allthatissim's reviews
365 reviews
The People on Platform 5, by Clare Pooley
adventurous
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
The Risk, by S.T. Abby
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Gore, Murder, and Rape
Moderate: Pedophilia
Lovelight Farms, by B.K. Borison
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Hit Refresh: The Quest to Rediscover Microsoft's Soul and Imagine a Better Future for Everyone, by Satya Nadella
4.0
Full review on: FLIPPING THROUGH THE PAGES
This book is not for everyone. It is for those who understand technology a bit and are interested in knowing the inner workings of an organization like Microsoft. Not just about Microsoft, you need to learn what a person Satya Nadella is how is reached from a small place in India to where he is today.
Now let’s move to the probable reasons as to why you should read it.
1. To know Satya Nadella’s journey from India to Microsoft
Satya Nadella’s journey is encouraging as well as powerful. His story shows us that how hard work and talent can lead you to the places you only dream about. Satya belongs to a middle-class Indian family. He talks about his life and friends in India and how his parents shaped his future to be a better human being. He was and is a big cricket enthusiast and he explained how the game of Cricket actually helped him to learn the qualities like leadership and empathy. The part where Satya told about his initial move to the US was very moving. His wife was having trouble in getting the visa and he was ready to give up his green card in case she did not get it. But luckily she got it. I was surprised to know that their first child is disabled. I can understand the difficulties that they would have faced. There were so many things to learn from Satya’s examples. He encourages you to take challenges and to listen to your heart sometime. He tells the importance of family and how it helps make your future.
2. If interested in knowing more about Microsoft and how actually Microsoft did “hit refresh”
It was fun to know the internal working of Microsoft. When Satya became the CEO, and even the years before that, Microsoft was going downwards. He took many decisions which not only changed the face of Microsoft but allowed them to transform the Microsoft completely. The decisions were not at all easy, but it was important to take those. Satya Realised that except Office, none of their products were selling as they had speculated because of the competition going on in the market from the rivals like Amazon and Apple.
Satya did many changes in the company’s culture and took a complete 180 degrees turn (Hit Refresh) to not only encourage the employee’s satisfaction but also encouraged them to have more empathy. He encouraged them to learn more, to ask questions and to participate fully.
3. If you want to know what actually goes behind successful companies and their struggles
This is not a hidden fact that so much politics go inside big companies like Microsoft. It was amazing to know the work culture of Microsoft, its various work programmes, its team divisions and inside details. If you are someone who likes to join Microsoft someday or is simply fascinated by it, you would find it particularly interesting. It doesn’t matter how big is an organization. There is always a room for more improvement and growth. Microsoft was too lenient a few years ago and employees were unsatisfied. Satya tried to change this and thus helped Microsoft to come out of the difficult phase.
4. If you are a tech person or love technology
Oh yes! If you simply love technology you should read this whether you are in a technical field or not. Satya has talked about many technologies which I was amazed to hear for the first time. There was seriously so much to learn about the new products that Microsoft is making or the current projects they are working on. I had heard many of the names before, but I had never gone into the details of things like quantum computing and artificial intelligence. But Satya’s words will take you on that amazing journey. As per him, currently there are three big technology trends: artificial intelligence, mixed reality and quantum computing and they have to work towards making a hold on those.
5. If you want to learn the basic importance of leadership, empathy, equation of trust etc.
This was my favourite part of the book. It was more like a moral teaching. Satya told that in today’s world we should try to make friends even with our enemies. He describes how partnerships with companies like Samsung, Adobe and Apple have provided benefits to Microsoft and have given future alliances to strengthen themselves with a clear focus. With making the enemies friends (fre-enemies) often we can get profits in some fields, if not at all. He talked about the importance of leadership and how that leadership quality helped him to overcome the failure that Microsoft was going towards.
Final Thoughts
There is a lot to learn from this book. Not only you can learn many things about Satya himself, but also about the Microsoft’s journey and the changes, it incorporated in order to survive. This book can get a little technical in between. But if you are a technology enthusiast you should definitely read this. You should read this to understand how technology is going to change and is going to affect YOU and what role you can play into this.
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This book is not for everyone. It is for those who understand technology a bit and are interested in knowing the inner workings of an organization like Microsoft. Not just about Microsoft, you need to learn what a person Satya Nadella is how is reached from a small place in India to where he is today.
Now let’s move to the probable reasons as to why you should read it.
1. To know Satya Nadella’s journey from India to Microsoft
Satya Nadella’s journey is encouraging as well as powerful. His story shows us that how hard work and talent can lead you to the places you only dream about. Satya belongs to a middle-class Indian family. He talks about his life and friends in India and how his parents shaped his future to be a better human being. He was and is a big cricket enthusiast and he explained how the game of Cricket actually helped him to learn the qualities like leadership and empathy. The part where Satya told about his initial move to the US was very moving. His wife was having trouble in getting the visa and he was ready to give up his green card in case she did not get it. But luckily she got it. I was surprised to know that their first child is disabled. I can understand the difficulties that they would have faced. There were so many things to learn from Satya’s examples. He encourages you to take challenges and to listen to your heart sometime. He tells the importance of family and how it helps make your future.
2. If interested in knowing more about Microsoft and how actually Microsoft did “hit refresh”
It was fun to know the internal working of Microsoft. When Satya became the CEO, and even the years before that, Microsoft was going downwards. He took many decisions which not only changed the face of Microsoft but allowed them to transform the Microsoft completely. The decisions were not at all easy, but it was important to take those. Satya Realised that except Office, none of their products were selling as they had speculated because of the competition going on in the market from the rivals like Amazon and Apple.
Satya did many changes in the company’s culture and took a complete 180 degrees turn (Hit Refresh) to not only encourage the employee’s satisfaction but also encouraged them to have more empathy. He encouraged them to learn more, to ask questions and to participate fully.
3. If you want to know what actually goes behind successful companies and their struggles
This is not a hidden fact that so much politics go inside big companies like Microsoft. It was amazing to know the work culture of Microsoft, its various work programmes, its team divisions and inside details. If you are someone who likes to join Microsoft someday or is simply fascinated by it, you would find it particularly interesting. It doesn’t matter how big is an organization. There is always a room for more improvement and growth. Microsoft was too lenient a few years ago and employees were unsatisfied. Satya tried to change this and thus helped Microsoft to come out of the difficult phase.
4. If you are a tech person or love technology
Oh yes! If you simply love technology you should read this whether you are in a technical field or not. Satya has talked about many technologies which I was amazed to hear for the first time. There was seriously so much to learn about the new products that Microsoft is making or the current projects they are working on. I had heard many of the names before, but I had never gone into the details of things like quantum computing and artificial intelligence. But Satya’s words will take you on that amazing journey. As per him, currently there are three big technology trends: artificial intelligence, mixed reality and quantum computing and they have to work towards making a hold on those.
5. If you want to learn the basic importance of leadership, empathy, equation of trust etc.
This was my favourite part of the book. It was more like a moral teaching. Satya told that in today’s world we should try to make friends even with our enemies. He describes how partnerships with companies like Samsung, Adobe and Apple have provided benefits to Microsoft and have given future alliances to strengthen themselves with a clear focus. With making the enemies friends (fre-enemies) often we can get profits in some fields, if not at all. He talked about the importance of leadership and how that leadership quality helped him to overcome the failure that Microsoft was going towards.
Final Thoughts
There is a lot to learn from this book. Not only you can learn many things about Satya himself, but also about the Microsoft’s journey and the changes, it incorporated in order to survive. This book can get a little technical in between. But if you are a technology enthusiast you should definitely read this. You should read this to understand how technology is going to change and is going to affect YOU and what role you can play into this.
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A window to her dreams, by Harshali Singh
4.0
Full review on: FLIPPING THROUGH THE PAGES
There are some books which make you feel happy and leaves you with a light mood. Then there are a few which are on difficult topics and make you want to discuss the theme. And finally there are a few ones which neither have a difficult topic nor the entertaining one, but yet they make you question your surroundings and beliefs. [b:A window to her dreams|33290207|A window to her dreams|Harshali Singh|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1481204123s/33290207.jpg|54020190] falls in the last category.
This book offers a sensitive theme underlying a simple looking story. And that being said, the theme is – Emotional and physical abuse in a marriage and living your life beyond it. Yes, you read it right! If you look at the cover and the title, you would think it as a simple story. Yes, I agree, the story is simple but behind that simplicity underlies the darkest truth of our society (basically the Indian society) and the condition of women in it.
This is a story about Aruna, a young divorcee, who marries Bhuvan. Bhuvan is a simple man who loved Aruna since the college days. Though married again, Aruna was not able to forget his first marriage which was abusive. Her first husband Rafi abused her physically as well as emotionally and that created a long-lasting effect on Aruna. She expected Bhuvan to behave exactly like Rafi and was not able to feel secure no matter how hard Bhuvan tried to make her feel. Their marriage was at stake. Will Bhuvan and Aruna be able to save their marriage? Would Aruna be able to leave her past behind and see Bhuvan as a different person? To know answers to these questions you need to read this book.
Many of the Indian readers can connect with it instantly as the script is similar to a Bollywood movie in many aspects. What makes it different is the narrator! The narrator is not a typical person, but it is the Haveli! Yes, the Haveli in which Aruna’s family was living. Now that is totally different, isn’t it? Imagine a house telling its own story, telling what secrets it has confined in its walls, the stories of all the generations that lived in it. This point was really interesting.
The underlying theme of the story is that of domestic abuse. In a country like India, it is a common topic. I feel ashamed while writing this, but this is the truth. Domestic abuse is a topic about which we hear stories on the daily basis and Harshali Singh has managed to portray those things perfectly. Rafi, Aruna’s ex-husband always treated her like dirt. She was not even allowed to go her parents’ house without his permission and if she did so, she was beaten by him. Rafi had wrong intentions about Aruna’s younger sister Bhavya which ultimately broke their marriage and also created a wall between Bhavya and her family. Harshali Singh has perfectly captured the feelings of a person who was in an abusive relationship.
This story also tells the struggles of a middle-class family especially if the family has so many children. Here Aruna had 5 siblings and we can imagine how difficult it would have been for her parents to manage the family within the income of a single person. Harshali Singh has beautifully described all their struggles and make us feel what it is to be grown in a large family.
When we reach halfway through the book, then we came to know more about Dheeraj, Aruna’s brother. Dheeraj wanted to be a chef but like a typical Indian family, it was a profession considered to be for females so Dheeraj’s father didn’t allow him to do so. Instead, he wanted him to continue working on his Saree shop. The author has portrayed another issue here that still exists in the Indian society – Children are not allowed to do whatever they want. It is like a taboo in Indian society that a few professions are more suitable for girls than boys and vice-versa. I can’t see why this differentiation? Any job is not defined by a gender role but this discrimination still exists.
Apart from this, it was also portrayed how important it is, in our society, for women to have a son. This is a really disgusting thing that still exists in our society. if a woman can’t bear a son then she would not get the respect she needed and Harshali Singh has written very wisely about it.
A unique thing that Harshali Singh included in this story was a disabled character. Now, tell me, how many Indian stories you have read where the author includes such a character? Not many, I guess? Here that character was Aruna’s second younger sister Charu, who was blind. But the thing to be applauded here is that besides this disability, Uma doesn’t let her daughter be left behind. Instead, Charu gets out of the city and persuaded to follow her dreams similar to Bhavya. This is a really great emphasis shown on the strength of women.
Apart from these good parts of the story, obviously there were faults too. It was hard for me to get into the story from the beginning. There were a lot of good vocabulary used so it would not be suitable for the beginners.
Sometimes it felt that there were unnecessary descriptions. At some places, those descriptions were filling the pages and I felt that the story could not have been affected if those were missing. Also, there were so many characters involved in the story which made it confusing sometimes. Each chapter was dedicated to the story of a different character so it was little difficult to regain the reading flow.
The end of the story was totally in a typical Bollywood movie style and it felt unreal. Though I expected a good ending but nothing like a typical end.
Final thoughts:
---------------
[b:A window to her dreams|33290207|A window to her dreams|Harshali Singh|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1481204123s/33290207.jpg|54020190] is a heroic tale of a woman fighting from her past and growing out of her abusive relationship. It is a story of courage and determination. With amazing descriptions, it clearly depicts what it feels like to be in an abusive relationship. If you want to read a story about a survivor then I would definitely recommend it. You won’t feel like you are reading a debut novel of the author [a:Harshali Singh|16171119|Harshali Singh|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png].
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There are some books which make you feel happy and leaves you with a light mood. Then there are a few which are on difficult topics and make you want to discuss the theme. And finally there are a few ones which neither have a difficult topic nor the entertaining one, but yet they make you question your surroundings and beliefs. [b:A window to her dreams|33290207|A window to her dreams|Harshali Singh|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1481204123s/33290207.jpg|54020190] falls in the last category.
This book offers a sensitive theme underlying a simple looking story. And that being said, the theme is – Emotional and physical abuse in a marriage and living your life beyond it. Yes, you read it right! If you look at the cover and the title, you would think it as a simple story. Yes, I agree, the story is simple but behind that simplicity underlies the darkest truth of our society (basically the Indian society) and the condition of women in it.
This is a story about Aruna, a young divorcee, who marries Bhuvan. Bhuvan is a simple man who loved Aruna since the college days. Though married again, Aruna was not able to forget his first marriage which was abusive. Her first husband Rafi abused her physically as well as emotionally and that created a long-lasting effect on Aruna. She expected Bhuvan to behave exactly like Rafi and was not able to feel secure no matter how hard Bhuvan tried to make her feel. Their marriage was at stake. Will Bhuvan and Aruna be able to save their marriage? Would Aruna be able to leave her past behind and see Bhuvan as a different person? To know answers to these questions you need to read this book.
Many of the Indian readers can connect with it instantly as the script is similar to a Bollywood movie in many aspects. What makes it different is the narrator! The narrator is not a typical person, but it is the Haveli! Yes, the Haveli in which Aruna’s family was living. Now that is totally different, isn’t it? Imagine a house telling its own story, telling what secrets it has confined in its walls, the stories of all the generations that lived in it. This point was really interesting.
The underlying theme of the story is that of domestic abuse. In a country like India, it is a common topic. I feel ashamed while writing this, but this is the truth. Domestic abuse is a topic about which we hear stories on the daily basis and Harshali Singh has managed to portray those things perfectly. Rafi, Aruna’s ex-husband always treated her like dirt. She was not even allowed to go her parents’ house without his permission and if she did so, she was beaten by him. Rafi had wrong intentions about Aruna’s younger sister Bhavya which ultimately broke their marriage and also created a wall between Bhavya and her family. Harshali Singh has perfectly captured the feelings of a person who was in an abusive relationship.
This story also tells the struggles of a middle-class family especially if the family has so many children. Here Aruna had 5 siblings and we can imagine how difficult it would have been for her parents to manage the family within the income of a single person. Harshali Singh has beautifully described all their struggles and make us feel what it is to be grown in a large family.
When we reach halfway through the book, then we came to know more about Dheeraj, Aruna’s brother. Dheeraj wanted to be a chef but like a typical Indian family, it was a profession considered to be for females so Dheeraj’s father didn’t allow him to do so. Instead, he wanted him to continue working on his Saree shop. The author has portrayed another issue here that still exists in the Indian society – Children are not allowed to do whatever they want. It is like a taboo in Indian society that a few professions are more suitable for girls than boys and vice-versa. I can’t see why this differentiation? Any job is not defined by a gender role but this discrimination still exists.
Apart from this, it was also portrayed how important it is, in our society, for women to have a son. This is a really disgusting thing that still exists in our society. if a woman can’t bear a son then she would not get the respect she needed and Harshali Singh has written very wisely about it.
A unique thing that Harshali Singh included in this story was a disabled character. Now, tell me, how many Indian stories you have read where the author includes such a character? Not many, I guess? Here that character was Aruna’s second younger sister Charu, who was blind. But the thing to be applauded here is that besides this disability, Uma doesn’t let her daughter be left behind. Instead, Charu gets out of the city and persuaded to follow her dreams similar to Bhavya. This is a really great emphasis shown on the strength of women.
Apart from these good parts of the story, obviously there were faults too. It was hard for me to get into the story from the beginning. There were a lot of good vocabulary used so it would not be suitable for the beginners.
Sometimes it felt that there were unnecessary descriptions. At some places, those descriptions were filling the pages and I felt that the story could not have been affected if those were missing. Also, there were so many characters involved in the story which made it confusing sometimes. Each chapter was dedicated to the story of a different character so it was little difficult to regain the reading flow.
The end of the story was totally in a typical Bollywood movie style and it felt unreal. Though I expected a good ending but nothing like a typical end.
Final thoughts:
---------------
[b:A window to her dreams|33290207|A window to her dreams|Harshali Singh|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1481204123s/33290207.jpg|54020190] is a heroic tale of a woman fighting from her past and growing out of her abusive relationship. It is a story of courage and determination. With amazing descriptions, it clearly depicts what it feels like to be in an abusive relationship. If you want to read a story about a survivor then I would definitely recommend it. You won’t feel like you are reading a debut novel of the author [a:Harshali Singh|16171119|Harshali Singh|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png].
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Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows, by Balli Kaur Jaswal
5.0
Full review on: FLIPPING THRU THE PAGES
Actual rating: 4.5 stars
Before reading any further, just keep one thing in mind: This book is NOT just what the title says! I know, whenever anyone sees this title, the first thing that comes to mind is that it contains just the erotic stories. So if anyone doesn’t read Erotica, (s)he will certainly not pick this. Even, I thought so in the place but since I like reading Erotica, I didn’t mind. But today, when I am writing this review, I am really happy that I read this book. It has some erotic stories but yet it is a tale of self-being and expressing your desires openly. This book has so much going on beyond the steamy title.
I think in the title, it should be “by” instead of “for” because the stories are not for the Punjabi widows rather they have been told by them. These women told their stories of their personal experiences. Some of them were even imaginative enough to put the spark of their own creations. In either way, they portrayed their hidden desires. Hidden because the community in which they lived, was not that open minded to talk about these things.
Being an Indian, I can understand the thought process of Balli Kaur Jaswal behind writing this novel. A widow in our society is not accepted as she is supposed to be. There are so-called certain rules that the widows should follow – what to wear, how to behave, where to go etc. Their life is not as free as one can think. So in those conditions, they are often left lonely and disguised. Having sexual desires is not a crime but for those women, even thinking about those things is a disaster. So when these women found such type of class being run, even more, such ladies gather there and were eager to listen and share the stories. they may have moved from India, but the Indian taboos were still haunting them.
I must admit there ARE erotic stories. But the stories are in a pattern and not like the whole chapter is about those stories. Almost all the stories are just 2-3 pages long within the chapters. So even if you are not comfortable with reading erotica, you can simply skip the story and can progress with the rest of the chapter.
Through these stories, Balli Kaur Jaswal has tried to tell the various relationships of a woman within and outside the family. She has tried to show how women are projected and what they are supposed to be. The conclusion of this novel or we can say the hidden story is about the honor killing. Can you believe that even in 21st century, we, especially the Indian community, are not free of it? We have moved out of India, have changed our status, switched so many places, have achieved multiple things and yet here we are. If not all, some of the communities are certainly carrying this horrific thing. And even the worst thing is “moral police brigade". I mean who are these people to judge anyone’s character and take control of the women in society? It is really shocking to know that this kind of things still exists.
Jaswal has also shown the struggle of second-generation immigrants. Since they are living abroad from their childhood, they are used to that society and often struggles to cope up with their parents having the first-generation mindset. Same was the case with Nikki. She had different views from her parents and thus had a conflicted relationship with them. She was against arrange marriage and was not able to understand how her sister can agree to that. She quits the career path that her father chose for her and rather she wanted to make her own way.
This novel also depicts that everyone has secret desires whether they say it or not. When those stories go out and many people get their hands on them, it was revealed that even those people were enjoying those stories who wouldn’t have come forward otherwise. Also, many of these sparked the romance between couples especially between Kulwinder and her husband, who otherwise was still mourning over the death of their daughter Maya.
Except for Nikki and Kulwinder, there are so many other characters that are equally interesting. Jaswal has maintained the integrity of each character perfectly. Once you start this book, you can easily immerse into it. The writing is very easy to understand and the reader doesn’t lose interest anytime. Author has cleverly used some Punjabi words into the story but they didn’t go out of the context anytime. You can actually imagine yourself at Southall while reading it (I actually did!). This book will offer you so much – erotic stories, romances, generation clashes, family complications, gender challenges, and even honor killing with an unsolved crime. This book also presents an interesting documentation of Indian culture that exists in Punjab.
==============================================
This novel is hilarious and thought-provoking. It is dark yet heartwarming. Once you get into the story then it is a full-on page turner. It is not just about romance and erotica but is a story of female empowerment depicting the feminism current. This is about finding the courage to express your sexuality and to be more independent. It is about love, betrayal, courage, family and friendship. An absolutely wonderful book that I highly recommend. Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows is about discovering you.
I absolutely loved this book and can’t recommend it enough. If you are fine with reading a little bit of erotica, then I would definitely ask you to read this 🙂 Trust me, you won’t be disappointed.
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest | Amazon
Actual rating: 4.5 stars
Before reading any further, just keep one thing in mind: This book is NOT just what the title says! I know, whenever anyone sees this title, the first thing that comes to mind is that it contains just the erotic stories. So if anyone doesn’t read Erotica, (s)he will certainly not pick this. Even, I thought so in the place but since I like reading Erotica, I didn’t mind. But today, when I am writing this review, I am really happy that I read this book. It has some erotic stories but yet it is a tale of self-being and expressing your desires openly. This book has so much going on beyond the steamy title.
I think in the title, it should be “by” instead of “for” because the stories are not for the Punjabi widows rather they have been told by them. These women told their stories of their personal experiences. Some of them were even imaginative enough to put the spark of their own creations. In either way, they portrayed their hidden desires. Hidden because the community in which they lived, was not that open minded to talk about these things.
Being an Indian, I can understand the thought process of Balli Kaur Jaswal behind writing this novel. A widow in our society is not accepted as she is supposed to be. There are so-called certain rules that the widows should follow – what to wear, how to behave, where to go etc. Their life is not as free as one can think. So in those conditions, they are often left lonely and disguised. Having sexual desires is not a crime but for those women, even thinking about those things is a disaster. So when these women found such type of class being run, even more, such ladies gather there and were eager to listen and share the stories. they may have moved from India, but the Indian taboos were still haunting them.
I must admit there ARE erotic stories. But the stories are in a pattern and not like the whole chapter is about those stories. Almost all the stories are just 2-3 pages long within the chapters. So even if you are not comfortable with reading erotica, you can simply skip the story and can progress with the rest of the chapter.
Through these stories, Balli Kaur Jaswal has tried to tell the various relationships of a woman within and outside the family. She has tried to show how women are projected and what they are supposed to be. The conclusion of this novel or we can say the hidden story is about the honor killing. Can you believe that even in 21st century, we, especially the Indian community, are not free of it? We have moved out of India, have changed our status, switched so many places, have achieved multiple things and yet here we are. If not all, some of the communities are certainly carrying this horrific thing. And even the worst thing is “moral police brigade". I mean who are these people to judge anyone’s character and take control of the women in society? It is really shocking to know that this kind of things still exists.
Jaswal has also shown the struggle of second-generation immigrants. Since they are living abroad from their childhood, they are used to that society and often struggles to cope up with their parents having the first-generation mindset. Same was the case with Nikki. She had different views from her parents and thus had a conflicted relationship with them. She was against arrange marriage and was not able to understand how her sister can agree to that. She quits the career path that her father chose for her and rather she wanted to make her own way.
This novel also depicts that everyone has secret desires whether they say it or not. When those stories go out and many people get their hands on them, it was revealed that even those people were enjoying those stories who wouldn’t have come forward otherwise. Also, many of these sparked the romance between couples especially between Kulwinder and her husband, who otherwise was still mourning over the death of their daughter Maya.
Except for Nikki and Kulwinder, there are so many other characters that are equally interesting. Jaswal has maintained the integrity of each character perfectly. Once you start this book, you can easily immerse into it. The writing is very easy to understand and the reader doesn’t lose interest anytime. Author has cleverly used some Punjabi words into the story but they didn’t go out of the context anytime. You can actually imagine yourself at Southall while reading it (I actually did!). This book will offer you so much – erotic stories, romances, generation clashes, family complications, gender challenges, and even honor killing with an unsolved crime. This book also presents an interesting documentation of Indian culture that exists in Punjab.
==============================================
This novel is hilarious and thought-provoking. It is dark yet heartwarming. Once you get into the story then it is a full-on page turner. It is not just about romance and erotica but is a story of female empowerment depicting the feminism current. This is about finding the courage to express your sexuality and to be more independent. It is about love, betrayal, courage, family and friendship. An absolutely wonderful book that I highly recommend. Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows is about discovering you.
I absolutely loved this book and can’t recommend it enough. If you are fine with reading a little bit of erotica, then I would definitely ask you to read this 🙂 Trust me, you won’t be disappointed.
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest | Amazon