Book reading
Though I’ve been rushed with a little work this week, I’ve still found the time to read a bit. I’m reading three books currently - all amazingly good books. Firstly there is The Great Indian Novel by Shashi Tharoor. It deals with the Indian struggle for independence and though there have been many books written on this subject, the uniqueness of this book lies in the fact that the Independence struggle has been overlayed with the structure and characters of the Mahabharata. In most cases, the co-realation between the real life and historical characters is quite straightforward ( as in Gandhiji and Bheeshma ) and some are a little more subtle ( still can’t figure out if Pandu is supposed to represent Netaji or Sardar Patel ). Overall, the book is brilliant. Highly recommended.
The second book I am reading is a Kenneth Anderson Omnibus - Vol 2. This gentleman was the Jim Corbett of South India. He tracked man hunting tigers and rogue elephants all over South India. His stories and expreriences are replete with the sights and sounds of the Indian jungle. There are quite a few stories in which he also talks about the traditions, superstitions and beliefs of the local tribes. All in all a good book to relax with.
Lastly, I’m reading The Mote in God’s Eye. Now this book is widely regarded as *the* best book on first contact (with an alien species of course). I’m through a fourth of the book and so far am not disappointed. The only grouse I have with it is that the pace seems to be a little slow. Otherwise, the characters and the plot are superb. Looking forward to some free time to go ahead with this book.
I’m rediscovering radio on the net these days. Now that my satellite radio subscription has run out, this seems to be the best way to hear the retro tracks I like. Somehow, for the connection class that I have, I’ve seen that Launchcast (at least the one bundled with Yahoo Messenger) offers the best radio experience.
Now back to the rest of the books - Java, Comp Arch and Unix programming.. Later all!
