Sherlock

T.V shows, these days, as I see it, are beginning to get too monotonous, with the same love stories and problems of complexed people, who have nothing better to do other than think about their lovers, because they seem to have been relieved of all responsibilities that may concern them with the actual world and its problems. Either its this or, its going to be silly vampire or zombie shows. I’m not exactly the type of

person who you would find following shows on T.V religiously, but I can surely appreciate a good one. Even the comedy these days seems to have lost the touch it used to have. But criticizing contemporary T.V shows is not the aim of this post.

I’m sure many of you are already aware of the British T.V series, ‘Sherlock’, that have been airing since 2010, which stars Benedict Cumberbatch as the renowned detective and Martin Freeman as his faithful companion, Dr.Watson. It is usually the case that one watches the motion picture only after being inspired by the book. But  in my case, it was quite the opposite. A cousin of mine introduced me to this drama, and from there I decided venture reading the 1600 page novel, although I must admit, I have not yet finished the book. It is pleasing to see that the official E-Book, of the Sherlock Holmes detective series is available on the internet, completely free of charge.

The drama is actually a depiction of the 19th century Sherlock Holmes, moulded spectacularly into a 21st century ‘consulting detective’ who solves crimes with his partner Dr.Watson. He refers to himself as  a consulting detective as he prefers not to be associated with the local police force, which he does not think very highly of. The Scotland Yard, when perplexed by a crime to the extent that no solution seems to be present, seeks his help which he provides only when he finds the case ‘interesting’ enough.

Benedict Cumberbatch is the the sort of figure one might have on mind when thinking of Sherlock. A tall and lean body with hawk like facial features comprising of a sharp nose and bright, curios eyes, which cease to neglect any detail in the surroundings. He lives at 221 Baker  Street in a modest flat with Dr.Watson, who blogs about Sherlock’s experiences as a detective in solving intricate cases, when all other sources fail to be of any use. Martin Freeman, too, is the sort of person one would have in mind when thinking of Dr.Watson. Or maybe watching the drama makes the mind think that these figures accurately depict  the character, whatever the case may be, it is without doubt that all leading actors have remarkable talent in acting.

The way in which the whole story line has been transformed from a 19th century to a 21st century scenario, is phenomenal. Although the basic theme of every episode is in harmony with the one that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle himself  created, several aspects have been altered to compensate for the change in the era in which the actual story was based. This has been done in a manner that has made no compromise on the quality of the story, and the viewer ceases to lose interest. For example, in the book Dr.Watson writes memoirs of his experiences with Sherlock in his complex crime cases, while in the drama he blogs about it. Instead of letters, there are text messages. In the book, Sherlock is depicted as a drug addict, as he finds his mind under excessive pressure when nothing to challenge

it is at hand, thus he drugs himself to escape the suffering, however in the T.V series, he makes use of nicotine patches, for the same purpose (however they may have been other reasons for making this change as well 😉  )
The drama comes in seasons which comprise of three episodes, each about 90 minutes long, in which one case is solved. Up till now there have been two seasons and the third one is expected to be released next year. I will not go on to spoil the drama for my readers but I will strongly recommend watching this series. Do watch it and let me know if you share my enthusiasm!

Light Reading

Often comes the time when one does not wish to burden the mind with heavy books containing intricate plots and backgrounds that require a keen concentration by the reader, rather something to ease the mind and sooth the nerves. Such an objective cannot be achieved by reading a Tom Clancy action novel, or perhaps even a Dan Brown thriller, but something that goes slowly, brightens one up with lively yet subtle humor and never fails to lose the interest of the reader. Reading a book of this sort, is what is usually called Light Reading. Now, everyone has their own preference in light reading, because the requirement of nerves and mind to relax differs from person to person, but I think I will be doing a disfavor to my readers by not letting them know of my personal favorite light reading material. This material happens to be the work of the renowned British writer, P.G Wodehouse. Now, I’m sure many of you must already have heard this name and read many of his literary masterpieces, but for those who have yet to discover the wonders that his books have to offer, I will simply say that his books are based on typical British humor, and they never fail to cheer me up, even on a rainy day.

The expressions that the writer makes use of, his singular tone, full of sarcasm and vigor, and the amusing interaction between his cleverly made characters are sure to bring a smile to the face of even the grimmest of people. In contrast to today’s comedy, many a times wrongfully called so, P.G Wodehouse’s books go on to show that one need not necessarily slip off a banana peel on the pavement to entertain an audience but that the subtle humor which is hidden in every sentence easily serves the purpose, rather in manner much more praiseworthy.

 P.G Wodehouse was brought up by aunts and butlers in his childhood, so any reader of his works will not fail to notice the major part these characters play in his novels. My personal favorite is the Jeeves-Wooster series, in which Bertram Wooster narrates many of his experiences with his faithful and highly intellectual butler, Jeeves. Wooster is depicted as a person who is not much appreciated in society as he is not considered to be the among the brightest of people, and often finds himself amidst a problem to which no solution is clear. In all such situation his Butler, whose mental capacities are much in contrast to those of Mr.Wooster, never fails to come up with a brilliant plan to solve the problem. The novels contain a narration of Mr.Wooster’s experiences

 in such problems, and as I mentioned before the singular tone in which he narrates it never fails to brighten me up.

Another aspect of these books, that I find rather amusing is the difference in taste of clothing between Mr.Wooster and his butler. Mr.Wooster often gets piqued at his butler for not appreciating his taste in clothing, but in the end always has to accept defeat when Jeeves brilliantly solves another problem and Mr.Wooster realizes that he owes him this much. And the story often ends up with those articles of clothing either burned or given away somehow. Bertram’s relation with his aunts is rather interesting as well, considering how they look down upon him as a dim witted, fathead, other that one of his aunts, who happens to be his favorite, Aunt Dahlia. There are many other things that I admire about these books, but finding them out on your own will serve as a greater enjoyment. My favorite novels include The Inimitable Jeeves, Carry On Jeeves, Frozen Assets and many others. Do give his books a read and let me know if you like them, which I’m sure you will.

Happy Reading!

Three Cups of Tea

Three Cups of Tea, a book by an American humanitarian, Greg Mortenson, is about his journey to villages and rural area of Pakistan and Afghanistan, in order to make schools for education of the poor children, mostly girls. He aims to change the conventional thinking of the poor, illiterate elders of different tribes and areas, of not allowing girls to get an education. But upon arriving there, he discovers that many of these illiterate people possess wisdom, far more than anticipated, Greg himself admits that he learned a lot more than he had planned to teach, and thus his plans are met with a hearty welcome. Tribal leaders try to compete with one another to gain Greg’s favor to build them a school. But he decides to make his first school for the tribe who’s chief, Haji Ali, becomes his mentor. In the book, he narrates several incidents that take place during his journey, which range from kidnappings to gun fights to encounters with the Taliban etc. He had initially come to Pakistan, to climb the second largest peak in the world; K2, but after failing, he finds himself ready to climb another peak, and it’s glory is far greater than the former, and he doesn’t fail this time.

Greg has narrated several inspirational lessons he learnt. My personal favorite quotation by Greg is as follows: ‘If we try to resolve terrorism with military might and nothing else, then we will be no safer than we were before 9/11. If we truly want a legacy of peace for our children, we need to understand that this is a war that will ultimately be won with books, not with bombs’-Greg Mortenson. I’m definite you will enjoy this book, and will get to see the positive side of Pakistan.

Looking forward to your comments and opinions. Happy Reading!