"Chronicle of a Death Foretold" was the first book of Gabo that I'd read. It happened in haste, unplanned. Our school librarian was doing end-of-the-year stock verification and we were returning all borrowed books. Something with that book's cover caught my attention and convinced my inner voice to read the story. I promised my kind librarian I'd finish the book in one night and return it promptly. And it happened so. I was transported to an unknown world where longing and craving controlled every basic instinct. Gabo has the magical power to enthral his readers by sucking them into a tranced nuanced vortex. You can get into any anu world he has built and see it through the eyes of the protagonist. Reading Anna Magdalena's life built a strange commotion inside my brain.  Is her story my forgotten past? Or a forewarning into my future? August is a special month. I was born and reborn in it. Although the foreword from Gabo's sons warns us about a possibly ...

  Translated into numerous languages and formatted into different versions, "Sapiens" is a book that needs no introduction. From Carl Sagan's, "Cosmos" to David Attenborough's "Planet Earth", we've all tried to grasp the magnificent monstrosity of our world and construct meaning from that learning. Prof. Harari has taken a huge risk by recording humankind's history in a single book. Surprisingly he has done a splendid job. Discounting the endorsements from big shots and great thinkers, this book gets true appreciation from the intensive research behind it. It takes work to pack billion-year-old events in a single paperback and say, "This is us!".  The Universe is ~14 billion years old, earth is ~4 billion years old and we are ~200,000 - 300,000 years old.  Precision and accuracy are debatable when it comes to documenting history. The author beautifully lays out facts, figures and interpretations. Both sides of the coin are clearly...

Legal thrillers, I once believed were plain courtroom dramas. But “Shadow of Power” changed that notion. Paul Madriani seems to be the Sherlock of the legal world as he effortlessly untangles complex judicial knots. Given their compactness and heavily guarded privacy, courtrooms have made the judicial process seem minimalistic. Be it the prosecution or defence, the law is tricky especially because humans and emotions are involved. So, here's the plot. Fighting against time and shoddy police work, Madriani and his partner Harry go above and beyond to acquit an innocent victim who has gotten embroiled in the controversial death of a trouble-making writer Terry Scarborough.  In his afterword, author Steve Martin throws light on the problematic history of the US in the 1700s and 1800s when their constitution was drafted by the founding fathers. Although Jefferson’s letter plays a significant role as a fictional entity in this story, it sparks a sense of wonderment in readers about its ...