Review: The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

Author: Paula Hawkins

Published: 2015 by Doubleday

Pages: 316

Find it at: Amazon 

My Rating: 3.5 stars

Genre: Mystery/Thriller/Psychological thriller

My Thoughts!

For a long time, I did not know whether or not I wanted to read this book. When it first became a rage, I did not want to read it. But it became a regular feature in several lists, and I couldn't hold back anymore. Never has a book gone on and off my Amazon cart as many times as this!

Rachel takes the same train every morning to go to London to work. She is familiar with the landscape outside her window. The train often stops at a red signal near a residential street, and Rachel glimpses the lives of people living there... sometimes with painful longing, because she used to live there once. A few houses down from her old house live a beautiful couple who had come to stay there a little while after Rachel had left. She calls them Jess and Jason, and thinks they're lucky to live the kind of life she had dreamed for herself. Until one day, she sees something that disturbs her, something she can't get off her mind.

Almost as soon as you begin reading, you can see that there's something about Rachel that's off the mark. Then you realize that she is an alcoholic. Her muddled mind is a cause of concern not just for her, but also for the reader, because she can be what some people refer to as an 'unreliable narrator'. What are you supposed to believe? Unwittingly, Rachel finds herself entangled in a criminal investigation. She knows what she saw, but her own interpretation of it, combined with her own doubts about her actions, makes it difficult to stay focused on facts alone.

I was hooked onto the book right from the beginning, spending a whole day reading it. That felt nice, especially as it had been quite a while since I'd had that sort of reading engagement. Whatever else it doesn't do, I'd give it a full score for being able to hold my attention throughout. The storyline is fast-paced; you wouldn't find it dull. The book is also about the secrets we all keep. How you cannot really know a person from afar, how there's so much behind closed doors that it becomes essential, and uncomfortable, to go into uncharted territory to really understand what's going on.

It was the writing style where I thought it could have been better. Perhaps it was the same format (first person narration in diary-entry style) for different character narrations, but there seemed a slight lack of distinction among the three different narrating characters. They seemed to have the same voice. And then the characters--I'm not sure I liked any of them. Sure, everyone has problems, and the plot needs people to behave in weird ways to keep up the suspense, but the dumbness and sadist pleasure needs to be controlled somewhere! [Spoiler: I haven't been as frustrated with a character as I have been with Anna, wife of Rachel's ex. For a while in the later half of the book, I thought I'd like to really shake her by the shoulders and shout some sense into her ears.] I also felt that the overall impression of women seemed negative. All the women characters in the book are either weak or unreliable or insecure or dependent on some male. None of them can think for themselves. Not really a good thing to show.

Nevertheless, that's the thing about this book, something I'm having a hard time trying to put into words--No matter how I thought that the writing style was not up to the mark, I still read the book in one sitting. The tight plot was a good idea. I just wish whoever thought of that had also thought of making the characters more interesting. The ending began to feel intriguing, but then it became a mess yet again. I admit to not having guessed the culprit (that could have been because of my general lack of interrogation as a reader), but even then it somehow fell a little flat. 

I would still recommend it to anyone who's looking for a quickie read in the thriller category. Final verdict: A bit overhyped, but can be read if you're craving some quick-paced thriller.

Anyone who's read it too? What do you think about it?

Emotional Rescue by Dzogchen Ponlop

Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche

Title: Emotional Rescue: How to Work with Your Emotions to Transform Hurt and Confusion into Energy that Empowers You
Author: Dzogchen Ponlop
Published: Tarcher / Penguin
Release Date: 19 April, 2016
Pages: 180

Find it at: Amazon

Emotional Rescue, as the detailed title suggests, deals with the subject of emotions and how one can use emotions to live meaningfully and happily. So many times we get swayed by emotions and often wish we hadn’t done what we end up doing. The book looks at emotions in a very positive way, and explains not only how emotions work and affect us, but also how one can use them to transform their outlook.

The process seems simple, like most important things are. It has been broadly divided into three phases (or steps) that not only help you understand your emotions better but also, if you use this knowledge and practice it, to be more aware of them when they come up, and being able to work with them effectively (which here means being able to control your 'reaction', in word, action and thought, to those emotions). The three steps are:

1. Mindful Gap: Look – The first step deals with making oneself 'aware' of emotions as they rise. Observing them. Trying not to react as soon as you feel something. As we pause, it creates a gap or space, even if it is for a second, which gives time for emotions to run their course and give one enough breathing room. Being more mindful/watchful of what we do and what we feel brings clarity and makes one more attentive. The book tells us how to bring about this 'mindful gap'. It is more about attaining self-knowledge than anything else, and oh, how that helps!

2. Clear Seeing: Explore-- It is about getting to the big picture once you've seen the individual things in step 1. You are aware of not only what you feel but also what else is around you and how you affect them. When you begin seeing the big picture, you form patterns in your relationships (those formed with the world). You are able to 'see' the impact of those emotions as and when they rise, and you can respond more skilfully to what's happening around. It involves a good deal of reflection so you also see the hidden emotions.

3. Letting Go: Relax-- This is about the practice of letting go of your negative emotions. It is not about rejecting your feelings and emotions, or avoiding them, but to welcome them as they are while being aware of them and knowing what they are (step 1 and 2). How can you look at so much energy (because that's what it is) as a potential creative one?

You'll find ideas and steps you can take to avoid unnecessary confrontations--at home or at work. There are tips for dealing with difficult people and with conflicts in relationships. The author encourages you to look at emotions in a healthy way, step back from them in the process, but also to keep them as a creative force.

The situations described are easy to understand and universally relatable. When you're in the first phase of the book, you're drawn into it, nodding your head at nearly every page because you GET IT. You are shown what you can be, how you can help yourself, what the ideal situation is, but it takes some more time (and pages) to actually get down to it. However, that's a pattern. Don't stop reading, but be persistent. The author is first ensuring that you are made aware of your emotions enough before spoonfeeding you the correct dose.

But again, I find there is no 'correct dose' for such things. It mostly depends on how you see it or how you work with it. I'm glad the author points that out too. There are no views of an ideal situation without being realistic; it could take a lot of time and practice, because emotions are such difficult things to deal with (at least that is how we see them). The author mentions early on how we tend to assume ‘emotions’ as negative. There are positive ones too, but because the negative ones cause us most distress, the book talks about those.

The book then goes on to suggest exercises to get you to follow the three steps. Those exercises are mostly to make you aware of yourself, but they are very much workable. They are detailed, and not exactly a step-by-step 'how to' process, but by making you reflect and get in that mind frame. There's a Part 2 of the book that talks about a Buddhist approach to emotions, which is similar to what has been described in the book but talks about it from the perspective of Buddhism.

Emotional Rescue encourages you to think, reflect, re-read and search for answers within yourself instead of hand-holding you through the process. It will help you identify your emotions, especially the ones that disturb you, help you think about them in a useful way, to begin to see them in a clear light, and tell you what to do with them. That's as much as a book, text or lecture can do. I'm quite glad that, like a lot of self-help/philosophy books do, it does not loudly proclaim that you can win at life if you do so-and-so things. In a very real way, it 'helps'. That is what one actually needs.

The writing style is clear, easy to understand, and very engaging. There's not much you will find out of your range. The book is also not too long. There's only so much you can talk about emotions, and explaining in detail the three steps I mentioned above. It can be read in a flow without seeming to get boring, which is a rare thing for books in this category (or maybe I was too keen to know how to be emotionally rescued, the topic being close to home and all). I thought of it as a positive coincidence that I got this book just when I could do with some guidance on the emotions front. I joked, "If this book helps me, it'll get a 5 star rating." That was a funny idea, but a novice one. Like the author suggests, transformation cannot happen suddenly. You have to practice these steps. BUT. Ever since I started reading it (not only when I finished it, mind), I have been able to pause and reflect before reacting, and thus have had minor confrontations where otherwise there might have been huge blow-ups. I think that’s a start. I plan to follow the ideas and exercises mentioned in this book, and will add later what came out of it!

Recommended for: Anyone looking to learn more about emotions and how you can regain control of them. Suitable for all ages—early teens to major adults.

About the author: Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche is a leading Buddhist teacher in North America. Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche was recognized by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and His Holiness the 16th Gyalwang Karmapa as a reincarnate lama of the Nyingma tradition. He is the founder and president of Nalandabodhi, an international network of Buddhist study and meditation centers, and of Nitartha International. Rinpoche is most active at Nalanda West, in Seattle, Washington, which offers public programs by teachers from many traditions that support a meaningful, contemplative life. His previous books include Rebel Buddha: A Guide to a Revolution of Mind.

Note: This book was received from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.  

The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

Alice Sebold

Author: Alice Sebold

Pages: 328

Published: 2002, by Little, Brown and Company

Find it at: Amazon

Blurb

The Lovely Bones is the story of a family devastated by a gruesome murder -- a murder recounted by the teenage victim. Upsetting, you say? Remarkably, first-time novelist Alice Sebold takes this difficult material and delivers a compelling and accomplished exploration of a fractured family's need for peace and closure.

My Thoughts!

I had encountered this title in way too many lists (which I keep looking up from time to time) to feel like reading it. Yes, I'm among those who get wary of a book when it's being praised too much. Not without good reason, too. Although The Lovely Bones was not really disappointing, it was surely lower than what I'd expected out of it.

The story is narrated by a fourteen year old girl who's dead. That's probably one of the reasons I found this interesting. Susie Salmon ("like the fish", as she says) is the eldest sibling in the Salmon family. One late evening as she's returning home, she encounters Mr Harvey, a man in their neighbourhood, who rapes and then brutally murders her. Susie dies and goes to heaven, which is different for different people. Susie's is like high school but there are no teachers and she can do all she wants. There's another girl named Holly and a mother-figure named Frannie she meets up there, but she can never stop gazing at her family and friends on Earth. Fair enough, because that is how she will tell us the story.

Soon after Susie's death, we see the devastated family trying to accept the fact that she's dead, and murdered. The story revolves around the lives of people after Susie's death. The writing is good, for the author is able to make a reader feel the intense rawness of feelings one goes through after a tragedy. Susie's father, who I think is the best character in this story, meets Mr Harvey and, just because he's too numb to think of much else, helps him build a tent in his (Harvey's) front yard. BUT. In some sort of instinct, he begins to feel something's wrong... the man knew something about Susie. Of course the clever Harvey denies it and goes back to claiming his lonely life (no wife, no kids) for having weird hobbies, but that only cements Mr Salmon's suspicion that Harvey killed his daughter. This part of the book was really interesting, because I began to feel that he'd do something rad and would get Harvey caught (Harvey being a psycho and having killed children and women before as well). However, despite his conviction, Mr Salmon is not able to prove it. Len Fenerman, a detective, does what he can (almost) but he has no ground to suspect Harvey. Mr Salmon is left alone. Lindsey is the only one who believes him, and tries to help him out.

There are a bunch of other characters who form a good part of the story. Ray Singh, Susie's schoolmate who had a crush on her, and Ruth Connors, an artistic person who was widely considered weird in school. Ruth has been used to depict one form of 'meeting point' between the living and the dead, which was an interesting element in the story.

The Lovely Bones has potential, and I can see why it became popular when it first came out. It promises so much! I found it emotional, and something that offered a view of reality--that there could be disappointments and you can be wronged even when you've done nothing, and it's not necessary you'd get redemption. Some people can go unpunished even after committing sins. Tragedy can break families, and it is oh-so-difficult to keep it together. I also found it heartbreaking. It tells how different people cope with loss in their own ways. Since it can turn out to be high on the emotional quotient for some, maybe you wouldn't want to read it if you're anyway feeling sad or low. As for plot... I don't think there's much to go on. Susie sees her loved ones doing things she is missing, sees them growing up and learning to live without her, makes some connections, but it's just that. It could have had some exciting passages about the killer, but there are few, and not very exciting.

The writing was engaging and gripping, and no matter what you feel while reading, you'd want to keep reading it. Some characters (read Mr Salmon) are believable and lovable. Sometimes you read things so utterly beautiful and painful, you can't help but love the book!

But to be fair, I did find some things quite disappointing. I did not get some parts about Ruth and her abstract ideas, connections and thoughts. I think I can attribute it to some lack of understanding on my part. Second, I did not like Susie's mother, and it's not only because of what she did (it's a spoiler, so I'm not mentioning it), but also because--what an escapist! Sure, I can't imagine a person facing such a tragedy, but woman, you can't do all those things and not do important things (also a spoiler!). Another thing that seemed overdone was how almost all characters engaged in physical relationships to forget their sadness. Like there's nothing else that can make a person feel better. It really annoyed me. It's not only because I have differing personal views, but what sort of messages are being sent to the readers? Finally, the ending. Had it not been for the messed up ending, I might not even have thought of the other 'disappointments'. WHY did that have to happen? I wouldn't like to mention it because it'd be a spoiler (bah), but it was not good. 

Still, every reader experiences a book differently. It is surely worth a read if you're looking for something emotional or different. Just don't expect too much. If you don't, you might end up liking it more than I did!

Here are some quotes from the book for you:

“Nothing is ever certain.” (The most-quoted line in the book)

“Murderers are not monsters, they're men. And that's the most frightening thing about them.”

“Between a man and a woman there was always one person who was stronger than the other one. That doesn’t mean the weaker one doesn’t love the stronger.”    (What do you think about this one?)

“You look invincible,' my mother said one night. 

I loved these times, when we seemed to feel the same thing. I turned to her, wrapped in my thin gown, and said:

I am.”  

(Honestly, this one broke my heart)

Review Shots # 2: Imaginative and serious children's books

Book # 1

Wisha Wozzariter by Payal Kapadia

Published: 2012, Penguin

Find it at: Amazon 

Pages: 77

I sometimes stalk book lists just for fun, and this one came up in quite a few lists with key words: children’s books, Indian authors, best reads, and the like. One of my reading preferences for the past few years has been children’s books, so it was only a matter of time before I found myself face to face with this book and picked it up. Now let’s get to the point.

The book is about a ten year old girl who loves to read. I loved the way the book started, talking about Wisha’s reading habits (she read before and after school, dinner, and all the time in between). Such a heroine for a bookworm kid! (Or an inspiration for a I’m-yet-to-turn-into-a-bookworm-kid) But she isn’t just a reader. She reads a good book and thinks that she could have written it too (like err… To Kill a Mockingbird). Then a bookworm (character Bookworm) pops up from a page and asks, “Why don’t you?” And thus Wisha is all set for an adventure. It involves Bookworm and other characters that come along the way as Wisha takes the Thought Express to go to the Marketplace of Ideas. Basically, the entire book is a personification of the writing process written from the perspective of a child, for children.

The good parts:

1. What fun language! It’s sure to have the reader keep reading. It’s action-packed and does not drone on and on about a single thing. It’s also quite short at 77 pages. I really liked the writing style.

2. Well-created characters for so short a book. Each character is distinct and so well-described that you’re least likely to forget any. You’ll even remember the minor characters (perhaps because they’re reinforced through Wisha’s thoughts in the later part of the story, but still).

3. The whole idea of explaining the writing process as a story. There’s a bottle of inspiration, a room to sit in and think, an imagination balloon, the marketplace of ideas (where you get all sorts of ideas – new, old, rotten. You cannot buy any, but you’re free to exchange them!), and a market where you can get your story’s heroes: brand new ones are costly, but you can always get some at the thrift shop. And of course, because this story is about a realistic scenario (what happens to a writer during the writing process), you also need some luck.

The not-so-good parts:

There’s only one. Two pages into the book, and I had a horrible feeling of déjà vu. “This is so like The Phantom Tollbooth,” I thought. It was with feelings of dread that I resumed reading, but thankfully it soon became clear that the similarities ended there. The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster is a book that takes young Milo on an adventure through a magical tollbooth. It uses places, time and events as characters, and full of phrases used as real things (Milo sets off on the road to Expectations, Princesses Rhyme and Reason need to be rescued to return to the Kingdom of Wisdom, etc). And oh, there’s also a market for words where you can buy and exchange words. Hmm…

Still, the author has put her own spice, ideas, and STORY that makes the book feel like it has influence from another book, but has a different story in its own right. So that’s good. The imaginative ideas related to books, reading, and especially the writing process, are well-thought out.

Recommended for children who love reading, or think they’d like to write too! If you’re interested in kids’ books (like me), you could read it just as well.

Book # 2

When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit by Judith Kerr

Published: 1998, HarperCollins (originally published in 1971)

Pages: 252

Find it at: Amazon / Flipkart

This was a luckily spotted book in a second-hand book stall at the New Delhi World Book Fair. I’d read about this book being one of the good children’s books, and one of the very good books centred around the Holocaust told as a children’s story. So I felt really lucky to have found it at all, more so when I read and loved it.

Anna and Max live a comfortable life in Berlin, going to school and playing on their games compendium. Their father is a popular writer, which was part of the problem for them at that time. They were Jewish, and what their father wrote was not taken well by the Nazis. In a sudden flight to leave Germany and go to Switzerland, the family leaves their home and their life behind as they flee to safety. They were lucky. Just the day after they left, the Nazis had come for their passports.

The edition I have *_*

Narrated from the perspective of children, the book brings out Anna and Max’s curiosity for the world, while keeping their personal life and experiences at the forefront. Anna is actually excited to go to Switzerland, living in hotels, looking at the fabulous mountains and making Swiss friends. Gradually, their financial status takes a downturn as Anna’s father gets a price on his head and the Swiss people are not too keen to get him to write for their papers. Meanwhile, Anna and Max adjust to their new school and a life in an inn. When it doesn’t work out in Switzerland, they move to Paris. 

Their new home is tiny as compared to their house in Berlin, and their mother has to do all sorts of household work which she couldn’t do before. They keep a tab on all their expenses, and it becomes a subject of argument between the parents. This tale of a family’s move from their home to other countries to seek refuge and safety succeeds in bringing out children’s view of the world, complete with their innocence and hearts full of wonder and love. It also effectively brings out the fears and struggle faced by refugees while trying to protect their children.

It is also simply written, and will hold a reader's interest for the most part. It got a little slow for me somewhere in the middle, but overall it was a very good book. It's not too 'heavy' either, and keeps Hitler and his details to a minimum while showing the effects of what he did in Germany. I greatly enjoyed reading this, and will recommend it to kids and adults alike.

Review Shots... To Kill a Mockingbird and Career of Evil

I've been too much behind schedule to be able to review books regularly, thanks to the new routine that leaves absolutely no time to write, though thankfully lots of time to read! The few books I missed writing about are mentioned in this post with short, quick reviews (in two parts).

Book # 1

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee 

I am really not ‘reviewing’ this book, because it doesn’t need one. This is about me and this book.

If it hadn’t been a gift on my birthday, this classic would have stayed unread for a long time. Earlier, I’d thought that it would be a heavily-written book (like so many prize-winners are), but it turned out to be such a surprise! (This reminds me that I should do away with my fears of spotting a spoiler in reviews and go read Goodreads reviews anyway).

Harper Lee narrates the story of a black man falsely accused of rape in the town of Alabama. Written from the perspective of Scout and her brother Jem (first-person narration by Scout), the book revolves around life in a sleepy town in Alabama, touching upon themes of racial discrimination, societal discrimination and adult expectations. It is a childhood tale that explores the many facets of human behaviour—innocence, curiosity, kindness, sympathy and love.

Scout and Jem are being raised by Atticus Finch, a lawyer who faces threats and societal pressure for defending the black man. I can’t decide who I like best in this book—Scout or Atticus. Ever-curious, smart and sincere, Scout hangs on to the teachings of Atticus (they call their dad by his name!) and it all comes out so well-formed. She dislikes school because they teach stuff she already knows, because Atticus taught her to read way before she began school, but she is encouraged to manage it anyway.

I remember reading an article on the best fictional fathers, and Atticus Finch was among the top. Now I know why. Apart from the (biased view, perhaps!) fact that I saw so many similarities between him and my father, he came across as such a well-balanced man. For traditionalists, he might not seem like an ideal father, but the way he is presented, everyone seems to want Atticus Finch for dad.

As far as writing style is concerned, it is one of the best I’ve read. Dealing with a “serious” and “heavy” theme, one might suppose (as I had done) that it’d be a difficult read. But the book is narrated from the POV of children, and those with brains, so it makes for a witty, funny and engaging read.

And then I read somewhere that its next book, Go Set a Watchman, shows Atticus in a negative light and Scout is all grown up, which was such a bummer because I was also gifted a copy of that book. It will now rest on the shelf till I feel well enough about having to read something not-so-glam about my beloved Scout and Atticus. (To be fair, other characters in the book were quite awesome too. Special mention for Jem, Miss Maudie and Dill, their friend. 

Some quotes from the book I loved:

“Until I feared I would lose it, I never loved to read. One does not love breathing.”

“People generally see what they look for, and hear what they listen for.” (Hmm...)

“They're certainly entitled to think that, and they're entitled to full respect for their opinions... but before I can live with other folks I've got to live with myself. The one thing that doesn't abide by majority rule is a person's conscience.” 

Book # 2

Career of Evil by Robert Galbraith (We all know it’s really J.K. Rowling) 

The third instalment of the Cormoran Strike series (after The Cuckoo’s Calling and The Silkworm) is as thrilling as its predecessors, though even more gruesome and very much for adults. It has all the elements of the kind of book that I, as a reader, am not comfortable with, but it’s a universally known fact that I’m in the magical snare of Ms Rowling and just cannot feel anything but excitement for anything she writes. Actually, cross that out. It only goes to show how the author can tackle horrifying themes and include it them in her writing without making the reader want to stop. This book is so unputdownable! (not an actual word, but just THE word!)

The book alternates between a third person account and a first person account of... the killer! In an online article, I read J.K. Rowling’s statement that she had literal nightmares while she had been researching for and writing this book. She had to delve deep into the psychology of a psycho killer, and it couldn’t have been pretty. She used that knowledge very well, though, in bringing out this killer character with a first-person account. He really makes you want to get inside the book and stop him, but you end up biting your nails or your tongue or the insides of your cheeks as the killer goes around doing psycho stuff.

One of the best things about this series is just how much like a series it feels, even though it is a thriller series, which usually keep characters’ personal lives to a bare minimum and focus on the case. In this series, Strike and Robin’s personal lives not only intermingle with the case but also depict character development over a period of time, so that it ends up feeling like a long, ongoing tale. I like how that feels.

Another thing I noticed was a marked difference (improvement) in writing style. In some places in The Cuckoo’s Calling, it didn’t seem well-put but it didn’t feel that way in this book. What I liked less in the previous two books was a lack of explicit explanation in the end. It was the same problem in this book, although it was definitely better than in the previous books. It works for some people, but I need some explaining (not an active thriller reader, I guess). In any case, if thrillers are your thing, the Cormoran Strike series is a must-read! 

Quotes:

“You could find beauty nearly anywhere if you stopped to look for it, but the battle to get through the days made it easy to forget that this totally cost-free luxury existed.”

“Those who did not know the ocean well forgot its solidity, its brutality.”