The Book List

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Books are my first love. Books are my first friends, my best friends for life. My only hope in distress. My anti depressant. People often joked that I could even find a telephone directory interesting. Recently Shruthi Raghunandan nominated for a similar challenge in FB and one of the friends whom I nominated obliged by saying if you have the list of only ten books read more books :P.

So, going forward I am a person with a big heart. I fall in love very easily. I fall for people fast and I fall for a book real fast. So, all the books I have read are my favourite. But here I manage to have those books where I felt I am just into the story. I spent days and nights with them, seeing them. Living with them in their home. Advicing them, being real worried for them. The books which became me and the I became the books. Books which were there while I was growing up. Books which were there to show a newly wed bride how to deal with this new role. Books that I have laughed with cried with, fell in love with, went on a date with, and slept with. Starting from The Chacha Chowdhury to The Mahabharata to Lajja to The Illiad to The Paradise lost to The Mayor of Casterbridge to The Da Vinci Code to The Immortals of Meluha, I have books all the way. My dream in life amongst many is to own a library of my own.

So without much ado about the rest here is my list.

1. The Ruskin Bond Children Omnibus: This book is my Holiday read. I first laid my hands on it when I was ten and I began reading it after C.R, Rajagopalachari's Mahabharata. In a lazy summer afternoon I fell in love with Rusty and swung around with The Blue Umbrella all the while motivating Ranji and helping kids to steal guava or to set up a zoo. It is my piece of sunshine. Till now I start my reading session with a peek into this book. The streets of Dehra, the Tunnel, The apple train are my haunts.

2. Poor People: Fydor Dostoevsky. This name still rings a melancholy tone. I had snuck out a book containing many famous works of Dostovyskey from my Late Grandfather's book shelf, hid in my backpack and brought it 1500 km to read it and my book affair with Russia starts from here. I have since then bought many books from Russian Authors. Almost so much that people have threatened me to pack me to Russia. This entire story is written in Epistles (Letters) between a man and a woman both of whom are poor. It will break your heart to read this. (His another novel "The White Nights" was moulded and made in to "Sawariya", the movie, I read this after finishing Poor People.)

3. Anna Karenina: If Dostoyevsky  showed the poor Tolstoy showed the aristocrats. When I began reading

this thick and lofty book I thought It will never end with all it's plot and sub plots. Anna, Lucy, Konstantine Levin will steal your heart away. You will always find a piece of you somewhere in the characters. Warning do not watch the movie without reading the book. It is a tale of Passion and Happy and Unhappy families.

4. The Scarlett Letter: Hester and Pearl and their creator Nathaniel Hawthorne. A book about adultery and doesn't even mention the word once, the incidence once. Set in Puritan America. Hester's stoicity and Pearl's playfulness will make you pass through a myriad of emotions.

5. Oedipus Rex: First tragedy of the trilogy of Thebes. Sophocles deals with the subject of incest and makes us disturbed from within. This drama gave me sleepless nights and goosebumps. This book, it's story just imprints in your mind once you read it.

6. The God of Small Things: A story of a Family and the story of History and all rules trespassed. it is the story of Ammo, of Inverted smiles,of the twins. You can never read it once. You have to come again to it.

7. Srimad Bhagwat Gita: I know the eyebrows are raised. No, I am not religious. No, I am not promoting The Religion. I had to write a paper presentation for Seminar on Poetry and "Karma Yoga" in Gita was my topic. So, I read it. I read the book published by Ramkrishna Mission. I read it as a work of Literature and Philosophy. My learning be Focused, be Patient. My recommendation go beyond religion and prejudice and give it a try.

 

8. The Wuthering Heights: If God has granted someone enough ink to pen just one novel then look up to Emily Bronte regarding how to do it right. Heathcliff and Catherine and their all consuming passion. They live with you and with in you long after you read that last page. 

9. The Train To Pakistan: Kushwant Singh at his best. I read the book as a 11 year old and those who have read it i am sure will be surprised. But I grew up as I turned it's last page. i finished the book in three days. Iqbal is some one you will love to hate at first then hate to love and then you will cry for him. The book shows the time when humanity was partitioned and bleeding.

10. Metamorphosis: The troubled Genius Franz Kafka was! Gregory wakes up from a Disturbed Dream and finds that.....he is a cockroach. Yes, you read it right. The novel just shakes your soul. I fell in Love with Kafka because of this and the love is still going strong,

This is a small Glimpses of my lovers/the books I would die for. do drop in your favourites too.

Inspired By Indispire:

Submit a list of your 10 favourite books with reasons why they made it to your list. Let us try to complete a circle and complie a list of books we yet have to pick. #loveofreading

Posted by Jyoti Chettri under Books
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