Sunday, January 31, 2016

Book Review : Ramayana The Game of Life – Stolen Hope (Shubha Vilas)

About the Book
In the evil labyrinths of Dandakaranya forest, human values are put to test. Rama’s righteousness, Lakshmana’s loyalty and Sita’s endurance reflect our own sense of values and judgment in difficult times. The story unfolds the facets of human life – the conflict and trickery, the praise, the slander and above all, the hope and the despair in the eventful forest life of exiled royals.
Stolen Hope is about extreme deception and extreme love. It is about arrogant power and deep devotion. With every twist and turn, Rama, Sita and Lakshmana find themselves robbed of whatever and whoever they valued the most.
Exploring the dynamics of human relations – between father and son, husband and wife, teacher and disciple – and the complex game of power and greed, Stolen Hope mirrors our own dilemmas in the modern world and teaches us how we must overcome them.Seek courage when everything, including hope, is stolen.

What I think about the book ! 
Did you know why the custard apple is called as Sitaphal or why don’t squirrels get hurt when they fall from heights or why the snakes have a forked tongue… Well! I know now… All this and much more wisdom in the third book of the Ramayana The Game of Life…
                
Aptly titled as the Stolen Hope, it takes you on a mystical journey with Ram, Sita and Laxman and stops at a point where you are craving to read more - a point where Ram's hope, his wife is stolen from him and he starts his journey to find her.

I haven’t read the first two parts and let me tell you, it’s a big miss. As the author writes –
If you haven’t read the first two books in the series, it doesn’t matter. When you bite into a cake, it hardly matters where you begin.
But believe me when I say this, you’d really want to read the whole series, now that you have read this one.

The book describes how being in exile shapes the lives of Ram, Sita and Laxmana. The descriptions are beautiful. You get a peek into the lives of sages and demons together. There are short stories about different people stitched together. Not just is the writing good, what also adds to it are the explanations or the hidden meanings which you can actually apply in real life. Initially, I found the tag-lines and references a hindrance to the fast reading I do, but a page or two later, I was looking forward to read them.. to read between the lines.
What also needs a mention is the deer in the footer of the book.. On the last page of the book the deer is shown with a struck arrow portraying Maricha…


I am happy to get this autographed book.. and beyond doubt I am reading the first two books and getting the other as soon as they are published… A must read guys! 

This review is a part of the biggest Book Review Program for IndianBloggers. Participate now to get free books!

No comments:

Post a Comment

Moments to cherish!

 When Veer was really little and wanted to nap he would climb in my lap and hold onto my neck. In a sitting position and holding me tight, h...