Rashmi bookmarks “The Serpent of Venice”

They're back! Pocket of Dog Snogging along with his sidekick Drool and pet monkey Jeff ... and of course a ghost (hey, "there's always a bloody ghost"). The works of William Shakespeare (The Merchant of Venice and Othello) and Edgar Allan Poe (The Cask of Amontillado) get the Christopher Moore treatment in this continuation of Pocket's adventures from when we last met him in "Fool".

Out on a political mission at the behest of his wife, Queen Cordelia, Pocket walks right into a trap set by Antonio, Montressor Brabantio and Iago. From that torturous captivity unravels a story of great scheming and greater plotting amongst kings and princesses, soldiers and merchants.

There weren't too many laugh-out-loud moments - something I think I have come to associate Moore with. I do have to mention the Chorus: like Shakespearean plays, we see the chorus comment on scenes and characters ... unlike anything I have read ever before, the characters then comment back on what the Chorus says to them, sometimes even threatening them to change what was just said. That was really funny!

Overall however, I did not enjoy this book as much as all the other Moore stories I have read (even "Fool" was much funnier). I can't help feeling though, that Moore wasn't going for just funny this time. The Serpent of Venice is crafted out of tales that are polar opposites in genre, and brings together a vast repertoire of characters you could not imagine in the same world, much less the same room - and that is commendable.

Rashmi bookmarks “Wolf in White Van”

You may now make your first move.

Hospitalized for a lengthy period of time after an incident that left behind a permanent physical and emotional scar, Sean Phillips creates 'Trace Italian', the game of strategy and survival (interestingly, played solely via snail mail) wherein players send in their preferred move as they navigate their way around a world set in a ravaged, future America.

The beauty of this story by John Darnielle lies, not in that amazing twist where the imaginary and the real worlds merge, but rather in the narration of this story. As players Lance and Carrie take their turns into the real world with tragic results, and Sean is called in to testify, the story which had been moving forward starts to regress into Sean's history right back to where it all started. His letter to Carrie's parents which was read out during the trial, held so much sorrow and hope all at once, it gave a very poignant foundation to all the events that came after it.

From an imaginary to the real world, from excited replies to hate mail, this was the undulating, shifting story of a disfigured boy trying to create a 'safe place' in a horribly cruel world.

If there is one complaint I have about this book, it is that it did not go in as deeply as a subject this important warrants. It ended far too soon, and the tortured theme deserved a longer, harder look.

Rashmi bookmarks “Coronado”

“If we could have everything we wanted in an instant without fear of consequence? No worry of jail or societal reproof of any kind? No having to look our victims in the eyes because the victims have conveniently vanished? If we could have that? Stalin’s crimes would pale in comparison to what we’d do in the name of love. In the name of the heart wanting what the heart wants.”

That sentiment is at the heart of this collection of short stories by Dennis Lehane. My absolute favourite was “Running Out of Dog”. Set in Eden, South Carolina, this is the story of a small town that wanted to put itself on the map by building a world-class amusement park. A decision to eliminate the countless stray dogs that mar the landscape brings forth a sadly morbid reality where life is a “6 year old boy sitting by the ditch, waiting to die” … just like that kid in the war who got shot in the head, but kept running with half a head for 8 to 10 steps before realizing that he was already dead.

I also liked “Until Gwen”, the story of a con man and his son, both battling over a missing diamond. It was as much a picture of broken relations as it was a clever skirmish over lost treasure. (I did not much like the play version of this story; it seemed dragged out for no reason).

While “ICU” had quite an interesting idea at its core - a man who sits outside the ICU unit of different hospitals, pretending he has family within - the overall purpose of the events was not very clear.

I did not much care for the other 2 stories, “Gone Down to Corpus” and “Mushrooms” - both revolved around petty criminals whose actions were neither very interesting nor driven by some great motivation, and I just could not get into it.

Rashmi bookmarks “Black Moon”

A post-apocalyptic world where houses and malls have been ransacked and the streets are deserted ... save for the fearsome image of people wandering about, a danger to themselves and all others around them.

Kenneth Calhoun takes us to a world where prolonged insomnia has ravaged the minds of people affected by a phenomenon - the cause of which remains unexplained, the remedy to which, a distant hope.

Starting from a slight flutter of a black shadow at the corner of their eye, to a breakdown in language, to that final descent to madness which sees a horrific clash between the sleepless and the sleepers; the best part about this story was the fact that nothing is fully explained; we are neither told where and how it all started - nor are we given all encompassing answers in one grand finale.

Through different points in the tale, we follow several key characters as they deal with this nightmare ... we see Biggs desperately try to find a cure for his wife Carolyn ... we see Lila's parents with just enough sanity left to chain themselves to a table and send their daughter away for her own safety ... we see Adam and Jorie, married couple, and that horrific incident involving their new born baby ... we follow Chase and Jordan, high school friends on a road trip, and we see Chase slowly succumb to the madness (that final lap with a truck full of sheep and the axe-wielding maniac that he becomes, was truly terrifying) ... and we see the scientist Kitov become the first to test a possible cure to the disease ... Much like the hallucinatory experience of the insomniacs, I too got sucked into this eerie dystopian world where terror and despair rule.

Rashmi bookmarks “Anansi Boys”

From that incredible story teller Neil Gaiman comes yet another amazing story filled with fantastic characters in an unbelievable world. Based on the West African folklore of Anansi the trickster, who is considered to be the god of all stories, and often takes the shape of a spider, this is the story of siblings "Fat Charlie" and "Spider", sons of a god, who discover each other after the death of their father.

That landmark moment becomes the changing point - certainly in the life of Fat Charlie, who goes from being an average person in a dead-end job, to a god who can wield magic and control other life forms - but also in the book, which shifts to that magical realm for which I keep returning to Gaiman.

As Spider becomes an obnoxious sibling who takes over his brother's home, his job, and even his fiancée, Fat Charlie sets off on a mission to get rid of this interruption in his life (an interruption he himself invited by asking a spider to relay a message to his brother, asking him to stop by for a visit). Arranged by the mysterious foursome led by Mrs. Callyanne Higgler, his mission takes him to the caves of the Tiger, the Hyena, the Monkey ... and the deadly Bird Woman. And just like that, we enter a magical world where humans become beasts and animals take over humans.

“You're no help," he told the lime. This was unfair. It was only a lime; there was nothing special about it at all. It was doing the best it could.” In keeping with the character of a trickster god of all stories, this tale was filled with so many light and funny moments - and I absolutely loved that. Starting from Charlie's cringe worthy experiences because of an excessively embarrassing father, there are so many laugh-out-loud moments in this book! ... “Daisy looked up at him with the kind of expression that Jesus might have given someone who had just explained that he was probably allergic to bread and fishes, so could He possibly do him a quick chicken salad...”

The story had a very grand finale at Saint Andrews, where each and every strand of this web of stories came together, complete with warring siblings, fighting couples, crazy bosses and yes, even a ghost with some unfinished business.

(Oh, and this book is dedicated to me. That's right).

Rashmi bookmarks “The Dead Are More Visible”

I have rather mixed feelings about this short story collection by Steven Heighton.

"Those who would be more", was the story of an English teacher in Japan. Through his meetings with the principal and his classes, we get to see a reflection of the life and times: not just with such words in the list of translations as corpse, rifle, shooting and bombing, but also in the reasoning behind his dismissal - based on the fact that making children work through Saturday and not following it up with homework, was just too lenient.

I liked "Fireman's Carry", the story of an incident involving saving snakes from a burning building. Within the span of one short evening, we get an intense look into the thoughts and ways of a cross section of people, both local and foreign, victim and saviour.

"Shared Room on Union" was a unique story, in that it was a very unique treatment of quite a mundane event. Couple Janna and Justin get mugged while parked in front of Union station in downtown Toronto. While tied and thrown into the trunk of their own car, they hear and even interact with passers-by. The incident in itself - plus the way they deal with it later in life - was quite interesting.

I also liked "Swallow", the story about paid volunteers in a drug-testing program. It was a dark, dirty and scary world which was at all times deeply tragic.

Barring the above, I can't say I liked this collection too much. Most of the other stories are now a blur in my mind. I also find it difficult to enjoy stories that are too much "a slice of real life". I read to get away from the drearier side of real life (which is why, perhaps, I like sci-fi and fantasy above all). For real life to appeal to me through the pages of a book, the storyteller has to be of a calibre no less than the likes of Dickens or Tagore.

Rashmi bookmarks “Ender's Game”

Some time in the future, humanity encounters an alien race known as "buggers" and faces two disastrous wars. In preparation for an anticipated third attack, mankind decides to pick the very best of its youngest, and train them to become perfectly unbeatable militia. Orson Scott Card tells us the story of such a time period and its inhabitants - and of one boy genius in particular - Ender Wiggin - who rose the ranks, out-maneuvering computer games and zero gravity battle simulations.

Quite possibly the best part about this story was the plausibility of the main protagonist. A hero is not presented to us to accept without question. We see a weak boy stand up to a sadistic older brother and a class bully. We see a small boy fight a mean classmate and a cruel commander. We see a strategic boy use everything from a common enemy to an appeal for help to make friends in a strange world. And at every step of the way, we are allowed to follow his most private thoughts and reasoning for his behaviour, as every breath becomes a small fight for survival till the next breath comes along.

I was captivated by how this story constantly shifted tones and presented the characters, sometimes as helpless 6-year olds plucked out of their homes, and sometimes as brilliant individuals that all of mankind is right to pin its final hopes on. Every boy goes through a heartbreaking moment of homesickness like Bean. Every boy goes through a glorious moment of victory like Alai.

I also really liked the sub plot of Peter and Valentine as Locke and Demosthenes; a political story, that runs its arc and meets its counterpart military story of Ender in the end.

The final days on the mysterious planet Eros bring together, in a grand conclusion, the epic tale of Mazer Rackham, the much dreaded Third Invasion, and a secret message at The End of the World. From ages 6 to about 11, this is the story of Andrew "Ender" Wiggin; the greatest battle commander; the "Speaker for the Dead".