Life has become fast and busy for people nowadays. People hardly find time to let out the child in them to play and relish. The habit of reading books had also faded away with time. Anyone will honestly admit the amount of pleasure they acquire from reading books. The books connect the reader to any world virtually, with its magical rapport. Whatever maybe the technological advancements present to keep a man engaged throughout the day, it doesn’t equal the pleasure of curling on your bed and reading a book.
Karan Hesse’s “The Music of Dolphins” creates an emotional attachment between the character and the reader. This book is in simple English and offers a fantastic reading experience. Ben Okri, a native of Nigeria has acclaimed a position for himself internationally with his books about his country people’s struggle during civil war. Books of Charles Dickens have kept busy the younger generation of the world sticking to his literary works for many decades. Jeanne Rowling of Britain has awed the world with her Harry Potter series which have been the best sold books in the history of novels. Her Harry Potter series has been the mantra of children for nearly a decade all over the world. “The Casual Vacancy”, a book for adults by JK Rowling is eagerly awaited for its release on September 27 of this year.
Indian authors also share the limelight in the global arena. Four Indians have won the Booker’s prize since 1981. Salman Rushdie has shown his brilliance in writing with the book Midnight’s Children, a story about the transition of India from the time of independence. Kiran Desai’s “The Inheritance of Loss”, Arundhati Roy’s “God of Small Things” and Aravind Adiga’s “The White Tiger” have all been internationally acclaimed. The above works are written in a distinctive style and especially the “God of Small Things” which is not a sequential narration but a patchwork of flashbacks. One should really give a try to these books which will surely have an impression on the reader.
The distinguished and veteran writers like Rabindranath Tagore, R.K.Narayan, Vikram Seth, and Khushwant Singh and lot many have inspired the Indians readers for a generation. Mulk Raj Anand who mostly wrote about the lower caste people and their sufferings was an important writer who has been aptly named “The Charles Dickens of India”. Former President Abdul Kalam has also contributed a significant part to the society especially to the youth with his books which exhibit patriotism. Some of his books are “Scientist to President”, “Ignited Minds”, and “Wings of Fire”. Ruskin Bond, a Sahitya Akademi awardee is a top novelist and also a children’s author. He is famous for his short.
The sensation of the decade has been the books of Chetan Bhagat from Five Point Someone to Revolution 2020 which has made a niche in novel writing with its informal story narration. Some young authors have also been acclaimed nationally and internationally. Anita Desai began her prolific career with her book “The Peacock”. Her other books are “Journey to Ithaca”, “Diamond Dust”, and “The Zigzag Way”.
Writers of other genre with books other than novels are Rashmi Bansal, Ankit Fadia, Tarla Dalal and Nita Mehta. Rashmi Bansal has written a string of books about entrepreneurship which has been well received by the Indian readers and helpful to aspiring entrepreneurs. Ankit Fadia, recipient of IT Leader award and the Indo-American Society Young Achiever awardee has written lot of books on hacking. Tarla Dalal and Nita Mehta have written books about cooking. Nita Mehta has written 300 books about cooking, food and nutrition. Some of her books are “Zero Oil Cookbook”, “Cooking for Growing Children”, and “Chocolate Cookbook”.
In the recent days, even though the habit of reading books have seen a slight decline due to the technological endeavours like smart phones and tablets, the same have promises of aiding it with the advent of eBooks and online reading as hundreds of online stores for books have flourished.