Reviews of the books I’ve read so far
Novels. I didn’t have a good image of novels. The reason behind that was maybe, my limitedness of knowledge about novels or maybe because I hadn’t read one. But the biggest reason was that I had often listened on TV: ABC drama- based on the novel by XYZ. So I had this thing in some corner of my mind that novels are just like these rubbish dramas (No doubt, this term doesn’t comply with all dramas, but only dramas of a specific region at a specific time).
So, all these thoughts in some corner of my mind vanished when, due to a very unlikely coincidence, I started reading a novel which was The Alchemist. It led me into reading more books including novels and others. And I can say that the best thing about 2020 for me was that I started reading books.
The year 2020 was very different for me or ´It had a very peculiar behavior´, I would say if I were the writer of my chemistry textbook. Among the different things I learned in it, one was that I should keep a record of my thoughts, opinions, or views on some matter. So this Medium blog (or story as it is called in Medium) serves the same purpose for my views on the books that I have read so far. It will also have some benefits other than that like I would rate the books on the scale of how much I liked them so this post or article or story whatever will also become a sort of recommendation list. At some time my read-list may become so long that I would need to consult this blog (I’ll now stick with this word) to refresh my opinions on some book or maybe my opinions change later sometime and I will laugh at how wrong I was.
(Edit: After my 1st revision, I have replaced the rating with stars and now it looks better. 🌟)
List of Contents
> Last Updated: May 7, 2022
Now, I will list all books (literary books to be more precise) that I have read. This list of books is according to the order in which I read them and not in the order of my likeness because that rating will be given below with their reviews.
The Alchemist
The Pilgrimage
Veronika Decides to Die
The Fifth Mountain
The Valkyries
By the River Piedra, I sat down and wept
The Devil And Miss Prym
The five people you meet in heaven
Manuscript Found in Accra
The Forty Rules of Love
The Archer
Man’s Search for Meaning
The Kite Runner
The first phone call from heaven
The Little Prince
The Monk who sold his Ferrari
Like the Flowing River
Jonathon Livingston Seagull
Manual of the warrior of light
Animal Farm
Life of Pi
The Prophet
The Secret Garden
The Old Man and the Sea
Edhi — A mirror to the blind
Happy Prince and Other Stories
Wind, Sand and Stars
Rating Books from best to good
I would not use the term worst for books because very rare is the chance that a book will have a negative effect on the reader’s mind. Because the negativity of the book is relative to the thoughts of the reader. If the reader considers a message in the book as negative, he or she will neglect the message. But even if there is just one positive sentence (for the reader), that will make that book good for the reader.
I’ll try to update this blog periodically after every addition of a book in my read-list. Remember, Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Everyone reads everything from a different perspective and conceives the book according to his own nature. If someone likes a thing very much and the other does not, both of them may be correct according to their nature.
10🌟- The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint Exupery
— — — (Translated by Katherine Woods)
The Little Prince is a wonderful book, the best book I’ve read. Ah! Grown-ups. They can’t understand it but don’t worry most of them have a little spark of childhood still flickering inside them and it will enlighten them after they read it.
The main theme of this book is that when we are children, we are so pure. But then we get influenced by society as we grow older. We start accumulating greed and pride in ourselves. We forget our little joys in childhood as we become aimed at getting richer. But this is just the theme. The book is in the form of a lovely novella when the plane of an aviator crashes in the mid of Sahara desert where he meets The Little Prince. Rest is the story….
Some Quotes:-
“Grown-ups never understand anything by themselves, and it is tiresome for children to be always and forever explaining things to them.”
“The most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or touched, they are felt with the heart.”
“Grown-ups love figures… When you tell them you’ve made a new friend they never ask you any questions about essential matters. They never say to you “What does his voice sound like? What games does he love best? Does he collect butterflies? “ Instead they demand “How old is he? How much does he weigh? How much money does his father make? “ Only from these figures do they think they have learned anything about him.”
― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince
(Edit: I found out there are more than six translations of this French novella among which two translations are most popular — one by Katherine Woods which was published the same year the book was written, and the other by Richard Howard who translated the book 50 years after it was written.
This review is based on Katherine Woods’ translation which is now — sadly — being replaced by Richard Howard’s translation which I do not find better than the first one in any manner.)
10🌟- The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
If I recommend someone only one book to read, it would be The Alchemist. This book is filled with so many important lessons, that I am confused about which one to mention and which one to not. The main theme of this book is to Realize your treasure, Follow your dream, Do not give up. The inspirational story revolves around a shepherd boy who embarks upon a journey in search of his treasure to realize his dream. During the journey, he meets The Alchemist*. The alchemist helps the boy in realizing his dream. The book uses a lot of symbolism especially at points where alchemy is described. Alchemy — the process of transforming lead into gold — can be used by every person to evolve himself.
* (This is not that “Alchemist” who is referred to in the book’s title)
What I liked:-
No doubt, this novel has many good points but the best for me was the struggle which was needed to be made by the boy in his path to follow his dream. Struggle is always needed to realize your dream or you can say you have to follow a path. You will realize after reading this novel that, how important it is to follow a path or face the struggle while realizing your dream. Because that struggle is what makes you worthy of the realization of your dream.
Some Quotes:-
“When each day is the same as the next, it’s because people fail to recognize the good things that happen in their lives every day that the sun rises.”
“The simple things are also the most extraordinary things, and only the wise can see them.”
― Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist
9🌟- Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl
This book beautifully highlights the significance of the presence of a meaning in one’s life and how one can find it. The first part of the book consists of the experiences of the author — Viktor Frankl — in concentration camps during World War II. Viktor writes how even in the concentration camps, one can find the meaning in his life and most importantly, the meaning in his suffering. As Viktor Frankl was a psychologist, he has also depicted prisoners’ and guards’ psychology and how those prisoners feel after the war.
The second part of the book is about logotherapy; the psychological method based on the premise that the primary motivational force of an individual is to find a meaning in life. In both parts of the book, Viktor makes us realize the true value and dignity of humanity which can find its meaning even in a war concentration camp.
What I liked:-
It’s the main theme of this book that I liked that one cannot free himself from the obligation to be a good person saying that, ´What good can I manifest in these circumstances?´ Because there is always a choice, a choice to decide either you are going to present good or present evil.
What I would recommend to the reader:-
When I started reading this book, I found the first 30 pages approximately, a little boring but later I realized that those boring pages were important to understand the notion presented in the next part of the book. So if you find, the start a little boring, don’t quit.
Some Quotes:-
“I consider it a dangerous misconception of mental hygiene to assume that what man needs in the first place is equilibrium or, as it is called in biology, “homeostasis,” i.e., a tensionless state. What man actually needs is not a tensionless state but rather the striving and struggling for a worthwhile goal, a freely chosen task.”
― Viktor E. Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning
9🌟- Wind, Sand and Stars by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Pick up this memoir and embark upon an adventurous journey where your sole companion will be wind, sand and stars, and the destination will be the land of truth. Antoine de Saint-Exupery is one of those few people who are able to see the extraordinary in the ordinary; this is because he sees from the heart as what is essential is invisible to the eyes. In this fascinating book, he tries to understand in the various accounts of his life, the true value of living. From his first journey as a mail pilot, to the account of Arab slave who wanted Exupery to hide him in his plane and fly to Marakech, to the hopeless wandering in an unknown desert for three days without water, to the Spanish Civil War; this book has a lot of compelling stories which unfolds a new theme, a new charm of mysteries of life.
What I liked:-
While reading this book, I transcended in a whole new world. Although this book is originally in French, Lewis Galantiere has done a remarkable job in translation of this book. The author has written this book like writing of a sweet melody, and it just bewitched me in its charm.
Some Quotes:-
“The sky was blue and the sea was white. I felt I ought to tell someone about it since I was back from so far away! But I had no grip on what I had been through. ‘Imagine a white sea . . . very white . . . whiter still.’ You cannot convey things to people by piling up adjectives, by stammering.
.…The day after I landed I might get emotional, might dress up my adventure by imagining that I who was alive and walking on earth was living through the hell of a cyclone. But that would be cheating, for the man who fought tooth and nail against that cyclone had nothing in common with the fortunate man alive the next day. He was far too busy.”
“Gazing at this transfigured desert I remember the games of my childhood-the dark and golden park we peopled with gods; the limitless kingdom we made of this square mile never thoroughly explored, never thoroughly charted. We created a secret civilization where footfalls had a meaning and things a savor known in no other world.
And when we grow to be men and live under other laws, what remains of that park filled with the shadows of childhood, magical, freezing, burning? What do we learn when we return to it and stroll with a sort of despair along the outside of its little wall of gray stone, marveling that within a space so small we should have founded a kingdom that had seemed to us infinite — what do we learn except that in this infinity we shall never again set foot, and that it is into the game and not the park that we have lost the power to enter.”
― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry; Wind, Sand and Stars
9🌟- The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom
Eddie repairs rides in an amusement park. His leg was heavily injured during the war and now he walks with a faltering gait. He’s old and he thinks that he never succeeded in doing what he wanted to do in his life. After a fatal try to save a kid from an accident, Eddie finds himself in an unknown place. He is told that it’s heaven. He, one by one, meets five people in heaven, who explain to him the different events that occurred in his life. They explain to him how his life was impacted by others and how he impacted the lives of others. In short, how his life, a life of a motor-ride mechanic was so important and impactful.
Every person Eddie meets unfolds a new mystery of his life. And the five people also teach him five important lessons which we can use in our lives.
(Here I am not mentioning any quote from the five lessons because they are more beautiful to read with the rest of the story.)
What I liked:-
In this novel, the whole life of a common man is represented. I often see social media feeds stuffed with success stories, success stories of every kind, and every field. People follow them in huge. They want to be like them, but they forget the importance and meanings of their individual lives in this attempt.
Another good thing was that when I read the last page of the novel, a new perspective of the book was opened for me and a smile followed.
Some Quotes:-
“All endings are also beginnings. We just don’t know it at the time.”
“Heaven can be found in the most unlikely corners.”
“Each affects the other, and the other affects the next, and the world is full of stories, but the stories are all one.”
― Mitch Albom, The Five People You Meet In Heaven
9🌟- Edhi — A Mirror to the Blind as narrated to Tehmina Durrani
Abdul Sattar Edhi is one of the few exemplary figures which I admire very much and would want everyone to know about. Before reading his autobiography, I thought I knew about the philanthropist who is the founder of largest welfare network across Pakistan, and who loved humanity more than himself. But that is too little to know about such a great personality whose aim was not only to care for the humans in distress but was to uplift humanity as whole.
The character of Abdul Sattar Edhi is deep rooted into the personalities of his parents who largely influenced him during his childhood — the time when Edhi started formulating his ideologies. The narration about his childhood in the beginning sheds light on what his mother and father taught him about miserable people, hardships, money, charity, business and life.
What amazed me the most in this book was Edhi’s vision, his journey and his struggles which are ignored by most people. It is easy to say “I love humanity”, but actually carrying this out is lot more difficult. It requires compassion, hardwork, wisdom and selflessness. I would especially highlight wisdom here which is an appreciable character of Edhi even though he left school when he was thirteen. During his whole life people rejected his way of doing things, his ideologies because they thought him way illiterate to understand complicated matters. Nevertheless, reading this book will leave the reader in awe for his wisdom, which is practical as well as simple. In this book, Edhi has shared practical solutions for social as well as economic issues of Pakistan that are deeply connected with the cultural mindset of Pakistani people.
Some Quotes:-
[My father] would tell me not to listen to too many words. “The strength of words lies in implementation, otherwise they are meaningless…Too many dialogues scatter and waste, say a little so that your words are remembered.”
— —
When my friends suggested that we approach a rich man for patronage, explaining, “Today we need him, later when we are established you can change the pattern. We need publicity, credibility and money. Where else will it come from?” I rejected the advice outright, saying what I have never stopped repeating since, ”I will not join the social welfare club. I need no false support, no whitewash and no publicity. I’ll build credibility, I’ll earn money, I’ll labour. I’ll live the real thing. For that I need the people, those who need my help. Nothing is for free, everything has a price. I will pay them, they will pay me. The people will create their own welfare service, I will help them create it. From here we go alone. There shall be no pillar to lean on. We shall build supports from within. No compromise shall dilute and plague my work. We will begin from the street, from the beginning, not the top, not the middle, but the very bottom.”
— —
With brain power that has led man to the moon, we are still unable to decide the issue of war? They research for the cures of killer diseases, without looking towards the one that maims, kills and uproots whole nations? What a contradiction.
— —
“Do not go up and come down. A tree grows high from roots deeply embedded beneath the surface of the earth, it does not grow downwards from the sky. Likewise character develops by noting and correcting the smallest flaws in the grind of a laborious struggle. The outcome of that is its future strength.”
― Abdul Sattar Edhi, A mirror to the blind
8.5🌟- Manuscript Found in Accra by Paulo Coelho
According to the prologue, the ideas presented in this book are taken from an old manuscript that was found in Accra. The plot is set up in 1099, just before the day Jerusalem is invaded by crusaders. On this day, a wise man addresses the people and answers their questions. The questions asked by people are about luck, faith, love, friendship, beauty, success and defeat, etc. So this is not a novel, but a book containing passages on different topics.
The explanation of all of these themes have been done so beautifully, that I haven’t seen such precise explanations anywhere else. And my favorite one was the explanation of success.
Some Quotes:-
“Defeat is for the valiant. Only they will know the honour of losing and the joy of winning”
— —
“Does a leaf, when it falls from the tree in winter, feel defeated by the cold?
The tree says to the leaf:
“That’s the cycle of life. You may think you’re going to die, but you live on in me. It’s thanks to you that I’m alive, because I can breathe. It’s also thanks to you that I have felt loved, because I was able to give shade to the weary traveller. Your sap is in my sap; we are one thing.”
— —
― Paulo Coelho, Manuscript Found in Accra
8🌟- The Fifth Mountain by Paulo Coelho
The Fifth Mountain is a lesson of continuous struggle. The book is a piece of historical fiction. The book is the author’s own interpretation of events that occurred with Elijah as mentioned in the Bible.
The book mentions the hardships and troubles Prophet Elijah came across and teaches us how to uplift ourselves during difficulties and troubles. The book is full of lessons and wisdom quotes — often characteristic of Paulo Coelho’s books.
What I would recommend to the reader:-
There are certain things mentioned in this book that are disputed among different religions. So my advice would be that if you read this book, you can read it all but keep your focus on the lesson that can be learned and ignore the religious aspect.
Some Quotes:-
“There are moments when troubles enter our lives and we can do nothing to avoid them. But they are there for a reason. Only when we have overcome them will we understand why they were there.”
“All life’s battles teach us something, even those we lose. When you grow up, you’ll discover that you have defended lies, deceived yourself, or suffered foolishness. If you’re a good warrior you will not blame yourself for this, but neither will you allow your mistakes to repeat themselves.”
― Paulo Coelho, The Fifth Mountain
8🌟- Like the Flowing River by Paulo Coelho
This book is a collection of short stories and thoughts and reflections of the author Paulo Coelho on different topics. Instead of writing a long review, I’ll just mention a short story from it. And for the book, it was amazing.
Some Quotes:-
“A boy was watching his grandmother write a letter. At one point he asked:
‘Are you writing a story about what we’ve done? Is it a story about me?’
His grandmother stopped writing her letter and said to her grandson:
I am writing about you, actually, but more important than the words is the pencil I’m using. I hope you will be like this pencil when you grow up.’
Intrigued, the boy looked at the pencil. It didn’t seem very special.
‘But it’s just like any other pencil I’ve ever seen!’
‘That depends on how you look at things. It has five qualities which, if you manage to hang on them, will make you a person who is always at peace with the world.’
‘First quality: you are capable of great things, but you must never forget that there is a hand guiding your steps. We call that hand God, and He always guides us according to His will.’
‘Second quality: now and then, I have to stop writing and use a sharpner. That makes the pencil suffer a little, but afterwards, he’s much sharper. So you, too, must learn to bear certain pains and sorrows, because they will make you a better person.
‘Third quality: the pencil always allows us to use an eraser to rub out any mistakes. This means that correcting something we did is not necessarily a bad thing; it helps to keep us on the road to justice.’
‘Fourth quality: what really matters in a pencil is not its wooden exterior, but the graphite inside. So always pay attention to what is happening inside you.’
‘Finally, the pencil’s fifth quality: it always leaves a mark. in just the same way, you should know that everything you do in life will leave a mark, so try to be conscious of that in your every action”
― Paulo Coelho, Like the Flowing River
8🌟- Life of Pi by Yann Martel
Life of Pi is a novel set out in the Pacific when a boy named Pi is left alone on a lifeboat after a shipwreck. Oh sorry, he’s not alone he is left on the lifeboat with a Bengal Tiger named Richard Parker.
The novel discusses themes of faith, humanity, survival, and human behavior in such exceptional circumstances. It is comprised of deep allegory that inter-connects the whole story and gives you a wider picture of the faith in God and humanity.
It was an amazing read except for the few times when the story seemed progressing slowly. But always some new point (a new thing or idea which cannot be called a twist, but still it’s new) came and made the story more interesting. Especially in the last chapters, the story was heart-touching and it made the whole novel much better.
Some Quotes:-
“To choose doubt as a philosophy of life is akin to choosing immobility as a means of transportation.”
“I had to stop hoping so much that a ship would rescue me. I should not count on outside help. Survival had to start with me. In my experience, a castaway’s worst mistake is to hope too much and to do too little. Survival starts by paying attention to what is close at hand and immediate. To look out with idle hope is tantamount to dreaming one’s life away.”
“These people fail to realize that it is on the inside that God must be defended, not on the outside. They should direct their anger at themselves. For evil in the open is but evil from within that has been let out. The main battlefield for good is not the open ground of the public arena but the small clearing of each heart.”
― Yann Martel, Life of Pi
8🌟- The Archer by Paulo Coelho
The Archer is a short metaphoric book that tells the readers what we can learn from the way of bow to apply in our way of life. The book starts with a short story of The Archer who after becoming a famous archer, had left behind his fame and now he lived as a carpenter in a village where no one knew about him. When a boy comes to know about the skill and fame of the archer, he requests the former to teach him some of his skills. Then, The Archer teaches the boy the way of the bow.
The rest of the book consists of various lessons like on the bow, the target, the allies, the posture, how to hold the arrow, etc. But these lessons are not just about archery but also about one’s way of life.
Some Quotes:-
“Therefore, before you begin anything, seek out your allies, people who are interested in what you are doing. I’m not saying ‘seek out other archers’.”
“The target.. was chosen by the archer and though it is a long way off, we cannot blame it when we fail to hit it. In this lies the beauty of the way of the bow: you can never excuse yourself by saying that your opponent was stronger than you.”
“Each arrow leaves a memory in your heart, and it is the sum of those memories that will make you shoot better and better.”
― Paulo Coelho, The Way Of The Bow
8🌟- The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway
The old man and the sea is a classic novella described as an account of an old fisherman’s struggle with a great marlin in the rough sea. However, in my opinion this story is about his struggle with his own self — a much stronger enemy. Hemingway beautifully describes not just the story but also the thoughts coming to the old man’s mind — both the positive ones and the negative ones. The problem with these thoughts — relating to my own experiences — is that you do not know which ones are which? And this makes the whole battle more difficult.
Some Quotes:-
“Then he was sorry for the great fish that had nothing to eat and his determination to kill him never relaxed in his sorrow for him. How many people will he feed, he thought. But are they worthy to eat him? No, of course not. There is no one worthy of eating him from the manner of his behaviour and his great dignity”
“You are killing me, fish, the old man thought. But you have a right to. Never have I seen a greater, or more beautiful, or a calmer or more noble thing than you, brother. Come on and kill me. I do not care who kills who.
Now you are getting confused in the head, he thought. You must keep your head clear. Keep your head clear and know how to suffer like a man. Or a fish, he thought.”
― Ernest Hemingway, The Old Man and the Sea
7.5🌟- Animal Farm by George Orwell
Animal farm is a short satirical novel in which animals living in Manor Farm bring about a revolution and themselves get in control of farm declaring humans as their enemy and replacing the name with Animal Farm. The story story holds a metaphorical referring to the Russian Revolution.
It is very difficult to write a metaphorical story which is logically a correct adaptation of true events, however Orwell has has masterfully crafted Animal Farm. Although I think it is slightly exaggerated in terms of true events, still it is greatly written in metaphorical terms.
Some Quotes:-
“All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”
“Several of them would have protested if they could have found the right arguments.”
“Can you not understand that liberty is worth more than just ribbons?”
― George Orwell, Animal Farm
7.5🌟- Manual of the Warrior of Light by Paulo Coelho
This book is actually a manual just as the name suggests. It consists of many short passages that are very helpful for you if you are a Warrior of Light. No, no, don’t worry if you think that you are not a Warrior of Light, a part of you always is and this book will help you grow that part.
The book is very inspiring and motivational. Some passages are difficult to understand. But overall it’s very good and it’s the sort of the book that you can read anytime while you are waiting for something or you can take it to bed where you can fall in sleep without saving your story’s current progress.
Some Quotes:-
“In order to have faith in his own path, [the warrior of light] does not need to prove that someone else’s path is wrong.”
“A flower is not better when it blooms than when it is merely a bud; at each stage it is the same thing — a flower in the process of expressing its potential.”
“A warrior of light knows that certain moments repeat themselves.
He often finds himself faced by the same problems and situations, and seeing these difficult situations return, he grows depressed, thinking that he is incapable of making any progress in life.
‘I’ve been through all this before,’ he says to his heart.
‘Yes, you have been through all this before,’ replies his heart. ‘But you have never been beyond it.’
Then the warrior realises that these repeated experiences have but one aim: to teach him what he does not want to learn”
― Paulo Coelho, Warrior of the Light
7.5🌟- The Happy Prince and Other Stories by Oscar Wilde
This book is a collection of stories written by renowned author Oscar Wilde. Different stories follow different themes, a prominent among them is empathy and compassion for others, teaching children to be more kind. This theme is followed by the first two stories which are very compelling even to an adult reader. While, a notable feature of some other stories is the use of satire to criticize self-interest, greed and hypocrisy among members of the society, secretly teaching children to avoid these traits. Wilde’s writing-style is moving and compelling just as the message of the stories.
Some Quotes:-
“Death is a great price to pay for a red rose,” cried the Nightingale, “and Life is very dear to all. It is pleasant to sit in the green wood, and to watch the Sun in his chariot of gold, and the Moon in her chariot of pearl. Sweet is the scent of the hawthorn, and sweet are the bluebells that hide in the valley, and the heather that blows on the hill. Yet Love is better than Life, and what is the heart of a bird compared to the heart of a man?”
— —
“The fact is, that I told him a story with a moral.”
“Ah! that is always a very dangerous thing to do.”
— —
“My good creature,” cried the Rocket in a very haughty tone of voice, “I see that you belong to the lower orders. A person of my position is never useful. We have certain accomplishments, and that is more than sufficient. I have no sympathy myself with industry of any kind, least of all with such industries as you seem to recommend. Indeed, I have always been of opinion that hard work is simply the refuge of people who have nothing whatever to do.”
― Oscar Wilde, The Happy Prince and Other Stories
7🌟- The first phone call from heaven by Mitch Albom
The first phone call from heaven — as the title suggests — is a novel in which a town Cold Water gains international popularity when some of its residents start getting phone calls — as it looks — from heaven.
A story of belief, faith, doubt, the first phone call from heaven, will surprise you with its unexpected turn of events.
Some Quotes:-
“Fear is how you lose your life…a little bit at a time…What we give to fear, we take away from…faith.”
— — — — —
“You’re giving them false hope.”
“What is false about hope?”
— — — — —
Elias asked his pastor “Does this prove what we believe?” and Warren softly said, “If you believe it, you don’t need proof”
— — — — —
― Mitch Albom, The First Phone Call from Heaven
7🌟- The Pilgrimage by Paulo Coelho
Book filled with wisdom from Paulo Coelho as he writes his experience of his journey on the Road to Santiago.
Some Quotes:-
“We are always trying to convert people to a belief in our own explanation of the universe. We think that the more people there are who believe as we do, the more certain it will be that what we believe is the truth. But it doesn’t work that way at all.”
“The busiest people I have known in my life always have time enough to do everything. Those who do nothing are always tired and pay no attention to the little amount of work they are required to do. They complain constantly that the day is too short. The truth is, they are afraid to fight the good fight.”
― Paulo Coelho, The Pilgrimage
7🌟- The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
The Secret Garden is a lovely children’s book, and it’s kind of a soothing and comforting book that you can read to get relaxed. The book’s main theme is healing yourself whether physically, mentally, or spiritually. Set in the nineteenth century, this book creates a sketch of Yorkshire, a county in England, of that time, when people were not as much prosperous as they are now, but how loving and caring people they were. But mainly, it depicts the nature of children and their way of doing things.
Some Quotes:-
“I’ve been thinking all morning of one thing she said yesterday. She says, `Once when I was givin’ th’ children a bit of a preach after they’d been fightin’ I ses to ’em all, “When I was at school my jography told as th’ world was shaped like a orange an’ I found out before I was ten that th’ whole orange doesn’t belong to nobody. No one owns more than his bit of a quarter an’ there’s times it seems like there’s not enow quarters to go round. But don’t you — none o’ you — think as you own th’ whole orange or you’ll find out you’re mistaken, an’ you won’t find it out without hard knocks.” `What children learns from children,’ she says, ‘is that there’s no sense in grabbin’ at th’ whole orange — peel an’ all. If you do you’ll likely not get even th’ pips, an’ them’s too bitter to eat.’”
― Frances Hodgson Burnett, The Secret Garden
7🌟- Veronika Decides to Die by Paulo Coelho
To be honest, I am writing this review too late and I have forgotten much of the contents of the book so I would mention here the little I remember. The story of this novel revolves around Veronika who attempts suicide and how she starts looking the beauty in the life.
Some Quotes:-
“You are someone who is different, but who wants to be the same as everyone else. And that in my view is a serious illness. God chose you to be different. Why are you disappointing God with this kind of attitude?”
“People never learn anything by being told, they have to find out for themselves.”
― Paulo Coelho, Veronika Decides to Die
7🌟-Jonathon Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach
Jonathon Livingston Seagull is an allegorical novella. In it, the author has narrated about a seagull named Jonathon. There was something different about this seagull that he did not fly just to catch fish but he flew because he believed that he was not born just to catch fish and feed himself but he had to achieve greater speeds.
It is a beautiful novella that teaches a man to get rid of his materialistic comforts and step out of his comfort zone and look out for the purpose of his life and fulfill it. The reason this a little low in the list is that it is somewhat difficult to comprehend for a new reader like me.
Some Quotes:-
“Here is the test to find whether your mission on Earth is finished: if you’re alive, it isn’t.”
“That’s what learning is, after all; not whether we lose the game, but how we lose and how we’ve changed because of it, and what we take away from it that we never had before, to apply to other games. Losing, in a curious way is winning.”
“Jonathan sighed. The price of being misunderstood, he thought. They call you devil or they call you god.”
―Richard Bach, Jonathan Livingston Seagull
6★- The Prophet by Khalil Jibran
The reason this highly acclaimed book is so low in this list is simple: it’s not simple. This book is written in a language which was very difficult for me to comprehend. However, I think that most of the philosophical ideas were somewhat close to nature. But still, I would much prefer the book “Manuscript Found in Accra” which has a similar book structure, because the ideas presented in the latter are much more clear, easy to understand, and close to the heart.
6★-The Monk who Sold His Ferrari by Robin Sharma
A self-help book, probably the first I read. This book consists of some tips and techniques that will help you live a more joyful and meaningful life. The main self-help concept of this book is coated around with a very badly crafted fable. It is actually a conversation between a lawyer-turned-yogi and his ex-colleague lawyer. The conversation becomes so unnatural at some points that you would like to throw away the book in the trash. The only thing that keeps you from doing this is the core concept.
The core concept or ideology presented in this book is very good, practical, and in fact helpful. The “ancient techniques used by the yogis living in the Himalayas” in my opinion should be termed as “stuff copied from other self-help books and internet health blogs”. So the reason I am writing this criticizing review is that nothing presented in this book was new. But still, I am giving it 6 stars because the concept (that author has collected from various places) is very beneficial if you apply it to your life.
5★-The Kite Runner by Khalid Hosseini
It is a novel set in the background of the fall of Afghan monarchy in the Russian invasion. It also highlights the issues like religious prejudice and child abuse.
The novel portrays a good picture of the history and situation of Afghanistan. The reason I did not give it a high rating was my dis-interest in this topic. Overall, it’s a good novel.
5★-The Forty Rules of Love by Elif Shafak
Overall, this book isn’t that bad, but the concept of Sufism presented in this book is misleading and it has nothing to do with the real Sufism and Islam. In my first review, I stated that it was the writer’s own interpretation of the lives of Rumi and Shams. But now I have come to know that it wasn’t the author’s interpretation but the author actually did not know the reality about Sufism and that’s why wasn’t able to portray it correctly.
However, I won’t say that book was completely useless. There were still some good points that I liked.
What I liked:-
The best thing was the ideas of people of different kind. Like how does a beggar interprets this world or a person who is strictly against the dervishes? And to guide someone to the right path, you must understand how he feels from the path he is on right now. That was the best thing about this book.
Some Quotes:-
“The real challenge is to love the good and the bad together, not because you need to take the rough with the smooth but because you need to go beyond such descriptions and accept love in its entirety.”
―Taken from The Forty Rules of Love by Elif Shafak.
4★-The Devil and Miss Prym by Paulo Coelho
The plot of this novel was very interesting or I would say it was quite sensational. But the author failed to conclude it well and it ruined all the experience.
3★-By the River Piedra, I sat down and wept by Paulo Coelho
I was unable to understand the main ideas portrayed in this novel. Maybe, they were based on Christianity, that’s why. However, it had some good points mentioned in it.
2★-The Valkyries by Paulo Coelho
Couldn’t understand a bit of the idea that the author wanted to convey. Maybe, I didn’t like these books because an author isn’t conveying an idea in every book.
What’s your favorite book?
So these were the short reviews of the books I’ve read. Their number, as well as diversity, is tiny. Many books were from the same author and most of the books were fictional. However I want, this sphere to be large and diverse. If your favorite book(s) is not mentioned in this list or you want to share your opinions on any book, do share them by writing a response to this story.
(P.S: The blog post is called a story in Medium.)
First Published on Dec 28, 2020
Edit no.1 Published on Feb 13, 2021
Edit no.2 Published on May 10, 2021
Edit no.3 Published on Oct 08, 2021
Edit no.4 Published on Feb 22, 2022
Edit no.5 Published on May 07, 2022