Tag: #books #readingbook #nonfictionbooks #reading #booklovers#bookworm #motivationalbooks

Five books you should give a try at least once in your lifetime

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If you are a bookworm and like your leisure time reading books, then listed below are the names of five books you should give a read, in case yiu haven’t yet.

1) The diary of a young girl, by Anne Frank

Anne Frank’s diary is a first hand account of a yoing girl’s life as she and her family tries their best to hide from the Nazis. It is deeply influential since despite the torture on inflicted upon the Jews by the Nazis, Anne still believes the world to be a beautiful place where people live with good hearts.

2) The Harry Potter Series, by J.K Rowling

Are you an ardent fan of the Harry Potter movies? If yes, then the books are a must read for you. You can simply sit at your home and get transferred to the world of magic via the Harry Potter books. Come and join Harry as he discovers himself and fights against all odds and grows into one of the most celebrated literary characters in the world.

3) The girl with Seven names, by Hyeon – seo Lee

This is a North korean Defector’s story. It tells us the journey of a young girl who manages to escape from the frightening and ruthless regime in North Korea, all the while hoping that life would be better for her outside but what follows are a series of unexpected and tragic events and she soon realises that the journey to freedom is a long way indeed. The book vividly describes how life is really like in North Korea and gives us an insight of the young girl’s struggle as she tries her best to avoid repatriation and guide her family out of North Korea.

4) If i Stay , by Gayle Forman

The protagonist of the story named Mia is a 17 year old girl who loses her entire family in a catastrophic car accident. In one day, Mia becomes an orphan. How Mia manages to survive and struggles to deal with the aftermath is what the book is all about.

5) The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho

It is the story of a shepherd boy who lives his land in search of his dream of finding a treasure. The book qoutes – “When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.” Meaning that when a person strives to achieve his dream and works against all odds to accomplish it, nature helps him out. The reader can learn a lot of things from the book as the protagonist learns from his journey.

Book Review – You can win

Winners don’t do different things; they do things differently.”

YOU CAN WIN - SHIV KHERA Reviews, Summary, Story, Price, Online, Fiction, Nonfiction

You Can Win, is authored by Shiv Khera and was released in 1998. Since then, it has become an international bestseller. This book has been translated into sixteen languages and sold more than two million copies around the world. This book has a title in Hindi Jeet Aapki. The writer is well known as a motivational speaker, educator, activist, business consultant, entrepreneur, etc.

Both you and I want to win. This is a fact, as well as everyone’s heartfelt wish. The new revised edition of the book, titled ‘You Can Win,’ emphasises of winning and focuses on what it takes to succeed. The book presents inspiring examples to follow, allowing one to create a triumphant, meaningful, and satisfying life. The book provides the appropriate orientation and adds ingredients for the suitable formulas needed for success in life. There are eleven chapters in this book.

The author provides the reader with a good attitude and sends the reader on the proper paths in life right from the start of the first chapter. In reality, the author aspires to have a positive outlook on life that will enable him or her to win and thrive. An optimistic outlook on life can aid in overcoming all obstacles in one’s path to achievement. He also suggests to the reader to achieve one’s goal in life, one must embark off on an effective action plan, too.

The author encourages the reader to develop confidence by practising positive thinking in their daily lives. A cheerful outlook on life has the same effect as medicine. It heals and motivates one to continue on with one’s life. The remaining chapters focus on adopting a good attitude toward life, regardless of what obstacles may arise or what walks of life one may belong to. Self-esteem must be developed. This can be beneficial in a variety of situations. This can assist one in dealing with life’s obstacles. Personal growth, according to the author, is a critical component of life achievement. As a result, a few chapters in this book reflect on and emphasise personality traits, interpersonal skills, positive thinking, habits, and choosing appropriate life objectives.

To make it more fascinating, the writer incorporates moral stories and anecdotes into his works and explains them to the best of his ability. The morals of novels do indeed convince the reader that nothing is truly impossible in life. The most important thing in life is to develop the proper mindset and formula for success.

The author also underlines the importance of being proactive in order to control, rather than be governed by, events in life. He encourages the reader to transform their weaknesses into strengths by cultivating positive outlooks on life, applying positive strokes to oneself and others, and developing positive habits and character. The author also instructs the reader on how to develop mutual respect and loyal relationships with each other.

LESSONS FROM BARACK OBAMA

Barack Obama created history in a very many ways. he is the 1st African-American president of the U.S. and a name recognized for his charisma, intelligence, and skill to figure things under pressure, there are several things to be learned from him. Here are few takeaways from Barack Obama.

Treat Everybody with same respect

Obama became renowned for his respectful and polite manner. Even once he was attacked by his opponents, he kept his calm, and he showed loads of respect to everybody, no matter their rank. this is essential, as we should always offer everyone constant level of respect. There is no such thing as being superior or inferior because everyone is doing one thing necessary and has constant dignity because the rest and need to be revered In the end, it pays off to be respectful and kind, as a result of you never know how another person will impact your life.

Stay Calm

 Something that distinguished Obama was his cool manner and skill to take things easy. He did not take it personally or, if he did, he was careful to not act from the point of anger. Even throughout a crisis, panicking won’t solve any problem. Instead, it might make everything worse. attempt to keep cool and calm under pressure and not react from a place of emotion. Instead, you would like to stay your head and build choices that may cause the most effective outcome.

Keep Your Perspective

There are some things in life you can’t change. where you were born, who are your relations with, what is happening right away in the world may well be on the far side your management. However, keeping your eyes open for future opportunities is important. You might not be ready to make amendment of your past, however you’ll be able to, for sure, change your future. It can not be done in one stroke, however. rather like Obama, you would like to figure hard for your long-run goals and build a game set up that may bring you nearer to the opportunities you would like to have.

Educate Yourself

Obama is keen on reading and learning and he has been recognized as an individual with loads of education and information. Educating yourself throughout your life can assist you perceive your  higher self and find solutions. It will conjointly open additional doors for you within the future. Finance in your own education is often worthwhile. Ignore the haters While all politicians have their justifiable share of haters, Obama had loads of vitriolic ones assaultive of him. However, he failed to allow them to stop his success.

COMMON TRAIT OF EVERY HIGH-ACHIEVER

The world we live in is fast and busy. We always have new content to consume, new information to process, and new decisions to make. But even if the world demands us to make quick choices, sometimes being patient and still is the best thing, that can be pretty hard. However, sometimes, patience will help us reach success.

If you are just learning a new skill, you need to be patient and give yourself time to practice and improve. You won’t become good enough tomorrow and, if you try to use it, it might backfire.

Don’t hurry things along – they need to take their own time and happen when the moment is right.

Patience alone is not enough to achieve success. However, without it, you will be hard pressed to achieve anything at all.
Good things take time. You need to work hard and wait for the results to show themselves.

Patience can give you the strength to hold on even when things are tough. It allows you to remember that everything is temporary and wait the storm out.

Patience allows you to wait until your work shows its results. It prevents you from premature decisions and rash behaviors that can hurt your chances for success.

Just be still and observe and you might notice a lot more than you would have expected. Taking some time before acting can allow you to recognize new solutions and prevent you from doing a harmful thing.

Patience brings its rewards in every aspect of our lives. It can truly work wonders.

Even if the world is loud and fast, slow yourself down. Be patient and be still and see what changes within you. See what you can recognize when you allow yourself to just watch and wait.

Patience is essential for any kind of success, as nothing happens overnight. Reap the benefits by allowing yourself to wait and let things happen at the right time, without forcing them to occur.

MY LOVE AFFAIR WITH …

My love affair with paper & pen is something that I would love to share with you all .At an early age of 8 I used to run my fingers through the corners of story books as I love reading them , I used to draw the characters with the help of pencil on the corners of the book . When ever I used to read I always used to have a pen in my hand , I feel paper & pen are the most powerful thing in this whole world , do you want to know how ? I will tell you !

I can put my thoughts on paper , for introverts , who are not able to express themselves in front of any one , writing diary every day works the best . When you have a paper & pen in your hand it has many benefits to you , some of them are :

Provides Clarity –Penning down our thoughts bring structure to the vast inner world of fragmented emotions and thoughts that goes on in our hearts and minds. 

Self-discovery– Journaling helps us to introspect, to gain great insights into ourselves- our strengths, weakness, ambitions, and obstacles which is a step towards personal growth and development. It is one of the roads to self-discovery, so when ever you write on a paper with you pen you are putting you best foot forward to know yourself a bit extra.

Alleviate Stress– Expressing our anger, frustration or sadness on paper reduces the intensity of our emotions and makes us feel calmer hence helping us to gain more clarity and make rational decisions. It lets loose the negativity that we have festering inside us and reduces its deleterious effects. 

Self Expression/Venting Out– When voice fails us, we can express ourselves through written words. While writing down our emotions and thoughts, boundaries of topic, structure, punctuation, grammar and syntax can be transcended to free flowing expression of ourselves. When we write, our thoughts fly from the cage of our restless minds and are clearly displayed on the paper in front of us.

You saw , paper & pen helps you reliving from your stress also . This is what I was talking about . In professional terms also a written statement is considered move valuable & powerful , penning down your thoughts on paper & publishing them will also work the best best for you . It’s not always easy to discern and express our emotions especially when we are going through dark storms in our lives. At that time we might have a cornucopia of turbulent thoughts and emotions which might not be easy to voice. While writing, we don’t have to fear that the paper or diary will have any bias or prejudice towards us or we have to make sense in order to clearly express ourselves. A paper & pen will never be biased towards you , though the whole world be , hence I am in love with them

ALL ABOUT AUTOBIOGRAPHY

Write in an autobiography the author writes the story of his own life and achievements. It is the successful presentation of personality. It takes its origin in the common human heart to express once-on achievement in the form of writing. The writer may give a full account of his life in detail or he may give only a few anecdotes or events from his life.

The great drawback of an autobiography is that it can never be complete because it comes to an end before the author’s death. Doctor Johnson preferred autobiography to biography saying that every man’s life is best written by himself. The writer of his own life has the full knowledge of the truth through sometimes he made disguise or suppress it in his writings. From the psychological viewpoint also an autobiography is preferable because the writer knows what are the motives, hopes, and omissions that prompted him to decisive moments in his life. Thus while biography is the product of second-hand knowledge, autobiography is the product of the first-hand experience. R.L. Stevenson says, “There is no truer sort of writing than what is to be found in autobiographies, and certainly none more entertaining”.

An autobiography is a candid narration of events in the author’s life. It may take the form of a confession, apology, self-scrutiny, or a mere delightful account. When it is a mere account of facts without reference to the author’s inner conflicts and motives it is an objective autobiography. When an autobiography reveals the character and inner struggle of the writer and the present a searching analysis of his moods, motives, and fancies, it is subjective. St. Augustine’s confession’s, the earliest example of an autobiography, belongs to the subjective kind. So also Rousseau’s ‘Confessions’ written in the 18th century. Three other important autobiographies appeared in the 18th century. Those of David Hume, Edward Gibbon, and Benjamin Franklin.

Chief characteristic of an autobiography:

  • Truth should be the Hallmark of an autobiography. facts should not be perverted. A true picture of the writer’s personality should emerge from the autobiography. Gandhiji’s autobiography is the best example in this respect.
  • Courage and frankness are the essential virtues of a good writer of an autobiography. The writer should not be secretive and reluctant. Bertrand Russell’s three-volume autobiography is noted for these qualities.
  • The author of an autobiography should be objective in dealing with contemporary events and personalities. Autobiographies of Gibbon and Nehru are good examples of this kind.
  • The author should not be verbose in his description or narration.
  • Self-consciousness is the very essence of an autobiography. An autobiography should not aim at self-effacement as in the autobiography of T.E. Lawrence. Similarly, the author of an autobiography should not indulge in self-clarification.
  • The style should be interesting and even entertaining. A natural felicity of expression and flashes of humor and wit are essential attributes of an autobiography.

Some difficulties an autobiographer faces:

  • He is likely to forget the impressions and emotions connected with the events that happened in the distant past. Sometimes there may be embarrassing episodes he would like to hide or reveal only partially.
  • It is difficult for anyone to be entirely objective while dealing with contemporary persons and events that have affected his personal life and happiness.
  • An autobiographer is likely to omit the details of daily life that are common. This may lead to some falsification.

WHAT IS LITERATURE https://eduindex.org/2021/07/22/what-is-literature/

ADVANTAGES OF EBOOKS https://eduindex.org/2021/07/22/advantages-of-e-books/

SHORT STORIES WITHIN NOVELS – PART 2

As we already read about the secret to living happily from The Alchemist book by Paulo Coelho. Today we will look at two different stories from different books.

THE KITE RUNNER BY KHALID HOSSEINI

It was a dark little tale about a man who found a magic cup and learned that if he wept into the cup, his tears turned into pearls. But even though he had always been poor, he was a happy man and rarely shed a tear. So he found ways to make himself sad so that his tears could make him rich. As the pearls piled up, so did his greed grow. The story ended with the man sitting on a mountain of pearls, knife in hand, weeping helplessly into the cup with his beloved wife’s slain body in his arms.

This story must give you goosebumps but, the real conclusion is when Amir the protagonist and the narrator of the book The Kite Runner wrote this story and shared it with his friend Hassan, who is a servant’s boy of Amir’s family. Hassan was shocked and impressed with Amir’s story but, he asked why he has to kill his own wife, instead of he can shed tears by cutting onions?

MORAL: When you have to choose something… Choose wisely.

VERONICA DECIDES TO DIE BY PAULO COELHO:

Zedka started to narrate a story to Veronica.

A powerful wizard, who wanted to destroy an entire kingdom, placed a magic potion in the well from which all the inhabitants drank. Whoever drank that water would go mad.

The following morning, the whole population drank from the well and they all went mad, apart from the king and his family, who had a well set aside for them alone, which the magician had not managed to poison.
The king was worried and tried to control the population by issuing a series of edicts governing security and public health.
The policemen and inspectors, however, had also drunk the poisoned water, and they thought the king’s decisions were absurd and resolved to take no notice of them.

When the inhabitants of the kingdom heard these decrees, they became convinced that the king had gone mad and was now giving nonsensical orders. They marched on the castle and called for his abdication.

In despair the king prepared to step down from the throne, but the queen stopped him, saying:
‘Let us go and drink from the communal well. Then we will be the same as them.’

The king and the queen drank the water of madness and immediately began talking nonsense.
Their subjects repented at once; now that the king was displaying such wisdom, why not allow him to continue ruling the country?

After drinking water from the poisonous well all became mad and equal. The country continued to live in peace although its inhabitants behaved very differently from those of its neighbors. And the king was able to govern until the end of his days.

Zedka asked veronica: Do you know what exists outside beyond the walls of this asylum?

Veronica said People who have all drunk from the same well.

MORAL: Zedka and Veronica both are patients in the asylum. Through this story, Zedka symbolically tells that people think they are civilized and normal. But, when they encounter some strange people they started to divide the borders and make them as a patient.

SHORT STORIES WITHIN NOVELS https://eduindex.org/2021/07/24/short-stories-within-novels/

THE GOTHIC NOVEL https://eduindex.org/2021/07/21/the-gothic-novel/

SHORT STORIES WITHIN NOVELS:

A story within a story is referred to as an embedded narrative. The embedded narrative is a literary device in which a character within a story becomes the narrator of a second story within the first one. Multiple layers of stories within stories are sometimes called Nested Stories. These stories mostly exist in a book to enlighten people. Sometimes the author himself wrote some short stories which are really motivating and alluring, then he might include them in his novels. In the other case, the author pushes himself to write short stories which will be suitable within his/her novels.

We all love stories, especially short stories. So, we will look at some stories within stories or stories within novels or dramas one by one as parts of segments.

THE ALCHEMIST: BY PAULO COELHO

The shopkeeper sent his son to learn about the secret of happiness from the wisest man in the world. The lad wandered through the desert for forty days, and finally came upon a beautiful castle, high atop a mountain. It was there that the wise man lived.

“Rather than finding a saintly man, though, our hero, on entering the main room of the castle, saw a hive of activity: tradesmen came and went, people were conversing in the corners, a small orchestra was playing soft music, and there was a table covered with platters of the most delicious food in that part of the world. The wise man conversed with everyone, and the boy had to wait for two hours before it was his turn to be given the man’s attention.

“The wise man listened attentively to the boy’s explanation of why he had come, but told him that he didn’t have time just then to explain the secret of happiness. He suggested that the boy look around the palace and return in two hours.

“‘Meanwhile, I want to ask you to do something,’ said the wise man, handing the boy a teaspoon that held two drops of oil. ‘As you wander around, carry this spoon with you without allowing the oil to spill.’

“The boy began climbing and descending the many stairways of the palace, keeping his eyes fixed on the spoon. After two hours, he returned to the room where the wise man was.

“‘Well,’ asked the wise man, ‘did you see the Persian tapestries that are hanging in my dining hall? Did you see the garden that it took the master gardener ten years to create? Did you notice the beautiful parchments in my library?’

“The boy was embarrassed and confessed that he had observed nothing. His only concern had been not to spill the oil that the wise man had entrusted to him.

“‘Then go back and observe the marvels of my world,’ said the wise man. ‘You cannot trust a man if you don’t know his house.’

“Relieved, the boy picked up the spoon and returned to his exploration of the palace, this time observing all of the works of art on the ceilings and the walls. He saw the gardens, the mountains all around him, the beauty of the flowers, and the taste with which everything had been selected. Upon returning to the wise man, he related in detail everything he had seen.

“‘But where are the drops of oil I entrusted to you?’ asked the wise man.

“Looking down at the spoon he held, the boy saw that the oil was gone.

“‘Well, there is only one piece of advice I can give you,’ said the wisest of wise men. ‘The secret of happiness is to see all the marvels of the world, and never to forget the drops of oil on the spoon.’”

Through this story author express, that one should follow his dreams and must take care of his responsibilities also. That’s the secret of happiness.

The Alchemist

WHERE TO GET FREE EBOOKS https://eduindex.org/2021/07/20/where-to-get-free-e-books/

THE DETECTIVE NOVELS https://eduindex.org/2021/07/21/the-detective-novels/

MUST-READ TWO BOOKS BY PAULO COELHO – 2

Paulo Coelho wrote many best-selling books most of which are popular all around the world. And translated in various languages. One of his masterpieces is Alchemist. All of his works are related to self-help and motivational genres.

Book: Veronica Decides To Die

Veronica is a young woman who commits suicide due to being full of emptiness in her life. While she waiting for death after taking a lot of sleeping pills she fainted and found herself in an asylum alive. But Doctor said that she has only a few days to live due to a heart condition caused by the overdose. Her presence there affects all of the mental hospital’s patients, especially Zedka, who has clinical depression; Mari, who has panic attacks; and Eduard, who has schizophrenia, and with whom Veronika falls in love. At least she wants to live or not is the key base of this novel.

Why you should read this book: 

This one is not a boring plot, book content moves slow still does not let you drop the idea to read it. And this contains good vocabulary which is worth recommending to every reader. If you ever tried or at least thought once to end your life read this one it will make you believe in Miracle. 

Book Quotes:

People never learn anything by being told, they have to find out for themselves.

You are someone who is different, but who wants to be the same as everyone else. 

You have two choices, to control your mind or to let your mind control you.

Note: This book is also adapted as a film by Emily Young in 2009. 

Book: The Spy

Mata Hari, the beautiful woman, the dancer, the courtesan, and the spy. She was the center of attraction wherever she goes… As a dancer she delighted her audiences, as a courtesan, she bewitched the richest and powerful men of the era. But is she really a spy? 

Why you should read this one:

This book is based on real events. Mata Hari is a real person who is accused of espionage and executed.

On the back cover, it says, “Fiction.” But, I would rather love to say it’s a historical work. 

When a man sleeps with many women, do we care to say any terms? So, I can’t criticize Mata Hari for being a courtesan. 

In this work, I can visualize how men treated women as an object during those time. They gave preference for outer appearance. They wanted their wife to be loyal. But, those rules aren’t for them. And those things made my heart shrunk.

Book Quotes:

I decided to be who I always dreamed of. And the price of a dream is always high.

When we don’t know where life is taking us, we are never lost. 

At this moment, I look back at my life and realize that memory is a river, one that always runs backward.

Recommendations:

I don’t recommend both of these books to children especially if you are younger than sixteen. One book contains intimate scenes and another one contains sexual harassment scenes. Thus I would like to recommend these to elder readers who are more than sixteen.

TWO MUST-READ BOOKS OF PAULO COELHO https://eduindex.org/2021/07/18/two-must-read-books-of-paulo-coelho/

BOOK REVIEW: THE DA VINCI CODE https://eduindex.org/2021/07/19/book-review-the-da-vinci-code/

THE CHIEF CHARACTERISTICS OF A SHAKESPEAREAN TRAGEDY:

Shakespeare wrote eleven tragedies such as Hamlet, Othello, Macbeth, King Lear, Julius Caesar, Antony and Cleopatra, Romeo and Juliet, etc… But, there are some chiefly Characters in Shakespearean tragedies. That’s what we are going to draught down one by one.

  1. Shakespeare’s tragedies are based on stories and incidents taken from history or legends. Some of the stories are borrowed from previous playwrights. He has recreated these stories giving them a sense of unity and ordering them into closely-knit plots. The essence of a Shakespearean tragedy is that action issues from character and plot. Generally, two groups of people and ideas are brought face to face leading to conflict. In a Shakespearean tragedy, the plot is composed of several parts like Exposition, Conflict, Crisis, Denouement, and Catastrophe. He did not observe the unities always.
  2. In a Shakespearean tragedy, the suffering of the hero is exceptional. A hero is a man of a high estates like Hamlet or King Lear. The hero identifies himself with a dominant passion from which he cannot deliver himself and which finally works out his destruction.
  3. Every tragic hero suffers from a ‘tragic flaw’ that leads him to the tragic end. Like, Othello
  4. The essence of a Shakespearean tragedy is conflict. The catastrophe rises out of the unsolved conflict. The conflict releases energy in the form of uncontrollable spiritual forces causing a violent disturbance in the moral order of the world. Thus, a Shakespearean tragedy in its final analysis is highly spiritual.
  5. There is a kind of fatality and inevitability in Shakespearean tragedy. All calamities come from a character in action. We feel helpless of man before the force he release. the tragic hero striking at himself. The hero’s character involves his fate.
  6. Shakespearean tragedy is not pessimistic. It gives us an insight into the possibilities of the human soul.
  7. Shakespeare presents abnormal states of mind like insanity, hallucination, and somnambulism in some of his tragedies like King Lear and Macbeth. Eg, supernatural agents like King Lear and Macbeth. Ghost’s in Macbeth.
  8. Shakespeare introduces accidents, chances, and prophecies in his tragedies. The most well-known among these are the incidents of the handkerchief in Othello and the witches in Macbeth.
  9. Shakespeare presents a moral world order in his tragedies. His concern was with the conflict causes a commotion in the moral world. Shakespeare’s tragedies show the successful emergence of good is destroyed but it survives. Thus, the tragedy is a presentation of ‘morality in emergence’. As Dowden says it is true that good can survive only at the expense of so much of the virtuous force of the world still it is well to be assured that evil, even at the expense of good can be subdued, such an assurance buoys us above despair.
  10. There is no poetic Justice in Shakespearean tragedies. But evil characters do not prosper. Iago goes away with a stern warning. Shakespeare was concerned with a stern warning. Shakespeare was concerned with the moral and spiritual order of the world and so his art refuses to recognize individual punishment or reward.

TWO MUST READ BOOKS BY PAULO COELHO https://eduindex.org/2021/07/18/two-must-read-books-of-paulo-coelho/

BOOK REVIEW: THE GIRL WHO SAVED THE KING OF SWEDEN https://eduindex.org/2021/07/19/book-review-the-girl-who-saved-the-king-of-sweden/

THE SCIENCE FICTION

With the rapid development of science and technology, science fiction has became popular in the modern times. The essence of fiction is the presentation of conflict in the human drama. Science fiction deals with conflict that arises out of the impact of scientific discoveries on the future life of humanity.

The writer of science fiction must be well-versed in the modern scientific knowledge to enable him to create a credible science story. Through in science fiction the element of fantasy dominates, the science fiction writers do not commit errors regarding scientific discoveries, facts and possibilities.

Types of science fiction:

There are two types of science fiction.

  • The first type is based on known facts of science leading to the development of new possiblities as in Arthur C. Clarke’s ‘The Sands of Mars’ which deals with the conditions encountered by the explorers on Mars.
  • The second type is science fantasy which is very popular today. It introduces any kind of assumptions, realistic or imaginary, which are necessary for the story. The strongest element in science fiction is imagination which often goes beyond credibility or rational understanding as in Bradbury’s ‘Martian Chronicles’.

Modern science fiction combines elements of scientific facts with fantasy. Most common themes in modern science fiction are the following:

  1. Space Travel, journey to other worlds and encounter with extra-terrestrial beings.
  2. Travelling in time past or future.
  3. Biological and psychological changes brought about by the appreciation of science in human beings and other species of life.
  4. Extraordinary powers acquired by man through the use of technology or abnormal mental powers possessed by some persons.

Science fiction began to acquire importance in the latter part of the 19th century with the fictional writings of Jules Verne and H.G Wells. Some of the stories of Edgar Allen Poe and Mary Shelley’s novel ‘Frankenstein’ had anticipated the coming of science fiction. However, it was Jules Verne’s novels such as ‘Journey to the Centre of the Earth’ and ‘Around the World in Eighty Days’ that set the trend. Science fiction achieved greater popularity with the writings of H.G Wells who wrote such classics as ‘The War of the Worlds’ and ‘The Time Machine’.

Modern science fiction presents most of the important technological achievements of the age — radar, rockets, medicines and robots, electronic brain, space vehicle, satellites, medicines and drugs with fantastic effects etc. Such materials are used with great imagination to create an exotic and weird effect.

The most outstanding science fiction writers since the sixties have been Isaac Asimov and Arthur C. Clarke. Asimov was a prolific writer of science fiction. His novels of the Foundation Saga and the series of ‘Robot’ novels have become classics. Two other outstanding novels of Asimov are ‘Extra-Terrastrials’ and ‘The Gods Themselves’.

The science fiction presents not only a fantastic world of wonders but, also a world more or less scientifically accurate. Most science fiction writings conform to the general principles of novel writing. They stimulate our imagination, satisfy our curiosity and lift us to a world of intense make-believe.

BOOKISH TERMS https://eduindex.org/2021/07/17/bookish-terms/

BOOK REVIEW: 1984 BY GEORGE ORWELL https://eduindex.org/2021/07/18/book-review-1984-by-george-orwell/

WHAT IS LITERATURE

Literature is one of the fine arts like music and painting. It is fundamentally, an Expression of life through the medium of language. Literature is composed of books that are of great human interest due to their subject matter and mode of presentation.

In Literature, form and the pleasure that form gives are of great importance. The writer is provoked by an urge for self-expression. Literature reflects an interest in the world of reality as well as imagination and our love of form and order. Matthew Arnold one of the prominent writers defined literature as a criticism of life.

We can find four distinct elements in all good Literature which are:

  1. The intellectual element
  2. The emotional element
  3. The element of imagination and fancy
  4. The element of composition and style or (The technical element)

Literary productions can be classified into five categories from the point of view of their subjects or themes:

  1. Literature of purely personal experience.
  2. Literature dealing with the common questions of life, death, Destiny, and God.
  3. Literature dealing with the social world order and its activities.
  4. Literature dealing with nature and man’s relationship with the external world.
  5. Literature deals with Literature and Art’s themselves.

How Literature came into existence:

The study of Literature begins with the reading of books which gradually leads to a familiarity with authors. Every great book has something fresh and original to say and it says this freshly and originally. As Plato says the foundation of all good and lasting work is entire sincerity to oneself and to the truth of things one perceives in life. The purpose of studying literature may be pleasure or acquirement of knowledge and insight or both. In any case, the Readers business is to enter into the spirit of the work and to penetrate the vital forces of the author’s personality.

Features of Literature:

Another important aspect of Literature is style. Literature uses language in various molds. The great writer modifies the language to his purposes and molds it according to his peculiarities. Thus the style of the author is the product of his personality; it is also a record of his artistic, spiritual and intellectual growth.
A proper study of Literature involves the study of its history, the biography of the author, and the ethos of the ages and society in which it is produced. Thus Literature becomes a supplement to the study of history. While history tells us about the externals of a people’s civilization, Literature gives us an insight into their mental, spiritual and moral condition.

Literature helps us to know more about the life of the people and the period of the time. It gives us an enormous study of the works and the mentality of the author and the author reflects the visions of the people. Thus, it expresses the emotional aspects which are locked inside the person and it provokes agony in the paper. However, Literature is a fine art that provides inner knowledge and enlightens people all over the world in different languages.

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THE GOTHIC NOVEL

During the later half of the 18th century, there was a revival of interest in the life and art of medieval times. The gothic novel arose out of this new zeal for medieval life and fashions.

Gothic Novel:

The Gothic novels of the period sought to satisfy the reader’s craving for mystery and violent emotion and for stories set in remote times and places, depicting ghosts, portents, and demonic forces at work.

Themes of the Gothic Novel:

  • Generally, the central theme of the Gothic novel is romantic love. A somber, restless villain is the central figure.
  • The innocent, beautiful heroine probably imprisoned in a castle wants to be rescued by her lover.
  • The scene is placed in a castle or the dark cloisters of a ruined Abbey equipped with frightening secret passages and private chambers.

Structure of the Gothic novel:

Supernatural events, physical violence, and mental anguish are part of the thematic structure of the Gothic novel. Wild and desolate nature provides the background. The central sentiment of the Gothic novel is melancholy. The Gothic novel was, thus, a conscious protest against the rational and realistic creed of the earlier period.

The father of Gothic novel:

Horace Walpole is called the father of the Gothic novel. His “The Castle Of Otranto” published in 1764, set the trend. He used a medieval setting for this novel. There is death murder, intrigue, and villainy in the novel. The Castle looms large as a sinister symbol until a ghost throws it down.

Ann Radcliffe

Ann Radcliffe continued the gothic tradition in several novels. Her best work is ‘The Mysterious Of Udolpho’ published in 1794. It shows an extravagant spectacle of Gothic elements like the somber castle of Udolpho with its sliding panels, secret passages, and supernatural sounds. Her other important novel is “The Italian.” Her method way to arouse terror and curiosity by apparently supernatural events which are finally explained as natural events.

Some other Gothic novels:

  • Dracula by Bram Stoker
  • The strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
  • The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
  • The Fall of the House of Usher and Other Tales by Edgar Allan Poe
  • Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë
  • Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
  • The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

Why they are famous:

The plot and content of the gothic novels will be Scary and mysterious. The book contains several allusions and assumptions. The plot always seems creepy to the readers. And during that era, people needed some drama and unrealistic elements in their life to boost up the experience of reading time. When some novels started to fire up the process of Gothic literary forms, more authors started to write on this theme. Even, some well know authors who are famous for their humorous works and romance works started to write Gothic to follow the trend and current affairs.

However, People love unrealistic dramas and fiction, especially Gothic elements. Thus, Gothic novels will always entertain their readers with the plots and beautiful narration of dark aesthetics.

THE DETECTIVE NOVELS

The Detective novel is one in which the story and plot are woven around an initial crime or murder the secret of which is solved by an investigator or detective. He does it by logical assembling and evidence as known as clues.

The Major themes of the Detective novels are:

  • The plot will always begin with a murder or a mysterious case.
  • The case will be superior and unfamiliar to the police
  • So that, they seek the knowledge of detectives to solve the mystery behind the case.
  • The detective will be curious and different from the rest of the characters portrayed in the novel
  • The wrongly accused suspect at whom circumstantial evidence points
  • The villain will be the mysterious element of the novel
  • The startling and unexpected denouement

It was Edgar Allen Poe who launched this literary form with his story “The Murder in the Rue Morgue” in 1841. In the later 19th century, in England, Wilkie Collins preferred the art of the Detective novel with the publication of his “Moonstone” the first full-length detective novel in English. The first full-length detective novel in America was Anna Katherine Green’s “The Leavenworth Case” published in 1878.

In 1887 Sherlock Holmes series by Conan Doyle began to appear and continued up to 1927. His creation of Sherlock Holmes was, however, is the greatest achievement.
The exploits of this sharp sleuth and his companion in adventure and chronicler, Dr. Watson, soon catapulted Doyle to international status. A prolific writer, he has written 4 novels and 56 short stories. Sherlock Holmes series ruled detective novels from all over the world. And which is still cherished by the readers, movie lovers. Many authors adapted the Sherlock Holmes series and created some different versions taken this as a root base.

Detective novels in different ages:

After 1920 a series of novels known for their haunting suspense and artistic structure by Agatha Christie appeared. Hercule Poirot is the detective in her Novels. Agatha Christie is known throughout the world as the queen of crime. She is the author of 80 crime novels and short story collections, 19 plays, and 6 novels written under the name of Mary Westmacott.

Initial causes of it’s wide spread:

The spread of paperbacks and the establishment of book clubs helped the growth and development of the detective novel after the fifties.

Why Detective Novels are so popular:

It satisfies the “puzzle-solving” element of traditional puzzles.
It allows us to invoke our imagination
Be gripped by the suspense of a who done it.
Making the puzzle even more fascinating and the desire to reach the “goal” stronger.

What we learn from them:

Mysteries Often Make Children Central Characters and they can relate to the characters better than they can with other stories. By choosing to read mystery books that are youth-focused, you are helping them become more engaged and interested in the story. Detective novels also help adults to look forward to the mysteries of life inside the books. The stories will be mind-blowing and adults and elder people also will fall into them.

Detective fiction will continue to attract the readers as long as man’s fascination for mystery and suspense does not disappear.

WHERE TO GET FREE E BOOKS

Not everything is free in this world. Which means “something must be free.” Like that no books are free but some e-books can. You can read a lot of books from some legit websites and apps.

PDFDRIVE.COM

Pdfdrive.com is a worldwide legit website. There are more than millions of books on that website. Pdfdrive.com has every kind of book like, fiction, non-fiction, self-help, Drama, romance, science-fiction, fantasy, and much more. You can find books there from Shakespeare’s dramas to Paulo Coelho’s recent best-selling novel, The Archer. You can even search in your own native language like Tamizh, English, French, German most of the famous books will be available there.

So, how to download them? Simple all files will be available in PDF modes. So, you just have to search the book on that website if it appears you have to click that book column and then the PDF column. The file will be downloaded. All you have to do is having a PDF reader apps on your device. And start reading. Voila.

Google

We all know google is a multi-purpose search engine. We can watch videos, fill up forms, search for something that we want to know, download music, movies, songs, and images. And most of us never know we can download E-books too in our Google. Google has a lot of books available within it. Especially, in PDF forms. All you have to do is just type the “name of the book” and the “author” then type “book pdf download” or you can type as “book name” and “author name” then “. Pdf file” or “Book name” and the “author’s name” then “.pdf”

For example:

  • The Secret by Rhonda Byrne book Pdf Download
  • The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins.pdf
  • Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen.pdf

If you search in these types, if it’s available, you will get some pdf results on the front page itself.

Playstore:

Playstore is well known for its Apps. And it has a lot of Ebook apps more than 100’s of them. You can just simply type and search the application and download it to use if you feel comfortable with it.

For Example:

  • “Free Ebooks apps”
  • “Free Ebooks reading apps”

You can simply type like this and you will get a lot of results. But, the main thing is these apps don’t have every book we would like to read. Mostly there will be books that are published before the twentieth century. So, you can have a good classic reading hour and some other famous books like detective novels and classic romances.

Amazon.in

Amazon.in is an app and a legit online shopping website. Which is successfully operating all over the world. Yes, you can download some free Ebooks on Amazon too… The well-known famous app for readers is Kindle. This app is linked with Amazon, if you want to purchase any books from kindle it will direct you to an amazon app that’s where you can place the order and can read in kindle.

Sometimes some new authors fix their books on amazon for free download. Thus, people will try to read it. We can use that opportunity for ourselves. Just type free ebooks at amazon you will get to know what are ebooks are available as of that moment. And definitely, there will be a lot of classics for no cost on amazon.

If you are an avid reader kindly make use of it. If you are an amateur, take this as an opportunity to develop your reading habit.