When God Was A Rabbit : Sarah Winman

Image Credit : Bookbath.blogspot.com

Why do good things happen to bad people? This is how the New York Times begins its review of Sarah Winman's When God Was A Rabbit - a 'darkly comic' novel as the NYT describes it. When God Was A Rabbit however, asks the more traditional question : Why do bad things happen to good people? Haven't we all asked ourselves that very same question?

But there is one question I have never asked myself though : is God a rabbit? But lest that give you the wrong impression of this wonderfully whimsical book, Sarah Winman's debut novel is not an elegy to religion or an old man riding a white horse in the sky and judging us sternly as we lurch through one moral lapse after another. Nah. When God Was A Rabbit is a coming-of-age adult memoir that puts together the fabric of most lives - love, friendship and family. Violence, the author says in an afterword to the novel, runs through the book. I disagree. Violence is a thin paste that glues that plot of the book. It is relationships - these messy, convoluted, often cathartic connections we form and have with other people that gives us all the carrots from this book.

This is the blurb on the back of the book:

This is a book about a brother and a sister. It’s a book about childhood and growing up, friendships and families, triumph and tragedy and everything in between. More than anything, it’s a book about love in all its forms.

When God Was A Rabbit doesn't start easily though. But I discovered a little known reservoir of patience I possessed, and I stuck through a bizarre beginning when Eleanor Maud is a precocious child of 7, spouting Nietzsche, and forms an indelible friendship with Jenny Penny. I say I struggled through this because the author has a strange habit of half-describing events, leaving them shrouding in the mist of ambiguity and leaving the reader to figure out the rest. The Golan episode for instance. You know there is something afoot, but what? Break it out to dumb readers like me, please! It's a tendency that reveals itself irritatingly through the book - no incidents are described in completion - hazy memories we play around with all right, but there are times you demand the ice cream without the cone, without that fluff and all that razzmatazz. It's isn't to say that the book isn't beautiful because it is.

The magical realism that Winman weaves into the novel requires a certain suspension of disbelief, and I do it willingly. A talking rabbit? Why not? I tell myself. But to cut quick to the plot - follow Elly around as she grows up in Cornwall, with a dear family that is eccentric and lovable - her father's sister, Nancy has an enduring crush on her mother, and one of the most hilarious moments in the book to me was when Nancy consummates a life-long passion with a kiss to Elly's mother, and her Dad? His reaction : Well, good that we have finally got that out of the way! Then there is the love of Elly's life - her brother Joe, who nurses a deep hurt from a teenage love affair with Charlie gone horribly wrong - and assorted characters like Arthur who believes that his life will only be ended when a coconut falls on his head. Funny? Yes. It was. Adorable? Yes indeed. Quirky? I love quirkiness!

There is plenty to find fault with in this book, but for once, I chose not to do so because the story was genuinely affecting. Aren't there so many mistakes we commit in life? The dark recesses of a buried past we never want to pry into? And what if there is a chance to move beyond, and learn that perhaps the future may not be buried as well? When God Was A Rabbit offers that kind of hope, and however much I hate hope, there are times when it serves its purpose well.

Verdict : A funny quirky and poignant read. Stick with it in the beginning and you will be rewarded.


Rating: 3.9/5

Below, trailer for the book:

Revolution 2020: Chetan Bhagat

Image credit: Amazon

I finally gave in. I had eschewed from reading Chetan Bhagat’s novels until now because I really didn’t think they were worth my time. But after a couple of my friends assured me that his latest, “Revolution 2020” is not like his earlier works, I thought why not. Let me give a summary of the book before I go on to my review.

Welcome to Revolution 2020. A story about childhood friends Gopal, Raghav and Aarti who struggle to find success, love and happiness in Varanasi. However, it is not easy to attain these in an unfair society that rewards the corrupt. As Gopal gives in to the system, and Raghav fights it, who will win?

Quite an interesting premise. The book begins with Bhagat himself making an appearance, talking to Gopal who narrates his story to the author. Like millions of Indians, Gopal is yet another boy who hopes to get into engineering to make his father happy. His already low self confidence suffers another blow when he doesn’t get the required rank in the all important entrance exam that throws open the doors to hallowed institutions like IIT. To top it all, he loses the girl he loves to his friend Raghav, who is dashing, confident and above all a man who passed the exam with flying colors. He gets into one of the best engineering colleges but goes on to become a journalist. And the girl, Aarti? Well, it’s not a very simple ending as with all of Bhagat’s books, to say the least.

Bhagat efficiently reveals the extreme competition that continues to dog much coveted professional courses like engineering. Students who do not get through in the entrance exam join coaching classes to help them in their second attempt.

“I had spent the last three days doing the rounds of every coaching school. I took in their tall claims about zapping any primate into an IITian. I went through their super-flexible (not to mention super-expensive) fee structures… Each of them had their own, rather difficult, entrance exams. In fact, Kota now had small coaching shops to coach you to get into the top coaching classes.”

Of course, in India competition breeds corruption. Bhagat shows the extent of it through Gopal’s trysts with coaching classes, his disappointments and finally his job as the director of a college. Education is portrayed as a ruthless business where politics, mafia and bribery all go hand in hand.

Yet, these are not enough redeeming factors to make Bhagat’s book an overall excellent read. There were a few points that annoyed me throughout the book. For one, Bhagat’s childish assumptions about women in general were beyond my comprehension.

“When girls are hiding something, they start speaking like boys and use expressions like ‘cool’”

“Girls always leave subtle phrases as qualifiers, so you can’t put them in a spot later.”

“’Fine’ means somewhere between ‘whatever’ and ‘go to hell’ in Girlese”

“Girls don’t like reality that much. Or practical questions”

You get the drift. Mr Bhagat seems to know “Girlese” extremely well, enough to spout these aphorisms.

Teachers are also not spared as is his usual wont shown by his earlier books like Five Point Someone, immortalized by the movie Three Idiots. Teachers have to have funny nicknames. All of them. So we have Permutation guru, Balance-ji, Mr Pulley and Trigonometry swamy.

Bhagat’s character sketches remain like these quotes and nicknames – superficial and typecast. Gopal is the quintessential “loser” with low self esteem who is out to prove his worth to the girl he loves through any means. He lacks that spark that makes a character memorable. Aarti starts out as a strong woman but later dissolves into a lonely, attention depraved girl. Raghav is too distant and passionate about his job for us to get into his head.

Like his other books, Bhagat has written quite a simplistic story that reads like a movie script. The only parts I liked were the ones where Gopal is discovering the hidden world behind the education business and is trying to build a life for himself. Otherwise, Chetan Bhagat has failed to stir up a revolution in me.

Verdict: Average read, no brain strain here

Rating: 1.8/5

Quicksand : Junichiro Tanizaki

Image Credit: Bibliojunkie

I have spent the past one hour shedding copious tears watching George Clooney play a miserable husband and father in this tear-pic called The Descendants. I was pretty much shedding tears yesterday as well while I was reaching the end of Junichiro Tanizaki's Quicksand. For George Clooney, those were tears of emotion. For Tanizaki, those were tears of frustration.

A lovely friend of mine gifted this book as a New Year gift, and considering how much I loved Tanizaki's Makioka Sisters, I was looking forward to this one. I don't make New Year resolutions - I tend to fritter them all the time - but one of the things I have promised myself this year is to read more Asian fiction. I have been fascinated with Japanese literature for a while now without really getting the chance to read it. Quicksand started promisingly for me. For a novel that was first published in 1947, there is a element of openness here that didn't shock me - but really surprised me. The Japanese title was called Manji and dear Wikipedia informs me that the original cover featured a four-pronged Buddhist swastika, a symbol of  the four lovers who form the hapless swirling quicksand of emotions that comprises this book. There is an element of danger and the allure of seduction that runs through this book.

Sonoko Kakiuchi is the young woman, who is also the narrator, telling the story to an invisible author. She falls hopelessly in love with the dazzlingly beautiful Mitsuko. There is Kakiuchi's husband - a rather saintly-like lawyer called Kotaro who becomes aware of her affair with Mitsuko, tolerates it, forbids it and goes through a series of vacillations that had me confused and perturbed. Into this already simmering broth enter Watanuki Eijiro, Mitsuko's boyfriend. It was at this point that I lost the point. I had no idea who was in love with who, and whose motives were to be trusted. Bit like life, I guess. We never know who to trust, most of the time. But here, I had the feeling that even for an author like Tanizaki who courted controversy, the book pans out to an ending that was increasing incomprehensible. Machinations and manipulations, forbidden, crazy and insane love. That is Quicksand. Dragging the reader down into this morass of love is Quicksand. 

I can't say with honesty I liked the book. I am happy I finished it. Perhaps, I am skimming lightly over this classic - maybe it is dark comedy with a nihilistic strain that mocks the veneer of normal that society drapes itself with it. I was too confused, and too tired to care by the end.

Verdict : Read at your own risk

Rating: 2/5 

Dona Nicanora's Hat Shop : Kirstan Hawkins

Image Credit: India Plaza

I only read 30 books last year. A miserable figure, considering there are bloggers who read that many books in a month! Haha. Looking back though, I think I lost the love of reading a little. There was always too many things to do, too many thoughts to mull and too little time to reflect. I like to read when I am comfortable - when I am quiet and still in this little head of mine. Somehow, that stillness eluded me last year, and this year has continued in much the same pattern. Why should the passing of years change anything, anyway? How wistfully we plot Time into segments of our creation, and then think that another day is different because it marks a different time on our calendar?

But since this is a book review blog, I am must talk about books. And fear not, dear reader, this book I am talking about is a very nice one indeed. Kirstan Hawkins' Dona Nicanora's Hat Shop is absolutely delightful. I am so glad that this was the first book I finished in 2012. Set in Bolivia, Hawkins has given the reader a little gem that resonates with all that we cherish and celebrate in life - love, friendship, dreams and memories. Dona Nicanora is a 40-something mother of three - who made one major mistake in life - and then some. From the book jacket:

Surrounded by forest and reached only by a treacherous road, the sleepy South American town of Valle de la Virgen is almost unknown to the outside world. But after a silent stranger rolls in on the back of a pick-up truck, nothing is the same again.

The town of Vang Vieng (Image Credit : Birdy)

That silent stranger is called a Gringito - and his arrival brings in motion a strange chain of events. At once funny and whimsical, I could immediately identify with the author's not-so-veiled barbs at mass tourism. There was this town called Vang Vieng that I visited in Laos a couple of years ago - once a sleepy little town, a few backpackers found the karst landscape too mesmerizing and decided that this would be the place where they can have pancakes, beer and float down the river all at the same time. The town has never been the same again - the dollars make the people richer and the town poorer.

Valle de la Virgen's mayor's comical efforts to bring the tourists in reminded me of just the same. The tourists like to come all the way, spending 1000s of dollars so that they can sit in a Cyber Cafe and drink coffee and order pancakes, the mayor wryly tells his assistant Ramon at one time. Indeed!

And what of Nicanora's dream of opening a hat shop? And her enduring relationship with the fat balding little Don Bosco, the barber everyone loves? There is much to love about them - the characters in this book are just like you and me, or rather more like me (I think I can easily describe myself as fat, balding little SoulMuser ;-)), and their hopes and ambitions real and down to earth. At the end of this rather rambling review, let me just say this comes highly recommended. Going to Valle de la Virgen is just as good as a cappucino in a cafe. And you know what? Way better.

Verdict: Highly readable, a delight!

Rating : 4/5 

The King of Oil: Daniel Ammann

Image Credit:Amazon.com

Reading a biography, to me, is always a "personal experience", and the biography of Marc Rich authored by Daniel Ammann was no different. Ammann's simple direct language at once captures and transports the reader to the era of 1970s through 1990s - which almost seems unreal in today's day and age.

This is the story of a boy who barely escaped the Jewish holocaust during Hitler's reign/World War II - due to sheer luck, worked his way up in the world to become a billionaire - ultimately resulting in one of the best rags-to-riches stories, albeit riddled with controversies.

The book fairly follows a linear pattern of narration with the early chapters quickly covering Rich's early life - that of his escape from Europe with his parents, how they ends up in America, his internship and early work experience at Philipp Brothers.

A large section of the book is devoted to Marc Rich's work experience at Philipp Brothers both in America and outside of it, the reasons leading up to his setting up his own company, his very successful oil, metals and minerals trading business, the various controversies surrounding him and a small section about his personal
life towards the end, finally rounding the narrative off with where he is today, his philanthropic efforts and his views on the future of commodities trading.

The very first thing, the reader notices is that Ammann has written this biography in a typical "on the fence" style - neither condemns nor commends Marc Rich - he simply tells the story of Marc Rich and lets the reader draw their own conclusions.

That is one of the biggest positives of this book - now for the one flaw: for some reason, certain events from Rich's life are repeated several times over throughout the book, which is annoying at several places while reading.

That said - this book is different in the sense that it not just talks about the life of Marc Rich but also about the various real historical contexts of the 1970s-80s and ground realities in which he had to operate in. The way oil was traded in those days, the oil cartel of 7 companies nicknamed "the seven sisters", the way metals and minerals were traded, establishing crucial contacts especially with the governments of various countries etc.

Did you know that back in the days, many government officials would not sign contracts if they were not "suitably rewarded" (bribe/kickbacks in other words)!!! This is just the top layer; scratch deeper and you will be shocked to know how barbaric our world was even while we were growing up.

I am sure it still is, in some parts of the world even today but I am hopeful of a better tomorrow...

Back to the book - while it gives a very detailed insight into the life of Marc Rich, especially his business empire, the author also explains in detail various political, historical and economic realities of several countries in which March Rich + co or any of its subsidiaries conducted business in, during these decades.

The book also helps us understand the life of a commodities trader during these decades - which, I suspect hasn't changed much today except for a larger intervention of technology which in turn has enabled to move things faster. Apart from that a commodities trader still has the same type of business pressures and stress to deal with today as well. The immense network of connections a commodities trader has to build across several streams such as – Political, business, legal etc is just mind boggling. No wonder they make up such a large chunk of behind-the-scenes “movers and shakers” of the world. Marc Rich was no different, his network didn’t just help build his business empire, it also influenced world politics!

It is for these types of factual learning’s (across areas - Historical, political, and geographical, people/celebrities, business/commerce etc) from other peoples’ lives that I love reading biographies; one tends to unconsciously imbibe so many facts without trying to.

The biggest learning for me personally is - the life of a commodities trader. A commodities trader is just doing business to make money just like anyone else but more often than not they are forced (due to extraneous circumstances) to look at a deal through an ethico-moral lens rather than looking at it as a mere business deal. It takes courage and unique out-of-the-box thinking style to come up with innovative ways to clinch the deal and make it a win-win situation for all parties involved – and this exactly the area where Marc Rich excelled, especially in crises-ridden and war torn situations. And it is also exactly why he was termed an opportunist and “the biggest devil”.

On the other hand - the book also provides interesting insights into how people in certain government and non-government agencies build their careers off controversies surrounding wealthy people. And how there are those who deliberately let things blow out of proportion just so they can draw mileage for their own careers.

I am going to let you read the book and find out for yourself about the controversial legal case against Marc Rich and the final pardon by President Bill Clinton's administration after two almost decades - which is what made Marc Rich so famous in the first place. There are SO MANY interesting deals Rich/his firm has managed to clinch in highly sensitive political situations across countries that this book is worth a read for just that. Not to mention how Rich actually managed to help the very government in a delicate political matter whilst another of its department was desperately trying to capture him!

About the private lives of the Riches - although there is a dedicated section on this, towards the end of the book, little anecdotal pieces about their private life is sprinkled throughout the book which helps keep the reader interested along the way.

There are very few who can lift themselves up from nothing to being multi-billionaires and it is always a pleasure to read such heroic stories. The fact that these are real people we are reading about adds just that perfect little bit of spice to the whole reading experience.

And with the explosive combination of a controversial subject like Marc Rich with the superb penmanship of Daniel Ammann, the reader is left with an aroused ambition to throw caution to the winds and embark upon one's own fairy tale rags-to-riches story. Yes, we are repeatedly made aware of the risks and the not-so-honest methods employed to achieve this but the final after-taste when we close the book is one of being completely motivated to get out there and do something to become known or famous (or infamous depending on which lens you are viewing Rich's life from). Either way one is forced to look at one's own life, re-evaluate and act - even if it is only for a brief while before habitual lethargy sets in.

Worthy quotes from the book:

“Life doesn’t always play out according to preconceived notions; life isn’t always what it seems”

“... the commodities traders...make do with some middle way between a sense of reality and self deception. Sometimes they look reality in the eye, but sometimes they would rather forget about it. They live in a gray area....The name for this gray area is capitalism”

“He (Marc Rich) perfected trading methods precisely because he was willing to push the boundaries and break taboos”

Verdict: An exciting read about a scintillating personality who would rather have remained out of the limelight

Rating: 4.8/5

In the Land of Invisible Women: Qanta Ahmed

Image credit - sourcebooks

I feel guilty. I haven’t been paying as much attention to the blog as I should have been. My reading pace has slowed considerably, from upto five books a month to barely two. Blame it on my Mandarin classes and work and life in general. But I also feel guilty, that I wasted my precious time reading “In the Land of Invisible Women” by Dr. Qanta Ahmed. Well, to be fair, not a complete waste of time. Let me give a summary before I proceed to my review.

Unexpectedly denied a visa to remain in the US, Qanta Ahmed, a young British Muslim doctor, becomes an outcast in motion. On a whim, she accepts an exciting position in Saudi Arabia. This is not just a new job; this is a chance at adventure in an exotic land she thinks she understands, a place she hopes she will belong.

What she discovers is vastly different. The Kingdom is a woeld apart, a land of unparalleled contrast. She finds rejection and scorn in the places she believed would most embrace her, but also humor, honestly, loyalty and love.

Good friends of mine would know that I am a sucker for stories, especially women centric ones, set in the Middle East. So this was no exception. I was excited by the title itself. The beginning held promise with Qanta’s arrival in the veiled Kingdom. Brought up in a liberal Muslim household where women enjoyed complete freedom, Qanta had her first rude shock as she landed at the King Khalid airport. Men stared pointedly at her even after she “veiled” herself with the hood of her sweater and "the soldier at passport control offered no smile." Thus begins Qanta’s journey into Saudi Arabia.

Qanta tackles a particular topic in each chapter, ranging from divorces to Hajj. Overall, we get a picture of this hermetic land where on one hand women are not seen, rarely heard and almost never recognized. Yet, on the other hand, we see women partying, smoking expensive cigarettes or hookahs and mingling around unveiled albeit only with other women. The deep schizophrenic schism that characterizes the culture, society and minds of the Kingdom is revealed through anecdotes and the people that Qanta meets. The world she inhabits is almost hallucinatory, induced by hookahs and fanatic religion. I particularly found interesting the few chapters dedicated to Hajj, which Qanta undertakes. She describes her personal experiences as well as a step-by-step account of how a Hajj takes place over a few days. I also found the chapters on Mutaween, divorce and single women quite fascinating.

But not fascinating enough for me to keep reading late into the night. In fact, I was frustrated most of the time with the tedious language, the slower-than-a-snail pace and Qanta’s obsession with brand names that casually permeate most of her descriptions.

“As I was taking in the Daum figurines and the oversized Lalique coffee table amid a Liberace-esque interior, Zubaidah rushed up to greet us, a riot of color against her white marble home.”

Such descriptions run riot dripping with Gucci, Dior, Fendi, Baccarat and what not. How do you even recognize one from the other?!

A couple of other irritants were Qanta’s gushing depiction of Saudi women. It appears that each woman outshines the other in her beauty, flawless "creamy" skin, clothes and grace. She finds herself as the odd one out among these Saudi models all the time though she too dresses in nothing less than Escada and some other un-pronounceable brands.

Another refrain that got under my skin was the constant reference to Bengalis. Upon arriving at the Saudi airport she finds “huge lines of impoverished Bengali men arriving to take up menial laboring jobs.” Later on, she sees a “sinewy Bengali” driver, imagines “a poor Bengali gardener” and ultimately we see her utter ignorance as she describes “the South Indian check out boy (who) spoke in his native Hindi…” Is she even aware that Bengali does not encompass Indians or any particular nation or that the native language of South Indians is not Hindi?

Clearly, the book begs to be edited, and by that I mean lopped with a scythe. It is almost like the publisher just took the raw draft to press without any intervention. Huge chunks of the book can easily be dropped and language can be pushed up several notches to give punch to Qanta’s interesting experiences. It would also make the book far more readable and less time consuming.

All I can say is I pared out the experiences and stories that lie at the heart of the book and painted myself an intriguing picture of the Kingdom. Otherwise, sorry doc, I think you should stick to practicing medicine and probably give over the writing bit to someone else.


Verdict: Interesting in parts, be prepared to do lots of self-editing

Rating: 1.5/5