Honour Among Thieves by Jeffrey Archer

Hello people,

Honour Among Thieves by Jeffrey Archer
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I have had exposure to Jeffrey Archer before, though not much, and have found his works very fast moving and riveting. This one has a woman spy, Hannah Kopec- a model- ,who suffered from Iraq war, working for MOSSAD as a trainee aiming to assassinate Saddam Hussein. Another one is a professor,Scott Bradley[whose father suffered professional embarrassment], at Yale who is working for the CIA.

The plot starts with Iraq's deputy ambassador, Al Obayadi to the UN hiring a lawyer firm [ the Cavalli group] who work for criminals in New York through a shadow firm under their lawyer title. The aim is to steal the American declaration of independence and hand over to Saddam to embarrass Bill Clinton internationally.

For this the Cavallis hire criminals and an out of favour actor who will be made to look like Clinton and by visiting the national Archives, steal the declaration. They kidnap and leading plastic surgeons daughter to force the doctor work on the actor and eventually kill the whole family. They also hire an Oscar winning, but now out of work and once convicted director and by fooling the people and authorities alike by shooting a film, steal the declaration.

Meanwhile Scott Bradley is set to work for the first time in the field for CIA and is following the MOSSAD girl Kopec to check on her. But they end up falling n love first and then on the orders of her head commander, she ends up poisoning Bradley. But Bradley survives which Kopec is unaware of and heart broken , firmly decides to cut ties with the outer world with only aim to kill Saddam.

The CIA gets to know the operation and are wondering what to do next. Bradley suggests to take over from MOSSAD the plot of assassination and use change that to recovering the declaration. Bradley, Kopecs head commander and a couple of others are nominated for the operation in Baghad. They "hire" the same forger who worked for the Cavallis and create a duplicate of the declaration and plan to switch that with the original, the same way the Cavallis did it. the copy is to have the spelling of 'Brittish' "misspelt" as 'British'!

The operation is really incomprehensible in realistic scenarios and is dragging a bit. May be not one of Archers best works. Finally though only Bradley and Kopec survive with a small twist that the Declaration was actually with the Cavalli the father who is shown to be patriotic and does not want the history of his nation to go to Saddam. Thus the title 'Honour Among thieves'!

I have another Archer this weak with Kane and Abel...


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Keys to Crime by John Creasy

Hello people,

Keys to Crime by John Creasy
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

I came across 2 books last week. Both were crime investigation. ;). One of them was Keys to Crime by John Creasy.

I had no idea about this book or the author. I searched for any info online, though I dont like to get prejudiced before reading a book. But NO INFO is what prompted me to search and guess what! I got no info even after searching google for Keys to Crime by John Creasy , except for some info about the author and his other works.

Hmm.. Nevertheless I opened and found a not too simple a start. Howard Kenyon, an actor, though not revealed at the start, who wanted to take a break from stardom [LOL!] was at London his home, in a hotel suite, which was cancelled by a pianist named Towari. Well into his sleep he hears someone at the piano with an incomplete note! At midnight "helps" the pianist to complete the note after which the pianist gets shocked and goes into the details. Thus we have our heroine, named Lucy Hale, a budding singer and a protege of Towari,  and hero.

The PR man, Girtie of the Towri group sets up a story which makes Kenyon and Hale lovers and they set straight for a vacation trip to a distant village inspite of the group having a concert a week later. Meanwhile Towari and his secretary Matt are not yet in London and our PR agent does a coup again and says that Towari is suffering from memory loss. Well, anything for publicity?

Things take an interesting turn when the couple are attacked on their way back and Kenyon is almost kidnapped. But luckily some fans come to his rescue and he arrives safely with his new fiancee now, to the hotel. Towari is still missing and a chief inspector named Wingold gets hold of the attempted kidnapping case  as well as the Towari case. Things take an ugly turn as a fan who rescued Kenyon gets killed when he followed the kidnappers in a sports car.

One night a phone call claims Towari is indeed kidnapped and they want money in return. Matt should deliver the money or else no more Towari. Matt is supposed to arrive with instruction that night and instead of him arrives, a finger which everyone is sure is of being Towaris.

A full scale investigation starts with police suspecting everyone in the hotel! One more character dies after cheif inspector is found tied up inside a dressing room during the first night of the concert and Hale's real lover boy, James who had arrived earlier takes the dead woman's [Sarah] place. Towari is still missing and Girtie claims he made a deal with the kidnappers and has even transferred the money and is in procession of a slip which says Towari will be arriving next morning. The police traces out the owner of the finger which turns out to be a dead body. But as everyone else believed Towari didnt arrive as Girtie was fooled.

Finally police sets up a trap into which Lucy Hales lover boy James walks into and the reason of the crime was that he was rejected by Towari as a budding young singer! Sarah was as usual blackmailed to be a part of the kidnapping plan and all is well in the end!

I just struggled to finish all 200+ pages and needless to say what a lame plot! No wonder google returned zilch on searching this. My second novel turned out to be a bit more interesting.



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Water Like a Stone by Deborah Crombie

Hello people,



Water Like a Stone by Deborah Crombie
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

The second one was "Water Like a Stone" by Deborah Crombie. This too was an unfamiliar author and I took the books as I just didnt want to waste time searching for a "good" book.

This atleast gave me search results and the author has infact published a series of investigation stories.






Scotland Yard officer, Duncan Kincaid takes his colleague and partner Gemma and her son Toby along with his son Kit to his parents in a country town. All of them have problems which Kincaid hopes this trip will solve. Gemma is nervous about her relationship with Kincaid and after the death of their child is doubtful, how his parents will take her in. Kit has nightmares about his mother dying but does not inform anyone. There are worries at the other side too. Kincaids sister Juliet is in a strained relation with her husband because of his partner and leaves their firm to do independent construction contract work which she loves. Her daughter Lally is into dangerous habits and far apart from this a woman named Annie Lebow or Constantine [because of yet another strained marriage!] is wandering on her boat through Londons beautiful canals, which are described in great detail.

Only ones with no worry are two kids Toby and Juliet's younger son Sam. To add to all this, Juliet finds a body of a child mortared in a wall at her site the night Kincaid arrives. A week after this, Annie Lebow is found dead less than a mile from this site outside of her boat! Lebow was a drop-out-from-a-rich-family social worker. She was unsettled as a kid whom she 'rescued' from his drug addict parents is killed by his foster parents. She then decides to live on a boat, ironically a luxurious one, and meets another family which she had to deal with in her professional life. She had rescued the family from the law as the parents where said to act saying their son had frequent fixes, for publicity.

But Annie Lebow, on her boat The lost Horizon finds that the mother is dying and she contacts a civil doctor she knows to help the family despite the resistance from the father fearing police digging up their past life. Meanwhile Juliet had begun to suspect that Piers, her husband Caspar's professional partner, with his high life style might be crooked. Piers, aware of her suspicions, has planted doubts in Casper’s mind about Juliet’s fidelity.

Kit sort of starts liking Lally and follows her around as she goes off to have a smoke with Piers' son. There is a background story of a young psychic boy going on which gets no where. Kincaid, Gemma learn that the family on the boat is responsible for the infant in the barn. But they also come to know of the cicumstances which forced them to do this.

Piers turns out to be a fraud and his son turns out to be Lebows killer [and assuming, he also is the psycho in the background].

The story is filled with emotion, sympathy, suspense and complicated relationship. The ending is also a happy one as in films. And I found thats the problems. This book feels like it was written for a film as is the case with most of modern fiction! I found it rather passive and recommend it only for those who really love crime fiction and for a description of Londons canals!

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Kim by Rudyard Kipling

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Kim by Rudyard Kipling
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I have read Rudyard Kipling's Jungle Book [ as I suppose almost everyone has] and hoped of something similar in this book. This book is also number 78 in the Modern Library listing of the 100 great English novels of the 20th century. Very well.


I started reading it and it seemed to be a simple story of a boy called Kimbal O'Hara or Kim. He was the son of an Irish soldier, but now an orphan living in Lahore. A Buddhist lama comes in search of enlightenment and meets Kim who becomes his 'chela' and they start their journey together. Kim also was in search of the 'Red Bull' of his dreams which would solve all of his problems.

Then as I thought this was going to be an adventure of their journey, 'The Great Game' comes in and confuses me much more. I think some one who is not aware of the history of India or India itself will get a lot confused at what is happening. I was not aware of the great game in detail apart from the fact that it was some sort of a battle between two colonialist powers Russia and Britain.

They continue their journey south east, north to the mountains and on trains by foot, on horse carts etc etc.
Kim meets his Red Bull which is the symbol on the flag of the Irish regiment and they take Kim in. The Lama continues his journey while paying for Kim's education.

Kim becomes a 'White man', a 'Babu' and a 'Chela' at once. All these terms are related to Indian history and you wont have a clue of what it means unless you know about India.
Kim plays his part in the Game and the lama realizes that the River he was in search of is in the plains and not in the mountains. He is told have found it in the end and Kim's fate is left for the reader to decide. Three possibilities I found were Kim becomes a proper 'Babu' playing the 'Game' or a 'Buddhist' or a combination of 'White Man', 'Babu' and 'Chela' depending on the situation.

It was a confusing story which, for me, never highlighted India as it truly was nor was a complete adventure story and neither was a simple childrens tale. may be it was too hard for me to digest!

You can buy the book at Flikpart.com, which is really easy and interesting! I will blogging about buying from Flipkart next time.

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FIFA 12 PC Review

Hello people,

FIFA 12 generated a lot of expectations as it was supposed to match the console versions this time around. FIFA 11 was brilliant in game play and graphics, but with a fair share of ridiculous bugs. But as I generally concentrate on manager mode, that version was the best version of FIFA series for me. So lets see what FIFA 12 is all about.

System Requirements

Surprisingly and happily I found out that the system requirements for FIFA 12 is same as the previous version. Thats a big big plus as most of the games today, require mind boggling requirements which make it hard for non-professional and especially Indian gaming enthusiasts.

Recommended system requirements: 

• CPU with dual-core processor (Intel Core 2 Duo or faster). Intel Core2Duo @ 2.4 Ghz
•  Windows XP / Windows Vista / Windows 7. 
• 2 GB of RAM. 
• DirectX ® 9.0c compatible 256 MB video card with 3D acceleration or equivalent (support for Shader Model 3.0 or higher). 

Features

All new Menu

It has all the basic features and as promised from the word go, that is from the new look menus, I could sense that this is different from the previous PC versions and would match the console versions. I found myself in the two player kick about arena which was introduced in FIFA 11, but after less than a second the match was fully loaded and a prompt appeared to press the start button. Ian Jarvis (FIFA 12, PC Producer) claims that the game will run at 60 fps during gameplay and 30 fps when shifting to cut-scenes, which is obviously great.  

There are a whole lot of new additions that you would find, like the "be a pro goalkeeper". There is the "Ultimate team" option as well added this time to the PC version.


Most important thing and improvement from FIFA 11 is that you can configure PC controls easily. Its a sigh of relief. Whats more, you can change the controls in the middle of a game too!

Be a pro offers you to create your own player or use an existing player. Then you will need to grow your potential and possibly be involved in a lot of transfer offers and switch clubs if you like etc. Be a goal keeper is terribly difficult first time for the PC users as we will be playing it for the first time. Most of the times you will be caught on the opposite side while the cross pass is made and they bang it into your net! You also have the option in "be a pro player" to control the whole squad or just you.

Let me jump straight into the manager mode which is my favorite. This time its in the career option, where again the menu is superb and it allows you to be a "player", Player-manager" or a 'Manager'. 

Player Interaction

I confess that i was just astounded by the whole new manager mode. The transfer options are just splendid and this time its not one time approach. You should , like in real life, approach the club with an offer first and then on their approval, you can talk to the player for his weekly wages. For selling too you just accept the offer from another club regarding the transfer fee, but whether to go or not to go, depends on the player. But on loaning out the player simply goes. One thing that dissappointed [but it is good] is that the fees are astronomical. For buying Messi you will need to shell out 171 million! So you have to be realistic while picking up players and you should be able to manage your budget [this is also a new feature] to divide the transfer fees and the wage budget percentages.

Career Home 

But all that beats this is the news reports about the players, the teams and other happenings. There is also a "talk to the press" option! Just about when these 2 features made my jaw drop, I was stuck with another splendid feature - "Transfer deadline day". It is divided into hour slots and your are virtually made to sweat deciding on selling and buying your players and targets. There is player interaction with you too. For me Pato said, he wanted to be out of the club, I unwillingly put him in the transfer list. Rejected some substandard bids and also got a message from the board urging me to sell him ASAP. I didn't and on transfer deadline day they sold him for what ever they got. I was fortunate enough to get Higuain for less that what Pato went. I can hear you saying "I just want to get this thing"! The most important thing though is that the Career Mode homepage now feels and acts like a command centre for everything you accomplish as a manger. 

A major plus point with transfers though is that the CPU will now make offers for players not transfer listed by you consistently. And when they do want one of your star players they can be ferocious in their attempts to sign them. I am glad that there is no such stupid thing as rival teams cant buy/sell.

 It’s key to point out that the scouting system is for unknown youth players only and not players already present in the FIFA 12 database. It’s about unearthing a hidden gem and not finding out whether Xavi has a pass accuracy rating of 84 or 85. You need to hire a scout first and more the money you are splashing out, better the scout will be. It's also not an immediate addition and the scout takes few days to join your club, just like a player. I dont know whether he can reject you as well. Then you need to send him to different parts of the world and he will find you your selection of positions with a projected overall. Of course once you've signed a youth player they will be added to your Youth Academy, and from there you can track their development and when the time is right, give them some game time.

Here is one negative. I didn't ,frankly, like the commentary. Although this time there are 2 pairs[Martin Tyler and Alan Smith and Clive Tyldesley and Andy Townsend] of them randomly chosen for a match. You have the option for choosing them too. They also talk about your new signings and current events like injuries etc. But a sort of passion or vigor is lacking. 

Graphically, there i not much change according to me and honestly I would go for FIFA 11 graphics rather than FIFA 12. 

lastly they have taken out the LAN play and added more into the online version. Now there is an international league where you can contribute points by selecting your personal team and you can know all about this in the initial demo video in the game.

Gameplay

Now, this is the most important feature of the game for me and to say it short "I am happy and disappointed". To say it long, they have introduced 2 things. One is precision dribbling and the other is tactical defending. 

• Precision dribbling: This feature is absolutely great and you can show off some ridiculous skill and skip pass players with ease. You will really be satisfied with your performance sometimes and just sit and admire yourselves!
• Tactical defending: This is the feature which disappoints me. I cant say its just terribly bad. May be its just that you will take time to accommodate it. But while you are getting used to it, I am sure you will get badly angry. The defenders just stand there and jockey. You need to tackle manually and even if you do succeed most cases the ball ends up with the attackers. In FIFA 11 you could not compete with the defenders on forced running, but with the Precision feature dribbling above defending is a disaster in FIFA 12. But may be after you get used to it, you will enjoy it. But as of now, its more like basketball where its an end to end game and less counter attacking in the mid field.

They have also added, PRO PLAYER INTELLIGENCE,TRUE INJURIES,PLAYER IMPACT ENGINE.

Overall the game play is wonderful with you doing a lot of skills and some really magnificent curly shots. Defending is really difficult and initially you will feel its a disaster. 

Verdict

I found out some bugs too. I think when you pass the ball to the winger a bit too close to the line, he just runs forward and completely misses the ball. New physical impact engine causes some players bumping into each other and falling for fun. you will feel 'Yuck' when you are just about to pass to an attacker and while running he falls bumping into a defender. Most of the times  short passes while defending just  are glued to the attacker even if you are giving directions to co-player on his side. So just clear the ball! In some cases even some through balls are intercepted easily by the opposition. The power of the shots and passes has been reduced considerably. You will need to use finesse shots for beautiful shots.

But overall the game play is wonderful and it demands more skills from you which you will take time getting used to. Until then you will feel off the ball defending is a disaster and attacking is magnificent.

Some tips

• Use finesse shots more.
• Dribble more
• Defend by jockeying and tackle only just around the 18 yard square. 
• Use wing play more
• try to make use of counter attacks and look to finish those 90%
• Use set pieces efficiently.
• Use less through balls and use them at the right position at the right time. 
• Importantly look to hold the ball more reduce simple give-aways.

I cant rate it as of now as I am yet to master tactical defending though I have made some progress. While at it i feel terribly angry sometimes as the defenders are like helpless. 

I would still give it a 3.5/5 rating.

Just go Buy it, is what I would say!

Its a really long review, but please go through it and hope its helpful. Feel free to comment on anything extra.

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Snehaveedu

Hello people,

Theater: Pankaj, Alappuzha
Language: Malayalam
Capacity: 1100-1200
Status : 65%
Show   : First Show [ 6.15 PM]
Date   :1st Oct, 2011
Ratings  : 3/5




Director   : Sathyan Anthikad
Cast        : Mohan Lal, Sheela, Innocent, KPAC Lalitha, Biju Menon, Lena, Rahul Pilla

Snehaveedu is a typical Sathyan Anthikad movie. A simple setting in a beautiful village. The cast is Sathyan's usual group of versatile actors. To add to it Mohan Lal also teams up with Anthikad after a while. This makes the movie more watchable.

The story is simple with Mohan Lal a successful businessman having had success in various cities around the country, returns to his native village to live with his mother [Sheela] the rest of his life. He has some business ventures there too and has settled onto his peaceful life. The neighbourhood has a usual Anthikad  touch to it, with Karingannan Mathai [Innocent] stealing the show. Biju Menon plays a police officer and a friend of Mohan Lal, who marries a christian woman[ played by Lena] whose father is Innocent. There is a funny tension portrayed between the two. Sheela plays her role with ease without any complications.

Then one day a young boy arrives claiming to be Mohan Lals son. Mohan Lal is sure that he is lying and tries many tricks to gt rid of him. He teams up with Innocent and Biju Menon and fails. His boasting about his past also doesn't help him.

Movie finally concludes by making us realizing the simplicity or naivety of life and sums up the title significantly.

The cinematography is really good. Only thing lacking is perhaps the music, where but for one song sung by Hariharan, Ilayaraja fails to impress. Acting has been brilliant as is expected from the cast and even the new boy doesn't disappoint. Comic elements has also been placed brilliantly and doesn't feel artificial. Overall, a film which you feel satisfied after watching.

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Death in the Afternoon by Ernest Hemingway

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Death in the Afternoon by Ernest Hemingway
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
Recommended for: Bull Fight Enthusiasts.


Honestly I took up this book going by the title and thought it to be some murder mystery! ;) But it turned out to be somewhat similar , but not as I thought. There was murder and there was thrill. But the book was non-fictional and an exhaustive explanation and view on famous or notorious Spanish Bullfighting.

I am reading Hemingway after a long time and I couldn't recollect what kind of an author he was. He seems to be somewhat interested a bit too much in himself or his writing. But I have to admit he is a passionate and serious follower of bull fights. He points out most delicate points intrusively and even knows a detailed schedule of bull fights, not only across Spain, but in other countries like Mexico and France as well.

He has given in detail the techniques and genius' of some great bull fighters he has seen, such as Joselito, El Gallo, Juan Belmonte etc. He sees bull fighting as a tragedy and not as a sport. But he acknowledges the bravery of both the bull and the 'Matador'. He gives an apt description about the supporting cast, the 'picadors, 'banderillos'. He also has apparently tried a hand at being a 'matador', but unsuccesfully. But he learnt about how the bulls are groomed since they are born to become fit for the 'toros'.

Hemingway also despises modern bull fighting where he feels the picadors merely prepare the bull for the matadors to kill. He compares original bull fighting with art and music. He writes

"Bullfighting is the only art I which the artist is in danger of death and in which the degree of brilliance in the performance is left to the fighter's honor."

He also compares it to playing a mouth organ.

But I have little interest in bull fighting and I didnt find the book interesting even though it was hugely informative. Standard-wise book should deserve at least a 3.5 as its volume of information is not in question. It has also pictures in it to show a 'veronica' and 'cornada'. Leave alone some silly interaction with a fictional or imaginary old woman the book is presented well.


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To Kill a Mocking Bird by Harper Lee

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  To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Recommended for: Any one with parents or siblings or children or friends or enemies ;)

I had no idea what the theme or the publicity[except for a few reviews of 'very good' from various places] of this book was before I chose to read this one. I prefer to read that way as I will be free of prejudice.

To Kill a Mocking bird is a story of a simple family, with 2 siblings Jem and his younger sister Scout along with their father Atticus. I started to like the novel from the start as I could identify myself as I too grew up with a sister 3 and half years younger to me in a similar simple neighborhood with simple friends. The book addresses the racist mindset of the society prevalent at the time [1935] and through children tries to explain the naivety of our life.

You will find everything that a brother and sister of 10 and 6 years respectively, do and will be entertained mostly. But what it also successfully does is to promote a simple message of 'not hating anybody' and not taking any offence to heart and simply think from under the other mans skin.

To go into the story the siblings are leading a simple enough life with their vacation friend Dill when Tom Robinson, a negro and the real 'Mocking Bird' is accused of rape by a white, but notorious family. Scouts father Atticus takes up the hard job of acquitting Robinson of the crime. There are a few other characters like judge Taylor, Calpurnia, Miss Maudi, eccentric Boo Radley, Link Deas, etc who take this novel forward with their kindness while, some others like Bob Ewell and others who are of the opposite kind.

Author has succeeded in passing the cliched but eternal message of naivety of life and not hating others. I think its a must read.

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Sons of Fortune by Jeffrey Archer

Hello people,

Sons of Fortune by Jeffrey Archer

My rating: 2 of 5 stars








I actually went for another book but because I could not find that one I just picked up this one up. Having read Jeffrey Archer before and thus made up an image of really fast moving work from this author, I thought no harm.

The book is very aptly titled 'Sons of Fortune' as while reading we would think or are constantly reminded to think of the fortunes of 2 of the leads had one moment of decision making by a nurse hadn't happened.

Nat Cartwright and Fletcher Davenport[ Peter Cartwright] are two twins separated by fortune and a nurses/nanny's wish to please her mistress. The story goes ahead slowly as Fletcher , in a well to do family, meets a politician and at the age of 14 meets his partner for life. Both get their best friends Tom and Jimmy on their first day in school. The common villain also appears first day in one of their classes.

The story goes forward with an unrealistic scenario as except a couple of people all of the other characters, however small they are, are projected as men of principles, sincerity, integrity etc. Nat's life takes an unexpected turn[ the story is mostly of those] when he gets an army call up which occurs because of an act by the villain. Nat meets his life-partner subsequently and both the twins go different ways as a Banker and a Lawyer. The villain has moved on to trouble Fletcher as they become professional.

Nat's life takes another twist as a currency devaluation occurs in France and Fletcher also resigns from the famous law firm in New York. Then its like Nat - Villain - Fletcher all together in one place. They all end up in the field of politics and in more twists to come, the villain gets killed.

The twins are busy rescuing each other and in the process learn that they are twins. But not to hurt their family, they keep it a secret and it comes to the end with both shown as heroes and the winner in the election didn't matter any more. Though I wanted one of them to win the election and ended the book on a happy note as my candidate won!

But over all the book has too many twists[perhaps the title forces that], too many heroes and too much feel good factor. Despite that villain is quite strong, may be because the heroes are too lenient and are not ready to hurt the villain back. There is some American rock and roll culture depicted too in bits and pieces and the author also tries to show a generation gap. But it felt artificial some times. For me the book felt ok but artificial at times. But I would recommend it if you have a couple days of travel with nothing else to do.




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A Prisoner of Birth by Jeffrey Archer

Hello people,

A Prisoner of Birth by Jeffrey Archer

My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars


A 3.5 would have been apt. Its a gripping book, which you can never put down unless its natures call! A shortened version of Dumas classic,which is why I have just given it 3.5 instead of a 4+, this one never loses its pace. A prisoner falsely accused of murder, impersonates his cellmate ,who was perhaps unfairly accused of manslaughter, and sets about to correct a few things. In the process his life completely changes and from a small town lower middle class brash man he ventures into uncharted waters and excels.

The closing was superb with a retired judge and a veteran esteemed solicitor stealing the show. Only thing which is questionable is perhaps the practicality of the story at the time it was set.

A really fast read which could just refresh you completely.

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Death at My Doorstep by Khushwant Singh

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Death at My Doorstep by Khushwant Singh
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I am reading Khuswant Singh, 'seriously', for the first time. I had read his short stories as lessons in school and that's that. I thought or had an image of him as an elderly man who loves children and writes soft stories. So I had a great man in my mind. But how all that was shattered by this one.

This is a book of memoirs of some people he had come across in his life and are presently dead. It's like he is awaiting his death and thinking about some others he knew and are currently dead. He doesn't necessarily criticize or praise anyone with intent, though does that inadvertently some times.

He comes across as a typical rationalist who seeks proof for every single thing on the earth or the universe which cannot be sensed by humans or which could be sensed. Though he only bothers to ask this from others and not at any time is concerned about a proof for his won theories. Example when he says there is no proof for life after death, he also has to think about there not being a proof for NO life after death! But I think thats why he calls himself and agnostic.

About the book itself I found nothing interesting as a whole. Though some parts like that of Bhutto, one Rajni Patel and lastly his dog, Simba was interesting. I think I could see the first impression of him,that I had, only in the Simba portion. He is not having an open mind for an agnostic and I expected much better thoughts and a heart from a man 96 years old and with all that experience.

If you have nothing else to do and a couple of hours to spare, you can pick this book up and go through.

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The Language of the Gods in the World of Men: Sanskrit, Culture, and Power in Premodern India by Sheldon Pollock

Hello people,

The Language of the Gods in the World of Men: Sanskrit, Culture, and Power in Premodern India by Sheldon Pollock

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I left this book just 10% into it. It starts by saying that Sanskrit is 2000 - 3000 years old, while the first written material in Sanskrit was found to be from about 4000-3000 BC. Also when the origin of the language is not clear, it was not apt to finalize its age as around 2000 years old.
Next I came across, usual things like Sanskrit being forbidden for the "lower" varnas. The author emphasizes the ranking for the varnas and says that the Shudras would have thought what they could not do that the "higher" varnas can. But the author doesnt bother to think that its one who cannot think or is not interested in education is called a shudra while not the reverse as in a shudra was not "banned " from education. The author bypasses the important fact that Valmiki who wrote the epic "Ramayana" in Sanskrit was a Shudra. I couldnt bear with the usual western view of Indology and left the book.
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Upcoming Indian Batsmen.

Hello people,

I put some thoughts on India’s major bowling backups that I have seen over the last decade mostly inspired by the ridicule that Indian bowling is facing ahead of the England tour. Now most of the English media is praising the Indian middle order so much so as it appears to be a collective effort to jinx them to failure! There is also talk about how the transition would be once the greats retire. So I thought about the batting bench strength.

I had always thought we had much more bowlers coming in every year, than we could probably handle and the result was none of them has, yet, emerged as a real promise. Their records just fade in comparison with say a Morne Morkel who is the next South African hope[though he is 26]. But if you think of batsmen, it’s just the opposite, but result being the same. Our middle order has been so strong, that not even Yuvraj Singh, who is among the real good ODI players, has managed to sneak in. [There has been ones like Amol Muzumundar, who by playing parallel to the like of Sachin, missed out on an opportunity. But as we are focusing on the future, lets focus on younger ones.] It’s only after the retirement of Sourav Ganguly that, even a place is available in the batting slots. But its still not grabbed as we could have hoped.

We always had one [or even 2] slots free at the opening even as late as in 2007. But with Gambhir settling in even that slot was full and Ganguly was still playing in 07’! So no one could have even a knock at the door for spots 1-6. Yuvraj Singh was the man waiting that time to replace one of the middle order stalwarts in case of an injury. But with Ganguly’s retirement, scenario has changed. Yuvraj has got some chances and he didn’t live up to the expectations. Many others have also tried their luck. Here’s who I think, may form the Indian batting order in the future.

1. Abhinav Mukund : He is in the squad now. Having made lots of runs in the domestic circuit,- its ridiculously easy to make runs there - he got the selectors call as suddenly both Sehwag and Gambhir were injured for the West Indies series. He didn’t look great, but showed ‘some resistance’. Is that what we expect form a top order player, is another question. But he is in the pecking order now and [with great luck] will also open at Lord’s on the occasion of the 2000th test. Will he cement the place remains to be seen.  

2. Murali Vijay: He was given a chance after a big 200 [243] in a first-class match, after Gambhir got suspended, after he invited Watson to a party somewhere, with his shoulder, against Australia. He scored a decent 74 in his first match. But again, is it what we expect from an opening batsman? A struggling 40? But still, he ‘looked good’ for the selectors and after some disastrous performances in all forms of the game, barring the IPL may be, he is still ‘looking good’. But he must realize at 27, he is losing time and need to come down to earth from the 127 he scored during the IPL. His team mate at Tamil Nadu, Mukund has passed him in the order, unless Mukund fails in England and what a dilemma it would be for India.  

3.Ajinkya Rahane: He is next in the order, perhaps [atleast according to the audience]. He too has lots of runs at the domestic circuit. But the problem is his patience. He is seen in Mumbai as a brilliant stroke player who can make a swift 40-50. But so was Sehwag, wasn’t he? 

4. Cheteshwar Pujara : He is by far the best that I can bank on as he has got technique and a still head. Most important of all, he has got an understanding parent, who knows about the game and its highs to back him up. So hopefully he will keep his foot on the ground and go forward. He looked fantastic while taking India to victory vs Australia. The pace of Steyn did trouble him in South Africa, but no one would have done much with that kind of bowling. 

5. Virat Kohli: He is projected as the future captain of India, having led the junior team to World Cup victory. He is just 22 and has already won a World Cup and has played 50 ODIS. His behavior was and is attracting a lot of criticism. Even his reactions [also other players] after winning the under-19 World Cup came for much ridicule. But he feels he has shed the stardom effect and is a mature player now. Cricketing-wise he looks matured, but behavior wise he still has a long way to go. He also faced some problems with the short ball, surprisingly, against the West Indies. He has been dropped from the England tour which he feels has been good for him. Still a boy who tries to avoid his angry mom, he can be a part of the future middle order. 

6. Rohit Sharma: Rohit Sharma has been praised and jettisoned by many from their good books. He has got style and hours to play a ball no matter the speed of the bowler. He, like many, fell for the superficial stardom and may be like his senior example; Yuvraj Singh is still struggling to get a place in the test team. But his talent is too good to go waste and if he corrects his head a bit, can be a batting great. But he has had lots of opportunities and unless he continues from what he did in the Caribbean, he may lose out.  

7. Suresh Raina: He has seen ups and downs in his career and he is just 24. He has got talent and the English media, with all their hyperbole, described him as next Sachin Tendulkar after he took India to victory in an ODI. But his problems with the short ball never got him settled. His temperament cannot be an issue with the hostel structure in Uttar Pradesh cricket. He will be serious and may have improved, apparently, with his performances in the West Indies. He also, probably, will be part of the middle order in the future.His current coach, even thinks he is a captaincy material, though he lead a team to Zimbabwe not quite emphatically. 

 

8.Yuvraj Singh: He has somewhat been an enigma for tests. An excellent ODI player with talent couldn’t overcome technical problems to play regular test cricket. Being on the fringes for long he was given the slot, which he should have snatched from one of the players, after Ganguly’s retirement. It seemed, after an under  pressure 100, along with, ironically, Sourav Ganguly, that he may have come of age. But he still was not able to convert his talent into runs, even as he won a World Cup for India. He seems determined to cement a test spot, but as of now Raina seems to have got it. Being just in his late 20s he still has a chance to add to his tremendous ODI career.  

9.Ambati Rayudu: This guy was hyped up as next batting great to emerge from the country of batting superstars. But after his ego struggles with the administration, somewhat rightly so as players like these captain his Hyderabad side, he found himself in the ICL. But from a stint with the Mumbai Indians in the IPL, one of the few things that I like about the IPL, he returned to the reckoning. I hope he rediscovers his talent and fine tune it, for he could be a real asset at the middle order.  

10.Manish Pandey: He is young and hasn’t proven much apart from being the first Indian to score an IPL century. But his knock against Mumbai in the Ranji Final meant that he was to be noticed. But a bit of controversy, eve at such a young age meant he went back the queue. A player, who has got talent and with development in temperament can be included in the side. But his place is still some way away.  

11.Manoj Tiwary: He has been unlucky of sorts. He got his chance after an impressive 06’ Ranji performance. He was to play in the first test in Mirpur, when a training injury hit him and he was out of the frame for 2 years. He did return and it was difficult it could get and was in Brisbane against Australia in an ODI. Brett Lee showed no mercy and let a scorching Yorker get Tiwary back in the hut. He waited again for 2 years and when he did play in the West Indies recently in the ODIS didn’t look the player that he was, probably because of the unfamiliar opening position. Still this guy has talent and is in the second line of challengers for a batting spot.

Notable omissions:

S Badrinath: I may be a bit harsh, but I think his career is almost over and he has not looked a good player on whatever international exposure he has had. That may be against Steyns express pace, but he looked completely out of sorts and different from the domestic run gatherer that he is. He may get a couple of years after one of the greats retires, but that will be it as he is already above 30.

Robin Uthappa: This man had/has talent. But he seems to be happy, just to hit sixes in the IPL. He seems to have no apparent interest in a test spot and is not looking for a long innings, not even aggressive or 200 ball 150 kind of a stay. He, in my view will never play test cricket [even if he does, it would be a very short stint].

Shikhar Dhawan: He has been named as captain of the 'Emerging players squad'. But I dont think he will ever feature in a test selection meeting. But he has every chance to play many ODIs. But if he does want to play tests, he can take a cue from his Delhi team mate Gambhir.

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I have crawled my way to an 11! So is there a shortage on the batting side? Absolutely not. Batting unlike bowling is less susceptible to injuries and if 6-7 out of these get into a settled mode, then we can be secure for another 10 years, well, hopefully. There may be some other contenders like KB Arun Karthik from Tamil nadu and Sourabh Tiwary from Jharkhand. I have not mentioned IPL wonders like Paul Valthaty or Bharat Chipli [he is already 28].

There are others like Ravindra Jadeja[who must come down to earth and be serious] , Mayank Agarwal, Ashok Menaria etc who are coming through the under-19 ranks.

Finally, what would India’s top 6 look like after -say- a couple of years? [Though I am never sure of Tendulkar ;)] Back up top 6, on the right.

First choice TOP 6                                              Backup TOP 6

Gautham Gambhir                                     Abhinav Mukund

Virender Sehwag                                       Murali Vijay

Cheteshwar Pujara                                    Ajhinkya Rahane

Rohit Sharma                                            Ambati Rayudu

Virat Kohli                                                 Yuvraj Singh

Suresh Raina                                             Manoj Tiwary

P.S: You can help by mentioning any one whom I might have missed.

Thanks!

Upcoming/Lost Indian bowlers squad.

Hello people,

As the England series is here, most of the talk is about England having superior bowling along with a lot of bench strength. Yes they have an enviable line up. Tall fast bowlers are always an asset. But one thing that they should keep in mind is to stay put with feet on the ground. If they consider guaranteed about greatness, they will fall off the way swiftly. 

I feel that’s what happened or is happening with India’s bowling arsenal. India is really looking for a back for Zaheer Khan after he retires. May be Ishant Sharma is the answer with his impressive comeback against the West Indies. But we can’t be sure as he too has been among the ‘self-proclaimed’ superstars who have lost direction.

Here I give a list of bowlers who are international quality or have the potential to be successful at the top level.
Most of them have played for India in some form, but could not cement their place. Reasons could be anything. Arrogance to lack of good coaching to injuries. Even selection sometimes has been a reason as someone like Pankaj Singh went on the Australia tour of 2007-08 and didn’t play a single test. 

1. IrfanPathan : he was heralded as india’s answer to Wasim Akram. But stardom and pressure to be next Kapil Dev + Akram rolled as one has let him drift away. His strength was swing and he could bowl at low 140s which is dangerous with swing. But too much coaching led to remodeling of action, reduced speed and he lost all his zing. Any one remember the 90Mph in swinger that led to comparisons with Akram? I have no videos, but I dont need them as its so fresh in my mind.

2.  MunafPatel : He came in as the fastest Indian bowler with speeds over 150Kph. But then again, some dumb said he looked like Mcgrath and therefor he had his pace reduced and now as Andy Roberts called it, he is spinning it. [Cant say upcoming about him, he is 28].

3. RP Singh: RP Singh has in my view similarities with Pathan. An extremely talented swing bowler, who can bowl in the high 130s to 140s, has his name on the Lord’s honours board. But again lack of hunger and lack of discipline together with lack of form has somewhat thrown him out. His regress has been relatively mysterious. But he still can be Indias future if given proper care. He has got talent.

 4. P Kumar: He has grabbed every opportunity by both hands and as of now is not among the ‘failed’. But his lack of pace even at this age of 23 is not doing any good to his career. He can swing it anywhere anytime, but his pace has to be increased if he has to consistently play and trouble batsmen.

5.  A Mithun: Mithun is still young and it would be harsh to count him among the failures. He also has somewhat been shabbily treated by the selectors as he is not getting continuous opportunities. He also need to raise the pace a bit to be successful, but sure has some potential.

6. VRV Singh: He, when he came in first showed promise. Tall muscular bowler, who could regularly bowl 90Mph. But he had technical faults and bowled no-balls consistently. Lack of coaching led to his ousting. He may never come back and it is a loss.

7.  S Tyagi: Another tall bowler who was hyped up big time. But he has now drifted away with all the stardom getting to his head. Lack of temperament has led to another promising bowler’s downfall here. His arrogance is evident when he takes a wicket and you can fill a bucket full of profanity.

8. PankajSingh: Another 6 foot plus bowler who bowled in the mid-140s. I think the selectors either thought he would be like Ambrose straight away because of his height. But for whatever reason after for whatever reason they picked him, they didn’t play him a single test in Australia. He is slugging it out in the Ranjis now.

9. L Balaji: Here is one bowler who lost out not because of his own reason or any other persons, but an injury at the right time has virtually ended his international career. Anyone remember the Pakistan tour 04? He was brilliant and it seemed with Zaheer + Nehra + Balaji + Pathan, India had a decent attack [but not fearsome]. 

10. A Mishra: Lastly a couple of spinners. Amit Mishra has toiled for almost 10 years in domestic cricket to get his place in the squad. He immediately grabbed it as he took a 5 for on debut against Australia. His experience was supposed to make him feel at home. But surprisingly he turned very predictable after that and was using his googlies unimaginatively without flighting it enough. The spin stronghold of India is not able to help him yet. He has made a comeback of sorts against West Indies, but cannot in anyway be believed to have settled in.

11. P Chawla: Another leggie who bowls more googlies than his leggies. Fact that artists like Bishan Bedi can’t help Chawla is really a sad truth. They even come from the same state! He is still young and given direction can shoulder spinner’s responsibilities. Now no one can forget this delivery can they?

12. R Aswin: The guy has talent. But the problem is he has a mystery ball as well. He has to be careful not to overuse it. Mystery bowlers are sure to be sorted out as Mendis found out against India. So he should just concentrate on his off spin and control and such stuff.       

13. S Sreesanth: Sreesanth has been an enigma. Arrogant and caught by stardom I would say. He has the best seam position for an outswinger, at least from India. He can reverse the ball both ways. But the thing he lacks is temperament and control. Recently, Indian bowling coach has said, if he can control himself and not try to bowl 6 different deliveries, he will be really good. But he is 28 and what beckons for him, only God knows.

14. P Ojha: Pragyan is rated by none other than Kumble. He has got a few opportunities as well. But he will struggle to get opportunities outside the subcontinent as only one spinner plays and his fielding capabilities are well, no capabilities there. The problem he faces is his fitness and if he doesn’t reduce his waistline, he can end up being a Romesh Powar.  

15. Ishant Sharma :  Lastly, the man most likely to take the baton from Zaheer. Ishant has reemerged of sorts during the West Indies tour. When he came on to the scene, he was a tall erratic bowler who bowled 8 ball overs regularly, and looked like young Srinath. After which he had a dream spell in Australia and he troubled Ponting in India as well. But because of too much T20 and ODI cricket perhaps, he lost his rhythm. I just hope he has come back for good and carries the baton from Zaheer. He could be best ever fast bowler from India with time on his side.[ He is only 22!]

I have not counted  any bowler who is over 29 as this list is one which includes either up coming or 'could have been' upcoming bowlers. 

Some notable commissions

1.  Jayadev Unadkat

2. R Vinay Kumar

3. D Kulkarni [ another case of ridiculous selection. Didnt play a single game in NZ in 09]

 IPL every year means, every year some bowler or the other is hyped up as the next best. Those include Umesh yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Rahul Sharma, Sidhart Trivedi, Varun Aron, Kamran Khan, Ashoke Dinda, MS Gony etc etc. But I have not seen enough of those guys to rate them. There are also others who were promising once, like these guys above, but lost out on a decent career like Ashish nehra, Ajit Agarkar, Tinu Yohannan, Abey Kuruvilla etc. Then there are others like Avishkar Salvi[2004, was dubbed as McGrath!] who were ridiculously hyped up when they took a couple of wickets against Bangladesh. 

Reasons can be anything. Injuries, lack of temperament, arrogance, stardom, even fans. We pace starved Indians, rate a bowler pretty highly when ever we see him bowling at 140+. This adds the pressure on the bowler to straight away burst through a batsman with his pace. But when he cannot do that, he tries to change stuff. Then his coach tries to change stuff. Finally he loses the trick somewhere. I cant decide on one particular thing as I feel its different for every player.

Finally, so is it lack of talent in India in the bowling department being a country of batting superstars or is it some other combination of things? 

Thanks!