The Pile of Books

The innocence of childhood is one of the spoils of war; perhaps even the most tragic of them all. As a race, we still see no end to strife of such unimaginable proportions all around us. With each strife, we blindly go on adding more and more youth robbed of something precious and irreplaceable. As wartime stories go, All The Light You Cannot See  is a gem. This is not the first book to focus on children growing amidst a battle. Nor is it a pioneer in shining a light on survival during times of extreme duress. But, somewhere, along those well-trodden lines, the story just lights up with hope. The title is ambiguous, and at first glance, appears to pertain to a particular aspect only. Actually, it is a wider epiphany.  All The Light chronicles the parallel lives of two young children from warring factions. Both are deprived of a perfect life in a way (aren't we all, really?) and get sucked into the maelstrom of the Second World War. As they push their way through ...

We always leave ourselves behind. If not all of it, definitely some parts. It's not that that bit was messy, but mostly because something better or worse demanded more attention. In the end, it boils down to the power of the dramatic. Admittedly, reading - for the fun of it, that is, is one of those less dramatic, quiet parts of our lives that we flit in and out of. Till a few years back, this used to bother me a bit. After all, reading is what makes us; that, and our childhood. And what am I, if not an avid reader? Turns out, I'm just fine.  I may not have created world records in books consumed, but I haven't turned to dust either! Rather, I'm here, a slightly newer version of me, that bit different (because let's accept it, the old world is - perhaps, fortunately - no more) and an appetite built over the last three months of somehow being very worried and very relaxed at the same time. Mind, it wasn't easy, plugging back in. And again, it to...