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Saturday, October 10, 2015

Confusingly Interesting or Interestingly Confused by Pravin R Rathod : A Review



BOOK TITLE: Confusingly Interesting or Interestingly Confused
ISBN: 978-9352013197
AUTHOR: Pravin R Rathod
GENRE: Fiction
NUMBER OF PAGES: 234
FORMAT: Paperback
SERIES / STANDALONE: Standalone
REVIEW BY: Dhivya Balaji
HOW I GOT THIS BOOK: The author sent me a paperback in exchange of an honest review. I thank him for it!
SUMMARY:
          "Sometimes, life comes with more questions and less answers and sometimes with many answers for a single question… and either way you remain CONFUSED! Four friends, a tour to Goa and everyone’s secret love life is revealed. Tik, Kash, NP, and VJ takes you on such a confusing ride where each one of them remains confused about one or the other things in life.
Interest? - Confusion
Education? - Confusion
Friendship? - Confusion
Love? - Confusion
Career? - Confusion
Life? - Confusion…
          Throughout their lives, many things change but the only thing that doesn’t... is CONFUSION. Welcome to their world of confusion…"
REVIEW:
          A story that will confuse you to the extreme and be an emotion filled ride.
First Impression:
          The book’s cover is very attractive. The blue theme was soothing and enticing simultaneously. The back cover had a short summary filled with phrases. The font of the title where every ‘O’ was a ‘J’gave me a good idea of what the book was going to be about.
The story or rather, the confusion:
          Four friends – adolescence, fun and all the pangs of growing up is what the story is about. Four men whose lives each start together as classmates on school and how they go their separate ways and what happens when they meet up after a few years forms the whole story, or rather, what seems like a series of stories that have a common connection. You will understand why I say this when you read the book!
          Tik, Kash, VJ and NP are friends. (Names kept hidden on purpose) They study in the same school and grow up together, and like all boys of their age, indulge in ‘all sorts’ of tricks. Yes, pun intended. But then their lives go different ways and they part ways only to be called back when one of them organises a life changing trip to Goa.
          What follows somehow reminded me of a game of truth and dare. Each of the four has a secret story and they are revealed in the holy land of tourism. That is the crux of the story, without revealing too many plot elements. It is best to read this story without knowing about any spoilers at all.
Now the writing style and plot quality:
          While it is really heartening to see young and upcoming authors write more and more books enthusiastically, as a reader and a bookworm with a partiality towards classic English books, I feel that the language and style needs a bit more polishing. While it is not our mother tongue, it is still the medium using which we put our story among the public.
          Pravin has managed to write up a good and interesting piece of book. But with proper editing, it could have been even greater. While there were some glaring grammatical errors (something that is considered normal and is expected) I felt that a book with such a promising premise should not be ruined by the plot holes or loose editing.
          The summary is actually very brief, and therefore, I have to just say that in some way, the book does adhere to everything that is written in the summary – which isn’t much. The language leaves a little to be desired but is still not a hindrance to the overall reading.
          The book could have had a tighter first half or a more engrossing opening. For the expectations created by the cover, the first few pages are crucial to hold the reader’s interest. A personal request to the author to look into this. I really did struggle to go past the first few pages initially. But once I got into the groove of the story, the rest was really engaging (especially after the friends get together).
          The story would give you nostalgic memories. You will surely remember your school day. While this is NOT a campus story, nor a reunion story, this has bits of both. From the jokes of the boys to the silly mistakes, there is some hint of a normal common man with all these four characters. A promising book, that could have delivered better were it not for the slightly dragging first half.
WHAT I LIKED:
·        The title and the cover page, obviously.
·        The story and the relatable characters.
·        The writing is, in some places, intent on confusing and takes on a reflective tone – bold attempt.
WHAT COULD HAVE BEEN BETTER:
·        The print and pages were good, but I did feel that the book could have better line spacing.
·        The story could use some tighter editing and cut down on the rambling pieces.
VERDICT:
          Unique, nostalgic, good debut – but only if you like your stories with a certain flavour. Go for this, if you want to feel interestingly confused throughout.
RATING: 3.5/5
EDITIONS AVAILABLE: Paperback
PRICE: Rs. 156 for Paperback.


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