"Book Tagged"

I have already been tagged by Deepak, Rhicha and Ricky and now before anybody could even think of tagging me, i would like to finish off this one. I just love books but seeing the progress of my reading curve, i can easily say that i read in patches. Like 3 books in 12-15 days and then a gap of 3 months! No particular reason for this one.

I am an out and out non-fiction guy although in due course, i have read some fiction too like Lajja and Shodh by Taslima Nasreen, Alchemist and Eleven Minutes by Paulo Coelho, Chetan Bhagat's Five Point Some one, Segal's Love Story, Puzo's Godfather etc..but the number is limited. Most of the rest are non fiction works only.

I have read a fair share of Biographies..I love to know about someone inside out. This is a long list...have read Hitler's Mein Kempf, Jack Welch Straight from the gut, Kiran Bedi's I Dare, Sam Walton's Made in America, Akio Morita's Made in Japan, Abdul Kalam's etc...and trust me, each and every one of them is worth reading apart from probably Hitler's. I mean how can you expect a moderate guy like me to be in sync with his extremist approach!

Total Number of Books I Own:

Not many...Probably around 20 books here in Mumbai and around the same no. at my native place. You must know the reason if u have spent the engg. days in a paltry sum of money. Buying a book of 250 bucks was really a big deal in those hostel days! and like Manish, i also started buying books after i started earning.

The Last Book I Bought:

4-5 days back i bought Catch-22 by Joseph Heller which i am currently reading. I have read thouands of good reviews about this one so i though of checking it myself. I have just finished 40 odd pages so not in a position to give an opinion about it as of now.

The Last Book I Read:

It was Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki. A book which keeps burning the desire in you to make it big (moneywise). Although this book can be summarized in 2 paragraphs , it was good to read the whole 250 pages because of the interesting way in which it was written. Not a 'must' read but a 'good' read if money fascinates you.

Five Books That Mean a Lot to Me:

(Its difficult to pick just 5 books from so many but as i have mentioned some of them above, I will try to stick to 5 books here)

1. My Experiments with truth:Mahatma Gandhi -- One of the most honest autobiographies i have ever read. Although even he avoided discussing some of his controversial decisions and stands on political front, i dont think he hided anything from his personal life.. even the mistakes. To write an honest autobiography is one of the most difficult task one can ever have. If you want to learn discipline...read it.

2. Why I assassinated Mahatma Gandhi: Nathuram Godse -- After reading MEWT, i was very keen to read about someone who assassinated the great man. Afterall, Godse was not a petty criminal who killed Gandhi just like that. He was a well learned man with his own ideology and believe me, the book gave us a complete account of his views and at times he is successful in convincing you what he did was correct!

3. Iacocca: Lee Iacocca -- Another autobiography which impressed me a lot. He is the guy who was fired from the post of president in FORD and who later joined Chrysler Corp. He turned around the company and brought it out from the brink of bankruptcy. A splendid read indeed.

4. Train to Pakistan: Khushwant Singh -- A heart-rending story of a sleepy willage called Mano Majra on the border of India alongside Pakistan. Khushwant Singh beautifully captured the human dimension and the emotions at the time of partition.

5. Five Point Someone: Chetan Bhagat -- I know this is the odd-one out here. But believe me, this is one of the funniest book ever written. I mean it was more than successful in tickling my funny bone. Liked it coz it reminds me of my engineering days and my college buddies. and yes...I started writing (blogging) after reading this one only!

Tag Five People:

5 is a small number and there are so many to tag. I guess this queationaire is good enough to compel each and everyone of you to come up with your own list of favourites. So those who are still waiting, post soon..(Look how easy it is to preach!);-)

Cheers...