Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls

“My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humour, and some style.”

Maya Angelou, writer

Hardback and colourful, Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls is a highly attractive book for the kiddies, young girls, and adults alike. From Ada Lovelace to the Bronte sisters; from the pharaoh like Cleopatra to the chef like Julia Child; this amazing book tells the 100 tales of extraordinary women.

Where the book presents each tale with an amusing illustration (by sixty female artists), it also highlights the charismatic qualities of head and heart of those exquisite women who have not only changed their own world but also the world of people around them. Be it, Margret Thatcher, aka The Iron Lady, who tried for the British Parliament twice but couldn’t make it and the third time, was not even considered. But when she was elected as the first female prime minister in the British history she was highly admired for her strength and determination. Or Mary Anning, the self-taught scientist (palaeontologists) who discovered the dinosaur fossil. Or Alfonsia Strada, who was barred from competing in Giro d’Italia, one of the toughest races in the world, but she did not lose her heart. She raced all the same and set a speed record that stood for twenty-six years. If she were still alive she would have been happy to know that things have changed a lot since then.

All these heroic women from Elizabeth I to Serena Williams, from a small town of Somalia to the Congress of United States of America, have somehow broken the chains of norms and freed themselves from the rusty shackles of stereotypes. Although every anecdote is beautiful and enthralling but there are some that have brought a greater change in the world and have caused easiness, comfort, and alleviation in people’s life mentioned below:

Ann Makosinski

A young girl couldn’t study when it got dark because her house had no electricity. She was passionate about the transistors. She thought, she experimented and she invented- Hollow Flashlight! She presented her gadget to the Google Science Fair and won the first prize for inventing the first flashlight that doesn’t need batteries, wind or sun; just body heat.

Now, this is not only exciting but quite motivating.

Marie Curie

Born in Poland, Marie Curie was a student of Floating University (a secret school). At that time girls were not allowed to study in colleges. Therefore, when Curie came to know about Sorbonne University which accepted girls; she moved to France. She was very fascinated by metals and magnets. She also found out that some minerals emit rays and glow in the dark. She started working on these magnificent materials of Mother Nature and discovered two new radioactive elements: Polonium and Radium.

You know what makes Marie Curie a superwoman!

Marie Curie has won two Nobel Prizes for her work. She could have made a lot of money but she did the contrary. She made her research available to everyone…for FREE!

A Nobel Prize for a noble soul. 

Maria Montessori

She knew she cannot apply the run-of-the-mill teaching methods on the disabled children. She observed the children, how they learn; created a new teaching method, and opened her own school for all children- Children’s House.

The furniture was small and light, and the shelves were low. She also developed special activity-oriented toys which encouraged children to become practical and independent, like buttoning and unbuttoning a shirt, tying a shoelace, eating and drinking without spilling etc.

Today, the Montessori Method is being followed in thousands of schools around the world making all the children strong and independent.

Isn’t it inspiring?

Rosa Parks

She was born at a time when people were divided in black and white, in Montgomery, Alabama. There were separate schools, churches, and stores for black and white. Black people were not even allowed to drink the water from the same fountain or sit beside the white people.

One day, Rosa, forty-two, was asked by the bus driver to leave her seat for a white man. Frustrated and completely dismayed by the segregation laws, Rosa said, No! Consequently, she had to spend the night in jail, but her daring act encouraged black people and they realized that they should also say no to social injustice. In support of her, the Black declared a boycott of travelling in buses. Finally, after 381 days the bus segregation law was declared unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court. It took ten more years for segregation to be wiped out in the other states.

One courageous woman and one cause: equality. She removed stones from the path so that the coming generation don’t have to stumble over them and go through all the humiliation which she tolerated.

…and the story to which I personally relate to:

Brenda Chapman

When I first watched Brave, I didn’t know the story behind the story of Merida. Reading about Brenda Chapman enabled me to see the whole movie from a different angle. As a child, Chapman loved to draw. When she was fifteen, she called Walt Disney Studios for a job. They asked her to get in touch when older and trained. She did the same and created a character of Princess Merida. Oh! Did I mention that Chapman has curly red hair! She won Oscar and Golden Globe for her film. 

And now, some of my favourite quotes from the book:

“No matter what the challenges are, never walk away from your dream. The more you persist, the closer you are going to get to your goals. When things get tough, just get tougher.”

Amna Al Hadid, Weightlifter

“Some people think that luxury is the opposite of poverty. It is not it’s the opposite of vulgarity.”

Coco Chanel, Fashion Designer

 “I was brought up to believe that if a person was drowning, they must be rescued, regardless of their religion or nationality.”

Irena Sendlerowa, War Hero

Highly motivational and unputdownable this book brings a lot of strength and self-confidence to the reader. If these girls can, I can!

Some of the other noteworthy rebel girls covered in this book are:

• Ameenah Gurib-Fakim (President and Scientist)
• Amelia Earhart (Aviator)
• Florence Nightingale (Nurse)
• Frida Kahlo (Painter)
• Hellen Keller (Activist)
• Jane Austen (Writer)
• Lella Lombardi (Formula One Racer)
• Mary Kom (Boxer)
• Nina Simone (Singer)
• Ruth Bader Ginsburg (Supreme Court Justice)
• Virginia Woolf (Writer)
• Yusra Mardini (Swimmer)

And some of the best illustrations:

Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Coco Chanel

Yusra Mardini

Ada Lovelace

Margaret Hamilton

Maria Callas

Hellen Keller

The Bronte Sisters

Isabel Allende

Maria Sibylla Merian

Margret Thatcher

Simone Biles

This book teaches the girls that whatever the hurdles and obstacles they find in their way are not insurmountable. They can make their dreams come true. They can achieve whatever they long for; whether it is as tricky as mountain climbing or as complicated as getting signatures on the petition allowing women to vote, being an astronomer, a deaf motocross racer or a blind ballerina. They can change the world. And can pave the way for those who are coming after them. They can overcome all the difficulties of life by having confidence in them. They just need to dream bigger, aim higher and fight harder.

“To every little girl who dreams big, I say: yes, you can be anything you want – even president.”

Hillary Rodham Clinton

This book also highlights the fact that the success of these great women lies in their passion. I am sure that each reader will find a ray of hope, a degree of motivation and a dash of enthusiasm by these life changing stories. I did, hopefully, all the other girls out there will also.

If you are a parent do buy it for your school going daughter. If you are a girl buy it for yourself and share it with your friends. It is highly recommended and a must have book.

Karachi You Are Killing Me

Karachi You Are Killing Me by Saba Imtiaz

Fiction! And it’s about Karachi! My own loving city, Karachi – City of Lights, I have to read it.

Yes, when I came across Karachi You are Killing Me while browsing, I instantly ordered a copy from the local bookshop. I spent a good time to only scanning its title and back title. A  contrast of light blue, red and black catches one’s attention instantly. Where lipstick depicts the feminism, the gun symbolises the chaos of the city, Karachi. The next thing which pulled me was the female protagonist, living a lonely life and occupied with her career (*sigh* my story!).

Ayesha, the 20 something girl, underpaid and not appreciated by her boss (my life!) has a very severe problem of not having a BOY in her life. As the story unfolds, we come across her other problems. Through her eyes, we witness the fakeness of KLF; how it caters to a certain class; we  get the glimpses of the aftermath of a bomb blast, we realize how difficult it is to find a ‘such’ a good story first hand; what happens when a worker of the religious fundo party takes keen interest in befriending a girl in jeans.

While I read the harsh realities of Ayesha’s life, it also became evident that somehow every reader can find his/her image in any of the characters. It happens to each of us (though once in a lifetime or sometimes frequently) that our two best friends come closer and make a company and we (the victims, innocent ones, left alone) become a crowd. Some of us might have experienced the same dreadful situation when our day and night hard work becomes someone else’s efforts. Someone from us wanted shoulder of a parent to cry on and share his/her sorrows but has to cry even harder to find that the parent cares about his pet cat more.

Hey, pause here, and come back. It’s not a book that makes you nostalgic. Saba Imtiaz is not at all a pessimistic soul. Good News! The end is happy. Where the book surfaces with some serious dilemma of the karachiities in sugar coated pills, it also gives its readers small doses of laughter periodically. I am not going to ruin the story for you, by telling every part. If you want to know how the horrible and awful life of Ayesha changed into a ‘dream come true’ story, Read the Book!

Things exaggerated: the booze, night life and killing thing. Girls like me who love their jobs (though underpaid and not acknowledged for their skills) are not necessarily involved in drugs and booze. Sex, in our part of the world is not discussed as openly as Ayesha and Saad talk about or enjoy. As to myself neither I have friends who share the nightlife of Ayesha or Saad nor I know anybody who blames the killings of Karachi as the root of all the mishaps of their lives.

Inspite of all this, I like it and recommend it to all the Karachiities.

The Long Haul

As soon as I saw The Long Haul on the display I picked a copy for me. And, devoured each word within three days.

Talking of its hard copy, another pop colour, orange, which is quite attractive and appealing. At the                                  end of the book there are 2 exclusive bag tags as well to flaunt the boring bags and to show the craziness for the Wimpy Kid series.

This time Heffley family plans a ‘holiday’ so that everyone can spend a quality time with each other. As obvious, Greg was not happy at all. The holiday, planned by MOM turned out a total failure.

This time Greg’s journal entries cover the journey (ship, van), accommodation (one bed) and food (cinnamon role heheheehee) during ‘the long haul’. As always Rodrick is smarter than the wimpy kid and takes the best place to sit, to sleep and the things he likes to eat. Manny as in previous book was outstanding getting whatever he wants and the way he wants. MoM and Dad are found as meek, innocent as they were in previous book. So, I was expecting hilarious and fun read. But, found a lackness of punches comparing to the previous books.

It can be said that since Greg is maturing therefore, encountering less hilarious situations. Though, the ‘pig’ scene, the hairy family, Rodrick sock (yuck) scene, which reminded me of “cheese touch” of Book 1, were written well.

On the whole, I enjoyed the book but not as much as The Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Rodrick Rules, Dog Days.

I missed Rowley 😦

I missed all the school scenes *sigh*

If you have read all the “Wimpy” books than do read so that you can flaunt your record :p

Goggle-Eyes

I don’t know why I did not come across Anne Fine before.

While wandering in a book shop in search of something good to read I discovered fresh stock of Anne Fine’s titles. With loud colours and quirky illustrations Anne Fine’s “goggle eyes” caught my attention instantly. And, after reading the back blurb I decided to get lost in it.

Anne Fine writes for teen-agers; a little late for me as I have crossed that phase a long ago (it’s not my mistake I didn’t know about Anne Fine those days). Written in a first person narrative, Goggle-Eyes is a story of a girl, Kitty, whose mother’s attention diverts to her new boyfriend, Gerald Faulkner aka goggle eyes. And, to her dismay, her sister Judith also develops liking for him.

The novel starts with Helly (Kitty’s classmate), crying and talking to nobody. Mrs. Lupey, the teacher, knowing why Helly is upset, instructs Kitty to accompany her when Helly runs out from class unexpectedly. Kitty soon learns the reason of Helly’s mad behavior and soothes her by telling her very own story.

Kitty and her sister, Jude lives with their mother happily though their parents are separated. It’s not the first time that her mother is having a boyfriend but this time it’s someone for whom Rosalind, Kitty’s mother, neglects her children which makes Kitty offensive towards Gerald even before getting to know him. One the other hand, Jude becomes friend of Gerald in the first meeting. The story progresses as Gerald starts interfering in Kitty’s life which makes her life terrible.

Anne has so beautifully carved the story that the reader can actually sense the feelings of Kitty. She has showed how children feel if their love is shared between their parents and some stranger. How they react to the person they don’t like but at the same time are getting close to their parents day by day. Will things get better? Will Kitty ever see Gerald out of their house? Will they be friends? What was Helly’s story? Read the book and find the answers. Mark my words: you will not regret.

This small book teaches a lot of important lesson about life. It portrays that at times few things appear ghastly but with time it is realized they are not as much horrible as we thought. It also shows the different facets of relationships and love and affection. And, shows how changing of perspective make life things better.

The language is easy, the style is simple. It is an entertaining and interesting read. Humorous, sentimental, touchy and witty, it is going to make you feel light headed, happy and contended.

I am looking forward to read more of Anne Fine.

How to get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia

Finally, I have finished reading How to get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia by Mohsin Hamid. Have read and heard a lot about this so was a little more excited than usual (also because the writer is Pakistani, so it boost my interest to read an author with whom I can connect in some way).

 

At the first glance, it appears to be a self-help book but when one snuggles into it he finds that it is a fiction novel like any other but with a very different style of narration.

If it is said that Mohsin Hamid had adopted a very new style of narration for the contemporary world of fiction, it would not be wrong. Written in a second person narrative this book deals with the life story of a man who opens his eyes in a slum and through his hard work, effort and a bit of sharpness transforms into a millionaire. During his journey he falls in love, gets married, produce a child and reaches to his final destination.

I did not find the plot something out of this world nor was the story something-not-told-before. The ‘thing’ which pulled me or kept me reading the whole book was the diction of Hamid.

Regretfully, after reading so much appreciation, it is not one of my favourites or not even a book I like but I appreciate the beauty of the language, diction and style Hamid used.

I will recommend it to those who are avid readers and enjoy a good book rather than to people like me who gets upset at the death of the protagonist or the disunion of hero and heroine.

Duty Free

Hilarious!
after a long time, I have read a comic satire and I literally thoroughly enjoyed it.

The narrator is too much funny. Although she depicts the part of our society which does not concern what is happening around them and just cares about their own well being but the way writer has shown her qualities of head and heart and the way it progressed is appreciable.

The best thing about the book is that it does not leave a lingering feeling in a readers mind. The story focuses on “match-making”for Jonkers'(narrators’s divorced cousin), her friends financial matters and her own complicated marriage and thanks to God that writer has so skilfully pened down the end of each in a satisfying way.Jonkers gets married to a person he loved, Mullo ‘s matters get resolved,and she also realizes that her husband is best for her as he always stands for her.

However, the darker side which Moni Mohsin has depicted through her sugar-coated-satire is prevalent. The Pakistani reader recognizes it, agrees to it, embarrasses on it and simultaneously laughs on it. Its a kind of dessert that you would like to eat slowly slowly, but unable to restrain yourself to devour it as it is so delicious.

On the whole, it is recommended read, very entertaining, unputdownable and LOL type book!

Cross

The book under my critical analysis is “Cross” by James Patterson. Reading James Patterson is always a good choice to me. Being a curious soul I always find Patterson offering thrill and excitement to his readers. His books are pacy, page turner and unputdownable. His tall, dark and handsome protagonist is Alex Cross, an FBI officer and psychologist. Despite the fact that he is a cop and his work involves homicide, criminals and murderers, he is a very emotional but intelligent man. The antagonist in “CROSS” is a psychopath, Butcher. The Butcher’s real name is Michael Sullivan. In his childhood he was physically abused by his father, who was a butcher by profession. In his late teens Michael kills his father and joins the Mafia. But soon Mafia realizes that he is a psycho as he mutilates the dead bodies. They decided to get rid of him. On the other hand John Sampson, Alex Cross’s childhood friend and a cop also, asks for his help in a case of serial rapist. The brute rapes the girls and threatens them to kill and disfigure them or slashing their face with scalpel in case they report the incident. No girl agrees to help in investigation as every victim was scared. Finally, a lawyer (victim) helps them out by telling them that after raping her, the man showed her few pictures in which there were dead bodies of the girls soaked in blood and disfigured. Somehow Cross makes a connection and it leads him to the time when his wife, Maria was alive and was working on the rape case as a social worker. And, apparently Maria knew something about that rapist due to which she was shot to death. From here the cat and mouse chase starts. The Butcher sandwiches between Mafia and Cross. This time it is not a usual case for Cross. This time the culprit across him is his wife’s murderer. The beauty of the story is that a reader engages in the bloody story too much that along with the Cross, he also wants Butcher to be killed by the hands of Alex Cross. As they have seen the emotional and vulnerable side of Cross throughout the novel. And, the pain he has gone through of single parenting and of loneliness. The excitements of the readers are being heightened by the brutal killings of Mafia as well. In the end, the antagonist meets his end. Though not as much awfully as I was hoping for. I am a true believer of “you shall reap what you sow”, but the villain died just like that, after savagely killing near 100 people. I was not satisfied with the end at all it could have been a lot better. In the epilogue, after sometime of the incident, Sampson comes to meet Cross and tells him that it was not Butcher who killed Maria it was some Jimmy Hats. Sampson has found it out years ago and has killed him. But he didn’t tell this to Cross knowing the fact that Cross would regret it for not doing the killing from his hands. Cross thanks Sampson for always being there for him. Throughout the novel I was following the idea that the Butcher was a murderer of Maria but somehow Jimmy Hats who did not play any particular role in the wheel of the plot was Cross’s man and Cross came to realize it after Hats’ death. It leaves the reader into a lingering position. Though the plot was good and the curiosity and excitement Patterson has created in the reader’s mind is appreciable, the end was not satisfying which makes it earn an average rate. It’s a good read if you are a fan of Patterson but the way antagonist tasted the consequences of his deeds was very abrupt. I wanted him to confess or some insight of him. It could be a lot better. Only because of the way Patterson has ended his story, I would not recommend Cross.

Rebecca

The book I am going to review is one of my favourite books, Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier. The moment I took the book in my hand I knew it that I am going to like it because of its cover, giving a dreamy plus mysterious look. But as it is said, never judge a book by its cover, I put the fondness of the cover back and entered into the dreamy realm of Rebecca.

This novel has been written in first person narrative mode and is a perfect example of Gothic Romance. The narrator (first name not mentioned throughout the book, known as Mrs. de Winter) takes the reader into her past where a reader gets to know how she met her husband Maxim (who is a widower) and who is Rebecca. The book starts with “Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again…here was Manderley, our Manderley, secretive and silent as it had always been…” makes the reader alert, as Manderley is going to play a significant role in the plot. It would not be exaggerating if it is said that the pivot of the whole story is Manderley. Rebecca’s Manderley!

Our underprivileged narrator meets a very wealthy man, Maximilian de Winter (Maxim) in Monte Carlo and marries him. Not believing her fortune, expecting a good and prosperous life she accompanies Maxim to his native mansion, Manderley. Her confidence shatters when she gets introduced with Mrs. Danvers, a very faithful servant of Rebecca, the first Mrs. de Winter, who died in a boating accident. And there starts a series of events which perplexes our very innocent and naïve narrator.

The evil Mrs. Danvers again and again reminds our narrator of Rebecca. She always tries to describe Rebecca as an ideal and undermines the narrator’s abilities. She also tries to create a gulf between the newly wedded couple by telling that Rebecca and Maxim were a perfect couple and our narrator can never replace Maxim’s first love.

Knowing the fact that she is a second girl in Maxim’s life, she loses self esteem and gets influenced by the idea that Maxim cannot forget Rebecca and still loves her perfect wife.

At the climax, Mrs. Danvers proudly confesses her profound love for Rebecca and hatred for the narrator. The following pages reveal Maxim telling Mrs. de Winter about Rebecca’s nature and his dark past.

What is Maxim’s past? How was Rebecca? What is the end?

I don’t want to kill your curiosity and ruin the taste of a mystery. Read the book and enjoy yourself. It is a must read.

The best thing about the book is a unique style of du Maurier. She ironically did not use the narrator’s or heroine’s first name ever in the whole story and titled her book as Rebecca who was dead.

At times it cast a chill over my spine at others my pulse raced. At some pages I was wide eyed and at some I was jaw dropped. But after reading it I felt contended that I read one of the finest pieces of literature.

Daddy Long Legs

Written in an epistolary style, Daddy Long Legs by Jean Webster is a young-adult fiction novel. I haven’t read an epistolary novel before so I found it quite amusing and full of fun.

Jean Webster has written those letters in such a way that while reading the letters of Judy it feels like the reader is actually reading a letter of some living and breathing girl of yesterday’s world. These letters are like a window through which the reader can peep inside Judy’s simple and trouble-free life. Another best feature of Judy’s letters is that they are also ornamented with the small doodles of Judy which are quite pleasing.

As the title suggests this is not at all about a spider. Instead it is about a free-spirited orphan girl, Jerusha Abbott. Though reading about orphans always remind me of Charles Dickens novels and his gloomy and unprivileged protagonists but this book is in complete contrast to the world of Dickens. Jerusha aka Judy is an orphan, lives in orphanage but funny, enthusiastic about life and ambitious. Despite the fact that Judy is a central character on whose letters the whole novel is based, Daddy Long Legs remains in the lime light.

One day Judy gets the news of her freedom from the orphanage. Some trustee of the orphanage, without revealing his identity, offers higher studies to Judy as a benefactor on a condition that Judy would write him letters.

And from there, the whole series of letters start through which the readers witnesses the love and compassion she has for her benefactor. Judy calls her benefactor Daddy Long Legs considering that he must have long legs. Through her letters she tells what she is studying and how it is to meet with new girls and sharing space with them.

When Judy realizes that Mr. Daddy Long Legs is not going to reply her, she breaks some rules, sometimes goes astray from her track and deliberately tells all this to her benefactor so that he might give her a small warning through replying her letters. But Mr. Benefactor was wiser than her. Judy’s all efforts go in vain when instead of him his secretary calls and gives his message to behave. During her studies she also meets with Jervis Pendleton (an uncle of Julia Pendleton and Judy’s classmate and roommate). When Judy writes to Mr. Daddy Long Legs, he speaks high of Master Jervie, which gives a hint to the reader that there might be something fishy between the two.

In the end of the book the mystery of Daddy Long Legs is revealed. How it came? Who was he? Why he didn’t reply? And, what about Master Jervie and Judy? I don’t want to spoil the pleasure of reading by giving the complete details. Please read it yourself and let me have your feedback.