Literature Festivals – Promoting Pakistani Literature

The five literature festivals being organized all across Pakistan have proved to be absolutely fruitful and lively. Every year people show up at the event to revive their love for surrealism, books and their favorite authors there.

All these five previous editions of literature festivals have not only captured the attention of the people living nationwide, but also internationally many have admired this brilliant effort conducted by the organizers of this wondrous event. A lot of well-known speakers show up in the festivals to make the audience realize the importance of Pakistan’s literature and also keep them entertained throughout.

Writers play a vital role in framing up the minds of the people and provide them with a perspective so they can learn how to optimistically deal with the difficult circumstances going on around them within the society. It is very necessary that their efforts are highlighted as they are the major asset who hold up the mirror and discuss issues in their own distinctive style.  

These days we see that due to improvisation in technology and mode of communication people have lost their interest in buying books. Many are not much into reading anymore due to their busy routine in life and those who are, they instead of buying a hard copy prefer downloading eBooks. Importance on keeping valuable should be stressed so that the bond between the people and their literature gets intensified.

More such events should be organized as these events can play a vital role in breaking the stereotype of violence stricken image of Pakistan, showing the positive and dynamic side of this country. The best part that makes literature festivals stand out and makes it more vibrant is that these events are for everyone. The organizers do not keep it all boring and bookish. Theatres are also set up to keep the audience entertained followed by various stalls and fun activities for children.

Hopefully more such events would be carried out in future nationwide, that are as vibrant as these literature festivals and captivating enough that they receive appreciation internationally as well. Pakistani celebrities, artists and writers should join in hands together and contribute in bringing a positive change within the country.

The Fault in Our Stars

The Fault in Our Stars is definitely one of those books which are impossible to put down and one wouldn’t mind reading it again and again because of its exceptionally written quotes and dialogues. John Green in this small book has undoubtedly depicted the inevitability of life in an absolutely phenomenal manner.

This heart breaking story is narrated by a depressed 16 year old girl, Hazel Grace Lanchester, who is dying from cancer in her failing lungs. On enforcement of her mother, she joins a support group where she meets Augustus Waters, a brilliant twist in the story, another 16 year old cancer patient, who loses his leg from this life-threatening disease.

Augustus’s persona makes it explicable that his and Hazel’s intellectual level is quite similar, which is why they become best friends with each other very quickly. Hazel shares about her interests and her deep love for her most favorite book, An Imperial Affliction, which later on becomes Augustus’s favorite as well. Both, via ample of text messages and phone calls, discuss their perspectives regarding the book and spend more time together. Later on, expectedly, they fall for one another. What makes this story distinctive from any mainstream love story is that both the fictional characters are cancer patients. In this book, death has been described in an ultimate genuine manner. It portrays how in this short finite life pain can keep two people connected and how without pain it is absolutely impossible for one to feel and cherish joy.

I would like to highlight two very influential quotes from the book here:

“You don’t get to choose if you get hurt in this world, but you do have some say in who hurts you. I like my choices.”

”The world is not a wish-granting factory.”

The most impressive part of this book is the valor with which Augustus and Hazel deal with their illness and chose to enjoy the little time they had left in this world together, instead of ranting about how life was unfair to them. They embraced whatever universe blessed them with and appreciated the love they got from the people in their lives.

A lot of people around me find this book a bit amateurish, maybe because it is about two teenagers. From where I see it, besides giving a great insight about the severe pain that children with chronic illnesses like cancer go through, it also gives a lesson about how intense and unconditional is the love of parents towards their children and their care has no confines. For me it’s a life altering book that taught me to value life and whatever it has to offer, wholeheartedly. Moreover, this book has taught me to foresee death from a whole new perspective.

Now I am anxiously waiting for June to arrive to watch the movie of this bestselling book, which is also anticipated to be the best movie of this year. I hope Shailine Woodley and Ansel Elgort do complete justice with their characters Hazel and Augustus Waters, respectively.

Good Old English Classics

English Classics never gets old! Let’s go through these ever green classics once again.

The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn

This novel, published in 1884 by Mark Twain is referred as one of the Great American Novels. This book has gained its popularity because of the way its characters and their roles are colorfully explained throughout in the novel. This is a sequel of another great novel by Mark Twain, The Adventures Of Tom Sawyer. Although this was initially considered as controversial by many because of its satire on racism, but even because of its perceived racial stereotype this novel is still a part of the syllabus of many schools till today and people from all ages enjoy reading it.

Beloved:

This is a famous novel of all times published by the famous American writer Toni Morrison in 1987. The plot of this novel was inspired by an African-American slave Margaret Garner who managed to escape away from her disheartening slavery towards freedom. She remains haunted in the story because of the culprit who murders her daughter. This novel was also adapted into a movie featuring Oprah Winfrey as the main character. Besides this in 2006 a survey was carried out by New York Times in which this novel was ranked as America’s best fictional novels of the past 25 years. This novel is still very popular amongst youngsters who are fictional reading fanatics.

Brave New World

This is a satirical piece of fiction by Aldous Huxley, which is considered one of the most enchanting novels ever written in English literature. This book depicts about how one accomplish the two major goals of happiness and stability to survive on this planet with absolute equity. The author in this novel has brilliantly explained the contemporary society’s dehumanization with the help of satire.

The Call Of Wild

This is also one of the greatest novels published in English Literature in 1903 in which a dog named Buck, is centralized as the main character. The dog runs away into the wild to become a leader of his wolf pack, after the killing of his beloved master. This novel has a great reputation for London even till today. It has been selected for various cinematic adaptations for its brilliantly crafted story plot.

Gone With The Wind:

This book is considered was the America’s top bestseller in fictional novels when it was published in 1936 by Margret Mitchel. This book depicts the slavery of African Americans for which it was also subjected to a lot of controversies. Even till today Scholars at American universities use this novel in their studies and also mention it as a reference in their writings. This novel is considered a crucial part of the American culture now.

The Great Gatsby:

This was the novel published in 1925 written by the famous American author F. Scott Fitzgerald. The story revolves around the mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby a mysterious millionaire and his intimate relationship with this astounding lady Daisy Buchanan. This movie was recently adapted into a cinematic form for its exceptionally crafted story plot.

The Contemporary Age Of Urdu Literature

Urdu literature came into being during the 14^th century, in North India amongst the Persian people. This language is a mixture of Sanskrit and Arab-Persian words. Amir Khusro played a vital role in the betterment and growth of this language. It is popularly said that whatever status Urdu has today, is only because of his stupendous contributions to this language.

Urdu has evolved into a fluently spoken popular language with the passage of time. Ashfaq Ahmed is considered one of the leading and popular poets amongst all the Urdu poets of the contemporary era.

Ashfaq Ahmed had a unique writing style that used to make him stand out amongst the other poets. He used to write with the vision to achieve a peaceful society and with that vision he managed to influence the masses.  His work played a great role in improvement of social behavior and national character. Ashfaq Ahmed departed from this world on the September 7, 2004. His contributions like Zaviah and Talqeen Shah will always be remembered in the history of Urdu language. There are many other writers from history who, through their stupendous writings, created big names in Urdu history, such as Mirza Ghalib, Manto and Mir Taqi Mir. Their era is considered as the golden era in Urdu literature.

In the contemporary age, a lot of work has been done by new writers in Urdu language. Many novels have also been written such as Sila by Aimen Ali, an interesting story of a female writer obsessed with her written characters. ‘Kare Junoon’, ‘Maah e Tamam’ and ‘Zindagi tum ho’ are also some great masterpieces by new writers in Urdu language. It would be unfair if we would talk about the modern writers and not mention Farhat Ishtiaq and Umera Ahmed. Both the writers are famous for their outstanding fictional writing and being the authors of the best selling novels of all times.

Despite an active contribution by new writers, the efforts made are not sufficient. These days people in our society are gradually forgetting Urdu language. Teachers in schools are not giving importance to speaking Urdu language anymore and provoke children to work more on their English speaking skills. Some people consider it demeaning to speak Urdu language publically, which is very wrong. 

What people need to remember is that Urdu is our national language and what we must realize it that fluently speaking in Urdu is crucial for our all of us. Students should be encouraged to read Urdu language  and to learn new words and memorize them. It is high time we should emphasize on the importance of Urdu language to preserve the cultural art and history of Pakistan.

Book Review: Pick of the Week - 'Mockingjay'

Books can be your best companion, offering you an opportunity to escape your reality and get to indulge in them. Being a book junkie, I read a lot of books every week. Following the popularity of Hunger Games written by Suzanne Collins, I thought of giving the series a shot and since then have been hooked to it.

The first two novels were amazing and I don’t need to go in their details, since you can readily watch the movies that have done an amazing job in depicting the story line. Recently, I finished the third installment in the series called Mockingjay; the book completely blew my mind and is perhaps the best novel among the three novels.

Very few people would know that the story of Hunger Games franchise is inspired by the classical account of Theseus and the Minotaur present in Greek mythology. The third novel continues with the story of Katniss Everdeen, who not only agrees to join the rebellion of   District 13, but also agrees to be the poster child for it.

The book follows the same tone as the previous ones but has an added flavor of deceit attached to it. Collins has done a marvelous job by portraying the weaknesses in Katniss herself, which evolve from her over-trusting nature. I was glad that, unlike other mainstream novels, the author does not want to infer that the main character is without any flaws and can never do something wrong.

I think many people would be able to relate the book, since it essentially tells a story of a person getting used for the selfish motives of others, and then trying to rectify their mistakes.

It is an epic end to the trilogy that shows a dark future that everyone hopes we are not heading to. There are talks of also bringing Mockingjay to the silver-screen in two further sequels. This will do justice to the final novel, according to the producer, and will also increase his fortune.

If you are an avid reader, it would not take you more than a day or two to get done with the novel. I would advise you to read the first two novels. If you don’t have that much time, at least do watch the movies before starting to read this marvelous masterpiece by Suzanne Collins.

Were you satisfied with the ending of Hunger Games trilogy? Do share your thought about Mockingjay.  

10 Must Read Books of 2013 (Literature)

As we approach the end of this marvelous year, I thought of informing my readers about the top ten literature works of 2013. This year did not disappointed me (in terms of good novels at least) and saw works of many renowned authors make it to the top ten list.

The Burgess Boys by Elizabeth Strout:

On number 10 we have a family drama novel The Burgess Boys by American author Elzabeth Strout published in March 26, 2013. The novel follows the story of Burgess Brothers who return to their native town of Shirley Falls, after running away since their father’s death. The story explores the relationship between siblings and how it transforms in unexpected ways.

A Delicate Truth by John le Carré

David John Moore Cornwel (pen name John le Carré) once again works his magic with a new spy novel called A Delicate Truth. The author is able to capitalize on his former work experience of MI5 and MI6 (British spy agencies) to cook up a spy novel which is as close to reality as possible. The novel tells the story about Paul Anderson, a civil servant under the service of British Intelligence, who is recruited to take part in Operation Wildfire to capture a high-value jihadist.

Doctor Sleep by Stephen King:

Multi-talented Stephen King returns to the chart on 8^th position with his new masterpiece Doctor Sleep. It is a sequel of his 1977 novel The Shining. Author thought about the sequel as early as 2009 and even released a prologue in 2012.

And the Mountains Echoed by Khalid Hussaini:

Afghan born American author Khaled Hosseini is making a name for this literary work around the world. This time he deviates from his style of writing with the release of And the Mountains Echoed. He did a marvelous job in demonstrating a relationship between 10 year old Abdullah and his 3 year old sister Pari, who is sold by her father to a couple in Kabul.

The 5^th Wave by Rick Yancy:

This action/mystery novel depicts a post-apocalyptic world where the humanity is on the brink of extinction and is threatened by beings that look like humans and kills anyone they encounter. The story is a survival story of Cassie, who has to take help of mysterious guy named Evan Walker, who might be the key of saving her brother along with herself.

The Interestings By Meg Wolitzer:

The Interestings is considered to be the best work of Meg Wolitzer to date, telling a tale of 6 teenagers in the era of 1970s. The novel depicts the storyline spanning four decades telling how these self-centered individuals fall from grace and how their life is transformed with every phase in life.

Life After Life by Kate Atkinson:

Kate Atkinson’s book Life after Life lands at third place in our top ten list. The novel tells the tale of Ursula Todd who lives multiple lives and holds the fate of our civilization.

Joyland by Stephen King:

Another book of Stephen King lands on our list on the 2^nd spot. He is one of my favorite authors and for pretty decent reasons; firstly, he is able to write on multiple topics, ranging from thriller to sci-fi and horror, moreover his writing style is easily understandable and keeps the readers engaged. Joyland is described as a thriller novel set in North Carolina amusement park in 1973 resolving around a carnival being confronted with a vicious murder and a dying child.

Inferno: Dan Brown.

Dan Brown once again takes the number one spot for his mystery novel Inferno. The storyline revolves around Robert Langdon, a renowned Harvard symbolist, and history’s most mysterious literary masterpieces.

How many of these have you read? Comment and let me know!