The Sunday Haul (on 15-08-2021)

In a continuing quest to learn how to cook I keep buying books about it. Over the years I have managed to gather a couple of dozens of such cookbooks and other books related to cooking.

Last Sunday for some reason both the titles I found at Abids turned out to be related to cooking.  The first find was a nice hardcover copy of ‘The Flavor of Spice’ by Marryam H. Reshii.

 

Lying just beside it was a copy of ‘Tiffin’ by Rukmini Srinivas which also I picked up though I already have a copy at home. I got both these titles for three hundred rupees. Both of them were in quite good condition looking almost new. 

‘Who Let the Dork Out’ by Sidin Vadukut- A Review

If there’s any writer who has written book after funny book that makes one laugh aloud then it is Dave Barry for me. Until recently there was no Indian writer who wrote such books until Sidin Vadukut came along with his ‘Dork’ trilogy. From what humor books I’ve read some writers line funny lines, some writers create funny characters and some writers create funny situations. But so far I haven’t read any book with funny characters in funny situations uttering funny lines all through until I read the first Sidin Vadukut book. In his very first book itself Vadukut revealed his comic genius creating the Robin ‘Einstein’ Varghese character who is one of the goofiest characters I’ve read so far.

Like the first and the second ‘Dork’ titles the latest in the ‘Dork’ trilogy ‘Who Let the Dork Out’ is also outrageously funny beginning with the title. The jokes in it fly in it like bullets in a machine gun, one after the other, leaving you breathless with laughter. ‘Who Let the Dork Out’ is another caper of Eistein told to us in the dairy format. This is a real masterstroke the way Einstein makes his entries in the diary. The merest hint of something makes one break into loud laughter, like bringing up the name of Raveena Tandon, Anushka Sharma, Joy Alukkas and so on.

The first paragraph of the book begins with a bang, with a fantastic joke, and from then on the jokes take the reader on a hilarious journey into a crazy caper. The casual manner in which Einstein utters his lines or expresses his thoughts aloud is simply inimitable. In 'Who Let the Dork Out' Lederman's Einstein gets into the business of managing things for the 'Allied Victory Games 2010' on behalf of the Govt of India. There's the usual cast- Gauri, Sugandh, his bosses mixed with more new characters like Kedarji, Bala, Joyyonto, Jesal and of course, Colonel Kalbag to give the readers a heady dose of original funny stuff that'll split your sides if you don't pause in between chapters.

A single and casual mention of some famous names like Jhumpa Lahiri, Prince Charles, Subhas Chandra Bose and the way he takes potshots at all Bengalis and also Malayalis, his constant references to China is all very hilarious. It is all so original and funny you can read the book any number of times and laugh like you did the first time you read it. Sidin Vadukut's 'Who Let the Dork Out' is 252 pages of pure hilarity.

Sidin Vadukut’s ‘God Save the Dork’ – A Review; The Funniest Book I’ve Ever Read

For quite a long time I had been despairing if I’d ever come across a book by an Indian writer that’s really, really funny. Maybe there are some writers who others consider funny but I haven’t come across any such book. One recent writer who has made me laugh really hard is Sidin Vadukut in his ‘Dork’ books, two of which have come out. Reading his two books – ‘The Incredible Adventures of Robert Einstein Verghese’ and ‘God Save the Dork’ has made me feel that at last we have a truly funny writer.

I do not remember exactly how I came across Sidin Vadukut’s first book ‘The Incredible Adventures of Robert Einstein Verghese’ but I did buy it at a bookstore. It is a funny book loaded with lots of deadly lines that made me double up with laughter while reading. It is about a corporate guy ‘Einstein’ who has some really hilarious adventures you can never have enough of. Everything in the book- the situations, the characters, especially of ‘Einstein’, and the lines are extremely funny. After I finished reading it I had to wait for some time for the second title ‘God Save the Dork’ which I bought and finished reading recently.

‘God Save the Dork’ is funnier than ‘The Incredible Adventures of Robert Einstein Verghese’. It takes ‘Einstein’s adventures to a higher level and is so hilarious that I had to put aside the book in order to collapse on the floor and roll with laughter till my sides ached. You have to read it yourself to know what I mean. His interaction with his girl, Gouri, one of his bosses, Rahul Gupta and others, his Mallu jokes especially about Mohanlal, and also Raveena Tandon, are incredibly funny. There’s also some familiar stuff in GSTD, in that one of the characters is a Telugu guy and there’s mention of Chiru (Chiranjeevi, the actor) in the book.

I am happy I read both these books by Sidin Vadukut and now I am eagerly waiting for the final book in the Dork Trilogy. Sidin Vadukut is one writer you shouldn’t miss reading if you llike zany, irreverent humor. In my view he is on par with Dave Barry, Bill Bryson and the likes. The back cover has Hindustan Times saying the book is ‘Hysterically Funny’ an opinion I completely agree with. If you don’t find the book funny then maybe you ought to get your head examined.

Reading Gabriel Garcia Marquez's 'News of a Kidnapping'

Last Monday Jai helped me locate Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s ‘News of a Kidnapping’, a hardcover Knopf/Borzoi books edition that I got for only fifty rupees. I had thought of reading it later when I had a lot of free time. But I couldn’t resist and began reading it that same evening until I finished it yesterday. It is an engrossing book about the kidnapping of ten people in Colombia by Pablo Escobar, the notorious and ruthless Colombian drug lord wanted by the US.

In the introduction Marquez writes that the book was written on the request of Maruja Panchon (one of the kidnapped hostages) and her husband, Alberto Villamizar who negotiates with Escobar for the hostages’ release. His wife, Maruja and his sister, Beatrice are two of the ten hostages kidnapped. The kidnapping of ten high ranking people was to pressurize the government of Colombia not to go ahead with a law allowing for extradition of certain criminals, to the US.

Marquez, a former journalist, writes beautifully about the ordeal of the hostages in captivity swinging between the hostages and the efforts of the government to secure their release. It is a sort of journalistic masterpiece that takes you to the scene. The book tells of the kidnapping and tales of the horror the drug lords of the Medellin cartel inflicted on the Colombian people. It is also an account of the brave people who stood up to Pablo Escobar, a merciless killer who was afraid of extradition to the US, a fear that led him to the kidnapping.

The saddest parts of the tale are the deaths of two of the hostages. Marina, a senior citizen is killed in cold blood by Escobar’s people and another Diana Turbay, a television journalist is killed during a police raid on a hideout. These deaths haunted me long after I finished reading the book. The book ends with the escape of Pablo Escobar from a prison where he is lodged after surrendering due to the intervention of a crazy priest.

It is a fantastic book that made me search for the rest of the story which I found on the net. I read that Escobar was killed on December 2, a day after his birthday, in 1993 by a police colonel, Hugo Martinez in a rooftop shooting in Medellin. Right from the day of his escape from a prison, the Delta Forces of the US and the Colombian team called ‘Search Party’ were closing in after him and ultimately killed ehim. Escobar is reported to have been the seventh richest man in the world in 1989 according to Forbes.

That isn't the end of a brutal druglord for his rival gang, the Cali cartel is said to have taken the place of the Medellin cartel in Colombia.

Susan Orlean's 'The Orchid Thief'- A Review

I have never seen an orchid in my life. Which is odd considering I have studied agriculture, which, in a way deals with cultivation of orchids too. But so far I haven’t set my eyes on an orchid. I may have come across orchids but may not have not identified them. But now, after reading Susan Orlean’s ‘The Orchid Thief’, I know more about orchids than is good for me. I finished reading the book sometime last week and it is the sort of book one wishes goes on forever.

I had written in a related post that it is a book about a real-life madcap orchid collector who is caught stealing rare orchids from a tribal reserve, The Fakahatchee Strand in Florida. The thief, Laroche, is an eccentric character and the book is mostly about him and his passion for orchid rearing. It is also a book about the world of orchid collectors, their eccentricities and about their passion for this unique plant. There is a lot of fascinating historical detail in the book about how orchid collectors build their collections and the lengths they are willing to go to own rare orchids.

Susan Orlean’s writing appears simple but it weaves images that remain in your head long after you’ve finished reading the book. I liked the book very much and plan to read it again soon. ‘The Orchid Thief’ is a must read for all people who grow plants especially orchid collectors. Anyone who loves good writing will fall in love with ‘The Orchid Thief’, a non-fiction book about the world of orchids and orchid collectors.

Susan Orlean is a staff writer with ‘The New Yorker’ and her articles also appear in ‘Outside’, ‘Esquire’, ‘Rolling Stone’, and ‘Vogue’.

Elmore Leonard disappoints with 'The Big Bounce'

I was feeling bored today and I took out Elmore Leonard's 'The Big Bounce' and read it at a stretch. I managed to finish the 325-page book in about four hours. I got the impression that it was one of Elmore Leonard's weakest books. There's no humor, no credible action and the story itself was vague.

It is about a small time burglar, Jack Ryan, hooking up with a young girl, Nancy, who lures him to robbery in her rich boy friend's house. The story is too stretched out and doesn't sound convincing. There is too much of introspection by Jack Ryan and there are scenes in it that seem unnecessary. I was terribly disappointed with this book.

It would have been okay if it didn't have any story but had some humor. There wasn't a line in it that was funny. Quite clearly, one of Elmore Leonard's duds. It felt like he wrote it half-heartedly. But he is a great writer and remains one of my favorite writers. I still have his 'Pronto' to be read.

On Reading Peter Matthiessen's 'The Snow Leopard'

Yesterday evening I finished reading Peter Matthiessen’s ‘The Snow Leopard’, for the third time. No matter how many times I read it I always find something new in this wonderful book. TSL is about Matthiessen’s journey in the snowbound mountains of the Himalayas in search of the elusive Snow Leopard. I feel it is one of the few travel/adventure books that have been very well written and widely appreciated.

It is as much a spiritual journey as a physical one through difficult but beautiful terrain in the company of Dr. George Schaller and their porters. Matthiessen wrote the book so well that when I read it I felt I was with him trekking on treacherous ledges and paths of the mountains with a heavy load on my back and taking in the sights he so beautifully describes. There is much about Buddhism in the book and also about human nature. His poignant descriptions about his wife’s death and the nature of the porters who come along with him are done in a language I haven’t read before.

Incredibly enough, I found this 300 + pages book at Abids a couple of years ago for only ten rupees and I find it is worth several times what I paid for it. It is a priceless treasure. When I read it I feel like leaving everything behind and going on a similar trek to find out more about myself. Living in a city surrounded by family and luxuries dulls the sensitivities and it puts you in a complacent mood. Such journeys tend to put things in their proper perspective.

Peter Matthiessen’s ‘Snow Leopard’ is one book no person who loves adventure and travel as much as life itself, can afford not to read.