Angela's Ashes

I am taking a break from trying to write a review. Reason being - I am not able to write... I wanted to do this blog to try and learn to write. But it is not going in the right direction. So will try again later. For now, I will continue to list books I read, rate them and take part in challenges that I have taken up....

Thanks for understanding....


Book Title : Angela's Ashes
Author : Frank McCourt
Year Published : 1996
Date I Read : 20 May 2012
My Rating : 10/10

It was a perfect book for me. The language was simple and perfect. It is a heart breaking story. Every page will send you into a depression (if you are like me, my moods get influenced by the books that I read). But it is all worth it at the end. A perfect 10/10 book

I cannot believe I owned this book for 5 years and read it only now. I bought it in a sale for just 50 cents way back when we were on US. Luckily packed it along with the very few books that I brought along. Thanks to the challenge of reading from bookshelf I read it and am so glad I did. Best book I have read.....


Challenges
Linking this to letter A for A to Z by Book Title
Linking this to #2 for Off the Shelf

The Matchbreaker

Book Title : The Matchbreaker
Author : Chris Manby
Year Published : 2006
Date I Read : 8 May 2012
My Rating : 4/10

Theme


A spoilt rich girl on a mission to break up her fathers wedding

What I thought about the book

A quick read. No brainer book. I would not have been so disappointed had it not been for the fact that the protagonist seems to be missing the obvious fact as to who the guy she is dating is. That kind of forms the flow of the story. As we know (having  heard it been told to her) about it, it is quite irritating.

Was my filler after I finished Pigeon English. Can't read 2 sad books back to back.

Challenges
Linking this to letter M for A to Z by Author Last Name
Linking this to letter M for A to Z by Book Title

Gifted

Book Title : Gifted
Author : Nikita Lalwani
Year Published : 2007
Date I Read : 5 May 2012
My Rating : 5/10

Theme


Story of a Maths Prodigy who made it to Oxford at the age of 13 and her times with her difficult family

What I thought about the book

The story was catchy. But the narration was poor. I later read that it is based on the life of Sufiah Yusof who was also a Maths Prodigy who made it to Oxford, then ended up being a prostitute after not being able to take the pressure.

In our library there are books on display in the front with themes that change every week. This week was books with birthday/gift/party etc as theme and that is how I ended up with this one. The other theme was books with blue cover :-) that is my next book.

Challenges
Linking this to letter L for A to Z by Author Last Name
Linking this to letter G for A to Z by Book Title
Linking this to #8 for South Asian Books

Pigeon English

Book Title : Pigeon English
Author : Stephen Kelman
Year Published : 2011
Date I Read : 30 Apr 2012
My Rating : 6/10

Theme (Spoiler Warning!!!!)


From the book cover - 
Newly arrived from Ghana with his mother and older sister, eleven-year-old Harrison Opoku lives on the ninth floor of a block of flats on an inner-city housing estate. The second best runner in the whole of Year 7, Harri races through his new life in his personalised trainers - the Adidas stripes drawn on with marker pen - blissfully unaware of the very real threat all around him. With equal fascination for the local gang - the Dell Farm Crew - and the pigeon who visits his balcony, Harri absorbs the many strange elements of his new life in England: watching, listening, and learning the tricks of urban survival. But when a boy is knifed to death on the high street and a police appeal for witnesses draws only silence, Harri decides to start a murder investigation of his own. In doing so, he unwittingly endangers the fragile web his mother has spun around her family to try and keep them safe. A story of innocence and experience, hope and harsh reality, Pigeon English is a spellbinding portrayal of a boy balancing on the edge of manhood and of the forces around him that try to shape the way he falls.


What I thought about the book

It is narrated in the voice of the 11 year old. I kind of liked that. It kind of gave the same feel as I was reading the book - the room.

It is a little sad at times. But since it is from the point of view of a little one, there are lot of fun moments where you will get a laugh

Challenges
Linking this to letter K for A to Z by Author Last Name

The World of Nagaraj

Book Title : The World of Nagaraj
Author : R K Narayan
Year Published : 1990
Date I Read : 19 Apr 2012
My Rating : 5/10

Theme


The World of Nagaraj is the story of Nagaraj living a quite life with the wife Sita and his widowed mother. he has inherited money and so does nothing but sit around or gossip around the town of Malgudi. Things don't continue like that for long.

What I thought about the book

It is a typical RK Narayan story set in the imaginary town of Malgudi. It is hilarious reading about the daily activities of Nagaraj. He is a very quite person who cannot stand up for himself which makes his encounters with other people including his elder brother Gopu somewhat funny.

RK Narayan is one of those authors I always feel that I should like. It is like PG Woodhouse. I always want to enjoy them. But somehow I never enjoy them as much as I want to... It is not my kind of book, I guess.

If you like RK Narayan, this one is really really good one.

Related links
World of Nagaraj in Wikipedia


Challenges
Linking this to letter N for A to Z by Author Last Name
Linking this to #7 for South Asian Books

Linking this to #1 for Off the Shelf

The Baby Laundry for Unmarried Mothers

Book Title : The Baby Laundry for Unmarried Mothers
Author : Angela Patrick
Year Published : 2012
Date I Read : 17 Apr 2012
My Rating : 7/10

Theme
The book is about being a single mom in the 1960s. We read the story of Angela Brown giving birth to her son Paul and their lived before, during and after.

What I thought about the book
It was a very touching story. Knowing that it is an Autobiography brought tears to my eyes. Trying to write this blog entry, I am crying again. Very touching. It was a very fast paced read. Loved it.

When I finished reading it, one thought crossed my mind. Hopefully all that is written is true. I remember a long time ago reading a book Million Little Pieces by James Frey. It became quite popular after he appeared on Oprah's show. It turned out later that he had fabricated many things in the book. 

Christmas at Tiffany's

Book Title         : Christmas at Tiffany's
Author               : Karen Swan
Year Published  : 2011
Date I Read      : 15 Apr 2012
My Rating         : 7/10

Theme
Cassie's 10 year marriage with Gil just fell apart when she realized that he was having an affair with a friend of hers. Her 3 best friends were with her celebrating her 10th anniversary when she finds out. They decide that she will spend the next year in the 3 cities they live in - New York, Paris and London to heal her wounds, to learn new ways of life and may be even find love.

What I thought about it

It was a total chick flick. I was in a low of reading and it was everything that I was looking for in a book. Easy read with fast paced story. It is a long book with around 600 pages, but the pages flew by. Do not expect a classic.

Challenges

Linking this to letter C for A to Z by Title