Category: Book Reviews

The title had me confused with J.Lowe’s “The World’s First Trillionaire”, which apparently deals with a journalist’s inquisitiveness on the ways and means used by the protagonist to become a Trillionaire in his own right. I now have this in my wish list, to read for later.
That said, Ms.Sapna Jha’s debut work, “The First Trillionaire” is a refreshing read.. There is lot of emphasis on hard-work, dedication to duty, commitment to family etc. But, the unrelenting & blind faith, on the grand-design at the hands of Lord Supreme (Ma Dugra) tops them all. Although a bit cliché’d for many, such blind faith have been a life-saver to those who have passed though the darkest hours of their lives. It’s a choice to believe in (or not to). Let us keep it that way.

Synopsis

The official synopsis is available here.

In India, a single mother raises a girl child in a rural village, by home-schooling with help of the local schoolmaster. The child grows up to an intelligent woman who knows how to use the knowledge she has gained over her growing years, and also strongly carries forward her mother’s unrelenting faith on Goddess VaishnoDevi of Katra. Born to poverty, none to the family except for mother-daughter duo, reunion with the extended family once lost ,pre-ordained to inherit unprecendented wealth is this child’s destiny taking shape.

Now, The Review

The language is simple, with easy to understand words, and easy to follow flow of events. As a translated version, this book still retains some dialouges from the vernacular language to keep upto the spirit of the characters.
The author has made a deliberate choice to take us though the memory lane … walking with the characters. The timeline spans from 1967 to 2016, for the reader to relate to the present day events, its history, and the repercussions to come in the near predictable future to those involved in these events.Braiding time-strands, with oldest character being 94 yrs, and youngest at 25 yrs, is no ordinary feat. That is three generations in a family, and a league of few other rustic, bureaucratic & mercenary characters in between. Each one’s journey until present time is essential to understand the precedence and purpose of present day events.
 
While this is a welcome element for seasoned readers, it can get a bit overwhelming for those who are just picking up on the habit of reading for pleasure. For those of you, advice scanning the pages to get the big picture on your first read. Should you feel satisfied after completing the book, come back and read again to understand how the time-lines merge. I promise, you will enjoy the 2nd read better.
 
I have a feeling that the nuances of banking policies and attention to detail on Science, space research programs etc in the plot has a lot to do with Alok Jha (translator , author’s husband) association with the banking sector and his association with science. Kudos, great teamwork. You both sure make a power couple.

The Book’s Official Motion Trailer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNsNMmNqlnc&t=8s
 
 
 
 
 
Just one thing that nags me about this trailer (after reading the paperback version)..is, for a girl coming form a rather non-descript village in India, the promo trailer shows the protagonist as highly fashionable girl with nail art, selfie-pout, spaghetti strap tops, and a fake accent.
 
It is only until a certain point in the storyline, we can credit wisdom and intelligence to the protagonist. After that, most of the events that come together are largely pre-ordained, by way of coincidence. True to her character, the protagonist is thankful to her favourite deity, Goddess Vaishnodevi of Katra. In the end, All is well.
 
I understand from the cover, that this is a translated version (Thank you, Alok ji). Having read this, I would like to read the original book as well (assuming its Hindi). If its Gujarati or Bojpuri, I’d rather stick with the translation. This is just the quirky-me. Even when there are remakes of the same movie in multiple languages, I make it a point to watch them all. Here is a movie remade in 4 languages, and I watched then all..

Rating : 5 stars

I wouldn’t go to the extent of calling this as an inspirational-read. Instead, would say that this makes an interesting tea-time read, or a kind of book you would want to hold on to while travelling (esp via train / bus). Takes your thoughts away from the humdrum of life, and leaves you with a satisfaction of having spent the time reading a good crime-mystery-thriller.

Book reviews are fun to do, especially when you love to read, and love what you read. These were my thoughts exactly when I received my copy of Mr.Sudhakar Ram’s “Connected Age”.
Little did i know at that time, I am in for a reading-shock of mammoth proportions.

The Title : The Connected Age

The title leads to the assumption that this book is about technology, internet of things, Social media connects etc etc.Well, you are correct to assume so. Mr.Ram, being a technical person, it is only natural to have technical jargons as part of his everyday vocabulary.. However, not on the context of “Technology” of things…. but.. more so on the “Philosophy” of being….

The Tagline : Being The Best You Can, by Reinventing Your World

Isn’t this THE typical “philosophy” pitch?..Be the best, Bring out the best, Reinvent yourself etc etc. Well well.. not wrong either. Book tells exactly what it says .. but not the way we are used to hearing them from God-(wo)men, and Self-styled Gurus. Just don’t let that cloud your perception. Keep an open mind.

The Synopsis

The Published version of synopsis here – @ The New Constructs, Mr.Sudhakar Ram’s blog.
My version of the Synopsis

As much as we would stop to smell the roses, the stench of the nearby sewage is impossible to ignore. Same applies to the ecosystem (a.k.a THE Earth) we live in.
As much as we wonder over the advances in technology that has enabled us to lead a (perceived) better lifestyle, we fail to ponder over the perils of continued use of the same technologies.
Just as energy can neither be created, nor destroyed, but can only be converted from one form to another. However, in our case, we humans since the 21st century have been converting THE Earth’s resources from one form to another, with unforeseen & undesired consequences (… eg..think “..Plastic…”).
Now is the time, to Sit Up, Reflect on (consequences of the) past actions, Act up (to right the wrong) at an individual level (… think… Ban Plastic..),
Diligent and socially conscious individuals can be our crusaders of change for better, by starting at grassroot level, ie.. personal – professional – community level – corporate level – Villages / Panchayats / Municipality level collaborative governance – state level – national level – and last but not the least, bring change at a Global Level.

Now, The Review

Short Review: This book is for the tech savvy-philosophers, and none otherwise.
Long Review:
There are 2 types of readers. Those who read for pleasure & those who read for purpose.In addition to the generic nature of the book, one is able to enjoy the reading experience solely based on the individual’s know-how of the things addressed in the book. Such a book is too serious to be used for reading-pleasure, and too light to be considered for a user-manual. The Connected Age, is one such book.
Philosophy has a strange way of sneaking into our thoughts. It wedges within, by the proverbial “foot in the door” technique when we are either disappointed, or hopeless, or both.
I believe, Philosophy (for the common man) is our psyche’s defence mechanism to deal with rejection. As much as despair pins us down, hope lets us soar.
“The Connected Age” is not for light reading of any sort. Heavy use of technical terms is an outright put off to a casual reader glancing through the book on a shop window. However, this doesn’t undermine the philosophy shared by Mr.Ram in any way. His views and visions are profound, except that the vocabulary is a bit too intense.
As we take the walk with Mr.Sudhakar Ram, we begin to accept our recklessness at a rather personal level at utilising the Earth’s resources, and abusing our privileges. After this guilt – trip,  Mr.Ram brings in his mentoring expertise to motivate the reader to be the change one wants to be Further to this, he takes huge a leap of faith, and in wishful thinking, expects every citizen to be THE Ideal Reader who would act only in the correct manner, and settle for nothing less..
Sadly, Neither we, ourselves, nor the personalities we encounter match up to our Ideal Connected-Age Reader. But then, its the little efforts that count to make up the bigger change. So, i guess there is a little bit of everything for every one in this book.

My Rating:

If you can read past the first chapter without reaching for google on your smartphone, then this is a Must Read.

There comes a time in everyone’s life where we tend to glide towards being receptive to our inner voice. Some do it early, some a bit later. But, nevertheless the universe makes sure that we heed to our inner voice at least once in our lifetime.
Popular media addresses such introspections as “stop to smell the roses” or “take stock of your life goals”. Those who have been-there-done-that on this self evaluating exercise will confirm that, the revelations have been life changing.
The author projects a project-management-approach to ‘a’ life. Should we consider every living being as a project, then the very life of the being is a project in progress. Even though he does not apply project management principles per se, you tend to see some striking similarities.
Self confessed reading enthusiast, and having read innumerable religious, philosophical and motivational texts, in the traditional and modern order, the author begins with the belief that the principles that govern our life can be classified under 6 major heads.

1. Design and purpose
2. Order and rhythm
3. Abundance
4. Freedom
5. Oneness
6. Responsibility

Murali Nandula also brings forth the stages of development (in the biological sense) such as the infancy, toddlerhood, adolescence, young adults, middle age, and the senior years. It appears that the intent was to philosophically attune the reader’s mindset with the traits specific to these growing stages. However, it gets a bit too literal and does not generate the desired effect. The anecdotes still make a great read.
After reading the book from cover to cover, I was left with an overwhelming feeling of having read a compiled version of an assumingly large volume of self-introspection-epic-saga. The references to the works of other philosophers (Maslow, Blanchard, Miller, Caslow, Muller & popular religion) overshadow the conclusive thoughts of the author. This is bad, because we don’t get to listen to the author’s voice, instead just popular quotes resonating into our minds. This is good, because very few of us can afford the luxury of time to quench the innate desire to read voraciously, while taking part in the rat-race that we call profession / business.
That said, I personally see an underlying message in the way Murali Nandula has gone about structuring this book. The way we live today, is but the compilation of experiences until yesterday, with the lessons for tomorrow. By quoting popular beliefs, cultures, religions and creations of other authors, the author emphasizes our innate urge to look back into our experiences of the past, derive lessons for tomorrow and act for today.
In a nutshell, the book, “Back to Basics – Transforming Life” by Murali Nandula & Anuja Surve gives a step by step DIY approach (with worksheets at the end of every chapter) to self-evaluation, to those in the fast lane, who cannot afford the luxury of time to read multiple authors on the same subject. After all, fast food is food too; and for some of us, this is survival-food. In that order, this book is a good start for time-strapped philosophy enthusiasts.