The Whimsy Bookworm: A Book Blog from India

Book: Gun Island Author: Amitav Ghosh Pages: 288 Publisher: Penguin Random House How Long it Took Me To Read: 2 days Read On: Hardback edition pictured here Plot Summary:  Bundook . Gun. A common word, but one which turns Deen Datta's world upside down. A dealer of rare books, Deen is used to a quiet life spent indoors, but as his once-solid beliefs begin to shift, he is forced to set out on an extraordinary journey; one that takes him from India to Los Angeles and Venice via a tangled route through the memories and experiences of those he meets along the way. There is Piya, a fellow Bengali-American who sets his journey in motion; Tipu, an entrepreneurial young man who opens Deen's eyes to the realities of growing up in today's world; Rafi, with his desperate attempt to help someone in need; and Cinta, an old friend who provides the missing link in the story they are all a part of. It is a journey which will upend everything he thought he knew about ...

1. White Converses. A summer staple.  Love.  I have 4 pairs of Converse, a classic red from my college days. A black one from 10 years ago. A bright green one with funky laces. Plus this, newest pair.  2. Faber Stories.  Short stories and beautiful covers.  3. Pictures and memories.  Also, my gorgeous Instax mini :)  4. My Lil Sister backpack from The Burlap People in the Tulsi print.  Little darling.  5. Sister of my Heart by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni, an old and beloved favourite.  It's time to re-read it soon. 

Book: The Sentence is Death Author: Anthony Horowitz Pages: 384 Read: Kindle Edition Read in: 4 hours Plot Summary:  ‘You shouldn’t be here. It’s too late…   ’ These, heard over the phone, were the last recorded words of successful celebrity-divorce lawyer  Richard Pryce , found bludgeoned to death in his bachelor pad with a bottle of wine – a 1982 Chateau Lafite worth £3,000, to be precise. Odd, considering he didn’t drink. Why this bottle? And why those words? And why was a three-digit number painted on the wall by the killer? And, most importantly, which of the man’s many, many enemies did the deed? Baffled, the police are forced to bring in  Private Investigator Daniel Hawthorne  and his sidekick, the author  Anthony , who’s really getting rather good at this murder investigation business. But as Hawthorne takes on the case with characteristic relish, it becomes clear that he, too, has secrets to hide. As our reluctant narrator bec...

Summer 2019 was a long one.  It got warm in mid-March and stayed scorching all though April and May.  Humid.  Muggy.  Sweaty.  Summer really isn't my time to shine or feel good. In fact, I pretty much detest summer. Now, summer holidays are a different ball game altogether. The mere memories of those long gone summers make me smile.  Playing out in the sun all day long.  Games.  Books.  Afternoon naps.  And travel.  Mostly to Calcutta and some to the hometown.  Long train rides full of interesting people, food and sights.  Those trips made summer bearable.  This summer was spent hiding away from the sun.  Drinking cold drinks.  Eating fruits.  Watching TV shows.  Cooking simple meals.  Reading a ton of books.  Lots of cold showers.  Naps.  There was no travel but that's ok.  Today it ra...

Hello!  :)  I am super late in sharing the newest additions to my shelves. It's June and I am still sharing books from April. Gah! I need to do better.  I got these books as a special treat for Bengali New Year. I got 4 books by Bengali authors and have already  read 2 of them. This entire book haul is just Indian writers and Indian Literature and it makes me so happy.  Let's jump into the books and my thoughts on them as well.  I am so excited to get to this book, I started April with All The Lives We've Never Lived and really, really enjoyed it so I want to read more from Anuradha Roy and this book, about a joint family in rural Bengal sounds amazing.  I literally, just this evening finished this book. It was a perfect read for Pride Month and tells the story of Mohanaswamy, through interconnected short stories. It's about him dealing with his sexuality and the issues it brings up in this conservative and orthodox fam...

"Letters are among the most significant memorial a person can leave behind." ~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe While I no longer write letters anymore (it makes me sad), I still cannot resist little letter or notepad. Especially, ones that are so pretty.  This haul was actually made a few months ago...at some point in February. But I didn't get around to sharing them on the blog. I figured, I'd share them today, also because I haven't done a Stationery Sunday in absolute ages.  All of these were bought from Ali Express and I am so in love with these.  :)  These notepad sheets are perfect not just for making lists and notes, but also for creating collaged pages and other journaling spreads in your planner/ journal/ notebook. My sister plans to use them to create some spreads in her Hobonichi and I can't wait to see what she gets up to! These notepads were pretty reasonable and the paper quality is quite decen...

Hello June!  Hello Monsoons!  Hello Rainy Days!  Hello Lightening and Thunder!  ☔🌧⛈☔🌧⛈☔ Can you tell how excited I am for June?  And how excited I am for the rains!?  After the hellish heat of May I am ready for gentler days and nights.  I hope we have good rains this year, for all of us but especially the farmers!  GOALS FOR JUNE///  1. Get back to blogging regularly. I have been majorly slacking on the blog pretty much all this year and I cannot tell you how much it upsets me. This year I've done the least number of posts. :( I really want to do better and starting this month I hope to get my blogging mojo back. So stay tuned for a ton of book reviews and hauls.  2. Major planner and journal update. May was hideously busy and I need to spend some quality time with my journals in June.  3. Make and drink loads of masala chai.  4. Take a walk in the rains.  5. Make p...