Answers to almost everything

Vikas Svarup's first novel ‘Q to A’ was success. And not completely without reason.

   Ram Mohammad Thomas is an 18-year-old waiter from Bombay’s slum. He take part in quiz and for everybody's suprise win a billion rupee. But when waiter, without any kind of proper education, can answer correctly for 12 difficult question, it awakes some doubts. An young beautiful lawyer saves him from violent interrogation, but like everyone, she want to know how he did it. And so Ram ends to tell her his lifestory.

   Ram's whole life is like a cross-section from Indian culture. Even his name shows its diversity (Ram is one of the most important characters in hindu mythology, Mohammad is a creator of Islam and Thomas is one of the

apostles). He has faced politicians and filmstars as well as prostitutes, perverts and all shorts of criminals.

   And still, some times, it feels like the whole novel would be a tribute for a western society; Ram's all acts are acceptable by western standards. He dream about travelling to Australia and survive partly because he speak english. Svarup is clearly avoiding all that can be strange for western readers: all the places are familiar (Bombay, Delhi, Taj Mahal), Ram is little like Oliver Twist and some of the chapter’s names are took from the western light reading (like ‘Licence to kill’). The novel is like a turisttrip: it shows some of places, but don’t go any deeper. Luckily Svarup do that in his second book ‘Six suspects’ (review coming), where he approach for example caste system, political corruption and Kashmir's problem.

   And still the novel is, somehow, quit sympathetic story. I think most of charm come from the way Svarup tells the story. It’s open like Rubik’s Cube: every move displays bricks untill there's a perfect picture in front of us. Anyhow, Svarup has deliciously woven Ram's life to this moment.

Mark: 8

Dorian Gray - defaced by his beauty

Oscar Wilde's only novel Picture of Dorian Gray is a classic. In Victorian England it aroused sensation with its 'immoral story'. It was even used as an evidence in Wilde's trial.

   Picture of Dorian Gray is a little confusing book. Tale Dorian's

depravity and his changing picture can be read as thriller as well as study about art and beauty. In every page I found a new viewpoint to see the novel. So I was bit in a whirl.

   And still Wilde is being able to greate small but accurate pictures about people and their motives. If you have some spare time in your holiday, here is a book, which is worth of reading.

Mark: 9 1/2

Macbeth

I know - Macbeth isn't the easiest text, but it's a good one. It's easy to read it when you think it on play or movie in your head. Then you can in peace consentrate on the story.
   And story is good thought quit traditional. Bad guys lose and good ones live happily ever after. Still Shakespeare is embroider the story so that there are lots of interesting characters. When you cleanse patiently their speeches, you get to know a lot of their personality.
   There is few scenes that don't seem to carry the story to anywhere. Like the witches scene where Hekate appears. Maybe their are for filling, so that actors have time to change their costumes.
   I'm not going to tell more about play, if you're interested, read it. It's worth it.

Mark: 10

Arthur and his round table

I didn't really read sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur, only translated concise of it.

   It adds my knowledge about adventures of King Arthur and his noble knights,

where based on  Mauri Kunnas's children's book The Tails Of King Arthur And The Knights Of The Round Table.

   Actual I can't say anything about Le Morte d'Arthur, because like I said, it was an abridgement. And very terrible of that kind. Characters seemed to run happens to another and times didn't match at all. Indeed I recomendate rather Mauri Kunnas's inaccurate, but so sweet version than this translation.

Mark: 6

Whoever saves one life, saves the world entire

 Second World War is still a popular subject, especially in entertaiment: YLE present every Independence Day 'The Unknown Soldier', the movie, which based on Väinö Linna's famous novel, everybody have heard about 'Saving Private Ryan' and in this year get its premier finnish scifimovie 'Iron Sky', where Nazis have colonized the moon. Into this same subject draw also Thomas Keneally's 'Schindler's list'.
   The book based on true story about Oskar Schindler, ethnic German industrialist and member of Naziparty and 1100 Jewishs he bail out. Like author hiself states, he have used aids that are typical for novels, partly because he thinks that he doesn't posses others. He have anyhow wanted to stay into facts as far as possible, so book contains lots of numbers and reference to his repositorys, especially to the Jewishs Oskar saved. All happens in the book are true and most of the conversations ( part of them had to reconstruct ) based on accurate memorys by Schindlerjuden ( Schindler's Jewishs ), witnesses and Schindler hiself. This create a confusing mess of cold facts and literature's emotionality.
  Reader can immediatelly identify to holocaust's Jewishs victims. She or he can almost see when Rosners brothers, Jew musicians, play literally for dear life in Podgóre's concentration camp's commendant Amon Goeth's villa. Reader can also conceive Goeth standing his villa's terrace in shirtsleeves just after breakfast targeting lazy prisoners with rifle.
   The book contains many shuddering stories about mistreatment of Jewishs: little girl has to see during action when SS-men beat people who was hiding in ghetto's houses. When group of men who belong to Schindlerjuden end up into Auswitch, they have to sleep in one another's lap so that they fit into their small building.
   Althought book gush out shuddering happens, there is also little glimpses of hope: it feels almost miraculous that same little girl, who have to see cruelty of action, contrives to slide from middle of SS-men's boots back to freedom. It's touching how young lovebirds want to date traditionally middle of Podgóre's camp's misery and horrors.
   In Oskar's and Jewish's he saved battle against revelation almost every means are allowed; they get officers to turn a blind eye with generous bribes or drinks, Oskar keeps SS-men away by threatening them with consequences, which would follow if somebody would disturd his Jewish workers, who are 'important to war' and saves many of his employees by pleading their so called 'proficiency' and they fake without a second thought official documents.
   Characters of 'The Schindler's list' are like direct to traditional fairytale: there is incomprehensible evil
( Nazis, at the head Podgóre's concentration camp's commendant Amon Goeth ), innocent people, who need help ( Jewish ) and a guide, who directs our hero to the right way ( Itzhak Stern ). Only Oskar hiself doesn't fit into this pattern. Although he managed to save 1100 Jewish, he was still a hard drinker with an iron liver and little bit flighty and he had many lovers, who his wife got at least suspicions. Despite that in his Jewish workers' memories he appears in mystic and almost supernatural guardian angel.
   Oskar Schindler and his acts are so complex that their are actually impossible to explain exhaustively in 412 pages, if at all. If I would know that all this is true, I would have hard to believe so.

Mark: 8-

Freemasons, mysterious intruders, weird weapons and coded messages

Arthur Conan Doyles fourth and final Holmes-novel 'The Valley of Fear'

includes everything this. Just like all the other Holmes-novels ( part from

'The Hound of the Baskervilles' ) it contains two part: in the first part

Holmes and Watson are examining the tragedy of Birlstone. Mr. Douglas

has killed brutally in his home and police is confused. The second part

places in past and tells how everything have came to this point.

   Novels language is a little bit obsolescent and so it little hard to read, especially if you english isn't good. That's why I recomend it to them who have read books in english before and who manages to use dictionary.

   Many of the Sherlock Holmes -fans think that 'The Valley of Fear' is Conan Doyles best and I agree. It's the most exiting and darkest Holmes-story I have read. There Watson's narrators voice get its rights. It shows that Doyle's Watson isn't a bit dumb like in later movies; compared to Holmes everbody look little dim. There is also the only truly funny moment for which I quietly chuckled by myself; the moment when Holmes awake Watson and ask him if he would "be afraid to sleep in the same room with a lunatic, a man with softening of the brain, an  idiot whose mind has lost its grip". And in the end, well, everything aren't nicely and well.

Mark: 7-

My top 10 movies

1. Inception 
It's simply brilliant.

2. A Beautiful Mind 
Touching true story about a brilliant mathematician John Nash, who has schizophrenia. Especially Russell Growe's performance as Nash is memorable.






3. The Phantom of the Opera 
It based on Gaston Leroux's classic
novel and Andrew Lyod Webber's popular musical. Story lean mainly great songs, which remain spinning in your mind.

4. Angels and Demons 
It based on Dan Brown's first Robert Langdon -novel, which I think is the best of them. It's a thrilling story about encounter of science and religion. In the major part is Tom Hanks as Robert Langdon and my personal favourite, Ewan McGregor, as Camerlengo.
 

5. Sherlock Holmes 
Guy Rithcie's vision about Conan Doyle's characters is fresh, exciting and funny. This time Holmes and Watson aren't middle-aged men.

6. Tim Burton's Corpse Bride 
Gloomy stop-motion-animation by Tim Burton. It's so weird that it can't be anything but great entertaiment.

7. Shutter Island
It based on well constructed novel by Dennis Lehane. It's a thrilling story about sanity and insanity.

8. Nightmare Before Christmas
Weird but fun tale about Halloween and Christmast. It's directed by Tim Burton just like in Corpse Bride.

9. Mouling Rouge 
To this musical is selected many very popular songs from 'The Sound of Music' to 'Like a Virgin'. And there is Ewan McGregor singing.

10. The Men Who Stare at Goats 
It's so weird, but also so hilarious.

+ 11. Ghost Writer 
I have to put this to here, because in this movie has the most brilliant end that I have ever seen.