Six Minutes of Terror by Nazia Sayed and Sharmeen Hakim: a review

11^th of July 2006 was one day that shook everyone and even though back then, all I knew of the incident was faint stuff my mother had told me. Over the years, I went on read more and more about that incident and the many others that happened as such. 10 years and a few months from that date, it is 2016 when I get to see that there’s this book on the same terror attacks that has come up. When I laid my first glance at it, I knew that I had to read it no matter what and I knew this nonfiction title, Six Minutes of Terror by Nazia Sayed and Sharmeen Hakim would be one informative ride. For the ones who are reading this right now, here’s for you the blurb of the book.

According to the blurb- 7/11: the day Mumbai came to a standstill. The Mumbai train bombings on 11 July 2006 were one of the deadliest attacks the city had seen after the 1993 blasts. The terror strike aimed to cripple the city by disrupting its lifeline- the local train network. A series of seven explosions in a span of only sex minutes at seven railway stations rocked the financial capital of India, killing 189 and injuring over 800. Six minutes of terror is the first investigative book that presents a blow by blow account of the events that led to the onslaught. It profiles the people involved in the blasts and describes how the plot was unearthed by the police. Superbly researched with painstaking detail, the book tries to delve into the minds of the home grown terrorists- who wreaked unprecedented havoc and claimed innocent lives- ten years after the horrifying attacks.

I would start my take on the book by taking a note of the authors of the book. While Nazia Sayed had been a crime reporter, Sharmeen is a legal correspondent. When you get to read something written by them about an event that shook the nation, you are sure to find it interesting and worth the time that you spend on the book. Saying that, the authors have chosen a suiting title for the book, six minutes of terror. The title catches the attention along with the eye grabbing front cover. I mention ‘eye grabbing’ because it is seen that a majority of nonfiction titles don’t have such catchy covers.

The book starts with a sketch. Of the trains and the bombings along with the time that the blasts happened. Now this is a very interesting thing because it helps sketch out what the whole idea is and what had actually happened. What I loved about the sketch is that it is perfectly labelled. Then follows a timeline of events that happened from 2001 to 2015 which makes it easier and more interesting to read. For a person (there are very few of them, though) who doesn’t know about the incident, this serves as the perfect book for a complete knowledge on the topic.

Now, the story. Do I have to say about it? I will refrain. What I would rather speak of is the presentation. The way event by event and point of view by point of view the whole book is presented to the readers, they can’t help but be interested about it and they would feel like knowing more about it. The questions, each one of them that might have arisen are answered through the book. The language that it is written is very easy to read and even the layman would be able to read it. Detail is the key and this book proves that to its readers. Somewhere down the book, there are pictures of a few people. Terrorists, blasts, survivors and I would say that this is one thing that would make this book all the more worthwhile. If I have to speak of the cons of the book then I couldn’t find any. For me, this must read is 5 out of 5.

Open Eyed Meditations by Shubha Vilas: a review

Shubha Vilas has always been, to me, an inspiration. I have been reading him for a long time now and his Ramayana series always acts as a breath of fresh air for me every year; especially since it comes with a beautiful message handwritten by the author. This time, when I heard about his latest offering, Open Eyed Meditations, how could I have missed it? With this book, the author has attempted to give us a fresh perspective of things that we face in everyday life and that too with the examples taken up from the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. The first thing attracted me towards the book (apart from the title) was the blurb.

According to the back cover- Open eyed Meditations is a beautiful compilation of thoughts wherein each meditation takes you on a journey to the past, bringing a secret herb to heal a problem of the present. A true distillation of ancient wisdom tips for modern lives, this unique self-help book uses the wisdom of the Ramayana and the Mahabharata to solve your everyday problems. Beyond the storyline, something deeper is waiting to be discovered from these ancient texts. This book is an attempt to uncover the hidden layer of wealth that is cleverly packaged within the commonly known storylines.

I usually don’t do this but I would like to tell you that the day I received the book, I was very down and I felt like giving up, crying. I received the book and a smile lit my face as I saw the handwritten message written inside the book. It read, “Dear Sharanya, hoping that every page of this book adds new meaning and depth to your life making it a beautiful meditation. With gratitude and love, yours truly.” And I knew then and there that this book is going to be special. The cover of the book is simple and yet very deep. You would surely get a glimpse of what the book is all about with a look at the cover and then there are 64 chapters in the book which would give you practical wisdom for everyday life.

When I completed the book, I knew that this book would become my new go-to book whenever I am down. It has situations pertaining to every part of our life like friendship, work relations, love affairs etc. The strong voice of the author, who is also a lifestyle coach, with his simplistic writing style makes this book a must read for every person. It is wonderful the way the author has written so much in depth and analysed so much about our everyday life and also our epics- Ramayana and Mahabharata.

At no point of the book would you feel bored. It might not be told as a concrete story but the way the references are given, at no point would you feel that this is not a story that is being told in the book. 64 chapters might have freaked you out? Do not be, because these 64 chapters give you teachings of a lifetime. Everyday questions like, quality or quantity? Can the embarrassment be embraced? What is jealousy? Etc is answered in the book with utmost sincerity and you would feel inspired and enlightened by the end of it. I am sure that whenever you are feeling low in your life, you can come back to the book.

It is always difficult for me to find faults with Shubha Vilas’s books and this book is no different. I would also like to commend the author on the point that he has wonderfully maintained his style of writing in this book. Doesn’t it go without saying that I am looking forward to his next book. For me, this self-help book is a 5 on 5. Highly recommended.

You Will Love Again by Dr. Shyam Bhat: a review

We all have suffered from heartbreaks once in our lives. It was that point of time when we did not know what to do or how to behave. We were clueless and at a moment we felt like we should give up our lives. The fighters in us made us deal with the pain and we mature. At times the maturity is only on the outside and we tend to become a different person altogether. Dr. Shyam Bhat, a psychiatrist, in his debut book “You will love again” shows us how to heal from heartbreak. As Dr. Bhat writes in the book, what more can it say than what you have been already told about? You need to read this book to know.

According to the blurb- A power packed book on love and heartbreak. Psychiatrist Dr. Shyam Bhat has seen heartbreak in countless people and he wondered: What is the strange nature of this experience that even the most rational mind cannot seem to change? This power packed book is a result of many years of research on love and heartbreak. It first looks at what happens to your body and your mind when you suffer from this trauma. Why does it hurt so much? How do you heal? How do you find love again? Heartbreak is an opportunity for you to learn to look within, and to discover your own greatness, strength, peace and happiness.

To begin with, I am a major fan of the quality of books Juggernaut brings forth to their readers. The books are not only good to hold but they are also good on their quality. The first non-fiction I am reading coming from them, I couldn’t help but be eager to see what the book had to offer. The cover is very attractive and for the people who do not know that it is a non-fiction self help book, they would surely mistake it for a chic-lit. I would say that this is a compliment because usually non-fiction books or self help books have covers that aren’t attractive but this one stands out of the crowd.

A very compact book, you might be having two thoughts about it but it is guaranteed that the introduction given by the author would bring you to buy the book at any cost. A very compact book but packed with much information- this is a must read for people who have suffered from heartbreaks and even for people who are single. Through this book you get to see the journey from how the butterflies of the stomach are real and so is the breaking of the heart (literally!). The fact that it is written in a very interesting way and is not boring, makes it all the more read-worthy.

I would come to how it is written. Precise chapters that explain the flow from what’s happening to your body and mind, why does it hurt so much, the five steps to healing and finally, feeling love again along with real life examples bring to you a wonderful book that would help you see heartbreaks and loneliness in a different way. This book tells you how the pain that you feel is real and how you might have all the symptoms but are unable to recognize them all.

At different parts of the book, you get to see the quizzes where the author has given marks which you can take to analyse where you stand at the meter and this would help you know yourself better. The author says that it is possible for you to not have any symptom yet feel the same. It is for us and our betterment that we understand and act upon it. Giving up is not an option. The five steps of healing and finally the feeling of love again. This book is not like any other self help book but is a very important guide book for everybody. You would get to know about pranayamas and even the type of diet that you should follow. Follow the book minutely and you would see that you would feel calmer.

Coming to the cons of the book, I personally couldn’t find any apart from the fact that the book is too crisp a read. For me, whenever I read a good book, I always feel like reading more of it and am a bit disappointed when I don’t get more. A must read book for every person who is suffering from a heartbreak or one who tends to be depressed and lonely. Also for people who are strong because this would help you to advice your other friends. I ended this book with a smile on my face and loads of lessons learnt. As Deepika Padukone has said for the book “I hope this book makes you live, love and laugh again!” I would like to give this book 4.25 out of 5.

You can buy the book from Amazon