Strangely Familiar Things

(image taken from the author's tweet)

I recently read a book - Strangely Familiar Tales

Like a typical Indian, I was looking for free material to download and read.  :-D

(To download a free copy, click the book name above.) 

This is a short and light read which got me glued for most of it. It still took me 3 entire days to finish. The only problem being; mindful reading :) I am a slow reader who internalises every word and takes my breaks. 

The book is an anthology of short stories (if it is just 3 stories can it be called an Anthology!) which presents to us stories that I would like to classify as intriguing, real and mysitcal. 

The author, Vijayalakshmi Harish gives us a sneak peak of how incredibly her mind works! (You can read her blog which reviews other's books.) The characters across the 3 stories are quirky yet relatable thus, I guess, their 'strangely familiar' stories kept me engaged. 

Commendable work of the author with spinning up a detective fiction with her first story, she gives due credit to Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes. She touches upon mysterious events and the power of the mind which humankind is still to get potent scientific backing for. The way the beliefs in her second is put forth is what is called 'turning the idea on it's head'. 

The final story is just a beginning of a mystical land which lies behind the door at the back of the wardrobe (like Narnia, was that also where she was inspired from!). Our lady gives credit to alot of strange, peculiar and unusual characters whom we come across through tales and fables. 

The author, after every story, shares her justification for putting together the afore mentioned shorty. For a 'non-believer' like me it doesn't matter, however it was fascinating to learn how the telling came around. 

For me, every character fell in place and were not forced into the stories neither were their beliefs nor any scene. Tiny parts of the stories were not surprises, guess the influence of stories from other available content around us is just unavoidable.

Overall, I was delighted with my experience of the entire book.