“The silence depressed me. It wasn’t the silence of silence. It was my own silence.”
Esther Greenwood is a beautiful and immensely talented young lady who dreamt of being a great writer. As a college student she travelled from Massachusetts to New York to work on a magazine for a month as a guest editor. While there, she is showered with fancy dinners, and elite networking. Esther knew she should be having the time of her life, but something was wrong, and she felt deadened.
Little she knew that this was the beginning of a clinical depression which would take all sense of life out of her. After a visit from a beloved professor, she starts to believe that there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
Months of treatment later, Esther leaves the mental hospital in time to start college. She now knew that life would be a seesaw of good and bad days, and the bell jar could ring either with sadness or elation, she just needed to hear it jingle and practice what she learnt.
The Bell Jar is an intimate, and uplifting narrative written with the expert stroke of the finest writers of the century; meant to make the reader feel supported and hopeful in their journey.
Clara Healy is convinced her family is cursed.
After witnessing the relationships from the two closest people in her life fall apart, Clara was determined not to be the curse’s next victim by avoiding the root cause: falling in love with cliché love interests.
Leading up to college, Clara has managed to avoid getting stuck in situations that will cause her to spend more time than necessary with a cliché love interest. Whether it be the bad boy, an academic rival, or her all-time kryptonite, the star athlete.
But when she accidentally arrived late to the first day of ASL class, her streak came to an end when Colton Reed, the college star baseball player ended up sitting next to her. The situation only got worse when the class was asked to find a partner, leaving Clara no choice but to pair up with Colton.
Even though the circumstances were less than ideal, she wasn’t going to let the curse get to her. Seeing Colton Reed on a weekly basis? She could handle that. Right?
From practicing ASL with bubble tea every Wednesday, car rides home and an unexpected night out together, Clara slowly starts to realize that some things were easier said than done.
And escaping the curse was going to be a lot more difficult than she thought it would be.
“All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”
In the satirical and politically rife land of the Manor Farm, all kinds of animals lived together and ran their civilization led by the visionary Old Major. Under Old Major the animals lead a revolt against their oppressive human owner Mr. Jones. Their dream is to establish a perfect society, which would be free from tyranny, where all animals (beings) will be equal.
The highly engaging, witty and endearing story aims to highlight the dangers of authoritarianism, and governments which pit citizens against each other. Through the compelling conversations between the animal residents of Manor Farm, the story highlights how language is used to manipulate and run propaganda to control the masses and rewrite history.
Animal Farm is a timeless and thought-provoking work, reminding readers the importance of thinking independently in order to safeguard democracy and individual liberties.
“All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”
In the satirical and politically rife land of the Manor Farm, all kinds of animals lived together and ran their civilization led by the visionary Old Major. Under Old Major the animals lead a revolt against their oppressive human owner Mr. Jones. Their dream is to establish a perfect society, which would be free from tyranny, where all animals (beings) will be equal.
The highly engaging, witty and endearing story aims to highlight the dangers of authoritarianism, and governments which pit citizens against each other. Through the compelling conversations between the animal residents of Manor Farm, the story highlights how language is used to manipulate and run propaganda to control the masses and rewrite history.
Animal Farm is a timeless and thought-provoking work, reminding readers the importance of thinking independently in order to safeguard democracy and individual liberties.
“Words do not express thoughts very well. They always become a little different immediately after they are expressed, a little distorted, a little foolish.”
Set in ancient India, a young and curious Siddhartha moves to the wilderness on a quest to understand the meaning and purpose of our existence in this world.
Siddhartha, as a young Brahmin had become discontented with the superficiality of life, where the chase was for more personal gain and wealth, never for a lasting impact of one’s actions.
As a wandering ascetic, Siddhartha’s search for fulfilment leads to the realization that enlightenment is a deeply personal journey, and that traditional teachings and societal norms may not necessarily lead to true wisdom and contentment.
Siddhartha is a timeless and meditative narrative that urges one to take a journey of self-realization, to find their individualistic path to inner happiness.
- A profound journey of self-discovery and enlightenment.
- Explores the search for meaning beyond material pursuits.
- Challenges traditional teachings in the quest for wisdom.
- A timeless meditation on personal fulfillment and contentment.
- Inspires readers to forge their own path to inner peace.
“I will not serve that in which I no longer believe, whether it calls itself my home, my fatherland, or my church: and I will try to express myself in some mode of life or art as freely as I can and as wholly as I can.”
In the 19th century, Stephen Dedalus, a young boy growing up in Dublin, Ireland, shows the grit, self-reflection and courage it takes to absorb life and turn it into art.
Stephen is a sensitive and intelligent boy, yet rebellious and independent. He struggles to break free from the constraints of his family expectations, the dominance of his religious teachings and the politics of his country. In his quest to seek reason behind his actions, he learns to break away from the norm and express his own unique perspective of the world.
Writing poetry and prose become his means of expression, as he highlights the tensions between individuality and conformity.
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is a timeless and introspective work inviting readers to experience catharsis and self-realization through beautiful poems, prose and motivating conversations.
“Beauty was not everything. Beauty had this penalty — it came too readily, came too completely. It stilled life — froze it.”
It’s the story of a family, like every family, and the many dents and complex love that make up relationships. Follow the Ramsay family over a period of three decades, in three parts ‘The Window,’ ‘Time Passes,’ and ‘The Lighthouse.’
The first part of the novel, ‘The Window,’ introduces the middle-class Ramsay family with eight children. The second, ‘Time Passes,’ takes place ten years later. The Ramsay’s have moved away from the house on the Isle of Skye, and Mrs. Ramsay has died. The house is now empty and neglected. The third part, ‘The Lighthouse,’ takes place ten years later, as the family finally return to the lighthouse, which has been a symbol of desire and longing for many years.
Woolf ’s thoughtful, reflective and sensitive writing allows the readers to delve deep into the inner thoughts and emotions of the characters.
Like a conversation the reader is having in solitude with themselves, every emotion feels lived and relatable, highlighting the enduring power of memory to capture the essence of our lives.
‘Yalpanam’, an old colonial house on Coal Island in Malaysia, is swarming with ghosts. Its inhabitant, one hundred and eighty-five year old recluse, Pushpanayagi, has been avoiding them for decades. But that is about to change. When eighteen-year-old neighbour Maxim Cheah, disgruntled at home, arrives on an apparent whim at ‘Yalpanam’, they begin an unlikely friendship that will rock Maxim’s world, and send Pushpanayagi whirling through space-time, back to 19th century and 1940s Malaya. Will the ghosts of the old lady’s past-a rigid British lepidopterist, his melancholic first wife, his deceptively vibrant second wife, their opium-addicted servant-release her? What will Maxim discover from her friendship with her enigmatic neighbour?
Emma Morales, tenacious romance book editor and proud cat lady, knows romance, but love? Nope. Thank you very much. Enter nerdy sci-fi and fantasy editor Kip Alegre, who quotes JRR Tolkien for breakfast and knows heartbreak all too well.
When Emma gets a career-changing sci-fi romance manuscript which may just save their publishing house from folding, she knows she must work with Kip if she wants to succeed. Sounds simple enough, right? But when well-meaning meddling best friends, an obsessive ex-boyfriend, and a beautiful ex-fiancée come into the picture, the job doesn’t seem so simple anymore. What starts out as a friendly—flirty—literary smackdown between Emma and Kip grows into something deeper than either of them had signed up for.
The deal was to edit the book, not their lives.
Emma and Kip may be willing to read the manuscript over and over again, but will they be willing to give love a second read?
“He who climbs upon the highest mountains laughs at all tragedies, real or imaginary.”
In this philosophical masterpiece, Zarathustra a fictional sage descends from the mountains to share his wisdom with humanity. He challenges conventional thought and explores profound themes of self-overcoming, the will to power, and the nature of existence.
The character of Zarathustra serves as a mouthpiece for Nietzsche’s philosophical ideas, challenging readers to question their beliefs and embrace a more individualistic and self-directed approach to existence. His journey from solitude in the mountains to engagement with humanity symbolizes the philosopher’s quest to achieve the will to power, and the rejection of herd mentality.
Nietzsche’s emphasis on the individual’s potential for self-mastery and creative self-expression resonates throughout Zarathustra’s teachings. It’s an uplifting and motivational read which helps enhance confidence in oneself, leadership skills and focus.
