A book review of Taslima Nasrin's Lajja

An ambitious novel, no doubt.
I've read a translation, okay.
A controversial novel, yes.
Hyped, indeed.


Lajja by Taslima Nasrin has everything working for her around this book but the matter. I felt it could have been a short story rather than a whole 216 pages book.
The plot concerning a Hindu family's predicament in an Islamic state which they always believed was their country is certainly weak.
The story drags and at the end, having guessed what it would be at the very beginning, one is happy to finish the book. It is a good book to come during an election and work as a political propaganda.

GRUDGE IS DEAD- a book review of Christopher Sandford's Kurt Cobain

There is a picture in this book, ‘Kurt Cobain’, where Nirvana’s Lead man Kurt Cobain is seen sporting a T-shirt with a caption “Grunge Is Dead”, because the “Father of Grunge” had it on before his inevitable death, Christopher Sandford, the author, says it was premature(like his child he is holding in the picture). I think it was Kurt Cobain’s presentiment, or was it?

I had an intuition about it like the one Kurt had after so much of drugs, sex, violence and Grunge and grudge in his life and therefore in the book.

The grudge he had against everything and everyone, against friends and enemies and his own self died with him.

‘Nevermind’ to remind you this and all of Kurt’s exploits, habits, self reverence and self torture and Punk there remain his songs and this book, ‘Kurt Cobain’, a biography of the book’s namesake written by Christopher Sandford.

Christopher Sandford relies on first hand interviews and myriad anecdotes of people associated with Kurt to build his story.

‘Kurt Cobain’ is a dark fairy tale of a self proclaimed Rock star, Nirvana’s vocalist and guitarist, who changed the masses and the path of masses by being one of them yet not connecting with. It surprises, astonishes and shocks you from the very beginning and you know you are reading a gray story.

Mr. Sandford at times treats the revered ‘Punk star’ with contempt and hence biases the coin. May be Christopher did not interview the protagonist’s fans extensively or did not have the energy to do so.

‘Kurt Cobain’ is a good book as one sided story of the paranoid musician. Written nicely with treatment of satires at places it is a good one time read.

Nirvana’s Kurt Cobain’s music is good and for his life study keep another book ready at hand after reading this.

Without any presentiment or intuition and totally after reading ‘Kurt Cobain’ I title my review “Grudge is Dead”.

My rating 2.5/5.