The World As I See It

Portraying the world as he saw it during the Great Wars and the Holocaust in his various essays, addresses, correspondences and some that he received, the book is one of the greatest that I have the privilege to come across. Written by the man, to whom, the whole world attributes for the solution of some of the greatest mysteries of nature, the rationale of human behaviour, the irrationality of human cruelty inflicted on their fellow beings, the solution for a peaceful world, the ode to the artists who tries to make the world a beautiful place, the reverence to the sacrifices of humanity, all of them are composed with a frankness, that does not, for a single moment compromise the urge to shun the evils of the society that threaten all that is peaceful and conducive to evolution of harmonious living with understanding across various views of societies. Explaining a variety of subjects ranging from politics, economy, citizenship, education, religion, values, with the approach, more scientifically aligned yet lucidly philosophical, Einstein curves out his design for a better world. Insolent letters from the people, cornered by his ruthlessly appropriate logic and witty humility that he ushers to pacify the unsatisfied yet faulty complainant, both find places in this collection which is abridged to clamp the scientific correspondences out of this translated edition making it incomplete yet complete in a different perspective.

Misir Ali Omnibus I

After you have selected a book based on its focus on mystery as well as psychology, it will stimulate the senses in a different way when the supernaturals emerge prime. Devi starts with a newly-wed wife displaying behaviour that seems clairvoyance to the husband who seeks help from Misir Ali, among others. But quickly the theme diverges when the family of the landlord gets involved in a problem which curiously mingles with that of the couple. The suspense gathers momentum as the climax is reached but the rationale of the rescue of the innocent remains mysterious even to the sleuth. But the doubts are cleared in Nishithini, the story that follows though it might not be satisfying to those whose mind is not so open to take in ideas that are based on simple belief. Further challenges for the reader await in Nishaad, where evidences of parallel worlds make Ali as baffled as the traveller between them. The narrative establishes another dimension as well to the life of Misir. Nilu, the student turned collateral victim of an earlier story turned admirer of Ali, takes it upon herself to try convincing Misir of their destined relationship. Their marriage is consummated in Anyabhuvan, but not before leading the seeker of the paranormal to a quest that leaves him with more puzzles than those he apparently solves. The story starts with the perspective of Misir Ali but culminates from a different angle which makes it a bit lengthy with the twist diluted even while a horrific future is forecast. The narrative actually concludes with a hint of a follow up which might be necessary if the chronology is to be maintained. On a different note, the following story, Brihannala, is unlike its predecessors and is a definite mystery, which, the ingenuity of the author camouflages for quite sometime. Here, the author is the protagonist, who meets Ali as the latter come seeking for him for a curious case and gets to understand him as their association progresses. Irritated, initially and trying to avoid the sleuth, the author finally gets convinced of the selfless intentions of the truth seeker and accompanies him to unravel a deep lying mystery that reveals a horrifying tragedy. The following is a collection of three bizarre stories, Bhoy, Jin Kafil and Sangeeni, which belong definitely to the mystery genre but for the last where the revelation remains satisfyingly unsatisfying. In these, the author is also a character in some cases. The following in line is another attraction due to a couple of reasons. When the underlying tension is over, a curious twist awaits the readers which keeps us guessing about whether the danger was the effect or sensing danger is the cause to stimulate the psychological effect that is central to its theme and justifies naming it Bipad, which translates to danger. Its other feature is its shows the rationale by which the sleuth solves for the truth which makes him indeed an expert in dealing with abnormal behaviour in the otherwise normal world. The next story, Anish, finds a 51 year old Misir Ali fighting an ailing liver but is eager to help the distressed. His sincerity drives him to guide a tormented mother find peace as her diary reveals her apparent hallucination of hearing the apparent dead. The next title is on the conservative side as it says Misir Alir Amimangshito Rahasya which translates to unsolved mystery of the truth seeker but in essence, there are double mysteries, one of which is apparently solved, convincing the reader albeit the evidence is only implied while the other is only conjectured without a shred of evidence to corroborate the assumptions. Interestingly, this feeling stimulated by incompleteness is the signature beauty of the pieces where Humayun Ahmed excels in keeping the magical reality alive. Added to this is the Bangladeshi setting that keeps the nationality original. The smell of the common people with the characteristic depth of the brilliant mind is etched in the central character which makes these remarkable in the intellectual domain as well. But the underlying theme of each story is tragedy, where events that are unexplained, seems to lead people to some unhappy future.

The Man Who Knew Too Much

A collection of political mysteries with a flavour that is slightly different from conventional mystery stories. Infact the sleuth is related to the PM, the FM and several other in the higher rungs which gives him ample chance to study the intricacies of regional along with private politics. So it is not surprising that each story unveils the crimes in private circles but the actual perpetrators are sometimes to be excused from bringing to justice just to avoid a greater political chaos. So Horne Fisher, the investigator with the self proclaimed omniscient knowledge of almost everything finds it hard to bear the burden of information that he is cursed with. His analytical mind gets easily to the truth but diplomacy prevents unmasking the villains publicly quite a few times. Fisher vents his solutions to Harold March, a political journalist who gets attached to Fisher in a case that is supposed to be the first for the duo. Besides this case and the final one, the others are not chronologically arranged. The stories are unique in the sense that philosophy plays a greater part than concrete evidence in unveiling the truth but the finale remains convincing always. The final case is a bit predictive that has seemed to influence Christie in one of her masterpieces where the master falls after preventing the calamity in the way that is tragic yet supremely heroic satisfying justice. The signature style of Chesterton can be felt in the subtle cues, the serenity of the ambience that makes the stories gripping yet calm. Written from the third person perspective, the contents are as follows

1. The Face in the Target
2. The Vanishing Prince
3. The Soul of the Schoolboy
4. The Bottomless Well
5. The Fad of the Fisherman
6. The Hole in the Wall
7. The Temple of Silence
8. The Vengeance of the Statue

Bhut Samagra

Spanning over the varied human emotions from intense tragedies to suspenseful narratives the one element that is common to all in this collection is the spirits. Actually reference to spirit is deliberate as spirituality and not raw horror is the core of the book. Sometimes it becomes autobiographical as the author dwells on the untimely death of his Mother in a haunted residence and how he witnessed his revered Chotodadu (Grandfather) alleviating misfortunes of the needy with rituals that defies logic for the layman and makes the events no less than miracles. Also various events in the lives of Ramakrishna Sarada and their greatest disciple Swamiji have been depicted that borders presence of some forces that is subtle yet true. With a suitable note as introduction the content of this volume includes
• Raat barota
• Haat na daal
• Bhut adbhut
• Nishir daak
• Bhuter khela
• Morgan saheber bagan
• Sei raat
• Gaganer maach
• Bhutera bhuteder kichu korte pare na
• S(n)iri
• Kach
• Sei adbhut manushti
• Bhut samparke duchar katha
• Brahmadaityake ekghanta gaan shunie thakurda bari firlen
• Teel matite pora matroi jwale uthlo
• Maa bole daklen, gaganvedi chitkar
• Chotodadu cancer rogta nijer shorire tule niechilen
• Ekti chobi, ekti chobi. Khaskhas shabdo
• S(n)aibaba aloukik Shorire Gopinath kabirajke Kaashite dekhe gelen
• Hatath dekhi chaire Gaurida, tarpori nei, tablee sudhu swet sankha
• ‘Eki tumi ekhane!’ Prashner uttar ajo khuje beracchi
• Aenae dekhte gie dekhi jantranaklishta bridhhar mukh
• Siddha Tantriker shesh Puja Chinnamasta, Amabasyae rakto die Maaer Pujo korbo
• Amar kono naam nei. Ami Maaer Santan, bolei adrishya holen
• Ekta jhoro hawa boe gelo, gaacher daal bhangatr shabdo holo
• Bina meghe bajrapaat
• Kichu loukik kichu aloukik
• Charte deshlai kathi
• Gobheer raate
• Bhuter bor saja
• Ashade nnoe
Witty remarks refreshes the stories at places that balances the philosophical bend of quite a few anecdotes.