Book Review #54: I am Malala - The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and was Shot By Taliban By Malala Yousafzai

I am quite sure that those of you who have heard or listened to this young girl’s story would be exclaiming in surprise “She is one tough teenager!” I am also one of them after reading her biography or rather her little story of how this assassination attempt by Taliban has brought this young girl to the outside world. Before I started to read this book, I was under the impression or rather you can say it as ignorance that, what this girl of age 15 has done to Pakistan that has garnered so much attention. And, this book has a simple answer to all those people who are waiting or expecting to know something about this girl’s fight for girl’s education.

Well this book speaks about length and breadth of the problems that any common Pakistani will face in a day to day life. Without giving much importance to the country’s rotten politics or army’s bad attitude or the constant terror threats and attacks, a regular Pakistani especially those who hail from this remote valley called Swat. She writes about her family and its background in the initial few chapters. She also goes on explaining about Swat and its people and how they are more connected to Afghanistan than Pakistan. She describes the cultural practices of a regular Pashtun household.

Speaking about her daring challenge to the terrorist outfits like Taliban who banned girl’s education in their valley, she was well prepared by her father Ziauddin Yousafzai. He is really a good father and a great human being I can say. He was the one who started the English type school in Swat valley at the very beginning. With regular threats from the local mullah’s and other influential hardcore Islamic people, he stood for what he is capable of and ran a school and became one of the respectable persons in and around the Swat valley and in Pakistan.

When it comes to Malala Yousafzai, she started her work towards the girls’ education rights at a tender age of 11. Like any teenager she was also enjoying her family time and all those happy moments with her family. She loved her little family that consists of her mother, father and her two little brothers Kushal and Atal. Ziauddin Yousafzai named his school after his elder son Kushal. It is one of the famous schools in Swat valley today. Malala started to get attention from the public because of her numerous speeches and interviews she was giving regularly. She often travelled across the Pakistan to spread the message of girl’s education.  

The turning point in her life came in when BBC Urdu was looking out of someone who can give firsthand information about the Swat region when it was under Taliban control. With a strong persuasion from her uncle, Malala started to write for BBC Urdu under the pen name “GUL MAKAY”. This has got some great attention from across the world and of course it also brought Malala under the radar of Taliban. Malala and her family used to receive threats and threat notes from unknown sources about their activities. They went ahead and threatened to bomb their school if they won’t stop the girl’s school. But she wasn't the type of quitters. She managed to do well in getting the attention of their government and was getting support from them to bring education to everyone especially girls.

She also wrote about many other details about the Taliban rule and how people initially supported the group by donating money to them. She writes about few dreaded people like Fazlullah, the radio mullah and other Taliban members. For sure, this book will give us a load of information regarding the Taliban regime.

One point which I thought was very unnecessary was her rant about India. She wrote on many occasions that, India is the greatest enemy of Pakistan and some rubbish details about India and Pakistan relationship. We can ignore this part and move on to read other stuffs.

The stirring details of how Malala was shot by Taliban guy in her school bus and the after incident of her treatment and she was flown to UK is a well-known phenomenon.  She thanked numerous doctors and caretakers from both the countries are a nice gesture. She was under induced coma for almost a week and her fighting spirits to get back on heels is a tremendous journey. She described her injuries and other details in great details which can be read in book.

There is a photography section in the book where she posted some of her pictures from her childhood and few pictures from the hospital where she was taking treatment. It’s a nice way to put all those things.

Overall a great attempt by Malala to write all these things. We all know that there are certain sections of the people who hate her and who love her. Leaving aside all those things, she stands as an inspiration for many young girls in Pakistan and around the world. Their family is living in UK now with a little or no plan of returning to Pakistan in future. May be, one day she would visit Pakistan as a politician which she aspired to become.

My Rating:

5/5

Book Review #47: Bhitti - An Autobiography by Dr. S.L. Bhyrappa

I was not at all ready to write up a review for this book. This book, Bhitti is the autobiography of Dr. S.L. Bhyrappa, the ace novelist, the philosopher and a great human being. Bhitti is a Kannada language word. It can be translated to English as a WALL or a PORTRAIT, where one can post their picture. Evidently, this is an apt title for this book. He has written his life story as a picture on the wall. It is so thrilling and one will feel profound whilst reading this book. I am quite inspired by this book, at the same time; I was saddened by reading his life journey. For sure, Bhitti is a masterpiece narration and it stands as a lesson for those who are writing their autobiographies.

What made it more special about this book? It was the sheer brilliance of SLB sir and the way he narrated his account of life in this book. He has not crossed the limits of boundaries while describing events and not derided anyone who directly or indirectly was the cause of sabotaging his earlier childhood and his teen years.

He started his book by describing his childhood when he was aged 4. He went on describing the social status, surroundings, events, the neighbors, his family members, his relatives and most importantly his mother who played a crucial role in bringing up him in the righteous way. He also writes about his father who was good for nothing and describes him as an aloof. His father was directly responsible for all his miseries that he went through as a child. His mother was the sole responsible person in his family who was taking care of the daily needs of all the family members. He has grown up in a situation where there were not even proper meals to eat. His family often slept without eating anything except for his father who happened to be the revenue collector from the farmers around the village and he used to spend most of his earnings for his amusements like eating in hotels, travelling for days, etc…

He has written in detail about his early childhood, his teen years and his college days and till his retirement age that spanning over 70 years. He tells us a riveting story.  His great shock came in when his elder brother and sister who died on the same day in a span of 3 hours due to plague epidemic. This was literally a shock to young SLB. After this incident, his mother sent him to his brother’s house so that he can get a proper education. SLB describes his stay at his uncle’s house as one of the devastating years of his life. He literally became a slave for his uncle doing cattle work, temple cleaning during the day with little or no food till noon. Even here, life was cruel to him, he received a message from one of his villagers that, his mother too died of plague. He was barely 11 years old at that time.

He has given an account of his childhood and his young teen years in 2 of his novels “Grihabhanga” and “Anveshana”. The stirring images and characters from both of these novels is a true incident happened in the life of SLB. He had faced some of the brutal tortures by his uncle, his aunt and importantly from his father. So, he decides to run away from home and goes to a different town where he literally begged every day for food. In those times there was a concept called “VAARANNA” that means “WEEKLY FOOD”. This concept is not existed in recent times. But, this is a concept where a student that begs in each house will come to an agreement with them that, he will be given a day’s food. Like this, he arranged in 7 different houses that agreed him to provide food.

He was not agreeing with himself for begging during his teen years. So he does odd jobs during his school breaks to make the ends meet. He works in a small hotel as a cleaner and waiter, he sells incense sticks during evening, he even worked as a gatekeeper for a cinema hall, and he went to every village as a story teller and amuses the villagers by his story and accepts whatever the gifts the villagers will offer. By all this means he manages to complete his schooling. While describing these events, SLB never forgets to remember all those kind hearted teachers that helped him a lot in his education.

SLB has struggled in every walk of his life by managing to keep him alive and educated. With a “vagabond” father, his life should’ve been finished long ago. But, some divine force was keeping him alive all these years so that he can win the hearts of millions of people that he has won today.

Despite undergoing such hardships in his life, his quench for reading never stopped. He was reading almost anything. By the time he reached his 20’s, he might have read at least 200 odd books. That’s what made him a good story teller. With all the blessings from every good person that he met in his life, he went on to complete his M.A (Honors) in Philosophy and managed to stand out as a gold medalist in his final years. He has written his first novel Bheemakaaya when was just 18 years old!!

Very early in life he realizes the correctness of defeating an opposing view by logical and knowledgeable argument rather that brow beating it by raising the voice. This comes through in his books which are very well researched. We see his views on religion and rituals evolving, his philosophy of life taking root and the awakening and evolution of his creative genius. Tips for new writers are strewn throughout the book.

SLB has seen life from very close quarters and is very well travelled. He has travelled all across the globe (may be 3 times overall) not to mention large swathes of India. SLB writes as he preaches with a detached air but is forthright. He never hesitates in calling a spade a spade; we see this in him even as a young boy.  He has always stood up for truth and justice and is a fighter and a survivor. A survivor because all the bitterness, the pain and betrayal he has seen  would have broken the spirit of an ordinary human being but it has not made SLB cynical. He has internalized it all to reach great heights. The success and heights that SLB has attained is testimony to the triumph of the human spirit. The autobiography is written in a linear chronological manner. The language is succinct and the book gripping and not able to put it back.

What I feel is the childhood and his student days of SLB sir’s autobiography must be made mandatory for all the new generation kids for reading. They will realize the importance of education. They will get a new perspective in life and will develop a respect for their life, their education.

I feel very underage to judge the autobiography of a great human being. At the same time, I made a point clear in my mind that, whatever happens in life, I will fight it till the end. The silver lining is a birth right of every human being on this planet. I recommend this book to be read by everyone. I prostrate my head at the feet of SLB sir for giving me a lifetime treasure of books. What one can only imagine in their life is a fact from SLB sir’s books.  

My Rating:

5/5

Buy this Book from Flipkart.com:
KANNADA VERSION LINK

ENGLISH VERSION LINK

Book Review #39: Tabbaliyu Neenade Magane By Dr. S.L. Bhyrappa

This book talks about the conflict between people who are traditionally grown up, holding up the age old rituals and cultural practices and with the people who are educated with the modern viewpoint of the world. So the story captures this essence of what is morally right and what is scientifically right.

 Author SL Bhyrappa is a true gift to the Kannada literary world. His tales varies from social issues till modern space science. He is the only author that doesn't conform to a specific genre. He writes on many themes and many beliefs. That’s what I liked about SL Bhyrappa Sir. He has surpassed his limits in this particular book ‘Tabbaliyu Neenade Magane’ which can be translated to English as ‘Son, You've become an orphan’.

 The story is very sensitive and controversial. It captures the theme of cow slaughtering versus cow protectors in a small fictitious village. An aged person Kalinge Gowda, who believes that cows are the representation of Gods that descended upon earth. Kalinge Gowda belongs to such a revered family, where a cow has offered herself to a hungry tiger willingly ages back. This cow is popularly called as ‘Punya Koti’. A breed which is believed to be sacred than all other cows. Kalinge Gowda has a grandson Kalinga, who was graduated in Agriculture from the University of USA. Kalinga has married to Hilda, a US citizen. Kalinga has a friend in his village, Venkatramana, a vedic scholar and a middle school teacher who believes in every traditional practices and rituals.

The entire villagers were against the slaughtering of the cows, whether it is aged old or a young one.  Hilda the wife of Kalinga was distracted initially to get adjusted to the villagers. She seems to have lost all her independent life of US after coming to this little village. She has to sacrifice her beef consumption. Married to an Indian man, she found it very hard to get adjusted. Kalinga who was very careful initially tries to win the heart of villagers and his friend Venkataramana. But to his dismay, in whichever way he tries to reconcile with the villagers, it was backfiring. One incident where Hilda killed a cow in her farm and ordered her cook to prepare beef, resulted in the severe repercussions from the villagers, which made Kaling to apologize in front of entire villagers.

The book has this kind of conflicting stories throughout. When Hilda questioned Venkataramana about the animal sacrifices juxtaposing it with the cow slaughtering, she won’t receive a convincing answer. All in all, Kalinga and Hilda felt that they were out casted from the village and felt lonely and rejected. All this made Kaling and Hilda to leave their village once and for all and go back to USA.

The climax part of the novel takes an unexpected turn and leaves it readers with surprise. I feel that’s the best part of the book. I will not reveal that in my review. It has to be read from the book itself. After reading the book, every reader will face with few questions that they couldn’t find answers. What is more important in a society? Upholding the age old practices and thereby respecting our culture and customs or compare every situation with the modern aspects and live according to them? Is banning cow slaughter solves every problem in India? Only time can answer.

My Rating:

5/5