Carl Hiaasen's Skin Tight- A review

You have to say this about Carl Hiaasen in general, he delivers.

Well there may be many literati critics here and there who would go on to suggest that he remains within a genre, that his stories are entirely regional in nature and therefore we can safely overlook him and his talents. Who wants another book about corporate greed, government corruption and one or two ordinary people who have had enough and deciding to take a stand? Old hat, dear boy.

These snooty literati would probably have dismissed Raymond Chandler as hopelessly unoriginal in his subject matter.

Carl Hiaasen is a regional writer. His topic and characters are mostly about Florida. It is the state where he lives so naturally he would write about it. In fact it is his native, no-nonsense, unsentimental view of his home state that is one of the endlessly charming attractions about his stories. You want authenticity, you got it.

How can you possibly stop writing about greedy private sector interest and accompanying government greed? It is a gold mine of stories and it continues to feed our endless appetite. Hiaasen knows the turf well, having been a journalist and being at close quarters with oily politicians and their cozy business partners. Greed, corruption, misuse of power and willful stepping over the line: all traits of a politician we endlessly salivate over. And this being Florida, Hiaasen delivers by a boatload (pun intended!).

Skin Tight, his third novel, was published in 1989. It is a story about a plastic surgeon who hires a professional hit man to bump off a former investigator from the state attorney's office. Four years earlier, the investigator, Mick Stranahan had been assigned an apparent kidnapping case.

A young college girl had disappeared after going in for a nose job at the surgeon's clinic. The surgeon and the duty nurse had sworn that after surgery, she had stepped outside to catch a bus. She had not been seen since.

A TV investigative journalist, clearly a spoof on Geraldo Rivera, is snooping around the cold case, after being tipped off by the money hungry nurse. The nurse in turn points the finger to to Stranahan as likely to stir up trouble for the good doctor if the case came back to life. The doctor hires a mob hit man to take Stranahan out.

This starts a chain of event that leads to the solution of the mystery and a humorous ending. This include the most inept replacement killer in the history of the universe, a man nicknamed Chemo because he looks like he's going through cancer treatment. In return for killing Stranahan,Chemo seeks payment in kind- plastic surgery to reconstruct his face.

Crooked cops and corrupt politicians, greedy doctors and property developers, inept but screen hog of a TV journalist, affluent men and women who prefers to go under the knife as tribute to their vanity- you get the dark side of sunny Florida. But there are bright spots too. A hermit of a hero who reluctantly gets involved after an attempt in his life. A beautiful TV producer who has to double as a journalist because her idiot of a TV star does not know a thing about investigation. Throw in a couple of honest cops and you have the side that is not quite on the side of angels but would not like to be on the other team either. Your basic good guys.

Uproariously hilarious, this is a vintage Hiaasen piece. A writer's early works are usually choppy- makes perfect sense since we hope that s/he is trying to find his/her voice. But no such case for this one. Looks like Hiaasen knew what he was doing the moment he started writing novels. One can only admire the craft of a writer for so long- but I don't mind stretching out the time. It is definitely worth it.

If you want a funny book that would make you laugh and a story that has suspense, atmosphere, high drama, a little bit of romance and three dimensional characters as well as beautiful Florida in the background, you should give Carl Hiassen a try.

And definitely you should try Skin Tight. I assure you, it is worth the loss of a good night's sleep.

Sebastian Baczkiewicz's Pilgrim

Now Sebastian Baczkiewicz is a writer I have never heard of before today. But let me tell you, in a matter of a few hours, he has become one of my favorites. Clearly the man was born for writing radio dramas.

In Pilgrim, Baczkiewicz tells us the story of William Palmer, a former knight in the Crusades. In the year 1185, on his way to Canterbury, he denied the existence of the Grey Folk, the faerie. In retribution, the King of faeries cursed him with an immortal life. Ever since then, he had remained in the edge of the borderlands of realms, between this world and the other supernatural world. Because of his many travels and adventures over the centuries he has come to be known as the Pilgrim.

The stories are well written with very tightly knit plots. Clearly, one the great advantages of radio is the creation of the atmosphere through dialogues. Baczkiewicz shows a mastery of the medium by keeping the listener spellbound. It would be hard for you to turn away from the story.

The show has four episodes, each one about forty five minutes long. The first episode begins when the King of the Faerie asks for Palmer's help. Puck, the faerie mischief maker had gone and stolen a dragon egg, from none other than the famous dragon Lady Ursula. She has threatened to rain down fire on Albion (Britain) in retribution. Palmer is reluctant at first but then Puck himself intervenes and takes a friend of Palmer. The he goes on to enchant a whole town into madness. With Lady Ursula threatening to make good her promise, Palmer has less than a day to intervene and rescue the egg.

In the second episode, two friends are in a cemetery and they open up a door between worlds. One of them disappear while the other becomes tight lipped and refuses to talk about the event. Seven years later, Palmer comes to investigate at the behest of the mother of the missing one. He encounters the god of the hedges who tells him that Joseph of Aramethea could help him end his state of immortality.

In the third episode, a secret society of occult practitioners hunt for a young girl who is a lycanthrope. They put her in a cage and perform experiments on her. The leader of the society is however interested in a bigger prize: the Pilgrim himself. Not only does Mankind's reluctant hero have to confront his hunter but he also has to free the young girl held captive.

In the last episode, Joseph of Aramethea is held captive by an evil angel called Malachai. The Pilgrim must fulfill the angel's orders and murder Joseph. This would trigger the awakening of King Arthur's army- a premature awakening that would lead to their destruction, leaving the Angels free to dominate Albion and destroy all magical beings. Can the Pilgrim find a way to save the day?

The Pilgrim comes off as a kind and compassionate person, pensive and reflective. He is quite reluctant to get involved in problems that involve politics between realms. It is necessary for the powers that be to exert a lot of pressure to get him involved in their intrigues. However, when it comes to helping those who are helpless, he jumps in without hesitation. Weary of his immortality, he is quick, almost desperate, to look for a way to achieve death- a weakness easily exploited by some. Knowing of the supernatural strengths of his enemies, he is however, fearless in encountering them.

As I said, Sebastian Baczkiewicz has become, within a few hours, one of the writers on radio that I am going to keep an eye on. If you are into tales of the supernatural, Pilgrim is definitely a drama series worth listening to.

Pilgrim is available as a pod cast on BBC iPlayer on BBC Radio 7 

The New York Four by Brian Wood

At first glance you would think, who wants to read about four college freshmen and their lives in NYC?

But then again, this is Brian Wood, him of the DMZ, Northlanders and Local. So naturally I was curious when I spotted his name on this short comic book,,, wedged between several mangas.

The book, a comic, is called The New York Four. Beside Wood on the story, the artist is Ryan Kelly. It is a black and white comic of about 150 pages.

I would like this moment to declare myself avidly in favor of the earthier expression 'comic book' rather than the more posh sounding 'graphic novel'. I do not like the fact that the snooty literati are finding it more and more acceptable to talk about new story mediums such as graphic novels. I have always been a fan of the comic book and I do not want to lose it to the dark corridors of the English

Department, where stories go to die and be dissected in the process.

So, comic book it is.

The story follows four freshman undergraduates of NYU with one of them being the protagonist. Riley Wilder is a buttoned down Miss Goody Two Shoes who grew up in a Brooklyn Brownstone under the watchful gaze of a pair of very strict parents. She finds herself stifled and lonely and yet, having had no occasion to socialize with others in high school, finds it difficult to make friends. Shy and reserved, she is often mistaken for being rude and aloof. Riley has a sister, Angie who has gone AWOL their parents when Riley was ten. She lives in Manhattan and Riley reconnects with her. Angie tells her to enjoy her college experience and not bury herself entirely in the books.

Taking Angie's advice, Riley tries to befriend a trio of new friends, Merissa, Lona and Ren. They are all in the same classes and they cheerfully accept Riley into their group. As all of them were looking for jobs, Riley makes a suggestion that they go work for a test-prep company who pays rather well to have undergrads do focus groups on high school standardized tests. But there's a catch: GPA requirement is 3.8+ (a hurdle for Merissa) and they have to have bi-weekly psych evaluations.

Angie's boyfriend Frank suggests that the four friends could have an apartment of their own. Riley finds the idea appealing as do all her friends. She finds that spending time with Angie and Frank and her friends is making her open up to the world.

Soon Riley finds herself having an on-line relationship with with a man whose screen-name was sneakerfreak. This relationship quickly consumes Riley and soon her friendships with the other three and her relationship with Angie takes a bit of a nosedive. Who is this secret admirer and how is Riley to reconciler him with the rest of her life?

A easily flowing story, much more gripping than, say, Sex and the City. Brian Wood's treatment of undergraduate life in Manhattan has the authentic touch. I should mention here that the character sketches are rather well done and three dimensional. The bustle of the real New York, as lived by real New Yorkers is portrayed beautifully on every page.

A cool thing about the book is Wood's commentary. Often he would insert three or four lines about the places portrayed in the story and write his own commentary about the them, based on his own experience. These are called NY 101 and are no-nonsense guides to the under appreciated nooks and crannies of the city.

Overall, I think any fans of comic book novels should give this a try. The art is wonderful, the story has pathos and all together they portray the picture of undergrad life in NYC rather well. Not for those who like super-hero stuff. This is a character based story where emotion and drama are the main players. Admittedly there is a plot twist but you would expect it in a Brian Wood story: nothing is simple and thats how he likes it. That's how I like it too.

Hoot by Carl Hiassen

What happens when you are being choked by a bully on the school bus and you notice something strange outside? Like another kid, running without his shoes?

Roy Eberhardt, fresh from Montana, has the nickname of “cowgirl” in his Coconut Cove, Florida middle school. He is frequently picked on by Dana Matherson. It was during one those bullying sessions that he notices a young kid running without shoes. This gets him curious and he goes on to investigate.

Thus begins the story of “Hoot” by Carl Hiassen, his first foray into young adult literature. This is a story of environmental activism and resistance, friendship and this being a Hiassen story, Florida corruption. Just the sort of “feel good” story you want to hand over to your average young adult reader. No this is definitely not feel good and sentimental but it is funny, heart warming and good guys do win at the end. Did I just give away the ending?

Nevertheless, you should be intrigued by the story. In trying to locate the kid without the shoes, Roy forms a bond with Beatrice, a girl from his school. As the bully Dana tries to kill Roy in a school closet, Beatrice helps to save him and then ties Dana to the school flagpole. Roy finds out that the runner kid is a boy called Mullet Fingers who is Beatrice's stepbrother. He had been sent away to live among relatives but he ran away and came back to Florida. Beatrice helps him to stay out sight. After initial suspicion, Roy gains both of their trust since he and Mullet both share a love of nature and the three form a friendship.

Now Mother Paula's All American Pancake corporation wants to build one of their pancake houses in Coconut Cove. However, all their construction attempts seem to grind to a halt due to frequent and targeted sabotage. These bizarre acts of vandalism (one of them involving gators in the portable toilets) create anxiety among corporate levels as the groundbreaking ceremony seems to be near. As is the case in Florida, corporate anxiety translates into local authority anxiety as they vow to find the perpetrators and make this corner of Florida safe again for property development.

Roy finds out that Mullet is behind the sabotage- hence his running without shoes early in the morning. At first a little apprehensive, he quickly discovers that Mullet is actually trying to do something good. The construction site is a refuge for burrowing owls, an endangered species. There was a whole family of owls there at the moment- parent owls and quite a few baby owls. Mullet would do anything to stop the construction from happening and Roy decides to help him.

Roy quickly discovers that the people in the construction sites knew about the owls but would like to cover it up anyway. n fact Mother Paula Corp had already known about the owls but had helped bury the environmental survey report. Local authorities, never above being bribed, are happy to look the other way. Environmental causes are bad for business, after all.

By using a digital camera, Mullet takes pictures of the owls for Roy which he later uses in school as a current events project in his history class. Roy and Beatrice tells the class the story about the owls and how Mother Paula Pancake House would destroy them. They ask their class to join them in a protest march.

The construction groundbreaking ceremony was to be on a Wednesday but Roy and Beatrice lead their friends in the protest and surround the site. A baby owl jumps out in the daylight for everyone to see and the children are vindicated in front of the live press. The publicity surrounding the incident finishes the project and the owls are saved!

You may think that this is a book for kids, but it is not. This being Carl Hiassen, he is incapable of being patronizing to his readers, This is a book written for adults that children can also read- a classic definition of a good “children's book”. Mr. Hiassen proves that he can appeal to all ages with his sardonic and yet witty approach to storytelling.

No wonder Hoot got the 2003 Newbery Medal Award.

Cabin Pressure by John Finnimore

One increasingly impoverished and therefore desperate owner of an airline who doubles as a flight attendant; her completely IQ free son who acts as her assistant ; a young captain who has taken seven go's at his pilot's license; a sardonic yet resourceful older first officer who everyone mistakes for captain because he “looks the part”.

What could possibly go wrong?

These are the people who man (or woman, as is the case of the owner) the airline that consists of a single aircraft, known as MJN Air. The initials stand for “My Jet Now” as it was part of the divorce settlement of Carolyn Knapp-Shappey, the aforementioned owner. Carolyn is trying to run a business that can often struggle to make ends meet. And the fact that she employs people who are, to be charitable, less than professional is certainly of no help.

The captain of this lone aircraft is Martin Crieff, a young pilot who, as it has already mentioned, took his pilot's license exam seven times before he was able to pass. As a result no one would employ him except some one who is in desperate need of a pilot, any pilot. Martin is very sensitive about his age and inexperience and would always like to remind everyone present that it is he who holds the rank of captain. This leads to frequent conflict between Martin and the more experienced First Officer, Douglas Richardson.

Douglas used to be a Captain himself in Air England but was fired for smuggling. He is a smooth operator who is worldly wise and can handle himself under pressure. Carolyn often relies on him to keep Martin from making rash and (more importantly) expensive decisions such as switching to airfields with high landing fees. Douglas' sardonic nature lives out by constantly needling both Martin and Carolyn.

Carolyn's son Arthur helps his mum attend to the passengers and the crew. Arthur is a true innocent whose behavior and point of view would drive the worldly wise up the wall. Even after flying on the plane for nearly half his life, he still thinks that it flies by means unknown to the human mind and all attempts at explanation fail. His antics and unintentional hi-jinx would leave you in stitches. And yet, he is a likable character because for all his gullibility and foolishness, he has no mean bones in his body.

Together these men and woman go from one disaster to another mostly as a result of the foolishness of either Martin or Arthur. It would usually fall upon Douglas to rescue the situation and Carolyn to verbally tick them off.

One of the really interesting way the show works is the naming of the episodes. It goes alphabetically, related to the destination the plane is flying to that episode. For example, in the first episode, they fly to Abu Dhabi and in the second they go to Boston, the third to Cremona and so on. You would not think it but it does add to the humor of the show.

There are two main themes of the show that creates the drama and humor. One is the conflict between Martin and Carolyn where Martin repeatedly tries to assert himself to gain respect from her and fails. Carolyn enjoys putting him in his place and often humiliating him. Martin stoically bears it all and yet cannot help but make himself look a fool by demanding respect. The second is between Douglas and Martin where Douglas consistently plays a game of oneupmanship that Martin repeatedly loses. The formers experience and worldliness poses a challenge to the latter. Douglas may technically be the junior officer but Martin has to turn to him for help every time he screws up. Douglas also engages him in bets that Martin loses all the time.

The funniest parts usually consist of either Douglas or Arthur making pronouncements over the public address system. The outrageousness of these comments would cause anyone flying as a passenger to never board MJN Air again. This is Douglas, in the first episode:

Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, First Officer Douglas Richardson here, just to let you know that we are making our final approach now to what I'm fairly sure is Fitton Airfield. Unless it's a farm, or just possibly A-45. It's not the sea, because that's blue. I should perhaps explain that Captain Crieff and I have a sportsmanlike little bet on today about who can fly the best after drinking a liter of vodka through a straw. Captain went first. You may have noticed that the take off run was a little bumpy, particularly over the golf course. Now it's me to land: just as soon as I decide which of these tow runways to aim for. And I'm happy to tell you that I feel lucky! So on behalf of all your crew today, may I just say: Geronimo!

One of the interesting things about the show is the idea that pilots would do anything to avoid boredom. Hence we see many word games come to dominate the show. While they fly to Limerick, Ireland, the crew spends the time making up limericks. Other times they play games such as “Brian's of Britain” or naming people who are not evil but have evil sounding names such as Davina McCall or Russell Crowe.

If you liked Blackadder, you may find that the dynamics of the show are quite similar. They also resemble Blackadder in that the show is funny! And for those who are fans of Steven Moffat's Sherlock,Captain Martin Crieff is played by Benedict Cumberbatch! A little extra incentive, if you will. 

Cabin Pressure is aired on BBC Radio 7 and is available as a pod cast on BBC iPlayer.

Mark Gatiss' The Man in Black- Spooky tales on BBC Radio 7

You have seen him in Doctor Who as Professor Richard Lazarus. He also wrote the episodes of The Unquiet Dead, The Idiot's Lantern and Victory of the Daleks. He also wrote an episode of Sherlock and appears in the show as Mycroft Holmes.

But did you ever hear Mark Gatiss on the radio playing a mysterious stranger with tales of horror?

I tell you it is a treat. Now time and again I have expressed my fondness of the radio drama on these pixel pages. Often, instead of visual stimulus, they provide a great story you can just listen to. But more often than not, radio dramas are creatures of their own dimension: take them out of the medium and you have lost essence of the story.

Such is the series The Man in Black. It is classified as horror but it probably would not qualify to be int hat genre seeing that it actually would terrify you. Sometimes you would pause the movie if you are scared enough. I pause the pod cast because I am terrified.

And if you want your blood chilled then all you have to do is to listen to Mark Gatiss speak. He is the character described in the title. Soft spoken and quite innocuous at first, he would strike up a conversation at a public place with some one. These conversations are what you and I would participate in ourselves for they are nothing more than ordinary politeness. But the brilliance in the story is how the horror can raise its head from the most mundane everyday matters.

A retired accountant who after a lifetime of technophobia decides to dabble at the Internet. What happens when the web devours him, literally? A couple about to get married get a glimpse thirty years into their future. Gangs of teenagers roam the streets of suburbia, feeding on the entrails of passerby s while adults cower behind closed doors. A housing estate with a high tower whose inhabitants have long been there, longer than you could imagine.

I could go on but I would rather you find out for yourself. Spooky tales that would scare the living daylights out of you. The bonus is of course, the presenter: the man in black. Mark Gatiss does a remarkable job of being the spooky story teller.

Check it out on BBC Radio 7 pod cast at http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/radio

Graphic Novels of The Twilight Zone

It all depends on whether you like The Twilight Zone or not.

It has to be said that if literature has any claims on being an art form, then it must adopt a more political dimension. What do I mean by that? Do I think that literary works must include the issue of budget deficit or immigration or gays in the military? Is that what it means to have a political dimension in literature as a high art form?

No. Most certainly not.

It has to do with the purpose of art, which is to bring society out of its comfort zone. A rich and comfortable society is necessarily complacent and usually adopts a blasé attitude towards life in general. If art can make the collective psyche of such a society do a double take and squirm with unease as the artist violates the parameters of acceptable viewpoints, the clearly it lives up to its purpose.

The context of this conversation is of course Rod Serling's portrayal of America in the 1950s from the viewpoint of science fiction, fantasy, horror and above all imagination. Serling wrote and created the show The Twilight Zone where the certainties of a post war America flush in its new found prosperity could be challenged. At least on television, the veneer of polite society could be peeled off and shown for what it truly was: the darkness of the human condition.

Post war America was a huge success story. Having won the war and replaced Britain as the foremost dominant maritime power in the world, America was going through a revolution in consumer prosperity. American families, fresh out of depression, were owning homes and consumer gadgets for the first time. There were cars, washing machines, vacuum cleaners and last but not least, the television, the veritable last word on entertainment. After the upheavals of the 1930s, America wanted tranquility, both at home and at workplace. Rigid adherence to a certain social norm of wholesome nuclear family, steeped in Christian faith with cast in stone gender roles, were the ideals that America espoused and projected to the rest of the world.

What this happy and contented world of prosperity does not show is what lay skin deep of the American society in the 1950s. Racism and institutionalized hatred in the form of segregation, paranoia and witch hunts of McCarthyism and the perpetual fear of nuclear war were the reality that hung over their heads. All the Norman Rockwell portrayals were probably the escapist way of coping with the world.

The context is important because otherwise it would be difficult to portray the artistic importance of The Twilight Zone. Television in the 1950s clearly reflected popular appetite for entertainment. What are the quintessential TV shows of the 1950s? I love Lucy, Father knows best, Leave it to Beaver etc. The best one can say about the artistic impact of these shows is that they reflected the dominant attitudes of the time. One cannot accuse them of espousing subversive thoughts- they were too wholesome and tailor made for mass consumption for that sort of thing.

This is what sets The Twilight Zone apart. It was the first demonstration of science fiction as a vehicle of literary criticism of society. By removing the familiar surroundings, the human condition viewed from a different light becomes more apparent. The faults of the society may not be visible in plain sight but from the perspective of an alien they become crystal clear. Serling was able to paint a picture of America through the medium of science fiction that would have earned him a place in the black list had he adopted a more socially realistic form.

Other than the social commentary, what value does this show possess? Shall we consider its importance solely through the lens of literary criticism with a political content? If we did then it would have been a snooze fest of snooty literary critics pontificating about the how dangerously subversive the show was and on how many levels.

What really set the show apart was how cracking good storytelling it did. The stories were the most compelling aspect of it- emotionally as well as sociologically. Serling was a trailblazer for good TV writing which later gave us the likes of from Harlan Ellison to Aaron Sorkin. Like any good writer, Serling maintained the emphasis on the story rather than the message which in turn enhanced both.

Today I ran into two graphic novel versions of Serling's scripts a the library. Mark Kneece have adapted the stories from the scripts and Robert Grabe is the illustrator. Since The Twilight Zone was mostly in black and white, it is a treat to find them in color in the comic book. It is a fascinating read and fans of The Twilight Zone would find plenty to be happy about. Those who are not familiar with the show would probably find that the graphic novels are a cracking good read and carry with them the same eerie vibe that unsettled the complacency of the Mad Men society.

The Unknown Citizen by W H Auden

What if your entire life was summed up as a bunch of numbers and statistics?

Chillingly cold and ruthlessly impersonal- your life in numbers. Your social security number, your bank account, your insurance card, your credit score, your Internet browsing history and purchase history. How would you like it if I choose to interpret your life solely on those terms alone?

Worse still, what if the powers that be decide that you are the sum of your numbers? Where would you be? How would you summon your sense of self? What story will you tell about yourself that would capture the essence of you?

The Unknown Citizen is a poem by W H Auden which explores this concept where nameless entities define your life on paper. An unknown citizen had died and the government tries to describe his life but all it has to go on are reports and statistics on him. What the government finds is information indicating a fairly average life: colorless and bland and therefore according to the bureaucratic opinion, satisfactory.

The citizen in question had never had any complaints flied against him. He was an average worker in a auto factory run by Fudge Motors Inc, who was a loyal member of the the right kind of union. Social workers report that he was popular among his friends and he read the paper regularly. He was insured and had made purchases of modern gadgets based on installment. He held the right kind of opinions- adhering to social consensus- a man disposed to peace who went to war when society demanded he should. He had five children by marriage which was the acceptable number by government standards and he left the education of his children to the safe hands of the school system. He did have to go to the hospital once but he was cured of his ailment

As far as the state of his mind was concerned, the government report concludes that such speculation is fruitless. If anything was wrong with him or if he had felt differently, they would have certainly known about it.

The last two lines have a creepy 1984 tinge to it- which in fact can be said about the entire poem. Written in 1939 Auden carefully and deliberately captures the dehumanization process of paper work that reduces humans to mere abstract constructs based on numbers and robs them entirely of their individuality. A pre-war piece, this poem captures the coming horror show that a rigidly bureaucratic state would be capable of unleashing. When humans are reduced to numbers, it is easier to subtract them from the collective society.

One could make the argument that our lives have turned worse than Auden could ever imagine. Based on market research done on the population, private companies target the average Joe. There is a lot of paperwork and information generated in the world of business, a world based on profit rather than legal power, where our existence is based on paper or computer data base. We have reached a point in our collective existence where the existence of a person without paper work would render them illegal. Can you believe that? Existence can be defined as illegal.

The first time I ever heard of Auden was when I was barely fourteen, watching the funeral scene from the movie Four Weddings and a Funeral. I was so moved by the Funeral Blues (“Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone”) that I went to look for more poems by him. Just by his subtle and yet powerful economy of expression he had made it in to my mind as one the greatest poets I had ever come across.

What really got to me was the sheer political nature of his poetry. He was a man of time and he was politically conscious and active. He was one of the good guys and it shows in the sentiments that he expressed in his poems. He was never afraid of speaking his mind and being a poet did a much better job than the most.

But he did not entertain his politics at the expense of his conscience or the art f his poems. His prosody if made devoid of political context, would still be considered as great literary pieces. If you couple them with his political views, they pack a punch that has had more effects on the mind than a thousand manifestos.

I can only express regret about the fact that, I don't read Auden often enough.

10 O' Clock Live- the new Channel 4 show on topical comedy

How would you react to a show that begins with Charlie Brooker's description of a former governor of Alaska: “She's possibly the only horseman of the Apocalypse that you can maintain an erection while gazing in the eye.”

Now those of us who have spent our college lives getting our news from The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, this concept is nothing new. Commentary on the news by comedians is a grand old tradition in UK with programs on radio like News Quiz or Now Show and on TV like Have I got News for You and Mock the Week. On this side of the pond we have Stewart and Colbert who have become institutions unto themselves.

So what is so new about yet another show with comedians talking about current affairs and making jokes?

I'll tell you why. Because it has David Mitchell and Charlie Brooker, as well as Jimmy Carr and Lauren Laverne. The fact that David Mitchell has a show of his own on current affairs is enough to get me an erection but to have Charlie Brooker as well means going on a smug-and-jaundiced-view-of-the-world overdrive. I am fond of Jimmy Carr so that's a bonus obviously. But to give real flesh to the physical reaction described above, you have the dishy, delectable and delicious Lauren Laverne, the DJ from BBC Radio 6.

Now you can see why I am excited!

The first episode comprised of Mitchell taking on the bankers and Brooker covering Sarah Palin.

Jimmy Carr begins by giving a brief account of the news of the week. Memorable zingers? The doctors are trying to a radical cure on Steve Jobs: they are going to turn him off and turn him on again! As for any Catholic priest watching, the only good news is that hell does not exist. In fact the plethora of child rapists in the Church make us forget that the Pope used to be a Nazi! Oh, Jimmy, stop before I pull a stomach muscle.

David Mitchell hosts a panel on bankers bonuses. Panelists include Richard Sharp, a former partner in Goldman Sachs, Zoe Gannon, head of research at the High-Pay Commission and Kwasi Kwarteng, Tory MP. Now I was disappointed that David did not go for the jugular with a word that rhymes so well with banker. Come on David, you were the first to say it on TV, remember? A bunch of wanker bankers! Yes, I have said it and I am quoting Mitchell.

We were looking to be entertained but the panel was very informative as well, no surprise since this is David Mitchell we are talking about. We learn about the bonuses that the bankers are going to award themselves and we hear both sides of the argument: the one that wants to burn them on a stake as well as the side that wants to send them to prison. Well that got all the points of view covered!

Charlie Brooker gave a commentary on Palin, her White House ambitions and the Tucson tragedy. The most memorable line: in America, a bullet comes with every happy meal. Now those of you who are familiar with Brooker will need no introduction, but those who are not should check out his column at the Guardian. His mix of rage and humor as social commentary is probably one of the few things that would buck you up in the morning when you are swamped with bad news from around the world.

Jimmy Carr delves into the state of that great holiday destination, Tunisia and the upheaval that has created a new opportunity for cheap tourism. Lauren gives us a quick roundup of international news in the form of showbiz gossip.

Carr goes on to interview Bjorn Lomborg who gives a well informed account of the limitations of carbon reduction programs. Clearly the audience is against him and yet he makes some very lucid arguments. One thing I'll say about the climate change enthusiasts: their attempt at shutting down any views contradicting the consensus is bordering around religious mania. I am sorry to say that Carr could not rise above it.

The we have a delicious section of a monologue from David Mitchell where he talks about the Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt's attempts at promoting local news over national and international news. One clearly gets the impression that the fuss made at the BBC over the mistake about his name (H was replaced by the C of culture, presumably. Come on, how can you miss it, a wanker named Hunt, surely he was asking for it? ) was not unintentional.

I can go on and on about what happened next bit that might bore you to death. What I am trying to tell you is that I am really excited about the show. It is rather good and well presented with personalities that are rich with intelligence. Not to mention it has Mitchell and Brooker (I'll hammer it home as long as I like!)

10 O'Clock Live is aired at (take a guess!) ten pm, Friday nights. live on Channel 4 UK.

Alfred Hitchcock's The Lady Vanishes

I think the strength of character depends on how well you can stand up against the consensus. When the opinion of everyone around you is one and yours is diametrically opposite and that causes everyone to doubt your sanity, then you'd have to have some serious chops to hold your own.

Clearly the story has all trademark Hitchcock ingredients. A train traveling through Central Europe, carrying a group of sinister looking (read: German) individuals. A plucky young woman and a roguish young man and a middle aged English lady looking suspiciously like Agatha Christie who, as the title suggests, disappears.

Young Iris Henderson is on a holiday in Central Europe just before her wedding: her last hurrah before her trip down the aisle. She meets an elderly lady at the hotel she was staying at, a governess who is going back to England after spending six years in the country.

However, she seems to be more than what she says, as an early assassination attempt on her lands on Iris, knocking her out before her trip back to England. Ms Froy nurses Iris back on the train and being good natured and friendly, she quickly becomes good friends with Iris.

After waking up from a nap Iris find that Ms Froy had disappeared. Other occupants of the compartment denies that she was there in the first place. Iris frantically tries to track her down and asks around for her whereabouts. It seems everyone has a good motive to deny the existence of Ms Froy.

Iris seeks the help of Gilbert, a young musician who had earned her wrath at the hotel earlier by playing loud music. Skeptical at first but concerned at her frantic state, Gilbert goes along with her allegations about the disappearance of Ms Froy. He is quite amused by her persistence but is also willing to entertain the possibility that the earlier blow to the head may have unhinged Iris, a view propagated by Dr. Egon Hartz. Dr Hartz who is traveling with a patient does not hesitate to cast aspersion on Iris' sanity. A sudden appearance of another woman, dressed exactly like Ms Froy seems to confirm the position of Dr Hartz.

A lucky break allows Gilbert to ascertain that Iris was speaking the truth. However since every one in the train seems to be deny the existence of Ms Froy at first and then quickly falls in line to affirm that the new woman was Iris' companion, he begins to smell a rat. Something sinister may have befallen Ms Froy but they could not figure out why. There was no earthly reason behind a train full of people conspiring to hide the disappearance of an elderly English governess.

On a lighter note, a pair of cricket mad self absorbed pubic school-educated old boys form part of the plot. Their only concern, after suffering some hilarious privations at the hotel, is to be able to make it to Manchester before the end of a cricket match. Fearful that Iris' kicking up a fuss would delay them, they become unwitting partners in the conspiracy. A pair of illicit lovers, afraid of publicity, also take part in the conspiracy of denial.

However, it soon becomes apparent that Ms Froy was still on the train and Gilbert and Iris double their efforts. Fearful of their success, the cabal of conspirators make their move to take them out. Through a lucky break, Iris and Gilbert escape an attempt on their lives and quickly discovers where Ms Froy was hidden. It transpires that using the cover of a governess, ms Froy had been working as a spy for British Secret Service. What the Teutonic breed of baddies were trying to do was to prevent her from taking a message back to London, a message about a treaty between two Central European countries (this being the 1930s, no prize for guessing one of them).

The climax becomes an amusing scene of a last stand of the English surrounded by well armed Germans. Would they be able to escape? Would Ms Froy be able to deliver her message? And what about Iris' impending wedding? Would she allow herself to follow the well versed script of marrying the stuffed shirt she's engaged to and throw away the dashing Gilbert, her knight in a shining armor?

I think that after watching this movie, I am very much interested in watching more movies where Margaret Lockwood plays a role. Her portrayal of Iris was fantastic. Michael Redgrave is pitch perfect and flawless in his performance as usual. It was a great treat to see one of his early works.

What seemed strange was the eerie similarity between Dame May Whitty and Agatha Christie in her later years. Had this not been a black and white movie, I would have been under the impression that it was Dame Agatha herself! But I do great injustice to Dame May: her performance gives the move the extra vigor that makes it so worth watching.

But the main attraction of the movie is Hitchcock. I do not know why we do not take the social commentary in his movies more seriously. He successfully portrays a microcosm of English society within the passengers of the train. Equally successful is his portrayal of of the Teutonic menace, rejuvenated by the jackboots.

What truly impresses me is Hitchcock's portrayal of contemporary 1930s world without ever sacrificing the taut plot line of the story. He wants to tell us a rollicking tale but he also wants to give us the context of it in terms of Geo-politics, class politics, sociology and history. An piece of work that looks effortless in its execution, I would say this movie is one his great successes.

The King's Speech

Colin Firth bloody well deserves an Oscar.

I mean, for an Englishman to pass for a German requires serious acting talent, don't you think?

I am not a big fan of the inbred lot from Hanover that has been occupying the English throne since 1714. As Captain Blackadder said to Captain Darling when the latter claimed to be as British as Queen Victoria: 'So you're father is a German, you're half German and you're married to a German?'

I think that sums up not only my feelings about the British royals but that of many of the Brits as well.

So Albert Saxe-Coburg's well known speech impediment deserves a movie does it? Despite ER II's best efforts, I hardly think the Royals would ever be considered an asset to England. Considering the fact that one of the fruits of the car-wreck that was the union of Big Ears and Porcelain Doll is about to marry a slapper from the home counties and the tabloids are full of little else (unless it's the Express about his mother's “mysterious” death), I'd rather not bother with the Windsors nee Saxe-Coburgs.

Yes, did you know they changed their names from Saxe-Coburg to Windsor in 1917 because it sounded too German?

So, a story about how one of the Windsors got over a personal failing and became 'normal' again is hardly likely to be something I would get excited over. I mean, I'm a republican for for a reason and pomp and circumstances do not interest me.

Or so I thought.

It seems I am mistaken. It is not about the splash and splendor of royal pageantry but a deep dark side of the family. We forget, like every family, even the British Royals have their foray away from the light. Like every other family, they too have secrets.

If you made a movie about a poor orphan English boy at the turn of the 20^th Century who had to were braces on his feet and was punished for being left handed, we would attribute part of his misfortune to the rigid class system. But when the crème de la crème of English society does not escape the prevailing prejudices of the day, you begin to realize that when a rigid society wants to spread the misery about, it can be surprisingly democratic.

When we first meet him, Albert Windsor seemed to have achieved his life's goal. After an honorable service in the Royal Navy during the First World War, he had settled down to quiet domesticity with Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon. She had turned him down twice, but apparently was own over by his persistent love. When asked by the King to deliver a speech at the Empire Exhibition, the young Duke of York fails miserably due to an overpowering propensity to stutter.

The Duchess, played to perfection by a subdued Helena Bonham Carter, tries her best to find a cure for her husband. After going through many demonstrations of quackery, she comes across Lionel Logue, an Australian. Logue, played impeccably by Geoffrey Rush, is a speech therapist in Harley Street who has gained a reputation treating shell-shocked soldiers and helping them be able to speak again. After an initial bout of skepticism, Albert decides to give Logue a try.

Thus begins the friendship that defines the entire movie. The relationship between Logue and the Prince is rather a complicated one. The prince is not used to others taking liberty in his presence. Logue would not let any tradition of deference come between him and his patient. He plays not just the speech therapist but also amateur psychiatrist, helping the prince deal with his inner demons that manifest themselves by robbing him of his voice. Rush's Logue is free of social constraint and refuses to cow tow to conventions. Colin Firth's Prince Albert on the other hand, is a conflicted figure: not the sort to shirk his duties, he is, however, paralyzed by the shadow cast by his overbearing father and more socially adept brother.

George V, played regally by Michael Gambon, has dominated the lives of his sons, especially that of Albert. He is not very optimistic of the prospect of David, the Prince of Wales, becoming king. He'd rather much see Albert and “Lilibet”, as young Princess Elizabeth was known as, succeed him. He had left an indelible impression on Albert who is never away from his father's presence.

Guy Pierce's portrayal of Edward VIII is pitch perfect, down to his mimicry of Edward's abdication speech. Although limited in screen time, he nevertheless delivers a whirlwind performance, portraying a monarch who would have blended rather well with the hard partying crowd of the Roaring Twenties. He seems to share their predilection for irresponsible and self destructive behavior as well, as the abdication crisis illustrates.

The problem, from the point of view of Albert, is this: if he becomes king then his inability to speak in public would undermine the people's faith in the monarchy. Deeply aware of a sense of duty and public service, he does not want to plunge the country into crisis, not when another war with Germany is looming. Conversely his brother effortlessly and without compunction engineers a constitutional crisis for the sake of marrying a woman he loves, thrusting Albert to the throne.

Eventually, Albert, now King George VI, overcomes his speech problem with the steady help of Logue.

The final moment of crisis comes when faced with war with Germany, the King must deliver the speech that would unite the nation and give them courage and hope. How would this shy and retiring man convince his Depression weary countrymen to face down the looming threat of fascism and prevail?

The seemingly innocuous story of a man born to privilege getting over a speech impediment quickly becomes a story about the struggle of a nation's soul. Would royal convention doom a man's sense of obligation to his nation and prevent him from doing his duty? How can a prince, an apparent better in a society of rigid class system, learn from a commoner? How can a commoner show the prince that his people are not afraid of him but are worth his esteem?

The strength of the script is obvious in it s tautness. Social attitudes in historical context becomes fodder for humor. The cast delivers a performance that is both visceral and memorable at once.

As I said, give Colin Firth the Oscar and be done with it.

Interworld: A review

Okay, let us talk about parallel universes.

Interworld is one of the most exciting young adult science fiction novels to have come out in the last five years. The moment I learned that Neil Gaiman was one of the writers, I was determined to get the book. The other co-author is Michael Reaves. Together they have created one of the most fascinating stories you can come across. Like all good children's books it is not written for children. It is written for adults but it's a book that children can also read.

Altiverse is the the chunk of the multiverse where you have all the Earth like planets lined up parallel to each other. Parallel Earths, parallel realities: similar manifestation of people replicated over and over again, each existing in their separate four dimensions. Each world completely oblivious to the existence of the others.

Bi-polarity seems to be inbuilt into human evolution. Among these worlds exist two centers of power: one is based on science and is called Binary. The other is based on magic and is called Hex.

So what happens if you get a group of people who can walk between the worlds? How do they fit into the struggle of supremacy between Binary and Hex?

Enter Joey Harker, an average high school student living in the town of Greenville. He often gets lost, sometimes even in his own house. When his Social Studies teacher does an experiment where all students are left at random parts of the town and they have to make their way back to school, Joey gets hopelessly lost. In his confusion, he walks right into another world.

Although parallel, Earths in different worlds can be subtly different. It takes a while for Joey to spot the difference. He goes to his social studies teacher for help but is taken prisoner by a snatch team from Hex.

Those who can walk between worlds are valued highly by the two powers: they provide the energy that allows them to power their warships to travel to different worlds. Joey finds to his consternation that both centers of power inflict unbearable suffering on a walker in order to gain access to his or her abilities. His will being suspended by a magic spell, Joey seemed destined to a long and painful death through torture.

Fortunately for Joey, another walker named Jay shows up and rescues Joey. Jay tells Joey that the walkers are all the same personality from Earth: your average Joseph Harker from Greenville. Jay is from another world and is called Jay Harker. There is an organized group of walkers who form the Interworld: a dedicated group of people who want to maintain a balance of power between Hex and Binary. Their mission is to thwart both from gaining the upper hand.

During their escape, Joey rescues a Multi Dimensional Life Form(MDLF) otherwise known as mudluffs. However in the process, Jay gets killed and Joey is forced to bring his body back to Interworld. Jay's death had created a vacancy among the Interworld operatives and Joey is asked to step into his shoes.

Undergoing a rigorous academic and physical training process (homework problems would make Einstein and Stephen Hawking cry), Joey becomes familiar with the other prototype Joseph Harkers from other worlds. Interworld is run by a person called the Old Man Joe who sends Joey and five of his friends on a regular trial mission.

Something goes horribly wrong and all six of them are taken prisoner by Hex operatives. With the help of the mudluff he had rescued, Joey makes his way back to HQ. Because he had been the cause of death of Jay and now five others have been taken prisoner because of him, the Old Man banishes him back to his own world, his memory of Interworld erased.

Joey settles down in his old life, somewhat changed because of all the training he had received. But the mudluff, Hue, makes his way to Joey's Earth and finds him. Joey remembers everything and now he must set out to rescue his friends.

Can he do it? Can he single handedly take on the might of the Hex and get back all his friends? Since the alternative is for them to die slowly under inhuman torture, he really has no choice but to succeed in his rescue attempt and restore his place in the Interworld.

This is one of the most compelling tales where you cannot put the book down. You have to read until the end and believe me, the tension and the plot continues to the very last page if not the last line. The characters are all very well constructed and three dimensional.

My particular favorite is of course Joey's relationship with his family. His relationship with his young toddler brother develops from indifference to affection. It was rather cute, the way he brought back Hue to Joey.

Mr Dimas, the social science teacher, comes off as the teacher that we would all want as our favorite source of inspiration in high school. He does provide Joey with the most important thing: help him make his own decision. A figure of authority who believes that learning must be a continuous process: often through unconventional means, he was the perfect person for Joey to place his trust in.

Joey's farewell to his mother is probably one of the most heartbreaking scenes I have read in along time. It will bring tears in your eyes. It reminds us that after all is said and done about the heroics pulled by him, Joey is still a young boy who needs his mother, a mother who loves him with all her heart.

If you are looking for a science fiction book to read, I would say that this book is the perfect starting point for you. It is exciting and scary: a tight plot line that forces you to hold your breath till the very end. And yet, it is full of rich characters as well, making it a candidate for high literature.

I strongly encourage everyone to read this book.

Me, my Father and Oscar Wilde

“Father?”

“Yes, son?”

“Would you tell me a story?”

Thus begins a journey of a lifetime. Does anyone understand how stories shape the lives of those who feed on them for mental and emotional sustenance? That one’s entire lifetime of expectations and sense of wonder may live or die depending on whether they were told tall tales or not?

Does anyone realize how goddamn important stories are for children?

I wanted to talk about Oscar Wilde and the collection of short stories he had penned. But as with all things Oscar, it is complicated. I cannot speak of Oscar Wilde without talking about my father. Only when I have elucidated the relationship between him, Oscar and myself can I begin to shed any light on how I feel about both of these two extraordinary men.

When I was three my father would bounce me on his knee and tell me stories. Stories that involved prince and princesses and birds and dwarfs and giants. But they were not ordinary stories: they involved royalty and non-humans. In fact I remember being rather sad at the fate of the non-humans while humans treated them so callously. In retrospect, I suspect that may be my republican minded father was preparing me against the popular admiration of monarchic institutions, for the prince and the princesses of these stories were rather a nasty lot.

These stories were also my first experience with irony: when I found out that the man known as the “happy prince” was in fact one the most abjectly unhappy person in the world. Little princesses who celebrate their birthdays by being heartlessly cruel to a poor dwarf. A cruel giant who learns to love through empathy and sacrifice. A nightingale who sings and gives up his life to create a red rose only to have it lying discarded on the street as a token of unrequited love.

An important fact that still remains with me today is that my father told me these stories in a bilingual fashion. He would tell me the narrative in our native Bengali but often he would switch to English. In a gentle voice full of great pathos he would say “Swallow, swallow, little swallow…” The only comparison of his reading style that I can find is that of the professional reader Frank Muller of whom I am a great fan.

My father made the words dance in my heart and made me a lifelong reader by instilling in me a love of stories. His repertoire of tales comprised of many classics- he told me the story of The Merchant of Venice and The Tempest without giving any inkling that these were famous texts.  He just made the story exciting and it did not matter to me what the rest of the world thought about it. As far as I was concerned, these were my father’s tales.

His particular favorite to this day is A Tale of Two Cities, of which the last few chapters he can recall verbatim, having to learn it in Tenth Grade. The way he describes the last hours of Charles Darnay as he awaits the executioner would bring tears to the eyes of anyone listening.

Only when I grew up and read the prescribed texts as part of literature was I able to realize that my father was telling me stories written by Oscar Wilde. You could say I have a deep emotional connection with him as I do with my father. I was very happy to note that my father took it upon himself to tell me good stories, stories that were in fact tragedies. I have to say that I gained a whole new level of respect for him and the way he has raised his children: never condescending or patronizing but always in deep faith of their understanding of human nature. He felt that it was necessary to expose children to the reality of stories, not subject them to excruciating happy endings. 

Much as I would like to praise Oscar, I would like to thank my father first. I would not be who I am today had it not been for his intense passion for storytelling. Thanks, Abba.*

*Bengali word used for addressing one's father.

House: Larger than Life

House is back, with Murphy Brown!

Those of you who caught the ninth episode of House last night would have to agree that as far as the medical problem was concerned, it was rather tepid. In fact the last tow episodes have made the problems facing the team seem rather bizarre. In episode eight we had a crucification ritual gone wrong. This time we have a bizarre and possibly impossible case of survival from being run over by a train.

A father and a daughter are making their way to the zoo and they are in the subway platform waiting for the train. Suddenly an epileptic woman falls on the tracks and begins convulsing. The father jumps into the tracks to save the woman but is too late. He has enough time to just cover her body with his as the train runs them over. When it moves away, they are discovered to be unharmed. But then the father collapses into unconsciousness.

The episode revolves around two particular dynamics: Taub's response to his wife's relationship with her on line friend and House's response to Cuddy's mother coming over for dinner. In between the medical problem does get a little short shafted- although the new kid Masters does show some interesting moments.

Enter Candice Bergen as the mother Cuddy! Clearly Lisa's sense of paranoia precedes her hiring of House. Whose wouldn't with a mother like that? Who would have thought that the best way to meet your daughter's boyfriend is not over dinner but at the clinic, disguising yourself as a patient while he grudgingly does his clinic hours!

Having done her reconnaissance she drops the bomb on House who is clearly at a loss. He did not expect Cuddy's mother to be a blond, an error resulting from the fact that she had converted after her marriage. What is truly amusing is her zeal of a convert: she pops more Yiddish expressions in her several minutes on screen than the number of times we have seen him pop for Vicodin throughout all seven seasons.

I really should not spoil the dinner scene for those who are reading. Needless to say it was quite priceless, a vintage House moment.

Taub on the other hand feels neglected by his wife: an odd feeling to have since she has been indulging in marital congress more than usual. He suspects that all this intimacy is a fruit of her passion for her on-line boyfriend. He is just someone convenient at hand to indulge her lust while she can delve into her fantasy world. He feels used and discarded. Yeah buddy, we have all been there.

I will say this of the show,I am never going to get tired of certain formulas. All the available diagnosis fails, none of the team has a good idea worth a damn. The patient keeps getting worse and marches steadily towards death's door. Finally, House has a completely unrelated conversation with someone else where one word or expression gives him an epiphany: something that leads him to the solution. He confronts the patient, makes him/her feel like a fool and pronounces a completely overlooked diagnosis. Voila! The patient is cured.

You could say that this is a somewhat tedious formula to repeat episode after episode. However, the writers of the show make it work and Hugh Laurie makes it work. Even after so many repetitions, the epiphany formula has not lost its thrill.

This whole season is promising to be rather interesting what with a whole new dimension added to House's life: his romance with Cuddy. Here's hoping the writers keep us on our toes!

Irreligion by John Allen Paulos: A review

It is refreshing to see a mathematician step up to the plate when the water has been muddied by theologians.

John Allen Paulos is a mathematician who has written extensively on the topic of literacy in math. He is a logician whose work lies mostly on probability theory. He is also a bestselling writer on such topics as stock market, media awareness of math and humor in math.

In recent years those who espouse rationality as a virtue and view irrational faith as vice have come under attack. Stating a non-religious point of view have attracted opprobrium from the faithful. Many in the faith community spearhead these attacks by stating that the theological position is based on logic and reason. So it is somewhat fitting that Paulos would take up the ultimate challenge and show the theologians how to play the game of logic.

And how does he do it? By penning a short book defining and outlining the arguments in favor of existence of a deity. By closely examining these reasons he finds them at best a mediocre attempt at logic, falling far short of the rigorous standard of argument demanded by mathematics. And he sets out to tell the rest of us.

The book is called Irreligion: A Mathematician Explains Why the Arguments for God Just Don't Add Up. It was published in December 2007 by Hill and Wang. Despite being only 176 pages long it packs a great deal of punch for such a short book.

Those who are interested in the eternal argument that goes on between theists, deists and atheists would find this book invaluable. Light hearted and irreverent, you can say one thing about Dr Paulos, he has a very pronouncedly humorous writing style that can make even the most academically dense topic seem interesting. Using amusing anecdotes he seeks to illustrate through example, an technique that can often go wrong in the hand of an unskilled writer. Lucid and often tongue in the cheek, he brings about the deconstruction of the theist and deist and exposes the fallacy of the religious position that would bring a smile even to the faithful.

The good professor is not merely an academic, he also lives in the real world where he is keenly aware of events going on around him. He addresses each of the problems with the arguments with their modern proponents in mind. Clearly this book is meant for the audience deeply involved in the current argument regarding faith.

He begins with the four classical arguments for the existence of a deity: first cause, design, ontological argument and the anthropic principle. Keenly aware that these arguments have already been refuted by rationalists in the past, he seeks to take a very careful approach: focusing on the essence of each argument and quickly dismantling it.

One of greatest treats of this book are chapters that are meant as digressions: often he would take a concept invoked in the argument and expand its mathematical basis. One such a chapter is a reflection on self-recursion and self reference. Despite this book being a reflection on religion, any mathematics enthusiast would enjoy these forays into thought exercise on logic fascinating.

The professor goes on to examine some modern arguments postulated on behalf of supernatural existence. Arguments from prophecy, coincidences, interventions and miracles and subjectivity are all described in their fullest. The sharpness of the professor's logical tools seem somewhat excessive in comparison to the weakness of the arguments themselves. Yet, since these nonsensical attributes are given so much importance in the modern discourse on this topic, he has no choice but to address them in the fullest examination of logic. The faithful cannot help but twitch convulsively as their certainty falls apart.

The new academic arguments such as irreducible complexity, cognitive tendency, universality and probability are quite serious arguments and they enjoy the authority of having been evolved by people who hold some scientific credentials. Yet, all of these arguments are refuted each with a succinct and comprehensive fashion.

If you are interested in the modern dialogue between theology and atheism, this book is a must read for you. If you enjoy reading, this would be a great source of non-fiction humor that would inform you on the great god debate. I cannot recommend this book strongly enough.

Zen- Ratking

This time, Zen may have gone too far.

His introduction to the new boss was not the customary “ave duci novo, similis duci seneci” type. A Puritan at heart, the new boss seems to loathe Zen with the entirety of his being, particularly his smoking habit. As soon as taking over, he issues a ban on all forms of office fornications, something that Tania and Aurelio cheerfully violates , breaking the boss' desk in the bargain. Way to go Aurelio!

Zen has to deal with an extremely politically sensitive kidnapping and murder case. One of the Italy's most prominent industrialist and a major donor to the party in power, Rogiero Miletti. An earlier ransom delivery had ended in the murder of the man who was carrying it. Zen is assigned the case at the behest of the powers that be.

This is the most obstacle ridden case we have seen Zen undertake yet. On one hand, the cold and calculating duo of the Minister and Amedeo Colonna, on the other hand the new boss Ernesto Heuber and Zen's new patner in the case, the scheming Vincenzo Fabri, with Nadia Pirlo in the background, still smarting after Zen's earlier rebuff of her advances. To complicate matters, the Miletti family becomes quite a handful. Cinzia Miletti seems genuinely distraught by her father's kidnapping but her brother Silvio and husband Carlo Fagioli, a rather odious specimen of reptilian nature, seem to be relish the departure of the old man. With a work environment like this, who needs a stroll in a minefield?

Colonna is particularly in his element as the cold-blooded apparatchik- forcing upon Zen a suitcase full of untraceable five million Euros. The expectation is that Zen would act as the delivery boy, taking the ransom to the kidnapper- an illegal act that would surely likely to cost him his job. If Zen fails to rescue Miletti and he turns up dead, clearly the powers that be would be miffed enough to leave him at the mercy of Heuber's wrath. Vincenzo Fabri on the other hand wants to sabotage Zen's investigation, hoping this would discredit both Zen and Heuber enough that the latter is removed from his position. Fabri then hopes to step into the position of the new boss, with the blessing of his powerful uncle, a possibility that Zen alluded to as “yet another undiscovered level of hell”. Good to see that the wind on his face has not yet robbed him of his humor.

This may yet be the funniest episode just because of the little campy incidents. The inept plotting of Fabri not withstanding, the funniest part is the broad daylight clandestine meeting between Zen and Colonna. A convalescent Moscati soon smells out the fact that Tania and Aurelio are together- an event that is slightly less hilarious than a confrontation between Heuber and Zen. After severely reprimanding Zen and putting him in his place, Heuber sits on the desk where Zen and Tania, defying the new office regulations, had made love earlier and had broken it. The ensuing slapstick would leave you in stitches, I can assure you.

Having engineered a mother of all switcheroos, Zen tries to restore his autonomy, an attempt that results in some success. But the plot twists are really worth savoring. As well as the heartbreaks. But one must never discount Zen, even when he is completely down and out. The terms “coming from the left field” was probably invented for him. One gets the feeling that the chemistry between him and Colonna is there for a reason: they are cut from the same cloth with the added fact that Zen has a conscience- even a clichéd one.

And yes, the last line of the show is definitely the icing on the cake.

How long is a piece of string?

Once again we have the dynamic duo of Alan Davies and Marcus du Sautoy explore the realms of mathematics.

This time Alan wants to know how we measure things. For this purpose, he wants to start with a very simple question: how long is a piece of string? Since the whole infrastructure of science is based on achieving increasingly accurate measurement, this question is pertinent to the very soul of science itself.

Alan buys a piece of string from a hardware store and measures it with a ruler. It comes out as 32 cm. He then takes it to Marcus Du Sautoy's office, wanting to know if the measurement was correct.

Alan sums up the situation rather neatly: to me it's a short piece of string, to Marcus, it's a major mathematical problem.

Marcus tells Alan that measurement of something so apparently trivial as a piece of string has consumed mathematicians for thousands of years. He decides to take Alan to the National Physical Laboratories (NPL) where they would give the piece of string the proper measurement. During the journey on train, he expanded on the ancient Egyptian method of length measurement in cubits- which is the length between your elbow to the tip of your finger. Since different people would have different lengths in cubits, the problem, according to Marcus, is to be able to come up with a measuring unit that is universal.

At the NPL, the duo are taken to a tour of measurement histories. The original meter bar, a prototype cubit, a two hundred year old yardstick and an exact measurement of the kilogram is shown to the visitors. Then they are taken to the Length Bar Interferometry where they measure length by the speed of light. Using a laser tracking robot, they come up with a pretty concise measurement of Alan's string: 319 mm and 442 micrometers.

Marcus then demonstrates the difficulty of measuring lengths of coastlines, both in maps and in actual scale. He gives Alan a demonstration of a whole new area of mathematics: fractals. By drawing a score of triangles on the beach, Marcus demonstrates to Alan the possibility that the actual length of his piece of string could be infinite. The incredulous look Alan gives Marcus is enough to leave you stitches!

Not satisfied with infinity, Alan goes off solo in search of more measurement. He meets the most hyper physics teacher you are ever likely to meet, Becky Parker, with whom he embarks on a journey into the world of atoms. A most disturbing fact comes to surface when Alan finds out that most atoms are composed of empty space and all the matter composing human mass can be fitted onto a sugar cube. Yes, I am still pondering over that myself. But I must confess, I am jealous of the boys of Simon Langton School. If I had a physics teacher like Ms Parker, I probably would have devoted my life to physics.

Alan continues on his exploration of atoms and quantum mechanics as a means to measuring his string. Soon he comes up with the problem of particles existing in multiple different places at the same time. He is given a thorough lesson on Schrödinger's cat problem by Professor Seth Lloyd, who takes into another journey. He explains the quantum weirdness of photosynthesis and the human sense of smell. Alan becomes well schooled in the fact that quantum mechanics is the underlying fact of reality in the world. Much to Alan's bemusement, Seth postulates that the most accurate measurement of hos piece of string could result in a black hole!

The entire concept of measurement of length can lead you to a philosophical journey where you can learn about the fundamental building blocks of reality itself. In end, the answer to the question: how long is this piece of string? The answer is a qualified: we don't know.

Mary Renault's The King Must Die - A review

I had never heard of her before.

It was a passing reference in a book that got me interested. I was reading Orson Scott Card's How to Write Science Fiction and Fantasy where I came across her name and the book that he recommended as a good read. Card was talking about how to create a world of imagination all on your own and as an example he mentioned her and the book.

It was Mary Renault and the book was called The King Must Die.

A few days later I was at the library and was perusing the fiction section when I remembered Card's reference and went looking for this writer. I was lucky enough to find the book and a couple of other titles by her. I decided to give it a shot and thought that if I liked it well enough I would probably be back for more.

Till the moment I flipped open the book, I had absolutely no idea what it was about. It was one of those rare moments in life when you discover a treat with no preconceptions. It was not a fantasy novel, something I realized within the first couple of pages, but rather a historical novel belonging to the Ancient Greek period.

It was quite a captivating and interesting story but I had not realized something central and important aspect of it. Halfway through the book I suddenly sat up and thought, “Hello! Why does this story seems familiar? I swear I have heard this story before somewhere.” The it hit me. This whole novel was a realistic and plausible reconstruction of the myth of Theseus.

It was written in a way that would make sense if the characters that Theseus meets are human but over time and embellishments of myths have made them into monsters and gods. What Mary Renault did was go through the mythological aspects of the story and reinvented a historical context, cutting through the mythological aspect and making it plausibly real. After reading the book you would seriously begin to doubt about the mythological aspect of Theseus. He becomes a historically real person.

The man we meet in the book is quite an ordinary and yet clever, quick witted and brave young man. It becomes possible to imagine how the mythology could take place around the life of a real person. Stories about deeds of bravery and cunning, given time can grow into the beautiful myths that we read today. But what really is interesting is how Mary Renault brought out the humanity of the character without making him overtly heroic. Theseus does not seek conflict as a rule but does not shirk his duty or back down in the face of a threat. What is truly remarkable about him is that though in possession of considerable strength and power, something that increases as the story progresses, he always seeks to solve problems in a lateral thinking fashion.

We meet Theseus at the beginning of the book when he is six, living in the palace of his grandfather, King Pittheus of Troizen. His mother is a priestess and his father is unknown, although rumor has it that it could be King Aigeus of Athens. Theseus however believes that the sea god Poseidon is his real father. Throughout the book, we keep seeing Theseus seeking the blessing and approval of the god in everything he does.

In book one we see Theseus, a six year old, observing a sacrifice. The point of sacrifice, he notes, is that the animal must consent to it too, otherwise it ceases to become an offering to the divine and instead becomes a slaughter. This has a profound impact on him. As he grows up, he is frustrated at his shorter build, something that makes him feel that he is not Hellenistic enough in appearance which makes him vulnerable at wrestling matches. He learns to improvise and adapt, soon becoming an agile and expert wrestler. When he turns seventeen, his mother takes him to the sacred Grove of Zeus and tells him if he could prise open a certain stone, she would tell him who is father is. Theseus fails in his first attempt with brute strength but then after thinking about it, uses a lever. Underneath the stone he finds a sword and a pair of sandals. These belong to Aigeus, the King of Athens and Theseus sets out to meet his father, taking the more dangerous bandit infested route of the Isthmus of Corinth. He meets the leader of the bandits, Skiron and kills him, making the isthmus relatively safer again.

In Eleusis, Theseus is forced to fight the Year-King Kerkyon in a single combat, after which he becomes the Year-King, marrying the queen Persephone. His role is merely ceremonial and in a year's time he is to be offered as a sacrifice. Theseus befriends Pylas, the neighboring king of Megara and with him undertakes a mission of routing out the bandits of the isthmus once and for all. Persephone, fearing that Theseus was getting too big for his boots, tries to get him assassinated by her cousin Xanthos whom he kills.

He sets out to Athens to purify himself of Xanthos' blood. A meeting with King Aigeus leads to the king trying to poison him out of fear, fed by his lover Medea who wants her two sons to inherit the Athenian throne. At the last moment, Aigeus sees the sword and is reconciled with his son, proclaiming him to be his heir.

It was the custom that the Minoan kingdom of Crete demanded a tribute of seven boys and seven girls from all the Greek cities, Athens being no exception. These young men and women were to be the arena players of the bullfighting that was the prominent feature of Crete. Theseus volunteers to go, despite his father's plea. In the end he makes him promise to come back with white sails if he lived through the harrowing experience.

Since the boys and girls were considered Minoan slaves, Theseus is no exception and yet he becomes their leader. Although they are fated to die in the arena and are resigned to the fact, he exalts them to become optimistic and keeps them in good spirit through singing and dancing. They name

themselves the Cranes. By keeping them together, Theseus is able to master the bull dance and the Cranes become famous for becoming the team that survived the bull dance the longest.

The high priestess of Crete, Goddess-on-Earth, Ariadne falls in love with Theseus. They meet and make love inside the labyrinth. Theseus had already incurred the wrath of Asterion, the son of King Minos, known as the Minotauros. King Minos was sick with leprosy and Asterion was king except by name- a state of affairs that horrifies Theseus who believes that a ruler must be sanctified by the gods. Asterion seemed an unholy presence to Theseus and he agreed to help Ariadne overthrow him.

The death of King Minos leads to political unrest in Crete. An earthquake and a subsequent revolt allows Theseus to confront Asterion, the Minotauros in side the labyrinth. He slays the monster in human form and freeing all the slaves, sails to Naxos, taking Ariadne with him.

Two subsequent incidents are given extensive fleshing out. We see Ariadne's participation in the feast of Dionysius resulting in her being involved with something that horrifies Theseus. He finds it impossible to contemplate binging her back to Athens as a result. Ensuring her a place of high honor in Naxos, he abandons her there and sets sail back to Athens.

A long contemplation on whether to put on white sails, a signal to his father telling him he was alive, is embarked on by Theseus where he asks guidance from Poseidon. The god's counsel convinces him to keep the black sails, the sight of which, being a sign of Theseus' death, makes King Aigeus throw himself off a cliff in grief.

Throughout the book we see the portrayal of Theseus as a morally upright person, always seeking to take the side of the weak. He demonstrates a polytheistic piety quite different from the monotheistic version. He is not without vanity and pride but is tempered by his courage and a sense of justice.

There are two most satisfactory parts of the book. First you have Renault's brick-by brick reconstruction of Minoan Crete society and the bull dance. It is the most vivid picture of a long forgotten society you are ever likely to get. Though we have the ruins of Crete, at the time of the writing of the novel, very little was known about the Minoan civilization. Her description, within the context of a very tense and taut plot line makes the whole world of Minoan civilization come to life.

Secondly, a very emotionally satisfying explanation behind why he leaves Ariadne in Naxos and why he keeps the black sails in his ship that leads to his father's suicide. The mythology leaves no reason why he did those things and Renault makes up for the deficit in her story.

Equally satisfying is the title of the book. After all, as Persephone and Ariadne keep telling Theseus that if he wants to live, then the king must die.

This has been one of the most significant historical novel I have ever read. Renault's command of the narrative never falters and you are always spellbound by the story and the world of Ancient Greece comes alive around us. If the origin of the story was not a myth, would have believed it to be a very convincing historical account .

Needless to say that the next thing I did was to read all the books written by Mary Renault.