Shoe addicts anonymous

What is it with Manalos and NY women? Is Prada the answer to your solitude searches? Will Jimmy Choos lighten up your day as much as wine 'n dine?

The answer to this what i hoped to find when i picked up Shoe Addicts Anonymous. If you have watched Sex and the City you would understand a wee bit of why NY women swarm up the shoe stores and have closets designed with a larger than life shoe rack. But honestly, the book was not quite intriguing.

It dint make funny anecdotes about the shoes or the people who wear them. It doesnt explain the character's passion for the leather or how it seems to wash away the pain and lack of happiness. Shoes bring four women in an ever-lasting camaraderie but doesnt seem to delve deeply into the bonds of friendship itself.

This book is a light read and probably enjoyable for those who are forever in love with footwear.

The Friday Night Knitting Club

36 hours on a flight from SFO to Chennai and the first thing i did was land up in Barnes and Noble to pick up a book to read when am not dozzing or seeing reruns of the movies in the flight. I had to choose between The Namesake, Berlin and Something borrowed. Then i saw this one and was captivated with the color of yarns - noth the best way to pick a book. Never to judge a book by its cover i flipped it open to read the first few lines. Ofcourse i read the synopsis and decided this would be a good one to carry along.

Georgia Walker is a single mom, a business women and a great friend. She and her daughter Dakota own and run the store - Walker and Daughter where the Friday Night Knitting club was born. Lucie - TV Producer, Darwin - Thessis student, Peri - visionary entrepreneur, K.C - laid off publisher, Cat - rich New Yorker and Anita - the wonder women have something to discuss, lament and rejoice during their club meetings. All are welcome whether they knit or not.

This book inspired among many other things, my hand at knitting. Sometimes when i read books i wonder if i would have been a different person if i were not born in India and then begin to ponder what are the things that restrict me and be the way i am. The answer almost always startles me because it is my desire or lack of it to pursue the things that interest me and get sucked in the daily monotone of life.

That said, some of the characters are beautifully portrayed like Anita who is wealthy but manages not to see the money but the life is people and value it. Georgia and Dakota get their share of the limelight but i think the number of characters should have been limited because some of them dont get the significance and are lost in your mind. Also the book is too long and somehow you wanted it to end more quickly. 

All said this book is refreshing for a first time author and i would recomment it.

Memories in a click

Sunset in the waters

































Kissing the waters

























Alone fishing in the waters - Connecting to the inner self.





















Racing the waters

The boat on which we cruised Lake Waramaug, CT.

Hit List

Berlin - Pierre Frei
The Master Butchers Singing Club - Louise Erdrich
The Memoirs of Helen of Troy - Amanda Elyot
All for Love - Amanda Elyot
A Good Indian Wife - Anne Cherian
Darcy Collection - Elizabeth Aston
A Wedding in December - Anita Shreve

Books by Ernest Hemimgway

The Things we do for Love

Kristin Hannah again. Thats the fourth book i've read in 6 months. I'm really fond of her writing.

A women trying hard to conceive and failing three times and a girl forever trying to find a mother in her own mom. The choices we make as girls can haunt us more in our later lives.

It is important to find love in life. I beleive that if you can wake up everyday with hope and love then getting through the day makes it that much more easier. Although romances are for books only it is nice to beleive in them. Lauren and Angie connect to each other and look out for each other and there is something charming about the DeSaria family. The mother who talks to the husband long after he is dead and the sisters who are opinionated but still manage to look out for each other. It is only when you have a family do you realize the importance of putting your loved ones in front of your own needs.

Kristin Hannah's style of writing is really gripping and opens doors into your soul. The book was a lovely read and definetly recommended.

Something Blue

Emily Griffin's Something Blue is of the chic-lit category. A snobby, beautiful and rich girl finds the way to her soul without worrying about her kennith cole shoes and nordstorm boots. She learns why its important to realize that there are people who look beyond just the outer beauty. I've always been sure that it is important for women to move beyond the comfort of their own homes where you get a taste of the real world.

Emily Griffin's style is refreshing and makes a good read.

The Zookeerper's Wife

I read about this book in my friend's blog and wanted to read this book forever. Everytime i went to the library optimistically searching for it, i would never find it. I even tried reserving it but somehow it never seemed to land in my hands. Finally i got lucky and when you get something you wanted for so long, you always get doubly lucky. I got a brand new copy of the book from the library and its always a tad thrillng to have a new copy in your hands.

Now for the book itself. There is something extremely alluring about World War II books and movies. I have seen some of the movies like Schinder's List, Escape from Sobibor and Life is beautiful. When i was in Germany, i had this nagging thought of visiting Auschwitz but one of my friends who visited the camp told me that it needed a lot of emotional guts to walk that place.

World War II was not about war, killing. It was about extermination and going against evolution. What makes men kill each other without emotion or remorse. How can you hold a gun to another man's head without knowing anything about the man except that he was a Jew.

I wouldn't say the world is a better place now and i would never understand religious or racial hatred but reading this book gave me an insight on why people risk their lives and put them in the line of fire to save hundreds of innocent lives. Why people risk their own safety to protect people they had never known.

War is never justifiable but i had never read about the Underground or how Jews escaped Ghetto and scrambled off trains reaching camps. To read about it sends shivers down your spine and reading about how Antonina escaped near death experiences and how she protected Jews by hiding them in the basement and in cages makes your imagination run wild.

Diane Ackermann slows the pace of the book by getting into the details of the war but her detailed accounts of the animals and how Antonina communicated with them makes for a splendid read. This book is a splendid read and it gives you a peek into what happened during world war II.

Between Sisters

I picked up Kirtin Hannah's book by accident. It was on the bestseller of Barnes and Noble and i wasnt even looking to pick a book. I loved her first book and i picked up another one and followed it up with Between Sisters.

I'm staying with my sister and it has been quite awhile since we stayed under the same roof. We are pretty close and sometimes we know exactly what to do and she has always looked out for me. It makes it all the more special when you get a chance to stay together in a foreign land.

Reading this book was like looking through us again. The elder ones are always protective and consider their younger sister almost like their own offspring. They know what to shield the younger ones from. The younger ones are philosophical and emotional and always think from the heart. Neither can go through the rough patch without the other. I cant imagine waiting for my 12th results without my sister going hither thither trying to find out how much i screwed up.

I would recommend this book to all who have siblings and can relate to being the elder one or the younger one. It makes you understand the tempo and the thoughts that run through the other sometimes the ones you missed. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and as always i find Hannah's writing applaudabile. So i went and picked up another one of hers, fingers crossed.

To Read

Under the Tuscan Sun - Frances Meyes
Twilight - Stephen Meyer
Black Lamb and Grey Falcon - A journey through Yugoslavia
Ireland - Elisabetta Canoro
Reading lolitha in Teheran

If any of you have read the above books, send me your comments.

Forbidden Territory

Forbidden territory is a movie about Africa. Its difficult to understand explorers, especially the ones who go to unknown territories. The ones, who would put their lives on the line for the passion of traveling the land no man has travelled before.

I love exploring, especially places that i would never be able to go back to again. I want to have touched every stone and visited every spot so i wouldnt have missed anything. The excitment comes mostly from doing the research previously and the anticipation of seeing the places that were pieces of my imagination.

Africa is a wonder land. The lesser it is explored the more mysterious and thereby the more sort after the nation becomes. The movie is about a man Henry Morgan Stanley who goes in search of a missionary named Livingston. After he finds him, they make a deal to explore the source of the mother Nile and then Livingston promises to return to England with Stanley. During the course of this trip, they discover each other - One finds a father he never had, the other finds his long lost son who died in the war front.

Faith gives strength and makes us do things which we would otherwise never dream of doing. Even when people we love the most disappoint us, when we spend months dreaming of the day we would be cared for in their arms and they turn their back on us, this strength gets us through the days.

Watching a movie wade through Africa is a visual treat and when it has a plot that is as capitulating as the characterization as this movie, it is a satisfaction to the mind.

Aidan Quinn's portrayal was picture perfect. His cold blue eyes convey every emotion vividly. When he stares at his lost love, his eyes are like the iceberg and when he tries to bid adieu to Livingston, his eyes are pools of painful tears that would'nt flow down. Every emotion is bought out to perfection and i think he is a class actor.

Memoirs of a Geisha

I'm probably the last one to jump on this train of having read the book. The book itself was a good read. Although slow at certain parts, it gives wonderful insight into the life of women in Japan and the life of a geisha.

Anybody who picks up this book is going to put a geisha on the other side of a line, but you have to read it to understand what their real profession is. The narration of a kimono and the obi itself shows how colorful the geisha were dressed. I really wonder how life would be without having to make choices and choosing your destiny but being led by people all around you.

There are lot of women in this book and it gives you different perspectives about women - jealousy, compassion, ambition, endurance and greed. Somehow, i found it difficult to read this book although there are lot of interesting quips that puts your imagination into a real execution.
The romance between Sayuri and the chariman is actually quite boring since nothing really happens till the very end and you are ready to give it up.

The analogy to eels was quite hilarious and the fights between Sayuri and Hasutmomo was also quite energising. The plot is quite good and since i haven't really read a book as extensive about Japan and geisha, it kept me going. At one point, i really wanted to meet a geisha and watch her dance performance.

I would recommend this book, a very interesting read.

Project Green

Now most of us would be familiar with the word green. What with eco-shape containers and say-no-to-plastic trailers, we can all understand the importance of global warming and going green.
Little things go a long way, like cycling to office, planting a garden, bringing a water bottle to work and car pooling. But these are not little things, they are lifestyle changes and sometimes it is difficult to change how you have lived for over twenty-something years(with little or no consideration) to the environment.

So here i'am embarking on a PROJECT GREEN, where am going to learn a synergtic way to keep the environment safe for my grand children and many more generations to come and hopefully, they would be able to see the wonderful things, i have seen and enjoyed.

Summer Island

Summer Island by Kristin Hannah was a book that i started to read on a sunday evening and decided to bunk monday and finish it through. It gives me immense pleasure to take a day off just to finish a book, something i have not done in many years. The last i remember was in college and back then we were not accountable for anything. Sometimes when i look at my sister juggling office and family i wonder if such simple pleasures would ever come back, where taking a day off was just about that and nothing more and nothing less.

Neverthless, this was a book review so let me stick to that. What got me bowled over was the number of characters in the book and how Kristin had detailed each of these characters. Nora Bridge is the woman who not only walked out from her marriage but motherhood and even though she has made peace with the former, the latter haunts her every living day. Ruby is a strong willed, honest to the word teenager in an adult and when she comes of age, she sheds wisdom on every one of us. The tangles of the family, how it is important to realize that mistakes are a part of it and how to forgive is what holds us together is easily penned. When i started reading this book i compared it to one of the mills & boons but it never treads on the physical strings but leans on the emotional side.

I really enjoyed reading Kristin Hannah's writing and now i want to read her latest - Fire Fly lane. Summer Island is a book you need to curl up with coffee and cookies and be ready to make a call to your mom or sis immediately after that.

Will i find them?

I decided to sit down and make a list of books that i want to read in the next few weeks, so i dont have to go to the library and wonder what books am going to land up with. In the past, that has never worked.


Although it is utterly frustrating not to find the books that i really want to read, randomly picking them up hasn't helped me either. So i decided to make this list for the next couple of weeks and if i dont get this, i would rather settle for a daniel steele or John Grisham which would not be so much of a loss either way.


So here goes, (fingers crossed to find them)


HouseKeeping by Marilynne Robinson
Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer
The Zookeeper's Wife by Diane Ackermann
A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini

A couple of them are from the reviews my fellow bloggers gave, but i think this would make up a good read.

Digital Photography

Learnt about this website and its a god sent.
http://digital-photography-school.com/

My element - WATER

BEACHES are my favourite place. The water rushing towards you but never taking you in. The calm of watching the water lap up and down from the shore and having the time for yourself. Where you can forget about what job has to be done, what the manager has for you the next day and where you can forget about all the obligations you have for yourself and for the rest of the other people.

Maybe beaches had a strange comforting and resting feeling in my life. They bring a joy of small things, of when i was young and when you can feel thrilled about the water lapping on my feet.

Some pictures i took of the beaches and lakes in US - Lake Tahoe and the Santa Monica Beach.

Lake Tahoe - a vast stretch of calm water flowing serenly between snow capped mountains.

This picture was taken when we stopped for a pit stop on our way to skiing in Lake Tahoe.