Review: An Elephant in My Kitchen: What the herd taught me about love, courage and survival

An Elephant in My Kitchen: What the herd taught me about love, courage and survival by Francoise Malby-Anthony
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I read ‘The Elephant Whisperer’ by Lawrence Anthony a few years back. It was such a wonderful account of how he saved a herd of traumatised elephants (the matriarch was shot dead in front of the rest of the herd) who would have otherwise been put down, and settled them at Thula Thula. It was sad to read about Lawrence’s death subsequently. I learnt about his wife Francoise’s book very recently. This book takes over from ‘The Elephant Whisperer’ and is a warm & beautiful book as well.

Lawrence’s passing is tragic and sudden. In ‘The Elephant Whisperer’ Lawrence recounts the story of the elephant Mnumzane, who had to be put down when he turned violent (later determined due to a painful ulcer), and Lawrence’s ashes are laid near his. Many people who admired him came visiting and so did two herds of the elephants he saved, who just came to the house and sat in mourning. In fact, they return on his first death anniversary as well to the house.

Francoise now has responsibilities she is unfamiliar with. Lawrence handled the animals while Francoise took responsibility for managing the bookings, guests and the food. There is very little time to learn, but Francoise is determined to continue Lawrence’s legacy. Francoise really brings out the challenges in running a game reserve like Thula Thula with her account, where your passion to save animals and converse wildlife has to be so strong as to overcome all odds.

While poaching figures in ‘The Elephant Whisperer’ as well, in this book it actually dominates the narrative. Francoise is constantly worried about poachers getting to their animals and knows that despite the security investments, the risk is still high. There are several attempts – snares are laid, cause injuries and young rhino calves are shot. She tries first poisoning the rhino horns and later decides to dehorn the rhinos. And yet there is a gruesome attack causing painful injuries & death to animals. The poaching industry is fell funded and tragically there is demand for animal products such as rhino horns, though science considers this worthless. Poachers also have access to drones to track animals. If a species neutral history of the earth is written someday, I am sure the human treatment of animals, both wild and farm, will be considered the worth of evils on earth.

There are interesting accounts in the book on how a young elephant who loses his way ends up in Francoise’s house and later kitchen, the lovely elephants, rhinos and their behaviours. I love reading about and watching animals, especially elephants, and that is one of many reasons why I loved this book.


View all my reviews

Review: Big Billion Startup - The Untold Flipkart Story

Big Billion Startup - The Untold Flipkart Story by Mihir Dalal
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Flipkart is a name we associate with Indian entrepreneurship and ingenuity. I still remember buying books from Flipkart in the early days when it was launched (in fact I was quite disappointed as in the later years books fell off from Flipkart’s priority). This book has very good background and details on the building of Flipkart.

Sachin Bansal & Binny Bansal, both from IIT Delhi firm up their plans to start an e-commerce venture when they were at Amazon India. Amazon India at that time was a technology back office for special initiatives. The description of the initial days of Flipkart where Sachin & Binny start by selling books online makes for fascinating reading. They would source the books from bookstores initially after an order was received. Customer satisfaction was a strong philosophy which the founders promoted, and Flipkart made a reputation for itself based on that with very little marketing effort.

The next phase of expansion needed funding and Flipkart was fortunate to get funding from Accel India initially and later Tiger Global. Lee Fixel from Tiger Global continued to very closely involved for long since the early times, additionally providing professional support as required. Sales leapfrogged on the back of good customer service, product expansion and new ideas. Flipkart also found ways to get around the government regulations around marketplaces by creating a new entity for logistics. Initiatives like Big Billion days, exclusive product launches (starting with Motorola with Moto G becoming a best seller) lead the way to high growth. There were also the misses such as attempting to go solely mobile app and shut down the website (a silly step I thought myself at that time), music download and entering too many categories too quickly. I get the impression Flipkart’s founders would have benefitted with mature senior counsel in many instances.

The power struggles between Sachin and Kalyan Krishnamurthy (a Lee nominee) becomes a distraction as well. The complications in the working relationships leads to most of the early employees of Flipkart exiting. The success story culminates in abrupt exits for the founders (both billionaires) for different reasons after Walmart takes over a majority stake.

The author, Mihir mentions that he was not able to speak to senior Flipkart executives for the book. While that is a drawback of sorts, the amount of background he provides in the book is surprisingly very extensive.

A very good read to understand the making of Flipkart.

Thanks to the author and publisher for providing me a free copy of the book in order to provide a review.


View all my reviews

Review: A View Across the Rooftops

A View Across the Rooftops by Suzanne Kelman
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A View Across the Rooftops is a very moving book set during the period of World War II in Amsterdam. These are hard times and only love and compassion provides (some) solace.

Josef Held is a professor teaching mathematics, whose life seems to hold no charm after the passing of his wife Sarah many years ago. He finds Hannah Pender at the university charming and yet cannot find the urge to take the relationship forward. The Nazi occupation and their treatment of Jews, brings more pain. His neighbor Mrs. Epstein is killed right in front of his eyes, an old lady who took pleasure in playing the piano. There is also his Jewish student Michael Blum, whose easy ways he finds difficult to relate to. And yet, Josef makes a choice – he helps Michael by hiding him. Michael is in love with Elke (who is not Jewish) and the prevailing situation separates them. There are further complications and risks with his niece Ingrid dating a high-level German officer.

Josef and Michael form a bond over time – at the start without even speaking much with each other. As trust grows, they learn to share their pains and memories of better times. There are several close shaves while Michael is in hiding, and he also falls seriously ill at one time.

This is not a fast paced book, and yet it is very beautiful – a sum total of the characters, their inner feelings, circumstances and the strength of the story. It is a wonderful story of courage, letting go and find purpose in the most difficult of situations.

My rating: 4.5 / 5.

My thanks to Bookouture, NetGalley and the author for a free electronic copy of the book for providing a review.


View all my reviews

Review: Brain Food: How to Eat Smart and Sharpen Your Mind

Brain Food: How to Eat Smart and Sharpen Your Mind by Lisa Mosconi
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

We have among the most complex brains among all animals, and also the most demanding as a result. This book is an important one as it brings together current research to recommend how we can eat for better brain performance and safeguard ourselves from dementia in later years.
A very small fraction of dementia cases is caused due to the genes (<1%), and brain health in later years is largely determined by what we eat, and also our lifestyle. This book covers all aspects holistically though the emphasis is on the diet.

This book has a wealth of information on the impact of fats, sugar, vitamins, protein on brain health. It starts off with the benefits of hydration, with plain water being the best (filtered of harmful germs but not purified which tends to remove useful minerals), with other options being coconut water, aloe vera juice or green tea. There is a detailed discussion on fatty acids – Omega 6 & Omega 3. Most of us do not get enough Omega 3 in our diet, the recommended proportion being Omega 6: Omega 3 - 2:1. Fish apparently is the best source (not an option for vegetarians like me), with there being other vegetarian options such as flaxseed, hemp seeds, chia seeds and others.

There is a discussion around the benefits of Phospholipids, Tryptophan, Phenylalanine, Choline, Vitamins, Pre- & Pro-biotics and how we can obtain these from the foods we eat. The foods to avoid finds good coverage as well especially trans-fats, sugar, processed food, etc. Glucose is vital for the brain, but processed sugar elevates the risk of diabetes, heart health and is also bad for the brain. There are, however, various natural ways to obtain the glucose we need.

There is brief coverage on other aspects of brain health –exercise, walking, sleep, relationships and other aspects of lifestyle. At the end of the book is a discussion on a few diets across the world which have been found to improve health and promote longevity. There is also a list of healthy brain foods provided as part of the book.

This is an important book to understand how we can modify our diets to improve brain health. While the foods options discussed are largely relevant to the US and the western world, it is quite possible to make suitable modifications to other cuisines as well based on the ingredients discussed.

My rating: 4.5 / 5.


View all my reviews

Review: Colombiano

Colombiano by Rusty Young
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Colombiano is probably the best book I have read this year, and it is a year when I have read several good books. A story about innocence being quickly lost in the face of tragedy & violence, though love still offers hope. It is an extremely well written and powerful story.

Llorona is a small town where the Guerillas (a violent mob leading to Communist philosophy) hold sway, with the Colombian police and army being especially weak. Col Buitrago has the right intentions but does not have the resources to keep the Guerillas at bay.

Pedro is a young lad who cannot wait to get to 16 years of age, when he can deepen his relationship with his girlfriend Camila. His family soon faces tragedy as his father, a peace loving & respected man in town, is shot by the Guerillas in front of his eyes. Their property is confiscated and his mother moves with Pedro’s Uncle Leo. Pedro is consumed by a burning rage, and is determined to avenge his fathers murder. The Autodefensas are a rival gang who hold sway over other parts of the country, and were formed primarily to resist the Guerillas, with landowners and people impacted by the crimes of the Guerillas supporting them. Pedro and his friend Palillo (who has an abusive step father) join the Autodefensas.

Pedro’s life turns into one where violence soon emerges as a way of life. Pedro and Palillo do make some new friendships (especially Palillo’s relationship with Piolin), but Pedro drifts apart from Camila, much to his agony. As Pedro, with Palillo’s help, seeks out his fathers murderers, he still struggles to find peace in the face of terrible violence.

This is a large book, but moves fast and is an excellent read, other than being an important one. The vicious cycle which violence creates is explored very well. A lot of the violence though is quite raw, brutal (probably very realistic though) and far more than what I have been used to reading.

A book I strongly recommend.

Thanks to the publisher, author and NetGalley for a free electronic copy of the book for providing a review.


View all my reviews

Review: A Quiet End

A Quiet End by Nelson DeMille
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is the first book I read of Nelson DeMille. It works up a good pace and has a strong hero character in John Corey (who I understand figures many other books). The book suffers though from a basic, largely far-fetched and simplistic plot & sequence events.

John Corey is part of the Diplomatic Surveillance Group and watching the Russian UN team. He is accompanied by a young trainee – Tess Faraday. John soon uncovers a Russian plot to set off a nuclear bomb in New York, with a plan to deflect the blame. The Russian Intelligence Service Colonel Vasily Petrov is the main mover with a few of his sidekicks. John takes considerable risks, slipping into a party as part of the catering team and later pursuing Petrov & gang at sea, and Tess supports him.

John Corey is the tough guy – as you would expect in a story such as this. He is extremely confident, and has this excessively independent streak. Quite a bit of the humour he indulges in is not funny though and just comes across as a display of vanity.

Many readers have pointed that a few of the other books featuring John Corey are much more engrossing, and I hope to read some of his other books soon. This book also is a decent read, largely for the pace it whips up.

My rating: 3.25 / 5.

View all my reviews

Review: The Murder Suspect

The Murder Suspect by Rani Ramakrishnan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is the second book of the author that I read, after 'Lethal Acoustics'. This is a murder mystery which moves fast. The writing is good but the book suffers from an average plot.

Nalini Bose is the HR head of an IT startup IndeGen, whose CEO is Piyush. There is an annual getaway the company has for high achievers. A group of people from the company including Piyush's brother in law Chirag (who is mentally challenged) head to Cumbojee islands (part of Lakshadweep). Piyush's wife Pakhi is the daughter of Bharat Desai who is rich and very well connected.

Piyush and Chirag go missing one night. While Chirag is found later, Piyush is found dead in a swamp. Nalini is the prime suspect as she is in a relationship with Piyush, and her aggressive behaviour arouses the suspicion of the chief investigator from the CBI Avinash Choudhary. As Avinash tries to piece together the evidence, it is clear that is a complex case.

The main issue is that this comes across a yet another murder mystery book. Also some aspects of Nalini's behaviour, and especially some incidents from her past are not well narrated, come across as silly and detract from the story.

It is however a good book to relax with as it moves smoothly.

My rating: 3.5 / 5.

I was provided a free ebook by the author for providing a review.


View all my reviews