Archive for the ‘reading’ Category

The Struggle of Modern Life

Monday, November 15th, 2010

From The Caliph’s House by Tahir Shah:

At the end of May, I flew to London for three days, for the launch of a film I had made. It was one of those dull trips filled with forced conversation and solitude. Every moment I was there, I missed the children, Rachana, and the Caliph’s House. I met an old school pal who was still trapped in the cycle of zombie commuting and pseudo-friends. We laughed about English life, the terrible blight of flat-packed furniture and of information overload. He seemed impressed that I had moved to Casablanca. We had always conspired to break free together, but something had held him back. As I left I joked that he would put up with the chicken tikka sandwiches and the dreary weather until the end. His expression faltered.

“It’s all I know,” he said.

What I’ve Been Reading Lately

Thursday, September 30th, 2010

I’ve been trying to read more lately, and I think I’ve been doing a fairly good job. And since I’ve been a bit lax about posting actual articles here, in their absence I’ll share what I’ve been reading.

For a while there I was reading some more serious books, some non-fiction and some travel/adventure books, but I decided I needed a break, and have read a few novels since then.

The non-fiction books of note that I read were Eating Animals, What Should I Do With My Life, Rich Dad Poor Dad, Dark Star Safari, and Into Thin Air.

Eating Animals by Jonathon Safran Foer is a fairly quick read, but there are parts that may be hard to swallow (no pun intended) depending on your stance on eating meat. That said, I would recommend it either way. If nothing else it is a good reminder about where your food comes from, and […]

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Shantaram – Gregory David Roberts – Book Review

Thursday, August 6th, 2009
Shantaram - Gregory David RobertsShantaramGregory David Roberts

As promised last week, here is my review for one of my favorite books of all time, Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts.

The book is very long, over 900 pages (!), but because it is so action packed it can be a quick read if you have the time to let yourself get involved. In brief, the book is about a man who escapes prison in New Zealand and ends up in Bombay working as a slum doctor. Thus the book is about the life he build in Bombay, and follows him over several years, first as a slum doctor, then moving on to mafia man and then mujahadeen fighter. The twists and turns […]

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My first Top 10 List — Top 10 books

Thursday, July 30th, 2009

I always enjoy reading other people’s Top 10 lists, and I thought to myself that I’ve never done one. Usually I’m not great at picking favorites, but just for fun I decided I’d put together a list of ten books that I’ve thoroughly enjoyed over the past few years, plus a few extra just because I can’t narrow it down to ten.

Keep an eye out for some reviews of these books in the future. I have actually written some for another site I used to run, so over the next week or two I’ll try to get a couple posted up here. Also, for a list of all the books I’ve read over the past couple years, take a look over here.

Here is my list (in no particular order). What are some of your favorites?

Shantaram – Gregory David Roberts
Dharma Bums – Jack Kerouac
The Sun Also Rises […] Read More…
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Book Review – Eat, Pray, Love

Saturday, September 27th, 2008
Eat, Pray, Love

Eat, Pray, Love
Elizabeth Gilbert

I just finished reading the book Eat, Pray, Love, by Elizabeth Gilbert, and I must say, it was a very good book. I was a tad embarrassed to be seen carrying this book around because it is a bit of a “chick book”, however it was a great book.

Funny, witty, serious, inspiring, it really kept me interested. In brief, it is a biographical book about the author documenting her travels over the course of a year. This year is following several difficult years prior, in which she went through a difficul divorce, another failed relationship, and the hardships faced in coming to terms with being a newly single 30-something woman in New York. As the title indicates, the book describes her four months in Italy eating, four months in India praying, and four months in Indonesia loving.

A very good read, especially for anyone looking for direction or support in their own life.