The Testaments

First of all, I have not read any prior work by Margaret Atwood, I have not watched any movies or TV series adapted from her work either. Personally I do not derive much pleasure from watching the adaptations on the screen; reading the words with my imagination tangoing together with those precious words is almost … Continue reading The Testaments

The Culture Map

The Culture Map: decoding how people think, lead, and get things done across cultures is written by Professor Erin Meyer at INSEAD, one of the world’s leading business schools.  This is not a random choice of reading material. For a long time, I have prided myself as being very internationally-minded, getting along and working well … Continue reading The Culture Map

Working

This week I read Working: Researching, Interviewing, Writing, written by Robert A. Caro. Caro is known for his books, The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York, and the four volumes of The years of Lyndon Johnson.  Caro wrote the intention of this book is to share some of his experiences and … Continue reading Working

Steal Like An Artist

"Achoo! Achoo! Achoo!"  Those were my involuntary, thunderous and embarrassing sneezes. A young lady, running towards me from the far corner of the bookstore, holding a box of tissues, said “tissue for you”, with a beautiful smile. I was very touched, “This is very nice of you. Thank you so much.” I took one piece, … Continue reading Steal Like An Artist

The Color Purple

I read Alice Walker’s The Color Purple during my recent trip to Arizona. My return flight was delayed just long enough for me to finish reading the book before arriving at my destination.  For each trip, my hope is to start as one person and end as another, or at least undergoing some transformation. This … Continue reading The Color Purple

All That Remains

All That Remains: A Life in Death is written by the renowned forensic anthropologist Sue Black, on death, mortality, and solving crimes. I read most of this book during my transatlantic flight. There was a shortage of tissues. I was acutely aware of that constraint and exercised great self-control particularly while reading her personal accounts … Continue reading All That Remains

A Farewell to Arms

In 1948, Hemingway added an introduction to this book, that had been originally published in 1929. In this introduction, we learn that Hemingway wrote its first draft very quickly and every day to the point of complete exhaustion such that he completed it in only six weeks. He then spent a great deal of effort … Continue reading A Farewell to Arms