If there is one thing in my life that I have consistently enjoyed- it would probably be reading. In my current stage of unemployment, move to a new country and scarcity of friends- I have become lot more closely acquainted with books. As in its not that my taste when it comes to books has improved tremendously but definitely the volume and urge to experiment has increased. A surprising number of non fiction books have also made it into my collection in last one year though my first love still remains fiction.
If there is one book which consistently ranks high in reading lists of women across the world- it would be Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. A much oft repeated of story of Bennet sisters and their almost insaningly idiotic mother. Now this is one book I must have read of tens of times till date and still end up searching for different versions of the book by other authors. Much as most of us have nursed crushes on Mr. Darcy and found his and Liz's love story almost perfect- haven't you always wondered about
- what happened to Liz and Darcy after their marriage(afterall both of them were such strong characters). Was it actually an "and they lived happily ever after".
- why is it that two maternal figures(I think only two) in the novel are such shrews and maddening characters. As in is there more to it?
- what happened to self righteous Mary, mousy Anne de burough, sensible Charlotte Collin nee Lucas
- also what happened to Mr Wickham and Lydia after their marriage- did Lydia gained some sense and finally saw her husband as what he actually was or did she become "Mrs Bennet" part 2(offcourse Wickham lacking Mr Bennet's wit and character- they having children similar liz and Jane in character had the possibility of slim to none).
While offcourse we can weave our own stories and imagine what it was like going forward in the story but its always more fun to read others imagination.
Another type of fiction that I have started reading more is thriller/investigative series. Thanks to my husband who made me watch Bones, Body of proof etc plus being goaded into reading Girl with the dragon tattoo series few years(interestingly being a true blue sales person I had goaded atleast half a dozen colleagues into reading the book before I did)- I wanted to read some more of this kind. Some how the next many I must didn't really live upto the genre and I had almost given up when I came across another Swedish Camilla Lackberg. Offcourse it was a chance encounter in the Barnes and Noble while looking through rack of discounted books. I started with extremely low expectation but it turned out to be good read and thus I got addicted to the entire series. In next two weeks I read through the entire series and loved every bit of it. Main protagonists are relatable and so are their woes but what really distinguishes them is persistence and sharp thinking. Offcourse I love the fact that one of them is a woman- its just that crime thrillers have been a male bastion for way too long barring a few memorable characters like Miss Marple.
I am also trying to bring back my fitness regime back on the track. My disciple seems to be wavering too often now a days- and that has resulted in a gain of couple of pounds. I am hoping watching "Dancing with the Stars" would be a good motivation(all the choreographers on the show are so damn fit). Yesterday I had to literally goad myself in the last ten minutes on the treadmill- to ensure I finish my 30 mins course. Anybody who would have seen me(thankfully our society gym is devoid of any living souls around noon) would have declared me insane without thinking twice. "Bhatura...bhatura..." was what I was muttering to myself while working out to remind me what we had on the menu in the evening(thanks to a guest coming over). Aah things you have to do to ensure you can still fit in the clothes bought with much love.
If there is one book which consistently ranks high in reading lists of women across the world- it would be Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. A much oft repeated of story of Bennet sisters and their almost insaningly idiotic mother. Now this is one book I must have read of tens of times till date and still end up searching for different versions of the book by other authors. Much as most of us have nursed crushes on Mr. Darcy and found his and Liz's love story almost perfect- haven't you always wondered about
- what happened to Liz and Darcy after their marriage(afterall both of them were such strong characters). Was it actually an "and they lived happily ever after".
- why is it that two maternal figures(I think only two) in the novel are such shrews and maddening characters. As in is there more to it?
- what happened to self righteous Mary, mousy Anne de burough, sensible Charlotte Collin nee Lucas
- also what happened to Mr Wickham and Lydia after their marriage- did Lydia gained some sense and finally saw her husband as what he actually was or did she become "Mrs Bennet" part 2(offcourse Wickham lacking Mr Bennet's wit and character- they having children similar liz and Jane in character had the possibility of slim to none).
While offcourse we can weave our own stories and imagine what it was like going forward in the story but its always more fun to read others imagination.
Another type of fiction that I have started reading more is thriller/investigative series. Thanks to my husband who made me watch Bones, Body of proof etc plus being goaded into reading Girl with the dragon tattoo series few years(interestingly being a true blue sales person I had goaded atleast half a dozen colleagues into reading the book before I did)- I wanted to read some more of this kind. Some how the next many I must didn't really live upto the genre and I had almost given up when I came across another Swedish Camilla Lackberg. Offcourse it was a chance encounter in the Barnes and Noble while looking through rack of discounted books. I started with extremely low expectation but it turned out to be good read and thus I got addicted to the entire series. In next two weeks I read through the entire series and loved every bit of it. Main protagonists are relatable and so are their woes but what really distinguishes them is persistence and sharp thinking. Offcourse I love the fact that one of them is a woman- its just that crime thrillers have been a male bastion for way too long barring a few memorable characters like Miss Marple.
I am also trying to bring back my fitness regime back on the track. My disciple seems to be wavering too often now a days- and that has resulted in a gain of couple of pounds. I am hoping watching "Dancing with the Stars" would be a good motivation(all the choreographers on the show are so damn fit). Yesterday I had to literally goad myself in the last ten minutes on the treadmill- to ensure I finish my 30 mins course. Anybody who would have seen me(thankfully our society gym is devoid of any living souls around noon) would have declared me insane without thinking twice. "Bhatura...bhatura..." was what I was muttering to myself while working out to remind me what we had on the menu in the evening(thanks to a guest coming over). Aah things you have to do to ensure you can still fit in the clothes bought with much love.