Rosh's Reviews

AUTHOR: Anjali Sachdeva GENRE: Short Story Collection PUBLICATION DATE: February 20, 2018 RATING: Can't decide! This has to be the toughest book to review from my reads of 2021. I'm at a loss about how to rate it. Ever read an anthology where you know something is missing and yet you can't stop reading it? That's what happened to me with this book. I simply couldn't stop myself from going ahead. The writing is impeccable. The build-up of every story is outstanding. The pacing is fabulous. The language, flawless. Where the book failed miserably was in the endings of each tale. Many stories left me feeling befuddled at the way they abruptly came to a close. You can't even say that the endings were open-ended. Even in open-ended works, there are some clues that make you predict the possible paths the story could continue on. It turns into a challenge to your mind and is fun to figure out. But in many of these stories, the ending just jarred. It was sudden, without ...

AUTHOR: Caitlin Doughty GENRE: Nonfiction PUBLICATION DATE: October 3, 2017 RATING: 4.25 stars. Death as a topic is hardly ever popular but Caitlin Doughty, as always, brings forth her effortless humour and genuine insight to make the morbid topic enjoyable and enlightening. This book takes an interesting look at offbeat death-related cultures and rituals around the world. The book covers the obscure rituals from Indonesia, Mexico, Japan, Bolivia and even the USA and India. Unlike many Americans who consider their way of functioning the best and look down on other cultures, Doughty is respectful and looks at the reasoning behind others' preferred rituals instead of demeaning any part of the process. In a day and age where urban Indians sadly know more about Halloween than our own festivals, such books are a welcome attempt to reveal the not-so-popular unique rituals related to our journey beyond the bodily shell. This was a nice, informative, and fun read, in spite of the gruesome ...

Author: Katy Hudson Genre: Children's Picture Book Rating: 5 stars Look at the cover! Isn't it super-duper scrumptious? Fortunately, the book does complete justice to the cover page and matches it in cuteness. The story tells us of a little girl named Sasha Patience whose middle name doesn't indicate her hyperactivity. She loves to begin multiple things at once without necessarily completing anything. But the day Mr. Sloth waddles into her life, it turns upside down. The story is absolutely well-written. But more than the plot itself, I loved the book for its non-judgemental tone. It accepts that being fast and being slow both are needed at times. Thus no child in either category is pressured to join the other side. The illustrations are melt-your-heart adorable! A worthy book for all early readers as it teaches them (and their parents) the valuable lesson of focussing on the present. As W.H. Davies said in his poem 'Leisure', WHAT is this life if, full of care, We ...

AUTHOR: J.K. Coy SERIES: Smart Girl Fairy Tale Series, #3 GENRE: Children's Picture Book PUBLICATION DATE: November 7, 2020 RATING: 5 stars! Awww, this is the cutest book I've read in a long, long time! Princess Winnabelle finds a little unicorn and adopts it as her pet. But she soon realises that caring for a pet isn't that easy. I adored how the book depicts the importance of taking care of the animals in our charge. It speaks to children in a simple yet understandable way. To add to the charm, the illustrations are Awwwww-inducing! And hey, you have a unicorn too! A wonderful book for early independent readers aged 5+.

AUTHOR: K.B. Carr GENRE: Children's Picture Book PUBLICATION DATE: December 2, 2020 RATING: 4.5 stars. This book was quite unlike what I had expected and came as a pleasant surprise while reading. It talks of various animals getting excited for the most wonderful night of the year. At the same time, it delivers a nice message about how we need to save the planet to allow our non-friends live happily in their habitats. The entire story is narrated in rhythmic verse, which is very nicely done and doesn't have forced rhymes, something very common in kiddie books nowadays. The moral is wonderfully delivered with a true Christmas spirit. Children will also enjoy the animal pics on every page. This would be a wonderful book for early readers.

AUTHOR & ILLUSTRATOR: Anu Misa ILLUSTRATORS: Pedro Gutiérrez & Valery Matvienko GENRE: Children's Picture Book PUBLICATION DATE: February 9, 2019 RATING: 4 stars. A cute story for a child who gets caught outside in a rainstorm. The story tells of how she faces her fears, helped by some animal friends. The language is simple and interesting. The book will be well suited to early readers. Kids sideways love animal stories so they enjoy this. The moral is also very nice. There are some nice activities for children at the end of the book. The only odd thing was how no adult makes an appearance to search a little child lost in the forest for a whole night. But this is the mother in me speaking; a child won't find this problematic.