A light in the darkness

Patriarchy wails aloud in our present society, and we all have seen the devastating effect of it as women are left out of property, dependent on husbands, subject to domestic violence, etc. If this is what you feel, then this book is the right choice for enlightenment. Summary The opening of the book is the real gripper. Stepping into the story with a suspenseful opening of the death of Dakshayani Amma, drawing our attention towards something wrong done to her. The suspects are her relatives, for everyone seems to have a motive to kill her. As the story unfolded with the advancing pages, the detective aspect of the story slowly faded away, showing the ugly look of a mother who chose the matriarchal crown over everything and, in this quest, ruined her happy married life and made her children long for their father forever. The charm of legacy blinded her to such an extent that she only focused on her daughter, Pavizham. The lives of other children meant nothing to her. This book intro

 " In the end we all will become stories."                                                                                                                             Margaret Atwood Birth of a book was never an accident, but an insightful recording preserved for future generations. As Margaret Atwood stresses, we all will one day become stories- some stories which everyone wants to read always like 

Clear your vision; there is a lot to envision.   Let me carry you to the very first day of your life. You never knew where you would land. Who would be your father and mother? Or whether you will live or not live? Everything was suspenseful and surprising. Does the child have questions? No, she trusts the process and expects the best. She trusts the creator, and she knows whatever happens is going to bring only good. Our lives also present such surprises and suspense all the time. Isn't it? No. Come with me and meet Naina. She is a housewife. She gets up early and prepares meal for everybody. She packs bags and sends everyone to work. Then in the afternoon she goes to pickup her five-year-old lovely doll Natasha at the bus stop. They used to have a lot of fun thereafter until Samir came from work at six in the evening. Then she again occupies her kitchen territory. One such afternoon, when she went to pick up her 5-year-old kid, her foot struck the stone, and she started bleeding.

1. Just don't overload.   "The time to relax is when there is no time for it."                                                                                         Sidney J Harris The first argument I present for taking a break is when you feel you just can't take a break because the deadline is near or a lot is left to do. Just at that time, your body is too stressed out and is asking you for a break to relax and rejuvenate. It is something like when you were preparing the whole night for your final exam and in the morning you felt you forgot everything. Why? Because your brain was overloaded, like an electronic gadget, it went wrong. Similarly, when we work on our content, a lot of things go through our brains. Our brain does get overloaded, and there is a possibility that it might stop working.   2. Listen to your body's cry.     "If you don't pick a day to relax,   your body will pick it for you."                                               

 Panelist: 1.  Sonia   Mehta     co-founded Podsquad, a company that creates learning tools for children. children’s author (who sees India’s first dedicated children’s newspaper sections) conceptualising the Bournvita Quiz Contest for television; writing books, songs, poems, and stories for publishers in India, Africa, the USA, and the UK. 2.  Sohini   Mitra   P ublisher with over 14 years of experience. Collaborated with literary giants for content. Heads the children's and YA lists at Penguin Random House India.  The opening of the session was quite warm. Children's books have always been of interest to me, so this session seemed to be a boon. The discussion began with who makes decisions about which book the child should read. The answer is obviously the parents. Yes, for small children, it is necessary to pick one up for them. This way, they learn how to select books for themselves, but as children grow up, they start choosing books for themselves. They descr

Tired of the whole week's load, I long for the day off to refresh and rejuvenate me so that I have a week full of enthusiasm and sparks. So, the first thing that I love to do on my days off is to sleep a little longer. I loved to sleep for long hours during childhood, so when I sleep longer, I feel like I did something really good. Then my day-off drill begins a day before when I arrange for things that I would like to cook on this day. Cooking has always been a very good stress buster for me, so on my days off, I always try to prepare something special to have with my family. I never like to have meals alone, so I see to it that we dine for dinner together. We watch TV, talk, and laugh while we enjoy our dinner. But on my days off, when I make special lunches and breakfasts, I feel I have accomplished something very good in my life, and I love to cook like this for my family. The days off are my cleaning days. I clean my house completely and do the laundry. So, this is my day to m