Books !!!

Yesterday I received the parcel of CMA Final study material. I was excited and was going through the books (or say ‘Modules’ as we call it). As a habit, I opened a book and held it close to smell it. Ah!!! Only a book lover can understand how divine the pleasant smell of a new book is. New books, new syllabus, little drizzle and the cool breeze… With this, I became little nostalgic. Yes... It was in the month of June that the school started every year and we used to get new books… But a lot has changed. Text books have been replaced by Modules. The colorful and cheerful front cover is no more. Instead we have a front cover with a corporate look.
No ‘Preamble’ at the starting of the book. The fully loaded flowcharts and tables have replaced the beautiful sketches, pictures and caricatures… The various ‘Acts’ have replaced the fascinating stories…The verses have disappeared a long back.
The eagerness of the new books has now been put back by the deadline to complete the syllabus… The excitement in visiting the market is no more because these days we get books at our doorstep.
But still, books always bring a new feeling. The feeling of joy and anticipation... And the season of monsoon, adds a flavor to it !!!

द हाउंड ऑफ बास्करव्हिल

'द हाउंड ऑफ बास्करव्हिल'– सर आर्थर कॅनन डायल यांची हि शेरलोक होल्म्स मालिकेतील उत्कंठावर्धक कादंबरी आहे. 

कथेची सुरुवात होते ती बेकर स्ट्रीट वर. शेरलोक होल्म्स आणि त्यांचे सहकारी  डॉ. वॅटसन यांना भेटायला डॉ. मार्टिमर एक समस्या घेऊन येतात. डेव्हनशायर येथे राहणारे डॉ. मार्टिमर यांचे मित्र व पेशंट  सर चार्ल्स बास्करव्हिल यांचा अचानक मृत्यू होतो. ते त्यांच्या घराजवळील माळरानावर मृतावस्थेत आढळतात. त्यांचा मृत्यु हृदयावर अति ताण आल्याने झाल्याचे नष्पन्न होते. त्यांचा चेहरा अविश्वानीय वाटेल इत्त्का पिळवटला होता. त्यांचा मृत्यू बास्कार्व्हील घराण्याला लाभलेल्या शापामुळे (हाउंड मुळे) झाल्याचा संशय काही जणांना असतो.

बास्करव्हिल घराण्यातील पूर्वजांपैकी एक हुगो बास्करव्हिल हे एका तरुणीस पळवून आणून आपल्या घरी बांधून ठेवतात. ती तरुणी त्यांच्या तावडीतून सुटून पळून जाते. ह्युगो तिच्या मागे जातात. बराच वेळ परत न आल्यामुळे ह्युगो चे मित्र त्यांना शोधण्यास जातात. तेव्हा त्यांना ह्युगो आणि ती तरुणी मृतावस्थेत आढळले. त्यांच्या मृत्यूचे कारण एक अवाढव्य कुत्रा(हाउंड) त्यांना दिसतो. त्याचे ते रूप पाहन ते सर्व तिथून धूम ठोकतात.त्यांच्यातील एकाचा मृत्यू होतो तर उर्वरित आयुष्यभर लोळागोळा होऊन खितपत पडतात.आणि त्यानंतर बास्करव्हिल घराण्यातील अनेकांना अचानक व रहस्यमय मरण आले.

सर चार्ल्स यांचे वारस सर हेन्री बास्करव्हिल परदेशातून लंडन येथे येतात. त्यांच्या देखील जीवाला धोका असल्याचे होल्म्स यांना समजते. शेरलोक होल्म्स सर हेन्रीन्सोबत डॉ. वॅटसन यांना डेव्हनशायर येथे पाठवतात. डेव्हनशायर येथे स्टेपलटन, फ्रँकलँड आणि बॅरीमूर हि पात्रं  कथेत येतात आणि कथा अधिकच रंजक होते. डेव्हनशायर येथे माळरानावर घडणाऱ्या घटना अधिक रहस्य निर्माण करतात. सर आर्थर कॅनन डायल यांनी माळरानाचं  इतकं उत्कृष्ट वर्णन केला आहे कि ते माळरान कथेमध्ये एका पात्रापेक्षा  कमी नाही. शेवटी अनेक नाट्यमय घडामोडी घडतात आणि अपेक्षेप्रमाणे शेरलोक होल्म्स सर चार्ल्स यांच्या मृत्यूचे कारण शोधून काढतात आणि सर हेन्री यांच्या जीवाला असलेला धोका पण दूर करतात. त्यांच्या लेखनातील ताकद म्हणजे कित्येक वर्षांपूर्वी लिहिली गेलेली हे कादंबरी २०१३ मध्ये देखील तितकीच रंगतदार आणि वाचनीय आहे.  

Revolution 2020

I was confused when I saw the cover of the book. It looked like a love triangle but with the title Revolution 2020??? Being a fan of CB, I was excited about the book and CB didn’t disappoint.

I loved the introduction of kids. It is cute.  The novel revolves around Gopal, Raghav and Aarti who live in the Varanasi. The two guys are appearing for engineering entrance exams. Raghav succeeds while Gopal doesn’t.

            Gopal fails in spite of two attempts for the entrance exams.  Spending a lot on studies (or say coaching) leaves no wealth in his hand. You will feel sad for Gopal as nothing seems going his way. But later things seem to change.  With the help of a politician he starts a new engineering college. The politician as expected is not a clean person and even Gopal becomes corrupt.  In the mean time Raghav fights against the system. And there is a problem; they both loved the same girl. Seems like a bollywod movie script na? The twist in the end may not be digestible to some of the readers.  

The book is interesting. It’s not just a love story. It also has aspects like, ambition, corruption, poverty, politics, passion, power and system. The books depict the problems of small Indian cities like dispute in a family over land, people wanting their children only to be an engineer and the dirty & ugly side of education.

The book will make you think on the system.  A person is not born corrupt, but it the society and the various incidents in his life are the one which make a person corrupt.  If there is any message in this novel, it would be one has to follow his passion in life.

But I have a complaint. I don’t understand why most of the novels which have youth (mostly love stories) don’t go ahead of IITs and IIMs or any other engineering college.  Is it so that students of commerce and arts don’t have interesting lives or it won’t sell like this one’s do. Well to some extent this one has tried going beyond it. But it has the AIEE/JEE element in this.

Overall it is an interesting book and very well narrated by the author. Chetan Bhagat has made INDIA read by his previous novels. Hope this one does the same !