Recession is biting! And amidst home budget belt tightening, the mistress of the house decreed that my extravagant book buying budget is to be slashed to zero with immediate effect! Funny thing this globalization \u2013 some wise guy in Lehman Brothers attempts to subvert the system in America and poor me is deprived of books to read\u2026. Being a wise and domesticated husband, I did not dare ask my wife if her exorbitant cosmetic budget had been pruned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Reading is an addiction. Deprived of my daily fix of mental stimulation, I reached out in desperation to the children\u2019s stack of books. And, in the process, stumbled upon a trilogy by Jonathan Stroud about this genie and his young master. The books are \u2018The Amulet of Samarkand\u2019, \u2018The Golem\u2019s Eye\u2019 and \u2018Ptolemy\u2019s Gate\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I have happily avoided reading all of JK Rowling, smug in the self \u2013belief that children\u2019s book are juvenile. My idea of kid\u2019s book stemmed from the Enid Blyton’s I had read eons ago. \u2018The Amulet of Samarkand\u2019 was a pleasant surprise. To begin with, the language used by Jonathan is crisp, elegant and lucid. The second part I liked is the sheer simplicity of the plot \u2013 good is good and bad is bad. No moral dilemma to judge, no grey areas to navigate gingerly about. The best part about the book is that it seamlessly blends the myths and fairy tales of yore with the contemporary world. The hero is a minister in UK government. This modern setting does not make you feel that you are reading the typical archaic children\u2019s book of hero\u2013slays-the-fire-eating\u2013dragon type.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The most amazing character of the series is Bartimaeus, the genie. The story about djinns and how to control them is a central part of oriental folklores. As a child, I remember being told all about drawing a circle in a graveyard and staying within it for 40 days and night to be able to exercise power over djinn. In Jonathan Stroud books, our young magician hero has control over thousand year old djinn called Bartimaeus. The genie\u2019s character is sketched out very nicely \u2013 naughty, with a great sense of humour, wicked and a tad sentimental. Aladdin\u2019s djinn is servile whereas Bartimaeus has a mind of his own. His ranting and raving, his humour and benign wickedness are amazingly original. The book is narrated in first person in parts \u2013 some bits by the genie and some by the hero. This helps the reader in identifying with the character very well. I can very well imagine Eddie Murphy as the quasi cartoon character of Bartimaeus in a Hollywood movie. After a series of sinister plots, our young magician hero emerges victorious with the formidable help of his genie friend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There can be sober parallels drawn between these stories and the real world but I deliberately desisted from this intellectual exercise. The books are meant to be enjoyable reading by children and I wanted to enjoy them at that level. After a series of rather drab, brilliant books by award winning authors which leave you drained at the end, this one keeps you riveted by its action, simplicity and comedy. In the end, it leaves a warm, fuzzy glow and the positive feeling that heroism and romance is not dead. A must read for all adults who have got accustomed to a cynical, descriptive, blurred morals diet. These books are fun with no pretensions about dealing with a broad socio- historical canvas or depicting depressing reality. And no \u2013 I am NOT regressing with age! <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"