must read

Book Review: ‘The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe’ by C. S. Lewis

~ Madame Zenista ~ 4 Comments

img_2882Book Dedication by C. S. Lewis to his goddaughter Lucy Barfield:

My Dear Lucy,
I wrote this story for you, but when I began it I had not realized that girls grow quicker than books. As a result you are already too old for fairy tales, and by the time it is printed and bound you will be older still. But some day you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again. You can then take it down from some upper shelf, dust it, and tell me what you think of it. I shall probably be too deaf to hear, and too old to understand, a word you say, but I shall still be 

your affectionate Godfather,
C.S. Lewis

Even before reading the first word of the first chapter, the above dedication threw me into whirlwind of emotions, waking me up from a stupor that I must have fallen into as I grew out of girlhood, and greatly moved me with the timing that C. S. Lewis talks about when one is old enough to start reading fairy tales again.

Leaving behind the cozy make-believe one with fairy tales, as we dip our toes into the real world, waters get increasingly rough and life gets progressively complicated, leaving us disillusioned long before we realize. It is then, defeated and despondent, that we return to these very “fairy tales” for hope and happiness to get through the real world.

Life comes a full circle.

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is the first book written and published in a series of seven books under a collective title The Chronicles of Narnia (though the reading order is controversial). It is about four siblings who are sent to live with an old professor in a very big and a very old house to be safe from the dangers of World War II. There they discover a wardrobe in one of the rooms that leads into the magical realm of the world of Narnia. Here there are mythical characters, animal talk and a life in their cozy homes, (which by the way was my favorite part making me feel so warm, happy and secure.) Nothing like escaping into such a world, and having tea and cakes by the fire in one such cottage, be it in your imagination. The kids and some of their jungle friends fight against the evil White Witch and her army of wicked creatures with the help of the mighty king of beasts, the royal Lion Aslan.

The popular novelist Stephen King believes story is the boss of everything in a novel, and this book is all about the great story told in an uncomplicated manner. I loved the book and was happy that I interjected my regular reading with it. A classic in children’s literature, it is a refreshing re/read for those who have grown tired of being grown-ups. Five stars on my Goodreads.

A beautiful excerpt:
There was no trace of the fog now. The sky became bluer and bluer, and now there were white clouds hurrying across it from time to time. In the wide glades there were primroses. A light breeze sprang up which scattered drops of moisture from the swaying branches and carried cool, delicious scents against the faces of the travelers. The trees began to come fully alive. The larches and birches were covered with green, the laburnums with gold. Soon the beech trees had put forth their delicate, transparent leaves. As the travelers walked under them the light also became green. A bee buzzed across their path.

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Book Review: ON WRITING – A Memoir of the Craft by Stephen King

~ Madame Zenista ~ 9 Comments

Stephen King_On_Writing_A Memoir_of_the_Craft. Book Cover pageLets first get this out of the way: I am not a Stephen King fan, nor have I ever read any of his other works, only because I was never into the genre he mostly writes. However, whatever connection I do have with him is through one of his novellas that was adapted into one of the finest movies ever made: The Shawshank Redemption (I resisted putting a couple hearts here). This is my first book by him, and the second on writing, after Bird by Bird. On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft gives a zoomed in view of a successful writer’s entire process. If I was so amazed to read what all actually goes into writing a fiction novel (doubting if I could ever do all that), I was equally inspired to try it out, and excited to see the “magic” happen. In this book, King doesn’t give a success formula or a to-do list, but instead, discusses in detail some very fundamental aspects of writing, some of which are summarized below.

LIFE
The first few pages are about several stories about King’s early life. He and his older brother were raised by a single mother with limited means. Later, even as a father of two toddlers doing two jobs, King struggled to make ends meet, up until the commercial success of Carrie. While he was quite candid about his alcohol and drug addiction, his recovery and how he bounced back is very inspiring, destroying in the process any myths that stimulants are necessary to aid writers or artists in their art. Halfway through the writing of this book, he met with an almost fatal accident during one of his daily walks. Amidst series of operations and painful physical therapy, he resumed work on this book.

STORY
King believes that story is the boss in fiction writing and it is the most important thing readers will want. He says good ideas come sailing at you right out of the empty sky and that the writers job is to recognize them when they show up. Don’t know why, but I feel I am somehow violating trust by putting this very sacred and profound sentence out there, but I will: Stories are relics, part of an undiscovered pre-existing world. The writers job is to use the tools in his or her toolbox to get as much of each one out of the ground intact as possible. I think it is much like remembering a dream: you want to try hard recalling it, yet not inadvertently add your own details in the process, to get the dream as intact as possible.

READING
Read. Read. Read. Reading creates an ease and intimacy with the process of writing. King reads ‘anything and everything he can lay his hands on’ and for those who want to know his recommendations, there is a long list of books at the end.

WRITING

  • Writers ‘toolbox’ should be well equipped with a strong vocabulary and solid grammar. Not surprisingly, he praises the classic Elements of Style by William Strunk Jr. and E. B. White.
  • He detests unnecessary use of adverbs and of passive voice (attributes it to a lack of confidence and/or affectation of authority), advises writers the same.
  • A serious writer would write between 4-6 hours everyday, without any distractions whatsoever (with doors closed and curtains drawn); this is the time to  dive deep within.
  • It is important to write about what you really know well. Write what you like and then imbue it with live and make it unique by blending in your own personal knowledge of life, friendship, relationships, sex and work.
  • Write what rings true to you.
  • His little formula for editing: First completed draft = Second draft – 10%.  There is a sample passage showing his first draft and the edited second, with notes, which I thought is very useful.

The last part is about actual publishing, finding an agent and such. I think a lot has changed since 1999 making this information a bit outdated.

King makes a promise to his readers that this book is going to be to the point, without “any BS”, and he keeps it. There is lots of good advice and memorable sentences worth framing. Some of the paragraphs are so beautifully written that I typed the entire passages in my phone Notes for the fear of losing the beauty or wisdom in them to time or memory. When his writing is not clever or stylish, it is endearing. For instance, he gives you the reader a Permission Slip: If you feel you need permission to do all the reading and writing your heart desires, consider it hereby granted by yours truly.  

On Writing is a masterclass for aspiring writers or bloggers that should not be missed. 4.5 stars on my Goodreads.
Get it on: Amazon iBooks BN
Some of my frames are here:

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon (Book 1)

~ Madame Zenista ~ 3 Comments
Outlander by Diana Gibaldon
Outlander by Diana Gabaldon

What a disservice this book has done. As I read, I was far removed from my daily life and the chores, much to the silent consternation of my family members; Outlander had swept me off my feet!

This is the first book in a series of eight books (so far, and counting) by Diana Gabaldon. It is 1945 and the World War II has just ended. Claire, a combat nurse, accidentally goes back in time, two hundred years in the past to 1743, and there begins the adventure. She encounters few McKenzie clansmen in kilts speaking with Scottish Gaelic dialect, who, suspecting her to be an English spy, take her along to Castle Leoch. There, she tries to heal patients with whatever amenities and herbs she is able to get. Amidst family politics, clan rivalry and the Jacobite rebellion, develops Claire’s relationship with Jamie. Their fierce and impassioned love in the thick of continual danger, constant insecurity and looming fear only gets stronger, and keeps the book together. Their love and dedication to one another is one of the things so wonderful about the story. As they are displaced hither and yon, one witnesses the loyalty and valor of friends who come to their rescue from time to time. Set in the pristine Scottish Highlands, the book is replete with rich imagery of the terrain and the flora, with detailed description of plants, trees and birds.

The Scottish Highlands. Outlander.
The Scottish Highlands

I had almost fallen off my bed seeing the page count of my ebook: three times of a ‘regular’ sized book. How was I ever going to finish it? (Besides, there is this Goodreads Reading Challenge 2017 I signed up for, you see.) I finished the book in not more than 4 days, staying up very late, getting up in the wee hours, and reading while waiting in the car! It was worth the while. It is amusing to see life in those times, simpler of course, but certainly not as convenient as today; our commonplace comforts in the 21st century are manifold over those of the richest of the rich of that time. The valor displayed by people in wars and combats made me shudder. The book is so long and detailed that one starts dwelling in that time, living life along side the characters. And since it is a series, the characters and their stories create for us a universe, not unlike the Harry Potter series of books. Having completed the book, I was experiencing withdrawal symptoms. Book # 2 is on my list.

Note of the TV series: I saw the first episode (because it was free on Starz), partly out of curiosity, and partly due to my longing to dwell more into the book. It is quite well made, the show, left to itself. But I would not want to watch it just yet, as the characters I created in my mind reading the book still linger, with obscure faces notwithstanding, that are close to my heart. I would not want to spoil the aftertaste while it lasts.

 A beautiful, intense and a memorable book.

Book Review: UNBROKEN: A World War II Story Of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption

~ Madame Zenista ~ Leave a comment

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What a ride!

This is a brief account of how the book affected and touched me, more than a ‘review’. This is my first book ever on the World War II, a topic I’ve always fought shy of. Deep down, I have always evaded having to live the vulnerability, suffering and horror that war brings upon people. But the fear of the idea of something is much different from and more terrifying than what it really is. This was true for me having read the book.

A gripping tale of a man and his determination, survival and optimism. I was astonished to see the human capacity to inflict cruelty and so also the human potential for endurance- and none of which was fiction! Reading though the book, I lived the life of a POW (Prisoner of War) in extreme suffering and continual dread, with no hope day after day, week after week, month after month and year after year. Then Hiroshima-Nagasaki bombings happen. It’s then that I saw the significance of it and the other side of how that finally put an end to the war! The jubilation of American victory to end the six years of misery and hardship for the whole world, put me in tearful awe. I empathized more than ever with the war veterans, and how the war experiences change them for good, and their difficulties in settling back to a ‘normal’ civilian life (if they return alive, without losing a limb or so)! It’s not just the physical, but the mental trying, that leaves the lifelong scars. And each one has to find his way out, and live amongst those who have no idea of what all their souls have endured!

Also, it gives us a reality check on our lives which is no less than kings and queens, so we better stop complaining for whatever it is!

For those who are deciding still, whether or not to read the book, this is what I have to say: it’s great storytelling, thrilling, gripping and awe inspiring. Like me, you wouldn’t leave it, if you get past the first chapter!