The Potter Tale : A Four Part Story

Dear Reader

This post is going to be long, very long. How else do you sum up the feelings that stir in you when you revisit your childhood? (Nevertheless, I shall divide it into several parts, so that you can come back if you wish to)

Yes, I am a Potter fan and more – it is the basis of a lot of values and thinking methodologies that I carry in life today. This post is going under several headings for the same reason. Without further ado, let me delve into the story of July 31, 2016.

Review – The Circle

Cover of The Circle

Is Silicon Valley the rage or what? I refer to the HBO series here and not the real valley (the real Valley isn’t any behind, but I’m not in a position to write about that, yet). A tryst with the series, brought back a deluge of memories from tween-hood, spent reading science fiction about the evils of technology and the likes. Hence, I decided to re-enter the genre with The Circle by Dave Eggers – a novel suggested by a friend from the Valley!

Review – The Girl on The Train

Cover of The Girl on The Train

I acquired this novel after a raving recommendation by a very close friend (we have a history of sharing and discussing literature). I recall racing through my previous read, so that I could begin this one. My journey with Rachel Watson, the female protagonist, began in a traffic-affected car journey in Bangalore. Every interstice in the following three days, between a job and exam preps, was occupied by this work of fiction. Allow me to trace the reasons that kept me hooked to Rachel’s life.

Review – 1984

Cover Image

“……because there did not exist, and never again could exist, any standard against which it could be tested.”

-1984, George Orwell (Page 86)

I’m sure we have all encountered an instance of  Big Brother or ‘doublethink‘ at least once during our existence. We have, unequivocally, been horrified by stories of totalitarian attempts of  governmental bodies at different times in history. Religiously speaking, I have often found people overlook what they observe and infer, to validate what they are expected to believe. Thus, when one reads 1984, one cannot help but marvel and gasp at the blunt commentary on a dystopian and totalitarian world that seems all-too familiar, except in chronology and execution.

Review – The Rage of Angels

Cover Image

The name Sidney Sheldon brings to mind a fiction with elements of mendacity, betrayal and plenty of suspenseful drama. The Rage of Angels, first published in 1980, successfully delivers all of these. I have always wondered how a hard-core realist (in most matters), like me, can be roused by such a larger-than-life narration. Such is the power of fiction (or maybe I’m not such a realist after all!)

Nevertheless, this novel (started on the bus journey from Bangalore to Manipal on the night of April 7, 2016 – ended on the morning of April 15, 2016 at 5:00 am) was my much-needed neural vacation. Here are a few reasons why I loved reading Rage of Angels.