The Tolkien Reader

Title: The Tolkien Reader

Author: J. R. R. Tolkien

First of all, here is something about this book- from the book:

“For anyone who has yet to read the The Hobbit or The Lord Of The Rings, here is a brilliant introduction to this most captivating author- and for Tolkien fans it is an indispensable addition to the small shelf of books by J. R. R. Tolkien, a book to read, to enjoy, and to keep.”

I belong to the latter group of people. I have already read and enjoyed The Hobbit and The Lord Of The Rings. And, I loved reading the short stories and poems of Tolkien in this book.

There were three stories- Tree and Leaf, Farmer Giles Of Ham and The Adventures Of Tom Bombadil. Since, I have already been introduced to Tom Bombadil in the Lord Of The Rings, I already knew who he was. I love Tom Bombadil’s cheerful songs. I also liked Farmer Giles Of Ham. It was very different, and had a completely different set of characters.

The Tolkien Reader also contained a play written by Tolkien-The Homecoming Of Beorhtnoth Beorhthelm’s Son. That was very nice, too.

In the end, the book had a random collection of poems by Tolkien from the Red Book. All the poems and songs were very nice. I have always loved J. R. R. Tolkien’s songs!

But my most favourite was Oliphaunt and Perry-the-Winkle.

Here, you can read Oliphaunt and one page from Perry-the-Winkle:

 

I loved reading the book. It really was an indispensable addition to my small shelf of Tolkien books! Do read it.

Swachch Bharat

Recently CBSE conducted an Essay Writing Competition on topics about the Swachch Bharat. I also took part in the competition. I wanted to share the essay I wrote.

This was my topic:

How do you think that Swachch Bharat Swachch Vidyalaya campaign can be taken to

achieve the goal of clean India by 2019, the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma

Gandhi?

My Essay:

We don’t need to search for examples elsewhere.

A decade or two back, the Indian Railways- the largest and the most efficient network in India- was not as it is today. A  decade or two back, it was a pathetic sight. There was this huge problem of people smoking- inside compartments, out on the platforms and in any other place in the station- making everybody around them passive smokers.

My dad says that you seriously couldn’t travel peacefully in a second-class train compartment, back then. People smoked cigarettes unmindful of the person sitting near them. The pathway in the trains were littered with stubbed cigarettes and bidis. If you could see that scene, it would be like this:

A man smoking his cigarette without for a moment considering his co-passengers. Blowing it right into their faces… while they wrinkle their nose, and try to avoid it. But how can they avoid if the man is sitting right in front of them?

This was the monster-problem in the trains and the railway station.

But the Government of India decided to put a full stop to this nonsense.

And, the Railway Department of the Government rose to fight against this unfair practice.

Strict measures were taken. Restrictions were tightened. Cigarette sale in the platforms were prohibited. Even if a train stops in a lonely village station at the middle of the night, officers came around to check if people were violating the rules and smoking. People who smoked were fined, then and there. No explanations were tolerated.

And the result of all these? A perfectly safe and secure, and clean, railway system, that we have now.

What does this show us? It shows us that Swachch Bharat Swachch Vidyalaya campaign can be taken to achieve the goal of clean India by 2019.

When such a big network like the Railways, with millions of people travelling, was able to do the needful, so can Swachch Bharat Swachch Vidyalaya campaign with so many enthusiastic people, including students, in India’s billion brilliant population.

Primarily, the Swachch Bharat Swachch Vidyalaya campaign must concentrate on deterring the people to stop littering. Then we could do the cleaning process.

The problem in India seems to be that there are five sweepers to clean up but five thousand people to litter. So, we should make all of them responsible for what they do to their surroundings.

The students and teachers will help keep the school clean.

Each locality must take up responsibility for their own area.

Ultimately every district, village, city, state and every part of India must strive for cleanliness. Only then the idea of Swachch Bharat can be implemented.

And, for this, Swachch Bharat Swachch Vidyalaya campaign can help in a great way.

After all, what better gift can we give our Mahatma, Bapuji, on his 150th birth anniversary than a super-clean India- a Swachch Bharat!

Let us remember this motivational quote ‘Where There Is A Will, There Is A Way’ while we make our way to a clean India. JAI HIND!

Five Points That I Learnt From “How I Made $2 Million In The Stock Market” by Nicolas Darvas

This book by Nicolas Darvas is the story of how he made money in stock market through trials and errors. It is a book where Darvas talks about his initial stages when he entered the stock market, and how he learnt from his mistakes to perfect this system of making money.

I read this book. It was really nice! Actually, it is written from the stock market perspective for stock market profits. But I felt that some of the points that Darvas learnt in life is mostly common to anything we do. Here are the rules that Darvas put down for himself:

1. I should not follow advisory services. They are not infallible, either in Canada or Wall Street.

2. I should not listen to rumours, no matter how well-founded they may appear.

3. I must accept facts and read just myself accordingly- my pride and ego would have to be subdued.

4. Everything that I have to do needs a great amount of self-discipline.

5. It was a period of disaster- caused by egotism, leading to vanity leading to over-confidence, which in turn led to disaster.

All these are true not only for stock market. Anything you do, you cannot depend on what other people say. Anything you do, you can’t fall for rumours. Anything you do, you need to have self-discipline. So, these rules apply for anything we do.

Even though I did not read to know about stock market, I enjoyed reading the book because it was like a story- a story that was very interesting to read.

Heroes Of Olympus- The Blood Of Olympus

It all started way back in Class 7.

“Hey, you haven’t read the Percy Jackson series, ah?” - was the question that all my classmates and friends asked me. No. I didn't know any Percy Jackson. But it started there. I read the whole series, and finished it in Class 7. Then, I continued with my favourite friends, Percy and Annabeth, in the Heroes Of Olympus series. From that year on, I've been immediately reading the new releases- The Lost Hero, The Son Of Neptune, The Mark Of Athena and The House Of Hades, as eBooks. One of my classmates always makes sure it comes to me soon after the release.

But this time- The Blood Of Olympus was already out. I assumed that I would get the eBook as usual. But not so.

“Sorry! I don’t think I will be able to send this time!”  was all that my classmate said.

Ah! How was I going to  get the book?! I had to read it! And- be one of the first people to have read it!

Thanks to Eloor, our usual library, I got a copy of The Blood Of Olympus to read.

I finished reading it, and travelled with the seven demigods to the end of the final battle with Gaia, after which everybody is peaceful and happy.

Title: Heroes Of Olympus- The Blood Of Olympus

Author: Rick Riordan

Main Characters: Percy Jackson, Annabeth Chase, Piper McLean, Jason Grace, Leo Valdez, Hazel, Frank Zhang, Coach Hedge, Reyna, Hylla, Thalia, Zeus, Poseidon, Aphrodite, Apollo, Artemis, Athena, Ares, Asclepius, Victory, Octavian, Nico, Gaia, Giants.

Percy, Annabeth, Jason, Leo, Piper, Hazel and Frank. They were the seven demigods chosen to defeat Gaia. But they had a problem with the prophecy.

Seven half-bloods shall answer the call,

To storm or fire the world must fall.

An oath to keep with the final breath,

And foes bear arms to the doors of death.

To storm or fire the world must fall- that presented a problem. This meant Jason, son of Zeus(god of storm and lightning) or Leo, the son of Hephaestus(god of fire), might die in the final battle So, the seven demigods set on three dangerous quests that would help them solve everything- they had to capture Victoria(the goddess of victory), they had to capture the war god Ares’s heartbeat from the Old Temple and they had to talk to Apollo and Artemis(the twin gods) into following them in the battle, and get the secret potion from Asclepius to make sure that Jason or Leo could be brought back alive even if they die.

While capturing Victory, it becomes clear that Leo is going to die, because Victory screams at the Percy, Hazel, Frank and Leo, that one of them will die. But nothing is said about it. The magic medicine that they acquire from Asclepius is handed over to Piper to keep it in safety.

The Gods and the Demigods together successfully defeat the giants. But while doing so, a drop of blood from both Annabeth and Percy seeps into the ground. The Blood Of Olympus has been given. Gaia awakes.

Zeus blows the seven demigods to Camp- Half Blood.

Meanwhile, Reyna, Nico, and Coach Hedge counter problems and finally reach Camp-Half Blood safely with the Athena Parthenos, only to find that Octavian(a Roman) is planning to war with the Greeks. But as Reyna arrives, and earns trust with the Greeks by giving back their sacred statue of Athena, the Romans stop following Octavian and listen to their old Praetor Reyna.

The seven Demigods, the Roman and Greek forces together wage the war against Gaia. Finally, Leo takes Jason and Piper up into the air, where Piper charm-speaks Gaia into sleep-mode. Leo fires Gaia with all his strength. As heat builds up, and Leo understands that one of them must die, he pushes Jason and Piper from the war ship where they might die.

Octavian launches himself on a missile to attack Gaia, in the name of saving Rome. Together, Leo’s fire and Octavian’s missile crumbles Gaia so much that she will never be able to reform again. But Leo’s warship, bursts into flames illuminating the whole sky.

Everybody thinks Leo is dead and pray for him. Things slowly settle down. Greeks and Romans become friends. Peace prevails.

But did Leo die? Of course not! He is the awesome guy who is “all about doing the impossible”. So, what happened to him? Read to find out.

The book is really awesome. I am glad I was able to read it so soon.

Did you pick up your copy?

Navaratri 2014: Clicks From My Visit To Golus

The Adventures Of Stoob- Testing Times

Title: The Adventures Of Stoob- Testing Times

Author: Samit Basu

Main Characters: Stoob, his friends, and a villainous crow

“The Adventures Of Stoob- Testing Times” is a very nice book. It is funny, and makes the reader laugh throughout. Starting from the name Stoob, everything is downright funny. Well, the name is actually a shortened form of Subroto Bandhopadhyay! And then why is it Stoob? Here is an excerpt from the book where the protagonist(Stoob) gives the reason for calling himself Stoob:

Subroto Bandhopadhyay. It’s a nice name. If it’s 1914. If you’re dressed in a white dhoti-kurta and part of Indian Freedom Struggle. If you’re fifty years old and have three children in college and you’re running an arty theatre group. But I’m none of those things. How am I going to feature in strike partnerships with an about-to-retire Messi if my name doesn’t fit on the Barcelona team shirt? How am I going to have my own rock band, or invent something that lets us live in space, or direct my own action movies if my name is Subroto Bandhopadhyay?

And here is my favourite drawing from the book: 

Now- coming over to the story:

Stoob is relieved that the exams are over. He is overjoyed. But the announcement comes- all the earlier test marks do not count. Stoob needs to pass a big final examination to complete middle-school. Stoob borrows notes from his friend Ishani, and also takes help from Rehan, to study for the upcoming exams. But he is also tempted to partner with Prithvi, who is planning to cheat by copying. Ishani and Rehan save him from committing such a mistake. They also try to make Prithvi let go of such an idea. But they fail to do so. So the threesome plan, and make Prithvi’s numerous attempts to copy go in vain. They make him angry, and finally they all pass out decently. Ishani ends up being class first, and Rehan second. Stoob does well, and Prithvi realizes his mistake. They all pass out of middle-school happily.

You are wondering where the villainous crow comes, right? Read the book to find out.

I enjoyed reading the book very much.

Contagion

Title: Contagion

Author: Robin Cook

Main Characters: Jack Stapleton, Laurie Montgomery, Terese Hagen, Calvin Washington(deputy chief), Colleen Anderson, Chet, Dr. Zimmerman, Dr. Martin Cheveau, Warren, Slam,Spit, Lou Soldano, Bingham, Richard Overstreet and Beth Holderness

JACK STAPLETON is a very interesting character, and I naturally like him the most. From John, he becomes Jack. From an overweight conservative with old tastes, he becomes a ‘pickup basketball nut’ as he describes himself. He lives in the 106th street, in Harlem, along with NY gangsters. A conversation, about where he lives, goes this way:

“Come on,” Chet said. “Where do you live?” 

“I live on the Upper West Side,” Jack said. “It’s no secret.”

“In the seventies?” Chet asked.

“A bit higher,” Jack said.

“Eighties?”

“Higher.”

“You are not going to tell me it’s higher than nineties, are you?” Chet asked.

“A tad,” Jack said. “I live on a Hundred and Sixth street.”

“Good grief!” Chet exclaimed. “You are living in Harlem.”

“What’s in a name?” Jack shrugged.

“Why in the world live in Harlem?” Chet asked. “Of all the neat places to live in and around the city, why live there? It can’t be a nice neighbourhood. Besides, it must be dangerous!”

Not only does Jack live in such a place, he is also friends with the gangsters by playing Basketball along with them. Apart from this, Jack is a professional doctor, and very committed to his work. He  is a truly hard worker, and is very smart. Finally, Jack Stapleton ends up being a perfect “Detective Doc”.

Jack Stapleton gets seriously bored with the mundane cases in the pit, autopsy room, until his colleague cum friend, Laurie Montgomery, allots him the case of a man, named Nodelman, whose diagnosis is an unknown infectious disease. The case appeals to Jack Stapleton, and he becomes very interested it it. Finally, in front of Calvin Washington, the deputy chief, Dr. Stapleton predicts the disease that killed Nodelman as plague. It remains a statement to joke and laugh at, until Agnes tests a lung sample and really finds it to be plague. They alert the City Board of Health. Since Nodelman had been a patient in Manhattan General, Jack straight goes to the Manhattan General hospital to inform them. Due to his sarcasm, he gets thrown out of the hospital by the heads. He leaves it to hell.

But, this just doesn't stop with that. Everyday, more interesting cases come to him, all originating from the Manhattan General. And Jack makes astounding diagnoses of serious diseases such as influenza, tularemia, and Rocky Mountain spotted fever(rickettsia).  This time, he tries to visit the hospital without getting noticed by his enemies there. He manages to make some friends over there, but is not able to find anything fruitful. And- he also gets caught while stealthily trying to talk in the microbiology lab. But, Bigham, his employer  doesn’t fire him. He is still employed.

And what more! The people in Manhattan General do not like his theory of all these diseases being spread intentionally by a doctor(Or is it just one person who has hired them to beat up Jack?), and they decide to hire a few men from the Black Kings, a gang from Harlem, to do away with Jack. But Jack has his own friendly gang to protect him. It becomes a gang war, really. By this time, Laurie, his friend, gets all worried about him, and calls her Detective friend, Lou Soldano, to protect Jack.

Then it reaches the climax. Jack’s suspicion about a doctor spreading these diseases is confirmed. He just needs to find who he/she is. And he gets into a lot of trouble. He gets captured by the disease-spreading villains, and is then saved later by the gangsters.

This book- Contagion- is really very thrilling. This is my first book by Robin Cook featuring Jack Stapleton. I enjoyed it very much.

FIFA 2014 Know Your Team eBook #BrasilWorldCup #Copadamundo

I have put together an eBook as a handbook for quick reference on all the participating teams of FIFA 2014 #BrasilWorldCup. A quick glance at the teams will equip you with the knowledge of who-is-who and will help you enjoy the matches better. #copadamundo #copamundo

Please fill this form, and check your email to download the eBook.
Feel free to comment.
Thank you!

FIFA 2014- KYT Series- Portugal

Know Your Team- Portugal

FIFA World Cup 2014

Location: Europe

Language: Portuguese

Population: 10, 487, 289

Portugal's best performance so far in the World Cups

In 1996 World Cup, Portugal got the third place.

2014 FIFA Group

Portugal belongs to Group G along with Germany, USA and Ghana.

Portugal Team 2014

Coach: Paulo Bento

Captain: Cristiano Ronaldo

Goalkeeper: Eduardo Carvalho

Star: Cristiano Ronaldo

Preferred Formation: 4-3-3

Quote:

“It’s going to be a balanced group with four strong teams so it’s going to be very difficult for us, but we will fight to the end to achieve our first goal, which is to reach the knock-out phase.” -Paulo Bento

Sources:

The Hindu

http://www.worldcupinfo.info/team/portugal-2014-profile/

FIFA 2014- KYT Series- Germany

Know Your Team- Germany

FIFA World Cup 2014

Location: Europe

Language: German

Population: 80, 716, 000

Germany's best performance so far in the World Cups

In 1954, 1974 and 1990 World Cup, Germany was the winner.

2014 FIFA Group

Germany belongs to Group G along with Portugal, USA and Ghana.

Germany Team 2014

Coach: Joachim Low

Captain: Philipp Lahm

Goalkeeper: Manuel Neuer

Star: Thomas Muller

Preferred Formation: 4-2-3-1

Quote:

“We have a harmonious blend of young talented players and those with a lot of experience. Our squad is balanced as each position is covered with two players.” -Joachim Low

Sources:

The Hindu

http://www.worldcupinfo.info/team/germany-2014-profile/

FIFA 2014- KYT Series- Argentina

Know Your Team- Argentina

FIFA World Cup 2014

Location: South America

Language: Spanish

Population: 41, 660, 417

Argentina's best performance so far in the World Cups

In 1978 and 1986 World Cup, Argentina was the winner.

2014 FIFA Group

Argentina belongs to Group F along with Bosnia- Herzegovina, Iran and Nigeria.

Argentina Team 2014

Coach: Alejandro Sabella

Captain: Lionel Messi

Goalkeeper: Sergio Romero

Star: Lionel Messi

Preferred Formation: 4-3-3

Quote:

“Let’s hope we also have Messi, but we have other tactical options. With Messi it’s one thing and without him it’s another.” -Alejandro Sabella

Sources:

The Hindu

http://www.worldcupinfo.info/team/argentina-2014-profile/