Twinkle Khanna has been unanimously hailed as the Queen of comebacks and her Twitter feed is nothing short of legendary. Her second bestselling book, “The Legend of Lakshmi Prasad”, is a collection of four short stories, each drastically different from the other. The stories are being adapted in different ways, “Padman” the movie releasing later this year is based on the story “The Sanitary Man from a Sacred Land” and we recently heard about “Salaam, Noni Appa!” being adapted into a play. We decided to put together some raving reviews for the book and Mrs Funnybones’ unmatched writing skill.
1. Pratishtha Kaura, Huffington Post
In her review, she says, “Khanna’s style is effortless and descriptive, making the reader flip through pages with ease and deliberating over the turns that characters go through, wanting to know happened next. This is something we see in both Mrs Funnybones and The Legend of Lakshmi Prasad. There are some inspiring one-liners that you want to re-read and share with others. My personal favourite part is “Women have been looking for a cape and have been handed an apron for centuries. But here was a man who wanted to help women swing their apron around, let it flutter down their backs and watch them soar through the clear blue skies.”
2. Shravanthi Kripa, Goodreads
A Goodreads review said : “This is an excellent example of a book that begs to be relished page by page. Although this book is only 200 pages long and theoretically can be read in a few hours at a stretch, the best way to read this book would be one story at a time, one day at a time. I deliberately read one story a day so that I can bask in the warm feeling of each story. It’s highly encouraging to see a mixture of Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi cultures and characters in one book. It makes the book exciting.”
Even the finance sector appreciated the book with a review stating that,“The stories are simple, uncomplicated, ‘nice, breezy reads’, but pack a smooth punch. And here lies the charm of the book—being effortless, unexaggerated and unpreachy, but still having gravitas, still touching a chord, and leaving the reader pondering.”
4. The Whimsy Bookworm
A blogpost review went on to say, “The writing is good. Khanna is a … writer with a gift for infusing even simple, everyday events with humour. This book has multiple laugh-out-loud moments. Each and every story touches your heart. They are about people- simple, common people like you and me- and you can relate to them and their struggles and journeys. Even if you can’t fully relate to some of them, you can certainly empathise with them.”
5. Voweler
The review caught the essence of the book completely by saying that, “All four stories have different impressions but the thing that’s common is the deft writing style and unmatched wit of Twinkle Khanna. It collectively makes The Legend of Lakshmi Prasad a book which makes you laugh and think simultaneously.”
6. Namrata Ganti, Juggernaut Reviews
She said, “Quirky, simply written stories with a clear meaning and strong messages. The author has a distinct style of writing and there are strong morals underlying her work. Filled with fun, well developed characters whom we can relate to and stories of everyday life that we can understand, the book makes for quite a fascinating read. It is a short book, with exactly 4 stories and can be read rather quickly. It would make a wonderful read while traveling. I think that every person should read this book as there is a lot to take away from the stories. There is much to learn and the author conveys the same without sounding preachy. Focusing on women empowerment and the important role that women play, the author has largely depicted the trials that women face in their everyday lives. I loved all the stories and cannot pick a favorite since each has their own specialty. All I can say, without giving away much about the plot lines, is that the book is definitely a pick-me-up and worth all the time spent on it!”
7. Frost at Midnight
This review talked about the importance of it’s charachters saying that,“The one absolutely great thing about The Legend of Lakshmi Prasad is that the characters in all the stories can be found in everyday life. Whether it be Noni Appa, Lakshmi or even Parul. There is a connection, an understanding of sorts that we can make with the characters. The Legend of Lakshmi Prasad is a fabulously written book. Four stories in some 200 odd pages took only a few hours to read; it is an unputdownable book.”
Perhaps one of the biggest names in the industry, the Guardian gave the book a raving review by saying,“The issues taken up by Khanna in her book of stories are nothing new. But Khanna uses an old subject with great writerly ability, infusing each story with a subtle originality. The stories speak of the plight of being a woman, as well as look at the world from the standpoint of a suffering male. It’s not easy for a writer to make that switch between genders as seamlessly as Khanna does. And that’s what makes her book definitely worth a read.”
9. Vogue
Everyone’s favourite fashion magazine had lots to say – “The new stories are stamped with some familiar hallmarks—they’re told with a warm heart, good humour and a sharp eye for injustice. They also tell us how expansive. Khanna’s imagination is, taking us away from the relatively small circle of home, family and friends in which she and Mrs Funnybones live. They go to small-town India and into stifling, crowded homes: they feature old women finding love, young women cutting themselves on the sharp edges of life, and girls who come up swinging against bullies again and again.”
10. Asian Age
They considered the book to be like stories by a friendly neighbour stating that, “There is something about Tina Khanna. She is as uncomplicated as her writing…There is no attempt to impress and Tina’s voice is as friendly as your next door neighbour.”
Have you read The Legend of Lakshmi Prasad yet? Share your review with us too!