the pregnant woman with the ripped dress’, even after the baby was born. But I did not care that people pointed and smiled behind their hands during a hymn or the Nicene Creed at the church. I had become immortal, part of a never-ending chain of life. New life kicked within me and soon I would have someone that I could call my own. Not a stepmother or half-brother. Not a father shared with two dozen other children or a husband shared with Funmi, but a child, my child."

With crisp narration and well developed dialogues. Author wins the reader’s heart and  time too.

Heart breaking scenes of Yedija, that internal struggle just makes you fall in love with the protagonist. You feel her pain, her anger, her suffocation. I don’t say it is some depressing read. In fact author put those emotions in such way; I was smiling at a time with teary eyed.  

If I could summarize this beauty STAY WITH ME, I would say, It simply explores the depth of human relationship.  And truly deserves recognition It is long-listed for the Bailey Women’s Prize for fiction 2017.   

"I had expected them to talk about my childlessness. I was armed with millions of smiles. Apologetic smiles, pity-me smiles, I-look-unto-God smiles name all the fake smiles needed to get through an afternoon with a group of people who claim to want the best for you while poking at your open sore with a stick and I had them ready. I was ready to listen to them tell me I must do something about my situation. I expected to hear about a new pastor I could visit a new mountain where I could go to pray; or an old herbalist in a remote village or town whom I could consult. I was armed with smiles for my lips, an appropriate sheen of tears for my eyes and sniffles for my nose. I was prepared to lock up my hairdressing salon throughout the coming week to go in search of a miracle with my mother-in-law in tow. What I was not expecting was another smiling woman in the room, a yellow woman with a blood-red mouth who grinned like a new bride."

  

About The Author

Ayobami Adebayo's stories have appeared in a number of magazines and anthologies, and one was highly commended in the 2009 Commonwealth short story competition. She also has an MA in creative writing from the University of East Anglia where she was awarded an international bursary for Creative Writing. Stay With Me is her Debut Novel. 

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Book Review : There is Something About You by Yashodhara Lal

Title: There is Something About You

Author: Yashodhara Lal

Genre: Romance

Pages: 268

Source: Kindle Edition

Publisher: Harper Collins

Rating: 4/5

Sample of the book

Although it’s third book of Yashodhara Lal but Frankly speaking I never got a chance to read her before. So there was a little doubt if it was some another chick-lit, And when   I heard about the little bits and pieces of this book, It sounded interesting to me and without any delay, I grab a copy. And I’m happy to tell you I enjoyed it.  It is not some classic literary fiction, just plain simple romance.

The story revolves around an over-weight girl, named Trisha. She was in her late twenties and trying to survive in the world where people loved to judge. She worked in a firm related to publication and contented whereas she knew she couldn’t get promotion cause of her physical appearance. And then comes a twist in her life, named Sahil. Sahil was in mid-thirties, a geek kind of boy who believed that he has some superpowers. He can sense someone’s future just to get a little touch. Author weaved a intriguing story between two, there was romance, there was emotions, tantrums and last but not the least acceptance.

Besides of these two, there were some characters like Trisha’s nagging mother and her chess-lover father who was suffering from Alzheimer. Her friend Akanksha and some murder mystery.

If you are staying in metro cities, you can connect with Trisha so easily. The narrative skills of author flow smoothly. You don’t take a chance to put down the book before finished it. Although I found some extra material at the end, little bit tiring to read some extra pages when there was no need to add it. But overall book is interesting; characters are fun loving in their own way. And yes the most beautiful part of the book was letters and their replies. They made me laugh, touching sometimes.

Should I recommend Yashodhara’s work? Of course, Yes! If you want to spend a breezy night with light read. The book is for you.

About The Author

Yashodhara Lal is a marketing professional and the mother of three children, apart from being a bestselling author. She graduated from IIM Bangalore in 2002 and manages to balance her professional life with her various interests, including fi tness, writing and music. She lives in Gurgaon with her rather tolerant husband Vijay and their kids nicknamed Peanut, Pickle and Papad, all of whom never fail to provide her with material for her entertaining blog at yashodharalal.com. Her fi rst book, Just Married, Please Excuse is a hilarious account of marriage. Her second novel, Sorting Out Sid is the story of a man having an early midlife crisis and consequently, a divorce. There's Something About You is Yashodhara's third book.

You Can Follow Her On - Facebook | Twitter | Blog  

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