• Blog posts
    • Spirituality
    • Constructive Criticism: Book reviews
    • Random musings of an eternal optimist
    • Mahabharata
    • Blogging ‘Eureka’ tips & ideas
    • World of Books & I
      • Book writing tips
    • Social Causes
    • Haiku
    • Blog Milestones
  • My novel – Arjun: Without A Doubt
  • Arjun – Anecdotes, free excerpt, quotes, reviews, journey memories
    • Arjun Anecdotes
    • Download Free Excerpt (pdf)
    • Arjun : Journey of my Novel
    • Quotes from Arjun:Without a Doubt
    • About Author
    • Book reviews for Arjun: Without a Doubt
  • My Pencil-sketches

Impractical Dreamer

~ Dr Sweety Shinde: As a butterfly flits; so does the mind waltz in innumerable flights. Mine hovers over books, spirituality ,humor and random gems from everyday life.

Impractical Dreamer

Tag Archives: Ramayana

Book review: Shattered Dreams

13 Friday Feb 2015

Posted by dr sweetyshinde in Mythology

≈ 17 Comments

Tags

bharat, book review, game of life, Rama, Ramayana, shattered dreams, shubh vilas, sita

Premise: Part II of VI Ramayana series.

Story : Post Ram-Sita’s marriage upto Ram’s departure on 14 year Exile.

Tweet version: Mythology buffs know this span includes Keikeyi’s royal tantrum, Manthara’s manipulative move, Dasaratha’s cave-in and Rama’s ‘slip-between-cup & lip’ brush with Ayodhya’s crown.

So how does this 23 word Tweet translate into 386 pages?  Pretty smooth, in the able hands of Shubh Vilas. cover book

                            I liked :

1] Sparks of human emotions within exalted characters- For example Dasaratha (who feels envious & nervous when his courtiers cheer Rama’s coronation – and Dasaratha wonders if they are cheering the end of his reign!), in Rama (after he finds out Kaikeyi’s wish – ‘Here, before Sita, at last Rama dropped his guard. Every leader needs room to express his feelings. Sita was not just that space, she was a deep lake.’)

2] Rama’s angst : ‘Outside were people who expected him to lead. Inside were people who expected him to follow.’ – as he struggles to bridge the gap between being the perfect crown Prince and the perfect son.

3] Sita : Shubh Vilas justifies why he thinks original name of epic was Ramaa-ayana, story of Sita. His Sita is glorious & feisty – using logic, reason, love, pleas and even unexpected insulting taunts Continue reading →

Complexity of ideas and Simplicity of words: Rise of Sun Prince, Book Review

24 Tuesday Dec 2013

Posted by dr sweetyshinde in Constructive Criticism: Book reviews, Debutante Authors, Mythology

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

book review, ISKON, Jaico, mythology, Rama, Ramayana, shubh vilas, Sun Prince

…in my view, the above combination makes for rich literature.

The author, Shubha Vilas Prabhu forces your eyes to read laterally and vertically at the same time. Every incident has its parallel interpretation and insight as a footnote.

The narrative ,in a non-linear sequence goes through Rama’s childhood up to his marriage. Delightfully , the latter half focuses on Vishwamitra. His repeated attempts, failures and sheer perseverance to become Brahmarishi is a beacon of hope for every person who loses heart at failure in life.

There are slivers of refreshing details: like Ayodhya following the rainwater harvest system; why Ayodhya means unconquerable; how Saraswati tongue-twisted Kumbhakarna into deep slumber; why Kaam dev is called Ananga( thus implying that Lust is merely a state of mind). Why Rama snapped the Shiva bow instead of merely stringing it; there is a lucid clarification for it too.

There are nuggets of sharp one-liners in the footnote:

Personal favorites include 1. To make mistakes implies lack of foresight; not repeating mistakes is a sign of intelligence 2.The mind is a connoisseur in converting trivial puddles into bottomless oceans. 3. A good leader knows the art of delegation. He himself carries the most demanding role- of being Inspiration 4. Most people want a mentor who will tell them exactly what they want to hear. The process of mentoring the mentor 5. The most vulnerable time to commit mistakes is when victory is close at hand 6. The degree of insult is inversely proportional to the size of the entity causing it.

Such countless gems scattered across the book warrant encores and re-re-rereads. Sun Prince

My only grudge would be making the marriage age of Rama as 12 years. Especially as there is love at first sight and Sita’s feverish feelings for Rama’s broad shoulders. At age 12?

A few questions: If Parshuram, Rama and Krishn were all reincarnations of Vishnu;

1. How did Parshuram coexist with the latter two? Parshuram was a Brahmin who annihilated Kshatriyas, while Rama & Krishn were Kshatriyas.

2. If Rama gave up Sita to uphold his citizens’ doubts over her purity; Krishn married 16,000 women to uphold their doubtful purity. Isn’t that a study in contrasts?

I am confident the author will take up the gauntlet and provide us with lucid clarifications in his coming series. I have attended his sessions on Bhagwad Gita. He is extremely eloquent and articulate.Sun Prince

That aside, Book 1 makes one anticipate Book 2 for more interwoven tales, fresh perspectives, well-researched details and of course, that treasure trove of insightful footnotes.Congratulations!

Here is Book 2 review link!

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 1,474 other subscribers

Rage of the Maggots

Psychological Thriller/Short stories

3 lives. 3 moods. 3 novellas. Psycho Thriller/Medical drama

Arjun: Without a Doubt

Indian mythology novel

Silence, too, can be misquoted. Discover Arjun beyond the warrior extraordinaire (Indian Mythology)

Categories

Posts: Toppers & Winners!

Shyam chi Aai: Sane Guruji, Book Review
Book Cover Design – why, what, how?
Kartikeya: Arjun’s brother–in-law!

Follow me on Twitter

My Tweets

ArjunTheNovel

ArjunTheNovel

Goodreads

Oven-fresh posts!

  • Book review – Indra: the rise and fall of a Hero
  • Stuck
  • Irrationally Passionate by Jason Kothari

Blog Stats

  • 64,204 hits

Blogroll

  • Sunil Shinde Sketches Watercolors, Architecture, Urban sketching, Travel sketches, Seattle, India, Greece … Sunil Shinde Sketches Watercolors, Architecture, Urban sketching, Travel sketches, Seattle, India, Greece … 10

Add book to your Goodreads shelf

Arjun: Without a Doubt

I belong to IndiBlogger !


IndiBlogger - The Largest Indian Blogger Community

BlogAdda

Visit blogadda.com to discover Indian blogs
Follow Impractical Dreamer on WordPress.com

Hi there Visitor! Live Traffic

Insync with my wavelength

The Blog Farm

The Blog Farm

Click here to kick me higher on BlogAdda

http://www.blogadda.com/rate.php?blgid=50479

Tick, tick, tick

February 2023
M T W T F S S
 12345
6789101112
13141516171819
20212223242526
2728  
« Jan    

Need a specific word?

Upcoming Events

No upcoming events

Visitor’s opinions

On max on Pregnant Nun and ‘Parth…
SYNERGIST on Social ostracism – Woe o…
dr sweetyshinde on Stuck
Ruchi on Stuck
SG on Stuck

Archives

Blog at WordPress.com.

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
  • Follow Following
    • Impractical Dreamer
    • Join 456 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • Impractical Dreamer
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...