The Whimsy Bookworm: A Book Blog from India

  Book: Tiny Sunbirds Far Away  Author: Christie Watson  Pages: 436  How Long it Took Me To Read: 2 days (I could not put it down)  Publisher: Quercus  Plot Summary:   Set in the Niger Delta,  Tiny Sunbirds, Far Away  is the witty and beautifully written story of one family’s attempt to survive a new life they could never have imagined, struggling to find a deeper sense of identity along the way. When their mother catches their father with another woman, twelve year-old Blessing and her fourteen-year-old brother, Ezikiel, are forced to leave their comfortable home in Lagos for a village in the Niger Delta, to live with their mother's family. Without running water or electricity, Warri is at first a nightmare for Blessing. Her mother is gone all day and works suspiciously late into the night to pay the children's school fees. Her brother, once a promising student, seems to be falling increasingly under the influence of the local group of ...

  Hello September!  Be Good. Be Gentle. Be Kind.  Seriously, we could all do a with a good month!  Honestly, I can't quite believe we are in September and the end of the year seems like a foot away. This year is excruciatingly slow and long all at once. But we are in the same boat and these feelings of helplessness and anxiety is something we are all grappling with.  SEPTEMBER GOALS:  1.I hope this month brings moments of joy, calm and some serenity in all this madness. I am hoping to do more things that make me happy and keep me from spiralling into a state of worry and anxiety. So lots more colouring and being present is on the cards. 2. I am looking forward to a month full of reading from around the world. After a month of reading from only the Indian subcontinent, its nice to broaden my reading. I have already started by picking up a book from Nigeria and I am loving it so far in.  3. A little bit of shopping...nothing major, just a few treats here...

Book: My Sister, the Serial Killer Author: Oyinkan Braithwaite Pages: 240 Read on: Kindle Read in: 2 hours Plot Summary:  When Korede's dinner is interrupted one night by a distress call from her sister, Ayoola, she knows what's expected of her: bleach, rubber gloves, nerves of steel and a strong stomach. This'll be the third boyfriend Ayoola's dispatched in, quote, self-defence and the third mess that her lethal little sibling has left Korede to clear away. She should probably go to the police for the good of the menfolk of Nigeria, but she loves her sister and, as they say, family always comes first.  Until, that is, Ayoola starts dating the doctor where Korede works as a nurse. Korede's long been in love with him, and isn't prepared to see him wind up with a knife in his back: but to save one would mean sacrificing the other. Things I Liked:  1. I have been hearing really good things about this book for a very long time and so, I, finally...

Hello!  Another Friday and another batch of some of my favourite things!  This Friday is a little bit gloomy. My sister is suffering from a bout of bronchial asthma and woke up this morning pretty much struggling to breathe. Even her usual medicine and inhalers weren't working. So after stressing out for most of this morning, we called our family doctor who came in and gave her two injections. She is feeling a lot better now and is finally napping. She has dealt with asthma her whole life and even though I've seen her struggle with breathing numerous times, it still scares me when she gets this way.  I am so grateful to modern medicine and Doctors who help us get better.  The plan for this weekend is to stay in and get her to rest up.  Also maybe binge watch Sacred Games.  I actually, have the book but I haven't read it yet (story of my life!)  I wanted to read it before watching the show but I don't honestly see that happening. Per...

Book: Homegoing Author: Yaa Gyasi Pages: 315 Publisher: Penguin Random House Read On: Hardback How Long it Took Me To Read: 2 days Plot Summary:   Effia and Esi: two sisters with two very different destinies. One sold into slavery; one a slave trader's wife. The consequences of their fate reverberate through the generations that follow. Taking us from the Gold Coast of Africa to the cotton-picking plantations of Mississippi; from the missionary schools of Ghana to the dive bars of Harlem, spanning three continents and seven generations, Yaa Gyasi has written a miraculous novel - the intimate, gripping story of a brilliantly vivid cast of characters and through their lives the very story of America itself. Epic in its canvas and intimate in its portraits,  Homegoing  is a searing and profound debut from a masterly new writer. General Thoughts: This book was everywhere and everyone was reading it and talking about it and raving about it. I w...

Hello Friday!  Well, Friday is technically almost over in my time zone but still...Friday night is here and it's glorious!  And.. It's RAINING!  Nothing makes me happier than rain!  ☔☔☔☔☔☔☔☔ Here are some of my recent favourites!  1. You Got This!  This gorgeous journaling card came with this...no last month's Planner Society Kit.  I love everything about it!  2. Bullet Journal.  This month I am trying Bullet Journaling for the first time ever.  Well, mostly...I did do a version of Bujo in 2014 when I was using different notebooks every quarter of the year to plan and organise.  But this Bujo is inspired by the countless videos and blogposts I've read about Bujo and how beautiful people make their Bujos.  I will do a whole post on this soon.  3. Summer Dressing.  A riot of colour. Shoes- Chumbak Pants- Westside  Tee- Zara  4. Tagore Quotes...

Book: The Fishermen Author: Chigozie Obioma Pages: 300 Read On: Paperback copy How Long it Took Me To Read: 2-3 days Plot Summary:   In a Nigerian town in the mid 1990's, four brothers encounter a madman whose mystic prophecy of violence threatens the core of their close-knit family. Told from the point of view of nine year old Benjamin, the youngest of four brothers,  The Fishermen  is the story of an unforgettable childhood in 1990s Nigeria, in the small town of Akure.  When their strict father has to travel to a distant city for work, the brothers take advantage of his extended absence to skip school and go fishing. At the ominous, forbidden nearby river, they meet a dangerous local madman who persuades the oldest of the boys that he is destined to be killed by one of his siblings. What happens next is an almost mythic event whose impact-both tragic and redemptive-will transcend the lives and imaginations of its characters and its readers. ...

Hello!  You might remember that I came down with the flu in the third-ish week of May. Sore throat, body ache and a high fever. All of that and the special Bombay May heatwave. NOT FUN! And when I fall sick I like to treat myself to a little something something. Let's just say I feel a little indulgent :) So I dragged myself out of bed and latched on to the laptop and a click here, a click there and I bought me some books!  A happy ending to a sad story.  And since I was treating myself...I actually got some books I wanted for a while but was holding off since they were a little expensive.  I am very happy with this book haul and so excited for all my new books.  I highly recommend doing something indulgent when you are feeling poorly. Get those books you wanted. Order that bag. Get those beautiful but impractical shoes. Just go ahead and Treat Yo'self!  Let's see all the lovely books I added to my bookshelves!  ...

Hello!  Hope this Saturday is treating you well.  I am still a little under the weather. My throat is killing me but there is soothing tea to be had and TV shows to watch.  I watched Detective Byomkesh Bakshy today and God it was so bad. Slow, way too stylised, dark (like literally, most of the scenes were so dark) and boring to bits. I don't know how you can go so wrong with such brilliant source material. The books (short stories) written by Saradindu Banerjee are brilliant and how anyone can interpret them so terribly is indeed a tragedy. Gah! *rant over*  Now on to the happy..I thought I'd share my little book haul from Bargain Book Hut a pretty delighful little bookshop that stocks very marked down books. I go to the one in Kala Ghoda and love it. I always find treaures there and for so cheap.  Let's see what I got... Aren't some of the books so pretty?!!!  The Manu Joseph one is especia...