"There are decades where nothing happens; and there are weeks where decades happen"-- Vladimir Ilyich Lenin. Although Lenin did not say it in the context we are interested in, but it aptly captures the predicament of book lovers. When they are not reading, there is a feeling of nothingness. When they are, they travel many journeys through time and space thereby, living a lot of stories.
I intend to create this thread to pull some unique and great recommendations across different genres. Let's grow this thread together with some great recommendations, reviews and intellectually stimulating discussions.
chamomile,AzadHindFauz@Villanelle how do you people manage so much reading along with prep? It takes me atleast a month to complete a single book. Have been reading Discovery of India since Jan '19, plus multiple half read books
3 out of 5 books I picked up were graphic novels. You can just blaze through them like comics, just reading 15 minutes a day is enough to finish one off in a week or two. Baki, Alan Ryan On Politics I left midway as well. It was too dense. Not light reading. Nehru's book took me about 2.5 months of 1 hour reading (15-20 pages) daily. I read books just like I do study...divide them either by time input or pages to be read.
Ab bas hogya par, wont be picking up any book now. As my friend said the other day:UPSC hojaye, gyaan arjan karne ke liye toh zindagi hai purri:P
EDIT: I just saw Jan "19" now...I think its a problem of interest. 2 saal toh nahi lagne the. Try reading graphic novels, I'm serious. Persepolis specifically. Am I pestering you, maybe..
Villanelle,
chamomile,
@Devanapiyam Those are some amazing recs. Thank you! Seems like exactly what I was looking for. I read John Grisham’sRainmakerandThe Firm. Rainmakerhas stayed with me after all these years. It’s a great book with a lot of heart.
@SergioRamos yes!Discovery of Indiawas the first book I picked up after mains. I only regret not reading it earlier, as my first introduction to the subject.
Does anyone have any poetry recommendations? Feeling a particular craving :D
If you are looking for depth in poetry, the first name that I would recommend is that of Jim Morrison. Even though he was the vocalist of the Doors, he was a poet through and through. A lot of his poetry made its way into the Doors’ music, but a lot of his unpublished scribbles have been recovered and are available on the internet. You could check them out. :)
Maybe you could start with ‘An American Prayer’ and ‘a Feast of Friends.’
If you have the time, maybe watch this movie called ‘The Doors’ where Val Kilmer plays Jim Morrison. It is so so deeeeeep. And yes, like me, you could end up being hooked to the Doors’ music and Jim Morrison for quite a while.
@Devanapiyam Those are some amazing recs. Thank you! Seems like exactly what I was looking for. I read John Grisham’sRainmakerandThe Firm. Rainmakerhas stayed with me after all these years. It’s a great book with a lot of heart.
@SergioRamos yes!Discovery of Indiawas the first book I picked up after mains. I only regret not reading it earlier, as my first introduction to the subject.
Does anyone have any poetry recommendations? Feeling a particular craving :D
Speaking of Morrison reminded me of Bob Dylan. All of Dylan’s music is the most beautiful poetry you can find. The lyrics of almost all of his songs are pregnant with meaning.
I would definitely recommend:
1. Desolation Row
2. Tambourine Man
3. Seven Curses
Anyone interested in Afghanistan(Soviet invasion, Taliban, al qaeda+ little history) should read Ghost Wars.. it's one of the best out there
Steve Coll is an absolute authority when it comes to CIA history, this one has been on my to be read list for a while now.
When I first heard about Operation Cyclone in Afghan, it blew my mind. Only America could get away with such a thing. Tells you about the importance of narratives.
For similar stuff, I have a podcast to suggest called Bro History. You can find it on Spotify and YouTube. They upload weekly or so. Do watch an episode titled - War Industry. We keep reading about Military Industrial Complex in PSIR but we don’t realise how big that is, and how the ground work is done by think tanks who exaggerate on issues to create pro-intervention narrative. It was great.
Woahhh.. Lot of experienced readers here. Can anyone suggest me some books to start with to develop reading habit?
When I was a kid, I read encyclopedias, junior level novel series books (simplified version of the wizard of oz, the count of monte cristo, etc) . In 2019, post my failure in prelims, I read the Harry Potter series in a week. 
( I hadnt watched the movies or read any of its book till then). It would be great if anyone can suggest me something to read.
Anyone interested in Afghanistan(Soviet invasion, Taliban, al qaeda+ little history) should read Ghost Wars.. it's one of the best out thereSteve Coll is an absolute authority when it comes to CIA history, this one has been on my to be read list for a while now.
When I first heard about Operation Cyclone in Afghan, it blew my mind. Only America could get away with such a thing. Tells you about the importance of narratives.
For similar stuff, I have a podcast to suggest called Bro History. You can find it on Spotify and YouTube. They upload weekly or so. Do watch an episode titled - War Industry. We keep reading about Military Industrial Complex in PSIR but we don’t realise how big that is, and how the ground work is done by think tanks who exaggerate on issues to create pro-intervention narrative. It was great.
You may find interest in Mossad too. THE MOSSAD is a good one.
JhansiKiRanii,Woahhh.. Lot of experienced readers here. Can anyone suggest me some books to start with to develop reading habit?
When I was a kid, I read encyclopedias, junior level novel series books (simplified version of the wizard of oz, the count of monte cristo, etc) . In 2019, post my failure in prelims, I read the Harry Potter series in a week.
What are your favourite topics? Fiction or non-fiction? Already there are some great recommendations here.
Yes Mossad is nice.. looking for Indian books on similar lines ?
Ps: waiting for new Raksha Bhavan in central vista(India ka pentagon).. family man bhi delay hogya ott rules k liye
@CSE20 Fiction
You may read the ones mentioned in this thread. I would suggest TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD - a poignant read but relevant for our times, LES MISERABLES, and works of Khushwant Singh.
chamomile,peterparker@Patootie thank you! Loved An American Prayer. Will have to read all of these several times over, looking forward to it :D
I strongly recommend Ron Chernow's biographies of famous American personalities. His writing is excellent. I have read Titan(about JD Rockefeller) and Washington(about George Washington) and they rank among my favourites.
David McCullough's writing is inspirational. Pick up his book on Wright brothers.
Post of Appreciation
I feel really grateful to each one of you guys for sharing your recommendations here. I have added a lot of books from here to my Goodreads want-to-read bookshelf.
Being a very slow reader, I went on to watch the youtube podcast- war machine and the movie- just mercy right away. Both are wonderful.
Just mercy is a greatly moving movie.
To quote the concluding lines from the movie-
" Hopeallows us to push forward, even when the truth is distorted by the people in power. It allows us to stand up when they tell us to sit down, and to speak when they say be quiet. Through this work, I’ve learned that each of us is more than the worst thing that we’ve ever done. That the opposite of poverty isn’t wealth. The opposite of poverty is justice.That the character of our nation isn’t reflected in how we treat the rich and the privileged, but how we treat the poor, the disfavored and condemned.Our system has taken more away from this innocent man than it has the power to give back. But I believe if each of us can follow his lead, we can change this world for the better. If we can look at ourselves closely, and honestly, I believe we will see thatwe all need justice. We all need mercy. And perhaps, we all need some measure of unmerited grace."
Great recommendation guys!
Keep going!
Thank you!
Villanelle,Celeborn
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