July 30, 2017

#BookReview - "Dark Poetry" by Ishieta Chopra - #BlogchatterEbook

#Blogchatter, #BlogChatterEbook, #BlogchatterEbookCarnival, #Blogging, #BookReview, #Ebook, #EbookCarnival, #Amreading, #Amwriting, #writefullyyours, #micropoetry, Dark, darkside,
#EBook #FreeDownload at http://bit.ly/2uLLMtg


About the Author
Ishieta Chopra, a practicing Numerologist, Tarot Reader & Reiki Healer & Master, she has set up Isheeria’s Healing Circles to help people Learn, Heal & (Re) Design their lives through the Esoteric Arts and Healing Methods such as: Numerology, Astrology, Feng Shui & Tarot Readings, Reiki and various other Healing Methods. A Life-long learner, she is an MBA (Marketing & Finance) and currently a student of Law, with over 17 years of professional corporate experience and finds her true calling in the Esoteric Arts and Writing.

She writes at www.isheeriashealingcircles.com

Book Blurb
“Dark Poetry” is Ishieta’s second #ebook in the #BlogchatterEbookCarnival, along with “A to Z of Healing”. Her range as a writer is best evidenced by how different these books are from each other. “Dark Poetry” is a unique compilation of 26 poems written as a part of #AtoZ Challenge in April 2017. It includes one poem, the length of which I would classify as #micropoetry, for every letter, encompassing one deep and dark human emotion.

About the Book
One of the first thing that struck me with this book was its cover. Adorning the mystical cover is “Pegasus”, the majestic flying White Horse from the Greek mythology, riding the ocean. The cover is intriguing and invites the reader to explore the dark yet beautiful and unique work of the poetess. The poems are hard hitting and appeal to the deepest of human emotions. Alternately, they also uncover the darker sides of storytelling. It is unusual to find poems with the titles such as Corpse, Dancing Death, Echo and Jail which are 4 of my favorite poems in this book. This unfamiliarity is the biggest USP of this book as the reader gets one unexpected work after the other.
#AtoZ challenges can be tiresome for both the writer and the reader. I felt that in parts in this book as some of the topics seemed repetitive and the poet seemed limited by the theme of writing for a new letter every day.
Barring a few, however, I enjoyed all the poems in this book and would recommend this book as the change you might be looking for.

Rating

Cover – 5/5
Formatting and Editing – 4.5/5
Content – 3.5/5
Overall – 3.5/5

 Download this #ebook for #free at @blogchatter's website at http://bit.ly/2uLLMtg

July 23, 2017

#Bookreview - मन मंथन (Man Manthan) by Dr. Amit Prakash - This One is for the Bookmarks! #BlogchatterEbook

#Blog, #BlogchatterEbookCarnival, #Blogging, #BookReview, #Book, #EbookCarnival, #Ebook, #BlogChatterEbook, #Hindi, #Love, #LovePoetry, #Poetry, Amreading, Amwriting, #writefullyyours
Download for free here - http://bit.ly/2qprlSq
Poet - Dr. Amit Prakash


Pick up this book and bookmark it. This is not an instant dose of intelligent thoughts and poetry that are floating around on #socialmedia everywhere. It is a 8 course gourmet meal that needs savoring and revisiting from time to time.


About the author:
Dr. Amit Prakash is a doctor by profession but beyond the routine hours he is a poet and blogger. He blogs about poetry at doc2poet.wordpress.com and other nerdy issues at nerdyindian.blogspot.com (with little bit of overlapping). He is always keen to connect with like-minded folks and maintains active profiles on all social media platforms.

Book blurb:
This book is a collection of Hindi couplets, poems, haiku, etc (something for everyone) and each composition is a reflection of a virtuous moment from the author's life. This is not merely an anthology but a journey through the rainbow of the author's mind. If you love Hindi poetry, this one is for you

Review:
"Man Manthan" is one of the best collection of Hindi poetry that I have come across in recent years. It is a beautiful assortment of human emotions which seamlessly navigate through the poet's life and into the readers'. In that, it holds true to its title. In a very unique way, this is the Doctor's autobiography in poems. 
The book is divided into 8 subparts (आगाज़, अनुराग , वेदना , अंतर्दर्शन, तलाश, हाइकू, गूँज, ध्येय ), each of which touch upon a chapter in his life. The book starts with the beginning (आगाज़ ) whereupon the readers are introduced to a young and carefree student who has just uncovered his hidden talent of poetry and seems overjoyed by his self discovery. The poems in this section are bubbling with enthusiasm of adolescence. It then traverses to the section of eternal love (अनुराग) where we meet a young man falling in love. The section has some of the most beautiful Hindi couplets that I have read and it aptly concludes telling us that this is the start of a love story. First love, as it happens often in real life too, is followed by pain ( वेदना ). Even though the pain is real and relatable, there is hope which is evident in all of his poems. 

Not surprisingly, Amit then moves on my favorite section of the book, self-discovery ( अंतर्दर्शन). The emotional growth of the poet shows its first signs here. After being through the journey of falling in and losing out on love, the poet discovers the truths of life. These 4 lines summed the section for me:

गिर कर उठना तो याद रहता है, भूल जाते हैं जब लड़खड़ाकर कर संभल जाते हैं
दिल - ऐ - नादान मुस्कुरा ही लेता है, बस ख़ुशी के पैमाने बदल जाते हैं 

The following section, the search (तलाश), is the 'coming off age' for the poet. He has discovered a faithful ally in the journey of life and is ready to take on any challenges with maturity and a calm head. Who is the ally? The Pen. The poem "कौन हूँ मैं ?"(Who am I?) in this section is declaration of self confidence and acceptance of vulnerabilities at the same time. I considered this as the best piece in the entire book.

In the subsequent 3 sections of the book - haiku, echoes and goals ( हाइकू, गूँज, ध्येय ), the poet tries to push his own limits. He tries to take on subjects and genres which, in my opinion, do not fall into his comfort zone but he feels triumphant conquering them. The intentions here deserve applauding but the success would be subjective based on reader's choices. I believed these sections could have been separated from this book and either made into a separate book by themselves or included in another collection. They added 20-25 pages to the book which takes the focus away from the preceding sections.

The cover of this ebook deserves a special mention. It is beautifully designed and aligns perfectly with the underlying thought of the book. The complex emotions, genres and topics that are inside the book are perfectly depicted in the abstract design of the cover.

If I have not made it crystal clear by now, I will say it again, I highly recommend this book for those who appreciate the beauty of Hindi and the intelligence of the medium that is poetry.



Rating:
Content - 5/5
Layout and Formatting - 4/5
Cover - 4.5/ 5

Download this #ebook for #free on #blogchatter's website here - http://bit.ly/2qprlSq