Tale 0' 12 by Biranchi N Acharya

The Author:

Biranchi Narayan Acharya published his first book 'Encounter with wisdom' in December 2014. He writes in various platforms including newspapers and blogs. He can be reached at infobnacjarya@gmail.com

The Blurb:

Every life event is a story. In fact every moment of our life is part of a story being happened. We always ignore those because we think stories have no connection to real life happenings. But when we read stories or fictions suddenly we connect ourselves to the story-line or some of the characters emotionally or otherwise. That's why stories always fascinate us, entertain us & give us some lessons of life. 'Tale O' 12' is a collection of twelve stories inspired from real life events written in a fictional narrative. One would definitely connect to the characters of the stories someway or other because all the stories have something that's related to everyone's life.

The Cover Page:

The cover page is not bad. It very clearly gives the message that the book has twelve stories. It could have been better if some other background related to stories had been used instead of the clock. Yet, as I said it’s OK, I might pick it up from the book shelf and read the blurb to find out more.

What I Felt About the Book

Short stories are always a gem to read and many times, they do leave a lasting impression on the reader's mind and heart. When I read the blurb, I was excited to read the stories which were inspired from real life. No doubt real life is much more dramatic and adventurous than we can ever imagine or read about.

All twelve stories actually looked very much from day to day life events and thus justified the summary.

What I liked about the book:

1. Language – The simplicity of words and language makes it easy for the reader to connect with the stories.
2. Ability to connect - All the twelve stories narrated by the author Biranchi N Acharya are very ordinary and any ordinary person would definitely relate to some or the other.
3. Choice of morals – Each story very clearly shouts some moral to the readers. The lessons thus sent across are very much needed and appreciated in present era.

What I did not like about the book:

1. Too much wisdom – Personally, I read books for pleasure. This is the reason I prefer fiction. Knowledge and wisdom if gathered along with the entertainment is like icing on the cake. So, the long and detailed insights about various topics did lead me to a bit of boredom.
2. Spelling mistakes – I can recall two instances of a misspelled word (“clean ‘saved’ face”) in two different stories. This can always be because of the auto-correct feature in all editors, but then editor and proof readers must have come to the rescue.

Out of twelve stories, I have following two as my favourites:

‘Why Lesson For Lessons?’ – Absolutely simple story which can me a remake of one of the classic moral stories titled ‘The Greedy Woodcutter”.

“Fear and Danger” – A decent read which leaves the reader to decide the lesson learnt upon himself. I did felt like reading a short story in newspaper though.

‘The Story of Snehalata’ and ‘An Accident I Never Forget’ both had a bit of emotional quotient silently giving a slap on cruel and selfish mindset of society.

The stories might interest readers who like reading about politics. The readers looking for some inspiration on various topics like politics, religion, society etc. would definitely like it. Insightful debates over different subjects would also be interesting for their target audience.

Even after few favourites, but I am disappointed with the book. Some stories had so much scope but just ended up being predictable. I so hate to write this, I did not even finished reading some of the stories. May be, they did not fit into my cup of tea.

The Book can be brought from following links:

Amazon Paperback Edition                  Amazon Kindle Edition                 Flipkart Paperback

This review is a part of the biggest "Book Review Program" "Indian Bloggers". Participate now to get free books!

Thanks Giving Message with Scratch Art

 I am sure all of us specially the parents and the kids must have seen the attractive art boards being displayed in those toy shops. They look like a black board and when scratched with an object or our nail, leave behind those colourful lines. The boards are actually magnetic and can be erased and reused.

Then there are the ready-made scratch art papers available in the market. This is the one we made at home this time.

I had a note in my son’s diary to help my child make a thanks giving message on a cut out of a leaf. I had the message ready after some Google searching and was ready to go back home, get my child color some paper and white the message over that. One of my friends gave me an idea to do it in a different manner – The scratch art or paper etching.

I called up my son and told him we would make a card for his mam with magic!!!

Here it goes.

Step 1: Take a blank sheet of paper. Try to use a thicker one. Ask your child to fill it up with colors of his/her choice. Children love this part the most. 

The very idea that they just have to scribble all over it without any boundaries or color directions fills them with excitement. 

I preferred filling up some left over white patches after my son was done.

Step 2: Now, my son is currently mad over water colors. He also likes using black color – may be because he rarely gets to use it. 

Place the sheet over a newspaper and ask the child to fill it up with the black poster color. 

Make sure that it is not diluted and try to make it as thick as possible.

 Step 3:

Let it dry. It was the most difficult part for me. 

The kiddo came asking me every 2 minutes if it was done.

Step 4:

Turn the sheet on other side and draw the outline of shape you want to cut. We made a simple leaf. Actually, I put dots and ask my son to join them. It was for his school and thus obviously I did not want it to be messed up. 

Cut the shape along the outlines. The kid has now understood that it is the job for grownups.

Step 5:

Take a sharp object (not too sharp to tear or cut through the paper) and draw your imagination. Toothpicks are the most common choice. We had a message to write, so I wrote it. We used the back or out paint brush. Make a few stars or smileys here and there to make it look alive.

Here it was all ready:

The card might not look very neat and professional. I also forgot to add his name and ended with messing it up with writing followed by trying a colored tape. 

When it comes to his homework and projects, I make him do the stuff he can. It does not make his projects look the best in class, but then he gets to know the effort it takes and he also enjoys exploring. Plus, my purpose of not doing my child homework is also resolved. Yes, we are supposed to help our kids in their assignments not do the job for them.

The kiddo was obviously not happy with me doing all the magic and thus I gave him the left over sheet and he went on scribbling. I am definitely going to try it again with him and let him make some nice magic drawing. I am sure he would be telling his mam and friends that he made the card with magic!

Colourful Notions The Roadtrippers 1.0 by Mohit Goyal

Source

The Author: Mohit Goyal calls himself a dreamer who is passionate about life, travel, food and philosophy. Follow him on his good reads profile - Mohit Goyal

The Blurb: Would you give up your high-paying job and comfortable personal life to drive ten thousand kilometres across India? Just for fun!

Three twenty-somethings dare to do just that! While the two guys take turns to drive, the girl gives voice-over as they record their entire journey on a handy cam.
Ab, Sasha and Unnati are ordinary youngsters, rendered special by the feat they accomplish. As they recount their adventures, I crave to live their journey all the more. They look at each other with a glint in their eyes, as if refurbishing those memories, as they narrate their spooky time at Bhangarh Fort, strange escapades at Wagah Border and Sundarbans, car breakdowns, wild animals, near-death experiences and highway robbers! It's nothing less than crazy.
I doubted if I'd ever have the gumption to create such experiences. So I did the next best thing - I penned a book about them, and their road trip.
Colorful Notions is a journey of three young hearts on the Indian terrain and into the inner recesses of their souls, giving a new perspective to relationships, love and life.

The Cover: The cover page itself tells the story a bit: bright sky with clouds, the very important white eco-sport and obviously the travellers.

The Book:
'Colourful Notions - The RoadTrippers', It's the title which attracted me to this book.  The author did not waste much pages and very quickly but swiftly moved to main story line - the journey. I absolutely loved the friendship between Sasha and Ab. The cute but a realistic love story of Sasha and Unnati is also worth reading.

What I Liked About The Book:
1. Language - The language used by the author is simple and very casual. I think its suited the theme well.
2. Travel Details - Almost all travel requirements like finances, stay & rest, fun, route map etc have been taken care of.

What I Did Not Like About The Book:
There are few chapters which had more scope for detailing. For example, chapter - 'Spooky Night' did not appeared much spooky to me. The author choose to write only one incident of paranormal activity in the very famous haunted fort.

If the wannabe travellers think of getting a moral boost, the book can solve it a bit. Mohit Goyal has done a decent job in penning down the fictitious journey of youngsters. It's a nice and light one time read.

The book can be purchased from following links:
Colourful Notions: The Roadtrippers - 1.0 - Amazon Paperback

Colourful Notions - Amazon Kindle Edition

I won a review copy from The Tales Pensieve as part of Reviewers Programme. Register on #TTP for lots of #book fun and activities.

Dear Life

Dear Zindagi,

I am Amita - your carrier. Yes, I am the person who breathes you and live you.

You must be wondering why I am writing to you when I follow you each and every tiny moment. Well, I must confess that a blog contest prompted me to do so (:P).

Ok, like everyone else, I love you babes. I know there are many who claim that they do not love you. Believe me, they all lie. Some of them even do not realize that they are bluffing. So, don’t mind them.

Through this letter, I officially thank you for everything I have.

You choose me to be the eldest and thus most pampered baby of the family.

You made sure I had the best set of brothers and sisters.

You choose amazing friends for me.

You taught me different hardships of yourself.

You brought smile to me.

You tickled me hard to laugh and cry at the same time.

You exhausted me to cry.

You gifted a piece you yourself to me – my kid.

You did everything you could to make me Live.

I am sure you have many more surprises to be unfold before me. But I can only than you for the chapters you have made me turn. This might sound funny that I am thanking you for all like I had any choice other than accepting your moments.

There have been times and a lot of them when I absolutely hated you. Be it the smallest scolding from mummy/papa, minor & regular health issues, failure in exams, heartbreaks or the moments which changed yourself – I literally abused you numerous times. I got bored of you sometimes. I wanted a change in you every now and then. Still, I love you more than anything else.

I love you because all that I have is because of you. I want you because there are people who love me, want me and most important, need me. Now when I am talking to you, I have an important message for you.

Laugh Always

Nothing beats a smile or a laugh. A genuine smile is always returned with a smile – be it sarcastic or actual. However hard the time may be – one smile is all that’s needed to nail it. So, always keep laughing.

Ignore Dislikes

There have been and would always be people and their feelings with and towards you. Some would like you while many others would try to mould you as per their convenience. Never ever pay a heed to them. Do only what make you smile and eventually lead to a good laugh.

Fear Nothing

You are a little fragile soul. You are frightened at tiny thoughts of loss. Remember that the fear of loss is the greatest strength of all. Never ever let it go away to upset you.

Enlighten yourself

Every time you feel that I am taking you away from laugh, thumbs ups and strength, feel free to hit me hard and get yourself back to the light. Sun or the candle, all sources of light have to burn themselves to shine above others. Those who illuminate with external sources, only glow temporarily.

Your Soul,

Amita,

Note; I am writing a letter to life for the #DearZindagi activity at BlogAdda. Thank you team for the thoughfull opportunity.