I Read...

Here I am racking my brains again on what exactly I should be writing about. Honestly, this is my third attempt at maintaining a blog. All I know is that I have so many things to talk about but my hands fall asleep when I try to convert my thoughts into words. Some of my friends have been egging me for sometime now on how I need to start somewhere so that I could get somewhere as far as my passion for writing is concerned. So I thought I’d write about some of the authors whose books whisked me away to another realm when the rest of the world enjoyed an afternoon siesta or an evening before the telly!!

Here goes in no particular order……

Doughlas Adams – The dude rocks! He has definitely taken science fiction to the most imaginative and humorous extent possible. I fell in love with the Hitchhikers guide to the galaxy and even more with the paranoid robot Marvin. The very thought of characters such as Zaphod Beeblebrox and the Dentrassis and the concept of the Babel fish bring a smile to my face. Too bad Doughlas Adams passed away at an early age, people like myself will definitely miss any of the other books he would have written.

Robert Asprin – The name sounds like some cure for a headache doesn’t it? Well his books may actually do the trick by making you break into peels of laughter. He takes you on a fantasy journey into the world of ‘Myth’ along with ‘Skeeve’ the thief turned magician apprentice and his teacher ‘Aahz’ the demon that lost his magic due to a summoning ritual gone wrong. Of course the army of imp assassins, the dimension of Deva populated by the deveels and their popular bazaars leave a reader wanting more! I will definitely miss more books from Mr. Asprin. May his soul rest in peace!

Dan Brown – His books got me hooked on to historical fictions. The amount of research that has gone behind each of these books can be felt as one reads ‘Angels and Demons’ or ‘The Da Vinci Code’. Thanks to him I fell in love with Italy / Rome and I also felt sad that I did not pay much attention at the Louvre museum! I also enjoyed his ‘Deception Point’ about a compelling scientific discovery deep in the Atlantic Ocean. However his ‘Digital Fortress’ was a let down… The book dragged on so much that I wished I hadn’t started reading it.

Phillipa Gregory – The lady who got me curious about the history of England, its castles, cultures and the royal way of life! Her book ‘The Other Boleyn girl’ though panned by critics for its historical inaccuracies was a very candid look into the life of King Henry VIII and his beautiful wife, the proud Anne Boleyn who played an important role in shaping the religious future of England. The elements of politics, ambition, love and betrayal in the midst of London, the English country side and France makes the reader sit up and inspires one to know more about the history of their own country. I wish there was a way to introduce the world to our rich history in an interesting way other than just Bollywood!

Michael Crichton – The man behind the ‘Jurassic Park Series’. I was surprised to know the he was also the author of ‘Disclosure’ which was a corporate drama; far from the cry of dinosaurs and Orangutans! I especially enjoyed his travel back to medieval England with ‘Timeline’ and the journey into the deep jungles of Africa with ‘Congo’. The possibilities with science are sure to send a shiver down your spine with ‘Next’.

J K Rowling – I know many of you don’t think much of her writing abilities; however I am sure most of us would agree that she is good story teller. Her books are entertaining, creative and she seems to have a knack of connecting even the smallest of events together. The Harry Potter Series was definitely a page turner and I have not experienced even the slightest boredom in turning the pages even when I re-read the books.

Terry Pratchett – Another great author who gives science fiction yet another makeover by introducing the world to the dimension of ‘Ankh-Morpork’ and a concept that Earth is actually balanced on the back of four elephants trying to balance themselves on the back of a giant turtle! Stunned? His characters like the magician Rincewind, the walking trunk with life and other delightful misfits and imbeciles who create the ecology of Ankh-Morpork would definitely take you on roller coaster of laughter and curiosity.

Stephen King – The undisputed King of horror fictions in my list! The first book I read by him was ‘Salems Lot’. I couldn’t help not putting down the book. The idea of the hunt for evil vampires that have taken over an entire town was novel and scary only after Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Kings other books such as Christine, Pet Cemetery and Thinner made me wonder what kind of research the author had to do to write such convincing plots. Kudos to him!

Sidney Sheldon – I started reading books by this author after finding some of his publications in my dad’s mobile trunk library. I found his books thrilling and they never seemed to give away what’s coming next. My personal favorite was ‘Tell Me Your Dreams’ and among those who have read the book till date, there is always doubt on whether the main protagonists alter ego was really chased away.

Jeffrey Archer – I am not sure how I started reading his books. His books always reminded me of some of our Hindi movies, especially ‘Sons of Fortune’. I also enjoyed ‘The Prodigal Daughter’ where he made possible for the United States to have its first female president. The only other fictional female president I can think of is that of the Geena Davis starring as the American president in the show ‘Commander and Chief’. My favorite book of the lot was ‘False Impression’. No surprise here as it that had a lot to do with arts and artists.

Ayn Rand – I read ‘The Fountainhead’ by this author. Other than the fact she created a character that lived an Utopian existence in the midst of a greedy world, the book did not hold much fascination for me. I found the book packed with too many details that just dragged its story line….

And more…… Hey! Don't think I have run out of a list of authors; its just that I am tired and would like to move on. So until next time share with me any of your favorite authors and books and Happy reading!