For an avowed book lover, I’m afraid my book reading these past few years have been scanty to say the least, restricted largely to doing book reviews for Blogadda. However, this year I decided to join Corinne Rodrigues #Outdo Yourself Reading Challenge and pledged to read a modest 12 books a year which makes it just ONE book a month. Surely that is a target I can hope to match despite my time crunch.

So, fellow bloggers  joining the challenge, this is my first book for 2016 and there are 12 more to go. In order to make this a more meaningful reading year for me, I plan on posting short two sentence reviews about the books I’ve read, more as a record rather than as a review.

Having reviewed  Shubha Vilas’ earlier books Shattered Dreams   and The Rise of the Sun Prince, I was looking forward to the third in his series. This time, I was approached by the author himself to review the book and I was thrilled because this is the first time really that an author has asked me to review the book.

• Print Length: 296 pages
• Publisher: Jaico Publishing House; 1 edition (30 December 2015)

Rama, Laxmana and Sita have cast off their Royal robes and Royal lives and have donned the dress of the ascetic. Following Manthara’s needling, Kaikeyi asked King Dashratha to make her son Bharat the King of Ayodhya rather than Ram, the eledest son. Naturally, the king is distraught but Ram assures him that he will gladly enable his father to fulfill his promise to his Queen. On his part, Bharat is reluctant to rule as king and offers to rule as Regent, placing Rama’s slippers on the throne signifying his role as a stand-in.

Once again  Shubha Vilas tackles the stories of the  much loved mythology of the Ramayana that every Indian is so familiar with. Tackling a well known story is difficult because everyone who has heard it has his own version of the story. Besides, it is difficult to retain reader interest because there is no suspense or mystery as a hook. Yet, with language that is simple and easy to understand, Shuba Vilas weaves a fascinating narrative  with the nuances and tales of the story that are often over looked in the retelling of the Ramayana.

Focussing on the problems that the exiled Royals face, this book teaches us how to cope in the face of adversities, such as “the importance of focusing on duties and neglecting the distractions” ( the story of Viradha p.17), the importance of eliminating  false ego in one’s spiritual quest ( ( P144) and finally how to deal with conflicts in relationships that become clear after the abduction of Sita ( p.278).

As usual, the author has his own interpretation of the story, going beyond mere words to reveal a philosophy that helps on deal with the difficulties and challenges of everyday life.

I’m linking this post to #2016 Outodo Yourself Reading Challenge hosted by http://corinnerorigue.com

Doesn’t it seem providential that a book that deals with challenges and coping with life should be the first book of the year?