EONS

I forgot about this blog. I sincerely completely forgot!

It is not that I haven't been reading...that would be a travesty! I am ashamed at having ignored this pace for so many years. Myself...I am ashamed of you! This blog is mainly for my own consumption though and it helps or was meant to help me remember the books I have read and what I thought of them.

What I currently reading? I finally got my hands on a copy of Trevor Noah's "Born a Crime". Next on my reading list is "Becoming" by Michelle Obama. I have resisted reading these books for a long time because at some point...it all felt like a reading fad. But I do admire both of them greatly and am glad I am finally coming round to reading the books!

I promise not to be that person who abandons a blog for 6 years!! Gosh damn it....who even does that? I will be back....

Meet Him at the Shack

God.

Almighty. All knowing. Omnipresent. Feared. Revered. Also. Scary. Far off. Full of Wrath. Judging. All powerful.

My views about God are as above and more. Well..not until recently. After reading the Shack by WM Paul Young. My view of God has changed. Suddenly, God was no longer this quagmire in my mind...a God that I could not understand ....who I sometimes... I think... does not understand me either (I don't blame him).

I first attempted to read this book in December of last year but I stopped after a few pages. A few months later, my sister pointed out to me that I was yet to read it despite desperately begging to borrow it...so i started off again .Boy...was I in for a ride!

At the beginning, I paid little attention to what I was reading...reading yet not absorbing much. Until God showed up as a BBW (Big black woman). I sat up in bed and truly paid attention. When the book came to an end, I was ...different. I looked up and had a conversation with God like never before. Yes, I know there has been a lot of controversy over the book with many mainstream preachers condemning it completely and accusing the author of heresy. I don't care for their opinion much.

For me...it was a breadth of fresh air...an epiphany of sorts. Cathartic even. My heart is still moved at the memory of it all.

God .

Approachable. Loving. Warm. Non-judgmental. A friend. A father. Open. Down to earth. Someone I want to know. Someone I NEED to know!

Meet him at the Shack.

High Sprited Arabian Nights

One of my friends handed a copy of this book and simply said "I know you will enjoy it" and I did.

The book is a wonderful read and completely opens up the doors to a world that has been and continues to be mysterious and shrouded in secrecy.

Many of us will know that the treatment of women in the Arab world is..well...different to say the least. I personally had never been exposed to the detail of it. Until now.

The best part of this book is the ability of the author to bring out many of the injustices whilst telling a wonderful story of the Arabian Princess. After reading this book, I will never again take the simple freedoms I enjoy as a Woman for granted. One is left admiring the spirit of Princess Sultana. High spirited...to put it mildly!!

One word for it (may be two)...eye opening! I can't wait to read the sequels.

Once in a life time....

My first thoughts when I laid my eyes on this book were......looks interesting. 15 minutes into the book and I had to stop and glance at the cover again. That's when I noticed " MAN BOOKER PRIZE WINNER 2008". Am not sure what I was looking for when I looked back at the cover...but I did find my answer.

Aravind Adiga is a highly skilled author. He paints a very clear picture of India in it's true everyday realities. Reading this book reminded me of one thing. We are not in control of our circumstances. We certainly are not in control of the world around us. But we are in control of our thought processes....of our dreams....of the goals that we so desire to reach. We can change our lives by changing our thinking...our view of both ourselves......the immediate world around us...and the sometimes imagined limits imposed by the society around us.

I certainly do not approve of how the main character & narrator Bramal achieved his dreams and severed himself from poverty....but I admire the courage it took for him to cut off the chains of such deep set poverty...a poverty of the mind that afflicts many.

One thing I know for sure..I will read it again! Like the White Tiger...I think this is truly a "once in a lifetime" book!

My favourite quotes from the book are: -

“I was looking for the key for years
But the door was always open” 
― Aravind Adiga, The White Tiger

“The moment you recognize what is beautiful in this world, you stop being a slave” 
― Aravind Adiga, The White Tiger

“So I stood around that big square of books. Standing around books, even books in a foreign language, you feel a kind of electricity buzzing up toward you, Your Excellency. It just happens, the way you get erect around girls wearing tight jeans.
"Except here what happens is that your brain starts to hum.” 
― Aravind Adiga, The White Tiger

“You ask 'Are you a man or a demon?' Neither, I say. I have woken up, and the rest of you are sleeping, and that is the only difference between us.” 
― Aravind Adiga, The White Tiger

311 Pelican Court

Debbie Macomber is my solution for romance novels. Typically, I would be ashamed of being caught reading one simply because society has declared that women who read romance novels inadvertently commits a  sin of sorts. Unfortunately, sometimes society is right. Such novels create the kind of relationship illusions that would lead to a woman living in a delusional world. A world where all men are tall, dark and handsome and no matter what, there will be a happy ending that involves a big wedding and some whisking away into the sunset. There very likely will also be a six pack, ruggedness and a wild black horse involved too!

In the world of romance novels, breakups only exist until the one party quickly comes to their senses and discovers that the other party was their soul mate and they could not possibly live without them. If this was reality, the world would be a sorry place in deed. Breakups are a necessary part of life and many times provide an unexpected escape from a life with someone totally unsuited for the other party.

Debbie’s novels are not devoid of such delusions entirely. I find that the levels of delusion are a little less deeper than in most romance novels. When I find myself in need of being rescued from the depths of relationships pessimism….a Debbie Macomber is the perfect rescue indeed.This book does not deviate from the typical structure of her other books. Debbie has the wonderful ability to intertwine many stories into one, yet still leaving the reader with a feeling of one overall story. I love that and would definitely encourage other readers who are not too averse to the world of romance to buy her books. So there you are...another from Debbie Macomber on my growing list!

In the simplicity, Lies Brilliance

Baking Cakes in Kigali was a pleasant surprise.  It is quite admirable to read books with intricate story lines and plots weaving in and out, up and down, east to west and the like. I am always left in awe when I read such books…in awe of the authors’ obviously intelligent and highly complex mind. 

This book is not one of those. Rather, it is a series of stories all centred around one woman who is …you guessed it….Baking cakes in Kigali. The stories are simple, every day stories. The characters in the book, every day characters. People you know…have met…probably live with. People like yourself. 

In my opinion, it takes an even more brilliant mind to tell stories simply... with no bells and whistles. To tell them as they are without any spins, twists & cartwheels yet still managing to keep the interest of the reader.  Brilliance sometimes comes dressed in simple attire. 

Baking Cakes in Kigali by Gaile Parkin..READ IT. 

Baking Cakes in Nairobi

The truth is..I have never baked anything in my life. It has always been one of those things that was just not me...the baking part...not the eating one. However, I think as I grow older the art of cooking is connivingly attaching itself to me and I find myself thoroughly enjoying it and producing wonderful meals to boost! I suppose that means I need to bake a cake soon. Now my family still find it hard to believe I can produce a great meal. Even when they are seated right there eating it! I used to tell my mum that I had no talent for cooking. To prove it was true, I made terrible meals. Not on purpose though :-)..well at least not all the time. Therefore, it became a written rule. Cooking was not one of my chores as I grew up! Yeah!! On the other hand, I cleaned up pretty well. As a child, I was obsessed with keeping my parents room neat. It was so frustrating because neither one of them had any such obsession with neatness. In fact, they were both very good at creating messes and I was very good at cleaning up after them. Eventually, I stilled myself and managed to stop doing it. It seem like a hopeless task. My mum misses it though :-).  Oh yes...back to cooking. So, if I am NOT baking cakes in Nairobi, what is this post about?

Baking cakes in Kigali by Gaile Parkin

To begin with, I need to find out if Gaile is white because if she is...she is doing pretty well telling the story of a Tanzanian woman who has relocated to Kigali with her husband post the genocide..and you guessed it! She is now Baking cakes in Kigali.

Other than attaching the beautiful photo of the book below...I have nothing else to share because am still reading it. Am on page 76 to be exact, so will be back with a bit more detail!