Books that I read in 2014

The last year (2014) was not a very good one for me, book-wise. I didn't read a lot of books, and the fiction titles that I read last year disappointed me a bit. The year was a very busy one for me academically and it was a bit successful in that front. Also, if you do not do an activity for a long time, it really gets difficult to take up that activity again. For me, reading books had taken a backseat after I joined university in 2009, and so 2014 was also not an exception. But I did manage to read some really good books in the last year too. Since August 2014 I have started to keep track of the books that I have read here. One of my new year resolution is to read at least 10 books each of fiction and non-fiction titles in this year. Here I give a brief account.

If my library burned down?

I like to read a lot of non-fiction, mainly scientific or technical books. Now I am in the process of reading two books simultaneously, one of which is Finding Moonshine by Marcus du Sautoy. The book is about symmetrical objects in mathematics, and perhaps this blog is not the right medium to discuss the book in detail. What I am more interested in today is a remark the author makes in a certain context in the book. He quotes someone saying which book that person would pick up if his library burnt down. And that got me thinking. Which book would I pick up, if my modest library at home burned down for some reason?

Book Review: The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas

Love can be a very dangerous thing, but the lust for revenge is by far the most dangerous thing in this deceitful world.That is the adage that the classic book “The Count of Monte Cristo” by the master story teller, “Alexandre Dumas”, tells us. Described by many as an adventure novel, this book since its publication in the mid 19th century has enjoyed a status that is the envy of all writers. Made into a brilliant Hollywood movie, this novel by Dumas stands out as a very well crafted human document, alongside his more famous work, “The Three Musketeers”.