10 day challenge: Four books

Books. The very word conjures up so many memories. I don't remember the first book I read or held, but I do know that my parents instilled good reading habits in me and my brother. I remember them buying Childcraft series for us, which in those days costs 12K. They also subscribed to Reader's Digest, and for years we archived them in the house. In 2000, we discovered magazines dating back to 1993 and realized it was high time to give away some of them. I remember reading novels late into the night, when my father would discover that I was still reading at 1am he would tell me to go to sleep. "Five minutes baba", I would say and continue reading till 4am, satisfied that I had finished the book:)

Our school library also housed a good collection of books. It is through the school library that I fell in love with Nancy Drew, Famous Five, and Secret Seven. Oh! How I loved those cute gangs and their parties with cookies and lemonade.

Then I reached college and discovered Sidney Sheldon, Arthur Hailey, Jeffrey Archer, and John Grisham. I think I have read all of their novels. Of course, my college buddies also introduced Mills and Boons, and I remember reading a few of them and wondering about love and romance:) I still remember spending hours and hours near Churchgate station and picking up books for cheap prices.

I have always been lucky to meet people who are passionate about reading and I often wonder about people who don't like to read. Some people find libraries boring, but for me they are a treasure trove of discoveries. Books have never let me down in my entire life and I consider them to be my best friends. I wonder what my life had been had I not discovered the wonderful world of books and what one can learn from them.

This post is about four of my favorite books. Again, it was very difficult to choose just four amongst the thousands that I have read. But still, here's an attempt:

1. Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl: I haven't read a more touching book till date. I was horrified to discover that at an age when I was roaming around freely with my friends, a girl much younger than me had spent years trapped inside a cramped apartment. Anne's writing and its simplicity made me feel as if I was experiencing what she had. I would highly recommend this book to everyone.
2. Kane and Abel by Jeffrey Archer: I love reading this book over and over again. The climax is superb. This was my first Jeffrey Archer novel, and the rest I read didn't match up.
3. Not without my daughter by Betty Mahmoody: An amazing story of an American woman, trapped in a foreign land and her courageous attempt to escape the country with her daughter. I read this pre and post giving birth to my daughter. The latter reading touched me even more than the first one as I could totally connect with the author. The Bollywood attempt at adapting this story (Shakti) totally sucks.
4. The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri: I loved all the characters in this book; each and every one is so different, yet so special and convincing. Ashima, the mother who leaves her homeland at a very young age and settles in a foreign land. Accepts staying there, yet, no letting go of her roots. Ashoke, an intelligent professor who loves reading books. Gogol, a true ABCD (American Born Confused Desi) in his earlier years, soon transforms into a total American. Jhumpa hooks her readers right from the first page, wonderfully builds up the story, and leaves them with a satisfying end. Read my review here.

Other favorites include To kill a mockingbird (Harper Lee), The Godfather (Mario Puzo), The Final Diagnosis (Arthur Hailey), The Hindi Bindi Club (Monica Pradhan), 2 States (Chetan Bhagat), and The Client (John Grisham).

See you next week with my list of three movies.