Tuesday

Book review : Kissing the Demon



About the Book

Title: Kissing the Demon
Author: Amrita Kumar
Publisher: HaperCollins Publishers India
ISBN: 978-93-5264-303-5
No. of Pages: 245
Price: 350 INR
Genre: Self-help guide

About the Author

Amrita Kumar is an anthologist, novelist, writing-mentor and creative writing teacher. She began her career in the godowns of Daryaganj to select books for a chain of bookshops, moving on as research writer for the Department of Culture, Government of India, then on to publishing as associate editor, Penguin India; editor-in-chief, Roli Books; managing editor, Encyclopedia Britannica; editor, Indian Design & Interiors magazine; and vice-president, Osian’s Literary Agency. In addition, she has freelanced for Rupa & Co., HarperCollins India and Oxford University Press. She lives in New Delhi.

The Cover Speaks

The white cover with the embossed title gives makes it elegant to hold. It is a handbook written for creative writer to help him/her in his/her writing sojourn.

Synopsis

Do you have a great story to tell but don’t know where to begin or how to give it shape? 

Whether you’re an aspiring writer or a seasoned one, a writer of fiction or narrative non-fiction, Kissing the Demon will help you navigate the maze of plot construction, narrative viewpoint, character development, dialogue creation and description even while allowing your imagination to flow. 

Written by an editor and publisher who has for over four decades nurtured some of India’s finest writers, it also tackles the insular world of publishers, agents, contracts and editors. It tells you how to find a publisher or agent, what gets a publisher’s attention and what turns it off – all the stuff writers take years to learn. 

Finally, it offers solutions to the vexing issue of balancing everyday life with writing, a problem every writer faces and the reason why so many books remain unwritten. 

George Orwell once described writing as a horrible, exhausting experience, and that he wouldn’t have written a single book were he not driven by some demon he could neither resist nor understand. Kissing the Demon will make your journey as a writer a little less painful, make you look upon that demon with a little more love.

Book Review

This book is written for writers, be it a neophyte or a pro, to help him handle the demon of writing in a more placating manner. Every writer when makes an advent to his writing journey often comes across several problems, from procrastination to writer's block, from struggling with the story plot to penning down the climax, from publishing to marketing. All these problems have a solution and author Amrita Kumar with her wide experience in the writing field helps in finding the solution. She has diligently explained how can one approach in making the story plot more interesting. She hasn't limited herself to fiction but non-fiction writers will also get to learn strategies devised by her to make their drafts more appealing. She has well explained the nuances of character building. Amrita has written a self-help guide to show the correct path to every writer. The book also tells you how to get your book published and make your new write-up reach to a wider audience. This is a must book for every writer of you are stuck in your plot or write-up, struggling with the dialogue creation or confronting with the editors. A gist of her experience in the world of writing and publishing is bound to help the budding writer.

Happy Reading!


My Rating
3.5/5

Gracias! 
  


'I received a copy from Writersmelon in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.'

Monday

Book Review : Finding Juliet




About the Book


Title: Finding Juliet
Author: Toffee
Publisher: Srishti Publishers & distributors
ISBN: 978-93-82665-85-4
No. of Pages: 216
Price: 195 INR
Genre: Fiction

About the Author


Toffee is a simple guy who loves the complications of life. He used to write code by the day and books by the night earlier. But currently, he is busy writing assignments and chasing deadlines in his Master's in Business Analytics from the University of South Florida. Toffee loves narrating interesting stories with subtle insights. Through books, he wants to share beautiful stories, reach out to people and touch their hearts. Finding Juliet is his second book, written especially for India's Generation-Y. The author can be reached here.

The Cover Speaks


The crimson cover of the book adorns a guy with a nerdy yet cool look. While the headphones lying on his neck make him cool, the wayfare frames give him a nerdy look. Two hands of different girls are shown caressing him which gives a hint that though he is having many girls in his life but is looking for the real love of his life.

Synopsis


Arjun is an incredibly nice guy who believes in true love and is waiting for it with open arms. He falls in love, not once or twice, but thrice. And every single time, happiness – like the girls he fell for – comes very close to him before pushing him away. His only pillar of strength in all his moments of grief and dejection is his childhood friend Anjali. 

Dejected by the games played by girls and fate, he leaves Hyderabad forBangalore and ends up meeting Krish, an irresistible flirt. He understands Arjun's predicament, pacifies him with his words and enlightens him about the most complicated species ever created by God – Women.

And then, Arjun's life changes forever. 

Will Arjun find the one he has been waiting for, or will he end up becoming a flirt? Will he ever taste lasting happiness? 

Join Arjun as he tries to figure out women and discovers the meaning of love, lust and life.. all in his journey of Finding Juliet

Book Review

The story starts with Arjun and his friend Krish sitting in a bar discussing their problems. Krish is depicted as a flirt who turns out to be Arjun's saviour. Five-six pages down the book, the college life of Arjun is presented and I start losing interest in the book. The women are presented as a mere beauty object and boys rating them over their physical appearance. Quoting a line, "She wore a light pink churidar with a dupatta that covered her breasts fully.This is so disgusting that the protruding genitals of women though hidden beneath her Indian attire become the only point of attraction. Howsoever, she tries to cover them, the lecherous men begin to focus there only. The author can defend himself under the freedom of expression and quote it's a form of art. Right Sir! but you have to keep in mind that you are presenting your artform to a large audience especially youngsters. If they also try to objectify women then I'm very scared where our nation is heading? In my opinion, the use of words could have been modified to convey the same emotions of the protagonist. 

I continued the book despite finding it against my will just to wonder if this is what the life of IT guy looks like. Arjun finds several girls in his life to satiate his lust but was always betrayed by them. His only childhood friend Anjali appears to be his final solace. The end of the story is quite predictable with no thrills. 

I'm blatant honest while writing this review. These are my personal opinion and are in no way directed to defame the author. It's just that as a person, the story plot is not so palatable to me. Others might like this story. So give it a shot and let me know how did you find the book?

Happy Reading!


My Rating
2/5

Gracias! 
 
'I received a copy from Writersmelon in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.'