SlishaCrazy

It has been a while since I last wrote here. In that time, life has expanded in the most miraculous (and chaotic) way: babies. With a tiny months old baby and a delightful toddler whose energy and curiosity never run out. Between feedings, nappy changes, and endless rounds of “why?” questions, I’ve discovered that "my time" is no longer mine to manage, but theirs to gift me in scraps. And yet, in those borrowed scraps of time, I still reach for books. Not as often, not as deeply as before—but enough to remind myself that the part of me who loved getting lost in stories still exists. Here’s what my reading life looks like these days: Bite reads: I’ve learned the art of dipping into books in the oddest moments—standing in the kitchen waiting for a bottle to cool, or sneaking a page while one child naps on me and the other builds a Lego tower. I used to devour chapters in one sitting; now I nibble, and somehow, even that feels satisfying. I did this kind of reading o...

Our collective memories are short and even the worst crisis becomes forgotten history in a matter of weeks. Even after covid restrictions plagued the entire world for months on end, any opportunity for normalcy was quickly grabbed earnestly. Travel was one such.  I don't know when the travel bug bit me. But I suppose when you move to a small island no longer than 1,000km, no wider than 500km; when you are 8,000km from your hometown; and when your only sibling lives another 8,000km away in the opposite direction, you become a traveller.  After a day trip to Frankfurt on business in February 2020, planes, and plans, were literally grounded because of the mysterious new highly infectious virus that reached every part of this well connected world that we live in. I remained in the same country for 597 days. This is the longest I have stayed in any country after my very first international trip (to London) in 2010. (I know this because I have a nifty little Excel file with all my t...

안녕하세요, 잘지내있어요? As the year ends, I want to leave you with some kdrama that I watched this year and liked... Alchemy of Souls Fantasy done well! It carries an interesting concept of immortality through the souls jumping from body to body, but each jump exacting a toll on the soul. Who doesn't want to live forever? It also shows the warring families of magic in an intricate plot. My only issue - Netflix managed to make it a two season story! Extraordinary attorney Woo Such a wonderful feel good show. It's interesting and heart-warming. Watch it for Park Eun-bin in yet another standout performance (after a female 'king' in King's Affection last year).  Twenty five Twenty one A nostalgic trip down memory lane, filled with comic books, rental libraries, clunky cellphones, sports rivalries and school friendships as well as childhood crushes. And Kim Tae-ri shines in any role she slips into. Reborn rich ( 재벌집 막내아들 or the youngest son of a congl...

Maintaining consistency...        After reading 51 books against a target of 50 in 2019, 34 of 35 in 2020 and 30 of 30 in 2021 , this year I had planned to read 33 books but a huge life change had set me back in my reading journey, finishing at 75%.  Ending the year at 25 books, here is a complete list along with covers of the books I would recommend.  Book 1. How Beautiful We Were by Imbolo Mbue: I've watched so many Telugu movies on big corporates ruining villages. But it feels raw and unnerving to read the story in the privileged language of English. It's fiction, but not. How we ruin the land, water and air will live on!  Book 2. Second Place by Rachel Cusk: It is a short book that I found difficult to finish. It received a lot of praise on the way it tackles male privilege. But I didn't understand that. To me, it was a woman's midlife crisis written up like an old English letter to some Jeffers. Book 3. The First Woman by Jennifer Nan...

To get back into reading, I set myself a nearly unachievable target in 2019 - to read 50 books. I read 51 brilliant books . But it also took away every spare minute I had. So in 2020, I set out to read only 35 books and I ended at 34 . This year, I set myself and even more achievable target - 30 books. And I completed it. Most importantly, I got the joy of reading back. Reading for the sake of reading and not to finish up any certain number. Here's the list, with a snapshot review of each. Book 1. I start this year with a delightful retelling of the Ramayana, Sita by Devdutt Pattanaik. It's possibly the tale most retold inspiring folksongs everywhere. The author draws out versions from different parts of India and South East Asia, gathering tidbits of stories together. Book 2. Oranges in a No Man's Land by Elizabeth Laird: It's a beautiful story of a young girl's matter-of-fact bravery in war-torn Beirut. What makes it special is not that it's from a ...

Annyeonghaseyo!   This post is the second in a series of posts on kdrama. Previously published:  What's the Kdrama craze In this post, I wanted to share with you, my Kdrama recommendations. Oh! Yet another kdrama list I hear you say? I hope this one is slightly different. The many lists that I have read seemed too focused on romance, missing some wonderful Kdramas and instead, recommending clichéd stuff.           Sure, kdrama is most famous for romance. But  it is essentially an industry with a range of genres. And what you like depends on what type of drama you usually like. That's why I thought it's best to approach this by genres. I hope it provides inspiration for newbies, nostalgia for the veterans, and comradery for the rest of us inbetweeners.  Here are my top recommendations under each genre. I've also given the MDL rating, the IMDB rating and the year of release for each.  TLDR, 3 choice picks : Flower of Evil, Mr Sunshine an...

  Annyeonghaseyo!  (Hello!)  This is the first in a series of posts on Kdrama. The second post: My Kdrama Picks Like everyone else across the world, I discovered Korean TV shows or Kdrama during COVID lockdowns. And like everything else that I do, I watched them with passion. Apparently, I am not alone, in watching it with passion. Thousands went down the rabbit hole, that for me, started with Crash Landing on You. Undoubtedly Kdrama is awesome, evident from the international popularity it currently commands. The lockdown propelled it from a sub-culture into the mainstream and youtuber / influencers recently have started throwing Korean words at us. Popular kdramas are now being dubbed into many different languages including Hindi, and it is also influencing fashion and beauty (Kdrama is really good at product placement). So what makes Kdramas awesome: 1. The writing is sensitive.... and the characters are fleshed out, doing justice to even the smallest of the...