Amodini's Book Reviews

Book Reviews and Recommendations

Review : The Likeness

Written By: amodini - Mar• 11•09

thelik

Tana French’s second novel, set in Dublin, Ireland, has a fairly traditional beginning for a murder mystery novel. A murder is committed and the detectives swarm in to investigate the crime. So, “The Likeness” begins when the dead body of a young girl is found. However what is unsettling about this particular murder, is that the murdered girl, Alexandra Madison, looks exactly like Detective Cassandra (Cassie) Maddox, and her name is that of an identity that Maddox created and assumed in her work as an under-cover agent.

Now, Cassie has no twin that she knows of, and the “created” identity – that of Alexandra or Lexie as she is called – was created for the sole purpose of police undercover work, and never used again. Cassie Maddox is now off Undercover and working Domestic Violence, but agrees to go back undercover as Lexie (the police makes it appear like “Lexie” recovered from her stab wounds) to try and sniff out the murderer.

Lexie is (or was) a student and shares a house, Whitethorn House, with 4 other students. The House has it’s own story, and the students who live in it have their own mysterious pasts. It is obvious, upon some police research, that they all share some sort of common bond, are close-knit (almost like a family) and appear to be clique-ish to the outside world. It is also obvious that the four know Lexie pretty well, and Cassie in her masquerade as Lexie will have to be on her guard always. Apart from the fact that the police need to find Lexie’s murderer they also need to find out who Lexie was, and how she came into being, as a “fictional” character.

This novel is unlike any that I have read in this genre. For a murder mystery this has more than it’s fair share of pop psychology. French weaves her characters lovingly, little details and subtle nuances, make this novel an engrossing read. The characters in the novel are described in great detail, we know of their habits, their likes and dislikes, and their personalities. The fluidity of her prose and the almost lyrical quality of it is something I’m used to seeing in more of a “literature” style of book. Her style of writing is quite unusual in this usually prosaic genre, in that the words pour out until you’re enveloped in atmosphere; you can see and feel what the protagonist is feeling – so beautifully done is it. French describes the story from only one point of view – Cassie’s, but does it so effectively that you can almost see the characters for yourself. Her words suck you in, draw you into the story, and into Cassie’s head.

The plot of this novel is unusual to begin with – and that spikes the interest. What keeps up the interest level is the captivating quality of the prose. Going undercover again, and pretending to be Lexie to Lexie’s friends and house-mates (and deceiving them) is emotional upheaval for Cassie. The situation is also dangerous since the murderer is still at large, and might try again. Plus Cassie has her own demons to vanquish.

Cassie Maddox, along with Detective Rob Ryan (mentioned here but not an active character) also starred in French’s first novel, the Edgar award winning “In the woods”. However the books do not have to be read in order, since they are their own separate tales. And although there are several mentions of Rob and Operation Vestal, (which happened in the previous book) they do not affect this one.

Emotional tension, the hint of hidden secrets, and Cassie’s unexpected warmth for the foursome and their way of life, makes this an interesting tale. “The Likeness” is intriguing but slow-paced, taking it’s own sweet time to reach climax. It is a tribute to French’s skills that she can confidently tell a slow, languorous tale, and have us hanging on her every word. “The Likeness” is enticing – even if murder and a hint of the macabre isn’t your cup of tea.
Posted in 4_star_rating, books, crime, mystery, recommended, review | 2 Comments »

Saving Gandhi’s legacy : hypocrisy anyone ?

Written By: amodini - Mar• 05•09

Gandhi An Autobiography: The Story of My Experiments With TruthSee my earlier post; it is indeed the week for stupidity. I refer of course to the efforts by the Government of India to save its “national heritage”. By “national heritage” I do not mean the beautiful, ancient buildings that lie neglected (the last time I visited the Taj Mahal, there were honeycombs on the high ceilings of the entrances – I am not sure if it has been cleaned up), or by the polluted river Ganges, or by the myriad number of things that stand out as being part of India’s national heritage. No, what they mean when they say “National heritage” are MK Gandhi’s possessions which were to be auctioned off.

I am not a great fan of (all) Gandhiji’s beliefs, but I do know that the man stood for simplicity. Gandhi is no longer alive, but he is still alive among us, say many. Gandhi’s legacy is his high thinking; it is not material. The man preached and stood for basic human decency, the ability of each person to be good and to do good. For a man such as him, one of spartan habits, with not much desire of material possessions, would he care for the Government’s efforts? Would he even put his possessions ahead of the people ? Would he actually say – go save my glasses, my sandals, and let rot the real heritage of India – it’s people? I believe that the Government is missing the point.

But they went ahead full steam, missing the point as best as they could. As the “Times Now” channel so succinctly summed up, the GOI had a Game plan, and it was as follows :

– Buy items through direct bidding by the GOI
– Appeal to rich NRIs/American-Indians to buy and donate the items to India
– Negotiate/stop auction

The Government would have bid for the items, if all else failed.

Union Minister for Tourism and Culture Ambika Soni has told NDTV that the Indian government will do everything possible to ensure that Mahatma Gandhi’s belongings are brought back to India with or without auction.

She said that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has, in fact, authorised the government to bid for the items if all other efforts fail.

Wow ! As much as I respect Gandhi, I cannot see how the Indian Government could have thought of using up the Indian tax-payer’s money to buy up these items. Yes, you can get these effects and put them in a Museum where someone will, for a fee, be able to view them. But ask a villager, or a slum-dweller if they’d rather have a pucca house instead, and you’ll see. Ask women who have no access to toilets or basic sanitation if they’d rather have sanitary toilets instead of the ability to view Gandhi’s effects, and see what they say. Or why even go to the villages – ask a city-dweller if they’d rather have better roads, and electricity without load-shedding, than the ability to view Gandhiji’s effects – and you’ll see what I mean. Ask them if they would rather have public servants who treated them like human beings (as Gandhi insisted we all do), rather than the pompous, self-important bureacrats that now rule over India, and you’ll know.

The poor and the backward classes were a great concern of Gandhi’s – he called them Harijan. The GOI is effectively ignoring these very important people in it’s over-riding desire to save Gandhi’s possessions. And look at present day India – is it Gandhian in any sense of the word ? From men who attack women on the roads, and get away with it, in connivance with the police, to the everyday rampant corruption, to the rude, aggressive nature of people who share the same space as you – is it even remotely Gandhian? Is it?

The GOI’s frantic efforts to save India’s “precious national heritage” is not only a prime case of mis-placed priorities – it is also supremely ironical. I would laugh if I were not already so pissed off. What gets me is the hypocrisy of these “saviors” who have no clue about what Gandhi stood for. No one follows Gandhi’s principles – no one. All they do is talk. Is that all Gandhi means to us (the “saviors” of his legacy) – a plate, a bowl, a watch and his sandals ? Is that it ? What about what Gandhi stood for ? I saw a photo of Gandhi’s plate and bowl on auction, and was moved – what a simple man ! And what they have done to his memory ! It’s sacrilege !

The GOI was striving so hard to buy up his things at any cost. Why do they not strive so hard to provide education or food, or even decent governance (Gandhi would be better pleased) ? A whole lot of money to buy things of a man, whose principles we don’t follow, and in reality have no regard for. When did the GOI last get in such a tizzy over the common-man’s priorities ? Yup – you may not have bijli-pani or sadak, you may not have a functioning judicial system (a backlog of cases which will take several hundred years to clear), or governing bodies who care, but what you do have is India’s pride – Gandhi’s glasses and chappals. Savor them and fill your stomachs.

Does the Government have nothing better to do, or is it so rolling in money that it fails to find better use of India’s limited resources? James Otis, the owner of these articles, seemed to have a better idea than the GOI:

On Monday, Otis had said that he was ready to give the precious articles to the Indian government for “free” if it decided to spend five per cent of its GDP on the poor.

Common sense from somebody at least. Or a slap on the face of the GOI. But apparently this remark of Otis’s didn’t wake it up to the fact that Gandhi’s few material possessions are meaningless when compared to the Gandhian principles – principles which are neither followed, nor observed. What the GOI and it’s bureaucrats do is pay lip-service (and hearing corrupt politicians mouthing empty Gandhisms is making my skin crawl) and now some big moolah to it. Wearing the Gandhi topi, or the Nehru jacket, or saving these “prized” possessions from going outside India, is not saving the “national heritage” in any way. If Gandhi is watching us from somewhere above, I am sure he’s wringing his hands in sheer disbelief.

The items were auctioned off despite earlier indications they would not. They were bought by Dr. Vijay Mallya for $1.8 million. I assume everyone’s national pride is restored now ?

Posted in culture and society, india, politics, recommended | 5 Comments »

The Congress Party and disassociation from reality

Written By: amodini - Mar• 03•09

I know, I know – stupidity hath no bounds. Especially coming from India’s eminent political party which claimed credit for the Slumdog Oscar win :

In an unmistakable resonance of the previous NDA government’s `India Shining’ slogan, Congress floated the idea of an `achieving India’ and listed among the milestones the Indo-US nuclear deal, Chandrayaan, near 9% growth and the total sweep of the Oscars.

“They represent the finest traditions of our film industry and are an inspiration to all of us,” Congress chief Sonia Gandhi said. Her party spokesman Abhishek Singhvi went a few steps ahead and termed Slumdog Millionaire “a film of India, for India, by India” and talked about the “conducive atmosphere with emphasis on good governance contributing to an achieving India”.

Firstly, Slumdog is not an Indian film – it’s British. Secondly, what “conducive atmosphere” ? I assume they mean the assistance of the Congress party in creation of the slums, and ensuring that people remain in them, than in habitable housing. And if that is not enough to make me want to puke out the contents of my stomach, here is the latest from this great party – it wants to use “Jai ho” as it’s campaign song.

Hoping for a ‘Jai ho’ at the Lok Sabha elections, Congress has decided to adopt A R Rahman’s Oscar-winning song in its poll campaign to drive home the message that its regime has been “a saga of hope for the common man“.

A senior party leader said Congress has bought the rights of the song and the tune from T-Series music company for use in the elections.Congress will be using the song exclusively to reach out to the people to convey that its regime has been a saga of hope for the common man, the leader said.

Hope for the common man indeed ! How disassociated from reality can you get ?

Posted in culture and society, dumb things people say and do, india, politics, recommended | 2 Comments »

Art for art’s sake

Written By: amodini - Feb• 27•09

This is a continuation of Post 1, and 2.

My thing with art has always been that is should be good enough to be remembered, and who cares if it is deep enough for the critics ! If I go to a home or to a public place and there’s stuff hanging on the walls, and when I return home, all I can remember is “stuff” and not the details, then that has really not been art for me. Hence my distaste for the generic plant/vases/fruits/animal paintings you see everywhere.

I like Jack Vettriano’s work, although some of his paintings are too mushy and too obvious for my taste. I like the “Singing Butler” because it’s got that hint of romance, but then again, “Dance me to the end of love” is a bit much. A lot of Vettriano paintings feature nicely dressed people on the beach. And interestingly, Vettriano started out as a mining engineer, only accidentally turning to painting when he was given a set of paints by a girl-friend.

Missing Man

Above : Jack Vettriano’s “The Missing Man I”

Vettriano’s art is much maligned as being “vulgar and devoid of imagination”. But in that respect I think the criticism of apparently “frothy” art is similar to the criticism of “frothy” books. Must we read only literature and must we view only “deep” art ? What about the whimsical, the light-hearted, the fun ? Should we give all that up because it isn’t deep or worthy of us ? That would be silly – if it pleases the eye and warms the soul, why not ?

Posted in books | 1 Comment »

Edward Hopper’s art

Written By: amodini - Feb• 26•09
Isabel Dalhousie also has thoughts on art, and I am presenting them here, because they so agree with mine; Hopper and Vettriano are two of my favorites :

“Hen left the room, and Isabel leaned back into the sofa and looked about her. It was well-furnished, unlike many rented flats, which quickly develop a well-used look. There were prints on the wall – the landlord’s taste, presumably mixed with that of the tenant: a view of the Falls of Cyde (landlord); A Bigger Splash, by Hockney, and Amateur Philosophers by Vettriano (tenants); and Iona, by Peploe (landlord). She smiled at the Vettriano – he was deeply disapproved of by the artistic establishment in Edinburgh, but he remained resolutely popular. Why was this ? Because his figurative paintings said something about people’s lives (at least about the lives of the people who danced on the beach in formal clothing); they had a narrative in the same way in which Edward Hopper’s paintings did. That was why there were so many poems inspired by Hopper; it was because there was a now-read-on note to everything he painted. Why are the people there ? What are they thinking now ? What are they going to do now ?”

chopsuey

Above : “Chop Suey” by Edward Hopper
Edward Hopper’s paintings indeed do have that “now-read-on” feeling about them. Each of his painting is a snapshot of people doing something – it could be something as prosaic as reading a newspaper, but they leave you curious.
Posted in books, recommended | 1 Comment »

The Sunday philosophy club

Written By: amodini - Feb• 24•09

spc This is the second part of a review of Alexander Mcall Smith’s books – the first part is here.

I’m on page 156 (of 247) of the first book in the “Isabel Dalhousie” series, and Ms. Dalhousie has done little more than pontificate on various problems. The problem which requires her investigative powers is this : a young man has fallen from the balcony of a concert hall, and his fall is witnessed by Isabel. It doesn’t look like an accident to her, so she sets out to investigate. There are also other secondary problems, such as her niece Cat’s (the niece runs a restaurant) unsuitable boy-friend, Toby.

This book suffers when compared to the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency – it has very little of the charm and wit of the latter. Isabel seems nice and fair enough, but she thinks too much and does too little. Here’s an example of stuff she contemplates :

“She checked herself. That was the third time that she had imagined him in a disaster, and she should stop. It was childish, uncharitable, and wrong. We have a duty to control our thoughts, she said to herself. We are responsible for our mental states, as she well knew from her reading in moral philosophy. The unbidden thought may arrive, and that was a matter of moral indifference, but we should not dwell on the harmful fantasy, because it was bad for our character, and besides, one might just translate fantasy into reality. It was a question of duty to self, in Kantian terms, and whatever she though about Toby, he did not deserve an avalanche or to be reduced to biscuits. Nobody could be said to deserve that, not even the truly wicked, or a member of the other Nemesis-tempting class, the totally egotistical.”

It’s not that I disagree with Isabel (or Smith’s ) moral philosophy, but it would be nice to have the story keep pace with the philosophy. I had brought the first 2 books in the series, but now I think I’ll only read one.

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The obligatory post on Slumdog

Written By: amodini - Feb• 24•09

sdAfter Slumdog swept the Oscars, everyone is on the SM-mania. A day later, I can hear the NDTV anchor gush “ Well, we still can’t get over the Slumdog win” – and more of the same. Ah, well !

On CNN, reading a similar story, I see Jamaal’s character described as a “teaboy”.

The hero of “Slumdog Millionaire,” a poverty-raised teaboy seeking his lost love, works his way through the questions on the game show “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” knowing that, at any time, he can lose and walk away with nothing.

Quaint – that word “teaboy”. I look it up on the net. Dictionary.com doesn’t have “teaboy” but the urban dictionary does :

1. tea boy
(n.) The newest entrant to a business place, who is forced to do degrading tasks and mainly runs around after everybody else. Also called a charwola.

A “charwola” indeed ! And I wonder how Jagannath became juggernaut.

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Alexander Mcall Smith and his books

Written By: amodini - Feb• 21•09

no1One of my favorite book series is the “No. 1 Ladies detective agency”, by Alexander Mcall Smith. The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency is located in Gaborone, Botswana. It’s proprietor Precious Ramotswe is a lady of “traditional build” and in her late thirties. She has an assistant Mma Makutsi (Mma is the equivalent of Madam in Setswana – the official language of Botswana), a graduate of the Secretarial School , passing out with an amazing 97% (the highest scored by any graduate of that school, we are told). And the series comprises of books which describe the life of Ms. Ramotswe both personal and professional.

The beauty of these books, is that they are mystery novels peppered by common-sense philosophy, and reflections on human behavior – more action and some philosophy make a nice mix. Now that I’m nearing the end of these series, I’ve started on another series by the same author – the Isabel Dalhousie series. Ms. Dalhousie is an older spinster (forty-ish), and the editor of the “Review of Applied ethics” . Thus the book (and I’m on the first of the series) weighs-in greatly on the ethics of our everyday actions – too much me thinks because there is very little going on otherwise. Ms. Dalhousie does not run a detective agency, but she has a penchant for solving problems not her own, and this leads her on some investigative adventures.

Continued in next post . . .here

Posted in books, recommended | 2 Comments »

Of pink chaddis and Valentines Day

Written By: amodini - Feb• 17•09

Valentine’s Day has come and gone. Muthalik was kept in preventive custody. Pink chaddis went out to the Shri Ram Sene office, as duly observed by the news channels. The pubs were bharo-ed. The Bajrang Dal and other chauvinistic outfits which would have otherwise threatened bodily harm to people found “celebrating” Valentine’s Day turned non-violent, and attempted to dis-associate themselves from the Ram Sene tactics.

I say Yeah ! They might be pink and they might be chaddis, but the pink chaddis did it !

I have keenly been following news of the Pink Chaddi campaign, because it seems such a charming one. Yes, I know – pink underwear. And yes, I know charming. You heard right. Pink underwear – what a fitting way to say IN YOUR FACE. And that, in India, where women are better veiled and “decent” , if not barefoot and pregnant. Nice. Very nice !

And so, I ws rather surprised, after reading many supportive articles and posts on the Net, to read Sagarika Ghose’s column chiding it as “undignified”, and exhorting the youth to follow Nehruvian ideals. I am not sure I understand her idea of “undignified”, for what exactly is dignified ? Some roadside romeo, traipsing his way on the footpath, in a crowd pinching my bottom ? Or me turning to him in a rage and lecturing him on Nehruvian ideals ?

It boggles the mind really – this idea of being dignified. Protest, they say, protest women, but in a dignified way. Protest the daily assault on your private street space, protest your rights being taken away in the name of morality – BUT do not fling underwear, and do not call yourself loose or “forward”, or any other thing that night make respectable Auntijis and Unclejis cringe.

Why are these exhortations of dignity not to be applied to the goons of the Shri Ram Sene ? I am appalled that such a few number of the country’s leaders have spoken up and against the brutal assault on the Mangalore women. Yes, they were women , and they were in a bar, drinking. And the last time I checked India was a free country, a democracy with a long culture (in theory) of respecting it’s women.

Ms. Ghose talks of not forgetting our culture , of romancing and drinking but doing it discreetly. Be “immoral” but do it classily, eh ? Double standards, anyone ? It’s more of the same. Down, down woman, be discreet, be womanly. A group of “culturally” sound men might surround you, and energized by their righteousness, they might physically hurt you and slap you and fling you on the floor and kick you when you’re down. But O woman, be dignified !

Yes, and let us clarify this while we’re at it. These goons, attacking women in a public place were not really protesting “western” influences, they were protesting against women practicing those same “immoral” practices that men can freely practice in many places – from an ordinary small-town toddy shop to an expensive 5-star bar. Men do it, it’s OK and doesn’t outrage their morality. Women do it, and they need to be shown their place.

Much has been made of the “pub” culture. Pubs get the seal of disapproval from Indian Ministers, and such like, but it’s not the pubs that are the problem – it’s the people. Take the pubs away, take the bar girls away, stop young people from romancing in public places, stop them drinking and dancing – will all the vices end, you think ?

And, really in this land of “high” culture, of those who are SO morally sound, what culture is it when a group of men can beat up a few women ? And other men can watch without intervening ? High rating on the culture scale, what ?

But the question here is really not of the “pub” culture, and any other culture that has supposedly swept in from the “immoral” west (we don’t need the west for immorality – we have lot’s of our own) . It is a question of rights and freedom – my right to walk down a street, walk into a bar, and drink or eat to my heart’s content. It is a question of my right to go into a shop and buy cards celebrating love. It is a question of my walking in a public garden, or the beach alone, or with a person/persons of my choice, without getting threatened with mental or bodily harm. More importantly it is my right to do as I please, as long as I do not infringe other’s rights, without worrying about facing the repercussions of offending someone else’s sense of morality or propriety.

There are many who would argue with me about the place of women in a bar. Yes, you may not like it, but if you don’t like it, you don’t go. You do not stop others from going just because you think it is wrong. And here is the real danger – today it is a bar, tomorrow it could be a school, and the day after it could be my place of work. An year from now, they might want me in purdah, because according to them it might be immoral for a woman to expose her face or her eyes or her arms to the sun.

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Roadies 6.0 : Hell down under

Written By: amodini - Feb• 03•09

The Roadies 6.0 : Hell Down Under is well underway. The auditions were pretty interesting with “two” Raghus interviewing the candidates. And it has never ceased to amaze me at the number of people who turn up to try out for Roadies, who will do anything to get on the show. You’d think their life revolves around trying to be a Roadie. Case in point – that guy (and I forget his name now) who had all the Roadie shows taped so that he could absorb all the gospel truth that spewed out from Prophet Raghu’s lips. Amazingly ridiculous ! It’s like Roadies was a synonym for cool. One forgets how stupid one can be at that age.

And it’s a little scary to think that there are so many of the Indian Youth, roaming around without a clue, needing Roadies for validation. Some of them are headcases and some of them need shrinks or atleast a school counselor.

I believe MTV, or Raghu, or Nature Baba, or whoever comes up with these things has gone ahead and made this season pretty convoluted. Plus these Roadies – are they aggressive or what ? Palak (Gurmeet) wanted to use her fists to resolve every dis-agreement, and she spoke like someone who had no education – while leaving she actually compared Tamanna to a bitch with a bone. If she has a college degree, it hasn’t taught her anything.

Then there was the Pradeep and Sandeep show, where Pradeep decided to beat up Devarshi just because he could. Now, Devarshi is not my pick for Roadie of the Week, but to hassle someone weaker than you just because you can is low. Maybe MTV should do more than just warn them.

Sandeep is another character; he isn’t the aggressor, but he eggs people on, (In Hindi we call it “aag lagaana”) and “intelligent” people like Pradeep fall for it. However, apart from the fist-fights and the general tamasha, what was unexpected was the behavior of the other Roadies – they just sat around and let Pradeep run amok. No one though it wrong enough to interject ? Right now, the only person on that show who appears to have some sense, and some grey cells (recall his strategizing to get Palak out) is Nauman.

I’m rooting for OmBlues. Right now, everyone on Brats (except maybe Natasha, Suzanne) is either nasty or stupid, not the kind of people you want on your team. I’m glad Kiri got to go over to the side that wanted him.

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