Truth is stranger than fiction

-By Swetha Amit http://content.msn.co.in/MSNContribute/Story.aspx?PageID=275e1ac2-bf92-49b2-983e-7e9dda5214f0 Books are indeed mans best friends as they say. Reading is a means of either getting away from reality or plunging into the same in a different manner. While some prove to passing clouds, there are a few which tend to reign on your mind causing a downpour of thought processes and a hurricane in your cognitive space. There are a few which make you cry, laugh or think. Nevertheless they tend to leave lasting impressions which changes ones perspective of themselves or the world. The below are a few ones which have had that impact on me but may not necessarily apply to the rest. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas - This book by John Boyne was made into a movie which released last year. The book depicts a poignant tale of friendship across barriers set in the background of the dreadful holocaust. A tale of innocence weaved into horrors and an appalling depiction which makes one wonder

-By Swetha Amit http://content.msn.co.in/MSNContribute/Story.aspx?PageID=625610c6-1ae7-48d4-b40e-6657c0876674 Many may dispute about the concept of Mothers’ day. Their arguments categorically state as to why only the second Sunday in May should many express their unconditional love to their mothers. And why not every day in the year. While they aren’t entirely wrong, it does take one special occasion or the other to make one feel how much they are cherished in another’s life. If going by the same argument, one can apply the same logic to birthdays and anniversaries and celebrate the entire year. Yet it wouldn’t be the same. This can also be looked upon as a break from the mundane routine one is accustomed to. What with scurrying around from pillar to post and professional demands round the clock, it tends to leave one hard pressed for time for near and dear ones. At times like these, one longs for that particular day to unwind and do something unique to make it up to their loved ones

-By Swetha Amit http://content.msn.co.in/MSNContribute/Story.aspx?PageID=2a3ebf61-309b-4cac-9f39-3686b86fcac7 The title is catchy enough to induce interest in one to grab a copy of the DVD instantly. It certainly isn’t a bed time story as the film leaves a long lasting impact to an extent of rendering a sleepless night. Based on the novel by John Boyne, The boy in the striped Pyjamas is a tale of innocence and friendship interspersed with the horrors of the holocaust. Eight year old Bruno (Asa Butterfield) finds to his dismay that his family had decided on moving from their beloved home in Berlin to the country side. Explanations seem to evade him and his questions are met with a lukewarm and a rather reluctant response. The fact he is able to comprehend is restricted to that of his Commandant father having gotten a promotion and being asked to shift his work premises. With his father busy on a new mission, mother bustling about her new home, sister Gretel on the brink of puberty, Br

-By Swetha Amit http://content.msn.co.in/MSNContribute/Story.aspx?PageID=f117b2e3-4a90-4d1e-aee7-2fde4dea4251 One quick glance at the title is enough to suffice curiosity within the prospective readers. Perhaps it’s the catchy headline that instantly grabs the attention with utmost interest enough to flap through the pages. Varon B K Sharma’s write up on the same is a work of fiction interspersed with events pertaining to real life scenarios and occurrences. The book deals with a common disease prevailing in many parts of the world and has confined millions into its sphere of fear. And it’s the same dastardly syndrome which has enticed the innocent and not so innocent into its jaws of death. Terrorism is that illness which seems to have no cure as one hears of such heinous instances across the world. The globe has witnessed several horrors in the form of brutal wars, the appalling holocaust and other catastrophes which make all the five senses bleed with horror. Yet this remains to be