Summer Reading List

This year, I have an extended summer break from 23rd March to mid August. That's nearly five months of vacation. It has to be noted that I may never enjoy such a long, purposeless period of time for the rest of my life. There really is nothing that must be done. This is enough impetus for me to start planning my summer. Among several activities I have in mind, reading is high on priority. Here is the first batch of books that will arrive at my doorstep on 23rd March. *Drumroll*

It's one of the memoirs that I have long been waiting to read. I maybe making a politically incorrect remark by stating that I partly support the parenting methods adopted by the author. Perhaps because I like to think that I have been brought up in a similar fashion, although nowhere as extreme as depicted in this memoir.

As a silent reader of Paulo Coelho's blog, I find his writing very refreshing. It's a blow of fresh air on the much polluted internet. His blog posts' uncanny timing, perfectly in sync with my roller-coaster emotions, always quell my anxieties. I could write an entire post dedicated to that. Having read several extracts from the upcoming book already, I believe parts of this book could be my calm,silent retreat.
The release date is 2nd April, so I'll have to wait for this one.

"Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
It is reviewed as one of the most influential books of the twentieth century for inspiring the ecological movement. I first came across this book when Dr.Tyron Hayes  used an extract of the book to make a point in his talk. Engrossed, I researched it. Although it may prove to be a difficult read, it could be one of the books that changes perspective; the kind that leave an indelible impression.

Who better to learn from? After listening to one of Dr.Feynman's talks at Cornell University, I must admit that my notion of a Nobel Prize winning scientist was completely uprooted. Delving into the mind of this eccentric, legendary Physicist should be an interesting experience. 

"The Selfish Gene" by Richard Dawkins
This is obviously an after-effect of reading "The Emperor of All Maladies" and being overwhelmed it, followed by attending a college lecture titled "Patching Damaged Genes".A post about this experience will grace this blog soon. Reading this book is a curious student's attempt to know more about Genetics.

If this list is ticked off before the end of my leisurely summer, a second one shall follow. My shopping cart on Flipkart is full, awaiting the day I'll finally click the "Order" button.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Living Those Ideals.

Image
Political Science classes in grade 10 typically consist of heated discussions, which often turn into endless debates. During one such discussion, our political science teacher raised the question – what could be some advantages of democracy in India? The question was received with poor spirit from the class as only a few students mentioned platitudes such as unity in diversity, peaceful lives, and people in democracies being more content than those in dictatorships, right to speech and so on. Then my teacher asked, “What could be some of the drawbacks of democracy in our country?” Oh boy! The answers came as a deluge of sound waves. We upped our decibels as we fought to be heard. However, even in amidst the ruckus, the word corruption could be heard crystal clear. Then frustrated, our teacher snapped us back into order. She assured us that each of us would be heard. One student blamed the less than perfect state of democracy in our country on the profiles of our leader...
Read more

The Neighborhood Project: Teaching Kids English.

Image
I stayed back at school today to teach underprivileged kids from our neighborhood. It's been a month since I started doing this. Most of the time, it's fun. I mean, you call the shots; you get a delicious little meal (even more delicious since you're ravenous after school) from the canteen; you teach some amusing kids; and the best part: you can tell yourself that you are contributing to your society. What more do you want? Over the few weeks, I've come to the conclusion that kindergarten teachers probably work much more than high school teachers. If you think teaching a couple of restless, 4 year-olds the English alphabet is easy, well, you sure are mistaken! These children need far more attention, patience and encouragement than a high school student learning trigonometry. See it this way, which is harder to do: teach someone to ride a bicycle or teach an average cyclist a bunch of cool tricks? You get my point. So if I become a school principal, I'll make s...
Read more

What We Do in the Name of God: An Account of My Visit to SriKalahasti Temple

Image
Yesterday, I visited an ancient, renowned temple called SriKalahasti with my family ( 8 people ranging from age 5 to 6).My account of this visit is from the perspective of an agnostic who is hesitant to travel to another state just for pooja and darshan at a temple. SriKalahasti Temple As soon as we stepped outside the bubble of our tourist car, we were surrounded by several unkempt, hungry pilgrims. They all began speaking at once. They had traveled from far off places and had no money. One of them requested for money to buy food. My uncle opened his wallet and handed over a few rupee notes and coins. That was enough to attract another bunch of saffron clad pilgrims. We managed to evade them and enter the temple premises. The inner premise of SriKalahasti was constructed back in the 5th century A.D. whereas the extended area was built in the 12th century. It is only expected that the structure would be imposing and awe-inspiring. We were told that the puja was not to beg...
Read more