The Men Within - Book Review (by asr)
A tribute to dreamersReview by ASR
The Men Within is simple tale of a Cricket coach who is determined to revive fortunes of high school cricket team, which has not played the finals of prestigious Inter-school cricket championship since 1982. This is the first novel from the author Harimohan and is claimed to be the India's first Cricket novel in English. Sampath is an alumnus of Golconda Public school. School which has a glorious cricketing past is facing tough times with students being indifferent to cricket and there are people with vested interests which are no good for the school. Vishwanath Sharma, principal of school, who is hell bent on reviving the past glory of the school brings in Sampath to coach the cricket team. Rest of the story is how Sampath goes about building the team and how he brings out 'The Men Within' the boys. 'The Men Within' works because, the author brings in all his experience of his cricketing years into his work. For me the method that goes into cricket coaching and practise is real eye-opener. The way Sampath gives confidence to the boys by taking them into his stride and encourages them to dream is well handled. How Sampath draws inspiration from the mundane and uses it to build the team spirit is the other high point of the novel. Author should be commended for coming up with this in a very convincing way and without coming across as preachy. Writing about a team of high school boys, their thinking and their aspirations is a not an easy task. Harimohan's brilliance is, in his description of each character and maintaining it throughout. Disgraced coach coming in to coach a team. Mending the rebellious and helping the troubled boys, will surely remind the reader of the critically acclaimed and successful SRK's movie Chak de India, though the premise is different here. Also, as with most of the sporting movies or novels, end is anybody's guess. Harimohan's, knowledge of cricket and human psyche, his simple narrative style and the gripping way in which the story is taken forward makes up for all its shortcomings. Some of my favourites from the book: 'People do not necessarily appreciate achievements, they appreciate good honest hard efforts' 'Give them a challenge, a dream worth fighting for and they will' 'The best soldier does not attack. The superior fighter succeeds without violence' 'Remember, ya to result hai, ya to bahana hai -- either results or excuses' On the whole 'The Men Within' is an engrossing and inspiring novel, which not only encourages you to dream but also motivates you to chase your dreams. Harimohan Paruvu is a Cricketer who played for Hyderabad cricket team, Management and Marketing professional, writer and an avid blogger. He is presently juggling his time between Reading, writing fiction, listening to music, playing cricket on Sundays and travelling. PS: Its being made into a telugu movie, which I am waiting for. Hope it comes out as good as the book.
If You Love Someone...' - Book Review (by asr)
MeghnaAdithyam...
If you love something, set it free.If it comes back its yours, if not it was never meant to be. Harimohan has taken this quote to heart and has come up with a riveting story around this for his second novel.
Meghna is an independent and intelligent girl with attitude. She meets Aditya, a guy with communist leanings in an inter-college debate competition where they both compete hard. Both Meghna and Aditya, hit it off well and they get to spend 3 days blissfully amidst beaches in Goa, when they attend another inter-college competition. Aditya and Meghna promise each other to meet after 30 years and part ways. Rest of the story is how Meghna leads her life or rather how life leads Meghna in those 30 years and soonafter.
The author brings out the modern day woman's mindset very convincingly and vividly. Chapters are crisp and short. Prose is easy to read.
He has complete hold of the narration throughout. Aditya's character which is full of life and enigmatic, is etched out very well.
Romantics will devour the romance between Aditya and Meghna in Goa. Harimohan, beautifully and effortlessly brings in Nature into the romance. This for me, is one thing that works strongly in favor of the novel. Towards the end when Meghna runs her foundation, one can sense, how love and inspiration can do wonders to ones life.
Dona Paula's legend, which Aditya tells o Meghna, is just that, and fact is different. But then, one should never let the facts to get in the way of a good story. I give it to Hari for using this legend beautifully.
This is a well written romantic novel which tries to be different. I recommend it to all romantics without reservations.
Meghna is an independent and intelligent girl with attitude. She meets Aditya, a guy with communist leanings in an inter-college debate competition where they both compete hard. Both Meghna and Aditya, hit it off well and they get to spend 3 days blissfully amidst beaches in Goa, when they attend another inter-college competition. Aditya and Meghna promise each other to meet after 30 years and part ways. Rest of the story is how Meghna leads her life or rather how life leads Meghna in those 30 years and soonafter.
The author brings out the modern day woman's mindset very convincingly and vividly. Chapters are crisp and short. Prose is easy to read.
He has complete hold of the narration throughout. Aditya's character which is full of life and enigmatic, is etched out very well.
Romantics will devour the romance between Aditya and Meghna in Goa. Harimohan, beautifully and effortlessly brings in Nature into the romance. This for me, is one thing that works strongly in favor of the novel. Towards the end when Meghna runs her foundation, one can sense, how love and inspiration can do wonders to ones life.
Dona Paula's legend, which Aditya tells o Meghna, is just that, and fact is different. But then, one should never let the facts to get in the way of a good story. I give it to Hari for using this legend beautifully.
This is a well written romantic novel which tries to be different. I recommend it to all romantics without reservations.
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