This post is about the novel The Tin Drum by Nobel prize winning novelist Gunter Grass. I have read only one of his novels but have preserved a very strong impression of the novel’s style and narrative structure. The Tin Drum is the life of Oskar Matzerath. Oskar Matzerath’s companion through life is his drum…
What a delightful novel! What an astounding array of characters. It is remarkable how Dickens does not leave out even one strand unraveled or no character rounded off towards the end. When I finished the novel, I felt I had had a repast. Dickens is truly at the height of his powers; be it the…
Varanasi being in the news again, I went down memory lane and refreshed my visit to this eternal city in January 2013. This is more in the form of a travelogue and will be in varying tenses. “I’m travelling to Varanasi by the Ganga Kaveri express. Dry and deserted rural Maharashtra – Men in Dhotis and women too in Dhoti styled saris.
This week’s post about the novel is about the Post modernist American novel by Ralph Ellison Invisible Man – A novel that examines several questions of the African-American identity and individuality from a perspective that was radically different from novels written until then, this novel has been regarded as the American picaresque novel which does…
andom reflections on the novel (Part-24) This week my reflections are about one of the most profound novels that I have read –“Brothers Karamazov” In the world not everything is rational. If everything in the world was rational, nothing would happen. So, it would be unwise or foolish to look for solutions, logical outcomes as…
In search of new or exotic places,one often tends to overlook the attractions of the neighborhood.Nearly 25 kms from Guntur city, Kondaveedu fort is actually a trekkers paradise. This place has been on my list of places to see for a long time.The extended Vijayadashami holiday period gave me some time to visit. The gigantic rocks and bouders in spectacular shapes that surround this valley of ancience, present breathtaking views and sights.The various ruins and edifices, that dot this vast landscape are to be explored patiently and assiduously.Although it was only 4.30 pm by the time I reached there,I could see a mist descending onto
andom reflections on the novel- (Part-23) Zen and the Art of Motor Cycle maintenance. Robert.M.Pirsig Culture and Science or more precisely Art and Science shape different visions in each individual. What dominates our thought is what determines our world vision. Can people make quick adjustments between these two narrative veins: Art which is more about…
The Man in the Iron Mask is a sad novel for me. Here there are the deaths of Porthos, Athos, Raoul and D’Artagnan. My first acquaintance with D’Artagnan was in my 7th standard when we had ‘The Three Musketeers’ as our English non-detailed text. Since then D’Artagnan: the fearless warrior, that unrivalled swordsman has grown…
The language of childhood is Universal. Is there any writer who does not wish to go back to those happy, innocent days when life was an endless discovery spent in the company of friends. R.K.Narayan’s Swami or Chami as he is affectionately called by his Grandmother in the TV series ‘Malgudi Days’ beautifully recreated by…
The digression on the length of a novel may be continued for a few more pages, to support my argument that it is not the length that merits the reading of a novel more than once. J.D. Salinger’s ‘Catcher in the Rye’ is a short novel but requires a lot of reader engagement because of…