Best read in 2015

t’s that time of the year where we start looking back. A quick recap of 2015’s fond memories is certainly in order, so The Week caught up with some writers to talk about their favorite from the bunch of books they managed to devour this year.It was tricky for them to pick just one but in the end, they did declare their best and reasoned why.

Old Path White Cloud
by Thích Nhất Hạnh

Buddhi Sagar

I don’t particularly like asking for book recommendations. I just randomly pick a bunch of them and start reading them. I’m not biased towards a particular genre either. I like reading everything and in 2015, I’d say I especially liked Thích Nhất Hạnh’s beautiful classic recounting of the life and teachings of Gautama Buddha over the course of eighty years. I have read other books based on Buddha’s teaching as well as his life. However, Old path White Cloud has to be the best I have come across so far.

It really simplifies everything there is to know about Buddha. Now I can truly say that I understand what the man and his philosophies were about. I can perhaps even explain it to others, if that were the case. Hanh is actually a Vietnamese monk. Here he retells the story that we have been hearing about since our school days but alternately through the eyes of Svasti, the buffalo boy, who provided kusa grass for Buddha’s enlightenment cushion, and then Buddha himself. Reading this I realized there are many chapters in Buddha’s life that are missing and have not been retold to the masses at large.

While reading the book I felt at peace. It was a very calming experience so I’m calling it my best book of the year.

The Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother
by Amy Chua
Archana Thapa

I still remember the media storm that surrounded this book when it was first published back in 2011. As Amy Chua went on about sharing stories of how Chinese parents raise their kids and as she suggested raised them better than the Western counterparts, it drew quite a bitter backlash. All this controversy turned me off from purchasing the book then but this year I somehow got hold of it.

Initially I wasn’t expecting it to be a memorable read but as I got into the story, I really enjoyed the way she described her life. Further reading about the different challenges and situations she had faced raising her children was incredibly interesting. You have to understand I was going through the book not only as a reader but as a mother too. I could actually relate to her in some instances. My daughter too believes I’m a demanding mother sometimes, but in my opinion I’m motivating them to do better. Examples like these are plenty.

Surprisingly I found myself sympathizing with Amy Chua. I believe the critics misinterpreted her subtle sarcasm. There is an undertone of humor there and some readers seemed to have missed that. I, on the other hand, really enjoyed it.

Khabuj
by Benyamin

Amar Neupane

This was an intensely emotional experience. I first came to know about Khabuj from my publishers at Fine Print. Apparently they were helping Dinesh Kafle also bring his translated version of the incredible tale of an Indian immigrant’s struggle in the lonely deserts of Saudi Arabia to our Nepali market.

The moment I began reading the book, I was hooked. The trials and tribulations this man had to go through while trying to make a living in the punishing desserts of Arab shakes the soul. Our protagonist here does not only feel alienated in the foreign land, but circumstances actually leave him yearning for a gulp of water and some food thus the title of the book. Khabuj actually is a kind of ‘roti’ that is sold at the local eateries in Saudi Arabia. All the while he is writing letters to his wife assuring her that everything is well and good.

This struggle to earn a decent living is pitifully similar to the many tales we hear of our Nepali brothers and sisters in the UAE. After finishing this emotional rollercoaster ride of a book, I couldn’t help but be disappointed that I had not thought about writing this kind of book myself. I believe this is the type of story that we, Nepali writers, should be shedding light on too. Thus Khabuj was definitely a major highlight of my literary year.

The Bridges of Madison County
by Robert James Waller

Subin Bhattarai
Perhaps it is because I write love stories myself, I enjoy a good romantic tale and The Bridges of Madison County was the best thing I read this year. This was my first Waller book and I actually finished it very recently. What I really liked about this book was that it didn’t romanticize the kind of young love that we frequently hear people, media, music, and films idolize. This book was about eternal love.

If you’ve ever experienced the one true love of your life, a love that for some reason could never be, you will understand why I, like many other readers all over the world, was so moved. Also spoiler alert: the protagonists due to various reasons don’t end up together. But their love continues to burns bright and Waller captures it with such beauty. There is always a risk of love stories turning out to be rather cheesy and cliché’ but not this one.

I immensely enjoyed the author’s writing style as well. He likes to paint vivid pictures. For example: Our male protagonist is a photographer and he mentions tiny details such as how he holds the camera, and how he uses the focus to take a picture. This really helps your imagination build up scenes as you read the book. Some might find its pace slow but I thought it was brilliant.