SACHIN A HUNDRED HUNDREDS NOW by V. Krishnaswamy (Book Review-4*/5)!!!

1011th BLOG POST-->>

      There are plethora of books that have been written on Sachin Tendulkar. If one stands in front of a Sports section in a bookstore or book stall, his head will start rotating seeing the amount of books available on the life and career of the Master Blaster. But how do you decide which one to pick? Well, I would suggest you to wait for some more months as he is in process of publishing his autobiography with the help of Professor Boria Mazumdar who has already published some great books on sports. But till then, if you really want to read about Sachin Tendulkar, I would suggest to go with the biography written by Vaibhav Purandhare. And if after that, you still want to read about THE GOD, it's the book that I am going to talk about now- "SACHIN: A Hundred Hundreds Now" written by V. Krishnaswamy. It is one of the most selling books that has been written on the Legend. This book becomes eligible to be purchased because it has "Introduction by Rahul Dravid" and "Foreword by Ramakant Achrekar". Do I need to say more? 

   

SYNOPSIS:-

The wait is over. For the world’s finest batsman and for a nation of cricket lovers whose hopes and ambitions accompanied Sachin Tendulkar every time he stepped out to bat.

On 16 March 2012, at Mirpur in Dhaka, after opening the innings for India, Sachin nudged the ball to behind square leg in the forty-fourth over to cross the final barrier: a hundred centuries in international cricket. In this account of the master batsman’s incredible journey, sportswriter V. Krishnaswamy takes us through every hundred, every peak scaled on Sachin’s way to the top. With an introduction by former India captain Rahul Dravid and a foreword by Sachin’s first and most famous coach Ramakant Achrekar, this is a book for every cricket and Sachin fan.

About the Author:

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V. Krishnaswamy was born in Kolkata and brought up in Delhi. He has been a sportswriter and commentator for thirty years now. He has followed cricket tours to various countries and has written extensively on the sport, as a reporter with the Times of India and then as the sports editor of the Pioneer and the Indian Express. He is a regular guest expert on cricket and other sports on television and radio.

         Talking about Tendulkar's career, the first thing that people mention is 100 Hundreds that he have scored in the career that spanned more than 23 years. It is been said that no one else can achieve this feat ever or say, at least in 20 years, seeing the kind of Cricket young lad like Virat Kohli is playing. As most of us didn't even start going to school when Tendulkar scored 20-25 centuries of his career, we missed lot of memorable moments. If you are really a great fan of Tendulkar and wish to know about each and every century that he have scored, blindly purchase this book and read it slowly because only then will you unleash the excitement the book holds. The book does not tell about how Tendulkar practiced and became a great player but only describes each of his innings respectfully. 

         I loved the way author gave minute details about how Sachin scored his initial runs, how he reached his 50, how he hit that final ball to touch 50 and 100, who were the bowlers when he touched the landmark, who was the runner at the other end etc. He also tells the situation of the match before describing the innings of Tendulkar. After narrating the innings in a wonderful sport writer's way, he tells us about the records that Tendulkar and others achieved in that particular match in "Did you know?" section. He has divided the chapters according to the years. And then he discusses the number of centuries and half-centuries that Sachin scored in that particular calendar year. After he covers all the centuries, he describes what the two other sporting stars achieved in that particular year, Vishwanathan Anand and Leander Paes. A wonderful job done in letting us know even their development from just a player to a legend. And after that author discusses all the major events that took place in world and nation in the year. Amazingly written. If you loved jumping on each of the centuries scored by Master Blaster, go for this book. I rate it 4 out of 5.

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!

Those Pricey Thakur Girls by Anuja Chauhan (Book Review-3.25*/5)!!!

1010th BLOG POST-->>

      I don't know why but 2014 does not seem to be exciting the way the first week has been for me- slow and boring. I am such a reading freak and I ended up completing a novel in a week. Ashamed. There are some books in which I get stuck. E.g. I read Meluha in 1.5 days, Nagas in another 1.5 days but as soon as I picked up Vayuputras on the 4th consecutive day of reading this trilogy, I got stuck to it for another 2 weeks. That was the first depressing moment for me. And this has been another. Well, let's move further. I am done reading "Those Pricey Thakur Girls"- one of the most recommended novels by Crossword last year. Anuja Chauhan is known as one of the few sensible writers in the popular commercial fiction hence this has been my first attempt in reading her book. I am not fully impressed but I didn't even hate her. 

     

ABOUT THE BOOK:-

The new novel from the bestselling author of The Zoya Factor and Battle for Bittora. 

In a sprawling bungalow on New Delhi s posh Hailey Road, Justice Laxmi Narayan Thakur and his wife Mamta spend their days watching anxiously over their five beautiful (but troublesome) alphabetically named daughters. 

Anjini, married but an incorrigible flirt; Binodini, very worried about her children s hissa in the family property; Chandrakanta, who eloped with a foreigner on the eve of her wedding; Eshwari, who is just a little too popular at Modern School, Barakhamba Road; and the Judge s favourite (though fathers shouldn t have favourites): the quietly fiery Debjani, champion of all the stray animals on Hailey Road, who reads the English news on DD and clashes constantly with crusading journalist Dylan Singh Shekhawat, he of shining professional credentials but tarnished personal reputation, crushingly dismissive of her state-sponsored propaganda , but always seeking her out with half-sarcastic, half-intrigued dark eyes. 

Spot-on funny and toe-curlingly sexy, Those Pricey Thakur Girls is rom-com specialist Anuja Chauhan writing at her sparkling best.

About the Author :

Anuja Chauhan wrote ads for colas, chips and chocolates for seventeen years before deciding to do something healthier for a living. She now writes novels, movie screenplays, news articles and her children's Hindi essays. Her bestselling novels The Zoya Factor and Battle for Bittora have been optioned by major Bollywood studios. She lives in Gurgaon with her husband Niret Alva, two helpers who bang the doors a lot, a Lhasa Apso who thinks he is a German Shepherd, and three adolescents who give her attitude.

     

     Anuja C's writing is wonderful when she is about to crack a new twist or turn in the story otherwise it's very slow. I have heard that her previous books are in the process of getting adapted into a movie. But if I will have to talk about this very book, I would say a TV series would be a better option than going for a movie. If this story could have been shrunk in just 250 pages, it would have been really a never-to-miss-out stuff but currently, I would say, it's not a very extra-ordinary novel. In fact, it is like a snail that crawls slowly but produces gum with each step. The characters are awesomely defined, I agree. Some incidents does make you laugh and jump off your seat but still, this book lacks the fun that you expect from a book that's based on family drama. 

            The political part that's been focused in the later part of the book is something that excited me. The whole issue of Motla generated my interest. The book really starts from 250th page or so for me. Before that, it's just like water that randomly flows in any direction without knowing where it has to particularly reach. The protagonists- Debjani and Eshwari are wonderfully depicted and they would become your favorite without any great effort. It seems as if author has given her best in characterizing these two protagonists. The role of the Thakur parents are also funny and humorous. I didn't enjoy a bit that's based upon the family of Chachaji and those small kids. Even the segments where Anjini played her role seemed as an interruption in a lovable story. In the end, I would also like to applaud the designer for designing a very beautiful, attractive and exciting cover page. I will give this book 3.25/5.

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!

"YOU ARE GOING TO BE LEGEND IN 2014"

1009th BLOG POST -->>

     

     Aaah!!! So it's first post in this New Year- 2014!!! I know I am late but I am not apologizing for it because my blog was stuck in some technical snag. I know you hate this term because every damn organization gives the same excuse for not meeting up the customer's requirement. I am doing the same being shameless. Even this is a talent you know. :-) New Year's best wishes to all of you. I am sure all of you have recovered from your hangover of 31st December's New Year Party. There's no meaning of celebrating if you can not see the coming year as your biggest and best year till date. I acknowledge my life more than anyone else. If someone sees my life and feels that "I wish I could have led his life" then definitely, I should be the bigger fan of my life. And I am sure that a beggar who sees me entering the food joint- Mc Donald's would be thinking to be me in his next birth. Well, how lucky I am then to have the dream life of someone in this birth itself. Hence, with every New Year coming near, I start planning for it desperately because I can't afford wasting a year on the name of passing time and mentioning dates of future as provenance of starting something good. If it has to, it should be from the first day itself.

         Remember the biggest mantra for making a Year successful is by concentrating on your daily routine because- A Day Is Your Life In Miniature. The way you spend a day shows what kind your life if going to be. If you waste your day in playing games, watching movies, crickets, surfing facebook, roaming with friends, peeping into your whatsapp, then be assured that you are not going to get a life better than this. Your whole life will go into this. Hence, assure yourself that each day of yours will actually be fruitful and productive. Make your routine, stick it adjacent to your mirror, on the backside of your toilet door(so that while shitting, you can actually read what you had planned for yourself) and keep it as your desktop's wallpaper on laptop and mobile. It will keep reminding you that you didn't want to settle for mediocrity but approach for excellence. Every time you will open your laptop, the wall paper will make you feel ashamed of yourself that you have been wasting your life in Facebook. When the same wall paper will look at you through your mobile, it will make you realize that Whatsapp, Temple Run and Subway Surfer aren't going to place you anywhere in life.

           Strive to make your today better in any case. Don't sleep until you feel that you have done all the necessary jobs of the day. Sachin Tendulkar says that he used to rush to the Shivaji Maidan as soon as he used to get up. Only after completing his practice session, he used to be back home. Amitabh Bachchan starts his day with gym and work and only after finishing off his whole day, he logs into Twitter, Facebook and Blog and passes time with his fans and admirers. These personalities are not meant only to waste our time in experiencing their excellence but also to learn that we are also meant for something. If you do not know what you are actually made up for, keep continuing with your academics as the only thing you know in life. Die in learning each and every topic so that tomorrow when you give any interview in your life, the interviewer carries you with him in any damn condition, let it be a recession or inflation. Catch something and give everything of yours to excel in it. Don't mind what your parents, best friends, partner, lover, neighbours and teachers think about it. Only focus on what you want from it. And believe me, you will achieve it.

            It's said better late than never. It's useful to keep the flame of passion ignited throughout our life even if we are facing storm or any kind of havoc. Challengers, achievers and winners are those who keeps standing on their crease until the last ball is bowled. That's the one who is called "Man of the Match". Life will see ups and downs but its you who knows what strength you carry in yourself. Until you don't go to gym, you feel you can not be strong. Until you don't pick a book with high vocabulary, you feel that you will never understand literature. Until you don't propose a girl, you think that the girl does not even know that you exist in this world. :-) I am sure the last example was quite clear to you. Remain focused throughout the year on some specific things and be assured that some day, you are going to be seen by people as the one who didn't give up and gave them an example that they will keep on passing generation after generation. I am sure YOU ARE GOING TO BE LEGEND. Waiting to hear the same from your side for yourself. :-) 

 Thanks. A Very Happy and Prosperous New Year to all the readers of my Blog. Also pass my wishes to your family. 

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!