I just completed reading "The Lost Symbol" by the best selling author Dan Brown.
If you are a die hard Dan Brown and cryptic novel fan , then you would enjoy reading the latest creation by Brown with the Masonic culture as a launching point for the thriller.There is no doubt that Brown conducts a thorough study before writing a novel and this book exemplifies none the less.
The book is a long read and not as exciting as its famous predecessors - Da Vinci Code and Angels & Demons.Moreover the end is anti - climax with the whole issue around the threat to national security being a farce.However , the book is a treat for those intuitive minds who revel in the power of thoughts and Noetic Science , the author clearly outlines that ancient civilizations had achieved a lot in discovery and science and the present day modern science is in just a process of rediscovering the ancient mysteries.
The book builds up a suspense tantamount to Da Vinci however does fail to deliver in the end and reader is left wondering what was the chase all about.The main protagonist - the great symbologist Robert Langdon is again the central character and sometimes his explanation around everything becomes dull and overwhelming.Langdon's rants about religion and truth, when not directly tied to the mystery, are tedious and even a little preachy. In fact, the last 40 pages of the book try a little too hard to be enlightening.
Review in the Financial Times panned the book as "a novel that asks nothing of the reader, and gives the reader nothing back", adding that it "is filled with cliché, bombast, undigested research and pseudo-intellectual codswallop".The digested read by John Crace in The Guardianends with Robert Langdon begging Dan Brown "Please don't wheel me out again."
The book is a one time read for sure and definitely more interesting if you are planning a trip to Washington D.C soon , morever it compelled me to look at the US dollar note more carefully ...I will stop here :)
Saturday, November 07, 2009
Friday, November 06, 2009
Will to Win
The ongoing cricket ODI series between India and Australia , is turning out to be an interesting one.Iam writing this blog when Australia lead the series 3-2 , I still can't predict who will win the series , but one thing is clear for sure that its a series which is defining the face of Australian cricket for years to come.
It can still be said with lots of conviction that Australian cricket is in safe hands, in the past 2 years they have lost - Warne,Langer,Martyn,Hogg,Hayden,Symonds,McGrath,Gilchrist and Gillespie all world class players who are capable of forming a world cup winning team amongst themselves.
Prior to the start of the series with India they won the Champions Trophy silencing their critics and lost key players to injuries who are forming the nucleus of the team - Michael Clarke,David Hussey,Siddle,Bracken,Lee,Haddin,Paine,Johnson and latest addition being Henriques.The fact Iam outlining this is that Ponting is leading a bench strength team currently against India who are ranked no. 2 in ICC world rankings and still have managed to lead the series 3-2.
I personally feel that the 5th ODI spoke volumes of the Australian teams talent and their will to win under any circumstances.
Not taking anything away from the Indians especially Tendulkar who played his heart out and was sardonic in mentioning during his Man of the match award speech that he will passionate playing for India.It was his frustration towards his other 10 players to rise to the occasion and also towards the media for besmirching his image as a selfish player who is not a finisher.
India has been fortunate enough to have a player like Tendulkar but have been unfortunate enough for not capitalising on his talent.Well I can go on ranting about this ...but that can be another blog for me ...
The 5th ODI was an absolutely cracker of a match and Tendulkar's batting was a ripper...at the end what matters most is which team wants the victory more and as the sagacious sage Sidhu would put it in his oxymoron style "India clinched defeat from the jaws of Victory"...how apt and true.....
I guess Dhoni's captaincy is like a bikini it hides more than what it reveals ...on that note adios.....
It can still be said with lots of conviction that Australian cricket is in safe hands, in the past 2 years they have lost - Warne,Langer,Martyn,Hogg,Hayden,Symonds,McGrath,Gilchrist and Gillespie all world class players who are capable of forming a world cup winning team amongst themselves.
Prior to the start of the series with India they won the Champions Trophy silencing their critics and lost key players to injuries who are forming the nucleus of the team - Michael Clarke,David Hussey,Siddle,Bracken,Lee,Haddin,Paine,Johnson and latest addition being Henriques.The fact Iam outlining this is that Ponting is leading a bench strength team currently against India who are ranked no. 2 in ICC world rankings and still have managed to lead the series 3-2.
I personally feel that the 5th ODI spoke volumes of the Australian teams talent and their will to win under any circumstances.
Not taking anything away from the Indians especially Tendulkar who played his heart out and was sardonic in mentioning during his Man of the match award speech that he will passionate playing for India.It was his frustration towards his other 10 players to rise to the occasion and also towards the media for besmirching his image as a selfish player who is not a finisher.
India has been fortunate enough to have a player like Tendulkar but have been unfortunate enough for not capitalising on his talent.Well I can go on ranting about this ...but that can be another blog for me ...
The 5th ODI was an absolutely cracker of a match and Tendulkar's batting was a ripper...at the end what matters most is which team wants the victory more and as the sagacious sage Sidhu would put it in his oxymoron style "India clinched defeat from the jaws of Victory"...how apt and true.....
I guess Dhoni's captaincy is like a bikini it hides more than what it reveals ...on that note adios.....
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