Manish S. Vaidya

Labor of love, but the story gets lost in details

Revisado: 12-25-22

This book is clearly a labor of love for the authors, and their extensive research and attention to detail are evident throughout the book. However, at times, the wealth of information can be overwhelming and distract from the central narrative of Kishore's journey. While the specific dates and background of each family member may be interesting at first, they eventually become tedious and detract from the emotional depth of the story. As a result, the book becomes more of a collection of facts than a captivating tale. In comparison to biographies by authors such as Walter Isaacson and David McColough, this book could benefit from a more cohesive and engaging narrative. I also found the numbering and structure of the chapters confusing. Perhaps my not being familiar with Ragas didn't help either.

As for the audio version, the narration by Riya is a highlight of the book. She handles the English passages and Hindi/Bengali references to songs with ease and obviously has no issues with pronunciation. At times, the reading may come across as a bit dry, but this could also be a result of the overwhelming details mentioned earlier. Overall, the audio version is worth a listen for fans of Riya's podcasts and anyone interested in learning more about the legend, Kishore Kumar

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Intriguing fun tale told with wit & humor...

Revisado: 08-01-20

Enjoyed listening to this fun book. Parinda Joshi has written a delightful and interesting tale about Raghu, a middle-class businessman from the Indian city of Surat, who has the adventure of a lifetime in China that changes his destiny. I found the storyline believable and characters sketched very close to reality. The story arches adventure, ambition, love, and betrayal with a deceptively simplistic delivery as it manages to convey many deeper emotions. The relationship between Raghu and his wife, Raghu and his childhood friend, Raghu and the doctor and many others play out at various levels adding to the fabric of the story. I found the narrative of the adventures in China very interesting while the part of the fake cops in Surat stretched out too much and I did not find it engaging. Overall the story is a great listen with lots of interesting sequences and intriguing characters. The narrator has done a fine job and does complete justice to the events in the story. Highly recommended!

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Beautiful, thought provoking performance

Revisado: 11-06-18

Started listening to this during my drive home. I didn't want the commute to end. What a wonderful production from a super-talented cast. Billy Crystal has done an awesome job with the writing. The presentation is fantastic! I binge-heard the whole thing ..you should too. Do it.

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Good content ruined by the narrator

Revisado: 04-01-18

I had been wanting to get to this book for a long time. The historical content is excellent. Although I felt that the author had stretched the narrative too far into the recent history, while the silk road essentially ends in my opinion after the fall of the Byzantine empire.

My biggest problem was the narrator - the bit snobbish British accent was a bit irritating, but he really got to me with his mimicking of the local accents. Especially when narrating passages attributed to Asians. As a person of Indian origin, I particularly found the narration of Indian quotes almost offensive

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Detailed, fascinating account of mughal dynasty

Revisado: 05-29-15

Wonderful account of the history of the Mughal dynasty. The name is very misleading. Although the book gives a lot of details on the Taj Mahal, it provides a rich and fascinating account of the history of the Mughal dynasty stretching from Babur all the way to Aurangzeb. Must read for anyone interested in this history

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Epic, sweeping & meticulously researched saga

Revisado: 05-29-15

Epic, sweeping & meticulously researched saga of the tumultuous 20th century history of the Caribbean islands. Alex puts in lot of hard work in writing the history for her readers. And it shows. Also I love the fact that she is able to bring out the human nature of the historical figures, instead of just making them dry caricatures. We are all human and sometimes it best to understand history within the context of the frailties and pitfalls of human nature. The sequence describing the tantrum thrown by Papa Doc when his daughter went off with her disgraced husband is an excellent example of this type of historical narrative.

My only grudge is that this is really 3 books combined in one - History of Cuba, that of Haiti & of the Dominican Republic. Although intertwined, each would have made a compelling narrative on its own. I felt towards the end not enough justice was done to telling the story of Castro & to some extent Che. At one point I got on Netflix and watched a documentary on Castro which gave me lot more information.

That doesn't take away at all from the compelling nature of this book. It should be required reading for any student of Caribbean history. And a pleasurable, informative and fascinating read for any history buff.

The audible narrative is also pleasant and the reader captures the spirit of the book well, along with her emphasis on French pronunciations which makes it even more interesting.

Thanks Alex for another wonderful historical read (following Indian summer)

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