Ajay's Book Review

A rare insight into America's prized possession, SKUNK WORKS. Skunk Works, the legendary R&D centre, a dream of so many aerospace engineers producing state of the art weapons and surveillance systems that are probably 8-10 years ahead of the world. From building the worlds first and only operational Mach 3 aircraft that could fly at altitudes just shy of space, needing the pilot to wear pressurised suits to the worlds first operational stealth fighter which remained a mystery to intelligence agencies around the world until it took out the most defended capital, Baghdad, during Operation Desert Storm. I have been wanting to read this book longer then I would like to admit. Having been a lifelong fanboy of the SR-71 blackbird and the F-22 Raptor I constantly stumbled upon the term "Skunk Works" in literature while reading about the planes. This book was literally the first suggestion I got as I started researching about Skunk Works. The book enchants you from

A worthy tribute to one of the greatest daughter of India. I came across the book after watching Raazi movie and wanting to know more about this girl and her family who sacrificed so much for India. The novel is based on the real-life story of a young Indian Kashmiri girl who sacrificed everything to serve her motherland by becoming a spy for India’s external intelligence agency RAW (Research and Analysis Wing) by marrying into a high ranking Pakistani army family. The girl's father had been working for RAW for some time setting up the network in Pakistan to gather intelligence and send it across the border. But when during a routine health checkup is informed of having cancer and knowing he has very time left decides to ask his daughter to finish the mission he started. His wish becomes stronger when he realises that Pakistan is preparing for something big for war. Sehmat is married to the Pakistani army family where she quickly gains the affection of all the family member

KINDNESS IS WHAT FLOWS THROUGH THE BOOK. When I started looking for a book on spirituality, Yogananda’s “Autobiography of a Yogi” was the most recommended book on the subject. Indeed the book was outstanding and left me intrigued about Yogananda and I began looking up more about him on the internet. During this research, I came to know about Swami Kriyananda and stumbled on this book. This book is a collection of experiences of people with Swami Kriyananda mostly through Ananda. Through the book, the reader gets an insight view into the lives of people living in Ananda. The book is a tribute to one of the greatest disciples of the master. The reader gets an understanding of how the smallest decisions made by Swami Kriyananda always had master's (Yogananda) teaching embed in them. The book brings out the conflict between SRF and Ananda, and how Swami Kriyananda handled the legal process gracefully while keeping the master’s teachings for peace in his conscious. The book is a gr

Ordinary People Extraordinary Lives. The book is a collection of real-life stories of people around Sudha Murthy. The stories are experiences of people around her which are quite incredible. Some stories make you laugh other's make you cry but one thing is for sure and that is each one of them is an inspiring tale form which we can all take away some learning. The stories from her childhood days in Hubli are quite interesting and fascinating, as they remind us of an era when all people of a village knew each other and lived together. There is a very heart warming story responsible for the title of the book, which is about the Devdasi system in India wherein young girls were forced into prostitution in the name of god. The book ends with the worthy mention about alcohol anonymous which helps people with alcohol addiction. This book is a good light read and is similar to Chicken Soup for the soul series books. Author :  Sudha Murty Published : 2017 Publisher : Penguin Ra

If there is one book that brings positivity and smile to millions of people its undoubtedly Hanuman Chalisa.  Composed by Shree Tulsidas four centuries ago in the Gangetic plains in avadhi language, it is composed of 43 chaupai and 3 dohas, it has an appeal across the economic strata and the length and breadth of the country. The author takes the reader through the chaupais of hanuman chalisa sequentially and explains the literal meanings of the chaupais and he also elaborates on the subtle and hidden meanings of the chaupais. The way Devdutt elaborates the chaupais it resembles the ancient Indian tradition of guru explaining the hidden meaning of chaupais, shlokas, etc. In the book Devdutt cites an example where through the rebirth cycles of life and death, Hanuman as a kid narrated the story of Ramayan to his mother Anjana about how they created the bridge and defeated Ravana she was not impressed and asked why he didn't just swing his tail and destroyed Lanka instead of

The life of Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. Extremely well researched, the book is a delight to read as it provides detailed facts and insights into the life of Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. One of the things which stands out while reading the book is the level of details the author has provided about the Civil and Military structure of Shivaji’s kingdom and also of Mughals comparing the merits and demerits of both the systems. The book begins with the era of Shahaji Bhosale’s rise in the court of Adilshahi kingdom, the birth of Shivaji Bhosale and then takes the reader through the various life events of Shivaji Maharaj. The really interesting part is that even though the author has stuck to the facts regarding the life events still they appear as if they have been extracted right out of some daredevil hero story, such was the life of the Legend Shivaji Maharaj.  In the book the author writes " In those times when soldiers fled from battlefield moments after their k