Q & A: A Novel

Q & A: A Novel

Great book

You might say that at times this book could be "over the top" or have too many coincidences, but the story is really about luck and the lives of people around the main character, how they affect him and how he affects them. I love the way the book is set out - each chapter is an individual and amazing story that somehow in the end is important and makes a big difference in the course of the main character's life. The story takes us all over India (which was great to me because I have recently been to India and recognized many places, scenes and features of their culture). I think this is an amazing debut novel and everyone should read it if they have, will or want to see the movie.

Better than any movie!

Will go see "Slum Dog Millionaire" but will bet it won't be as good as this book. "First Novel" efforts are often an authors' best effort and that may be true here. We will see. Let us have more to judge! "Q+A" managed to be frank, yet funny, and offered a view of Indian life that this westerner could relate to. We are not so different!

A clever plot that keeps your attention throughout

Ram Mohammad Thomas is a boy from the Indian slums who has entered a "Who wants to be a millionaire" style television quiz show. Despite his lack of formal education, his life experiences have perfectly equipped him to answer each question that comes up. Because the show's organizers are sure that he must have cheated, they ask him to explain how he was able to answer such difficult and obscure questions. Each chapter deals with another question and answer, and as the book progresses his very colorful life story is also gradually revealed. This is not the most well written book I've read, but the way that the plot unfolds is very clever and keeps the reader's attention throughout. As each question is revealed, you can't help thinking "okay, now how is he going to integrate THIS into Ram's story?" and it's fun to see the way that he does, while also advancing the central plot. Slumdog Millionaire tears along at a quick pace: some parts are very amusing while others are very sad, but Swarup doesn't dwell on either. The way it all comes together at the end is highly contrived, but does make for a satisfactory conclusion. If you enjoy books about India, there are other books that are more realistic or better written (I especially recommend the wonderful and highly moving novel "A Fine Balance"), but this is an easy and entertaining story that captures much of the essence of this fascinating country. UPDATED 12/27: I have now seen the film Slumdog Millionaire. While the film has the taken the central theme and structure of the book, it also has many differences - for starters, the hero's name. Many plot elements of Ram/Dev's life story are entirely different in the film vs the book. Essentially the film is a very simplified version and hinges on the romance with Latika, which is not the case in the book. For me, the film works brilliantly, but it is not a slavish adaptation. This book is more "the book that inspired the film" rather than "the book of the film".

started off good and became absurd!

I ordered this book because i was anxious to read it before seeing the movie. The first half of the book started off really well. Great character description, good feel for India, and exciting story... but, unfortunately, the story became absurd and completely unrealistic... this was the major downfall. If you want to read an exciting and incredible story based in India try the book Shantaram... you won't be disappointed!

Trite, juvenile novel based on a collection of stereotypes

Vikas Swarup's "Q&A" (now re-titled "Slumdog Millionaire") is simply one of the worst novels ever written. Based on the premise of a poor boy winning the Indian version of the quiz program "Who wants to be a Millionaire?" ("Kaun Banega Crorepati" in India), the novel is simply a collection of chapters that are lifted straight out of various Bollywood movies, telling a series of improbable tales. These purport to be a sociological explanation of modern India, but are in fact little more than an outsider's version of various news stories about the most gory and obscure aspects of India's dark under-belly (Swarup is a diplomat by profession, and has spent almost all his career outside India, with scant first-hand knowledge of any of what he has written about). Writing awful nonsense (in mediocre prose) about India is a sure way to get rich these days (as the west is much more interested in such tawdry stories than the uplifting, genuinely literary offerings of genuinely great writers like Amitav Ghosh and Vikram Seth). It is troubling and sad that such trash gets so much press (and is made into Hollywood potboilers too). Hopefully, posterity will know how to separate such chaff from the wheat.

Keyword : q

S-video Cable - 6 ft

S-video Cable - 6 ft

why pay more for the same quality

This S video cable is a zillion times more expensive in the retail store market. This Phillips cable is of good quality. The wire itself is somewhat tangle-proof and easy to connect and drag. The male components are gold plated just as advertised.

Philips S-video?

I bought this from ClearAV but it clearly is not the cable shown in the picture and it is not Philips. It is however, a S-video cable, black in color. Bait and switch - perhaps. I will avoid buying from this vender (ClearAV) in the future. When I order an item that says it is Philips, I expect it to be Philips. I also expect it to look like the item pictured.

excelent combination of price and quality

Compare with big stores this is the same device for a more than reasonable price. I'll recommned it.

Great Cable for $$$

For the price this really is a good performing cable. The construction is top knotch and I have not had any issues with its picture performance. Would recommend.

Great Deal

I use this to connect my pc to my large HD tv so that I have a huge monitor that works great for gaming and watching videos and movies online.

Keyword : s

Find the Constellations

Find the Constellations

Great Constellation Primer!

Find the Constellations is an absolutely joy to read and study. Rey totally gives modern folk, young and old, a challenge in his opening comments: "Simple shepherds 5000 years ago were familiar with the heavens; they knew the stars and constellations--and they could not read or write---so why don't you?" (Page 3) I agree, and I wonder if we have lost something--as a species, for all our technology, in not observing and questioning the night sky. This book would be an appropriate product for family time and weekend time--sharing and learning together. The illustrations are easy to grasp, and the fonts are big, easily read even for eye glass wearers. Two chatty little characters appear on select pages to add humor, additional information, and / or emphasis to given material. My favorite sections in the book: Star Magnitudes & Examples Orion & His Stars Light-Years, Explanation & Examples Constellation Quizzes Seasonal Sky Views Polaris, the North Star Andromeda Planet Finder for 2006-2016 NOTE: This book makes a great companion to H.A. Rey's "The Stars: A New Way to See Them." **People who want more "hardcore" science and meatier cosmology will not be satisfied with this simple book. Not surprising: The target audience of Find the Constellations is for children, young people, and new casual star gazers. :)

great for kids and adults

We bought this book for our three girls, along with a telescope. The book is well written. Great for the whole family. Can't say enough good things about it!

Great for young and the not-so young!

My husband has a love for the constellations so I decided to purchase this book for him for Father's day; he just loves it and so do the girls. We went camping over the summer and this was a great book to use when we were star gazing; the illustrations are just wonderful. This is a great book for anyone that wants to learn about the constellations.

I love this book!

I bought this book a few weeks ago to use for school. I wanted the kids to learn what some of the constellations looked like and how they looked in different parts of the world. I got so much more! I learned about how the stars "moved" relative to the earth and seasons, I learned how to pick our constellations relative to others I already new, and I learned how these stars got their names. I would definitely recommend this for anyone from 5 - 55. Very simple, but very informative!

Review for Find the Constellations

An excellent book for children and adults. Interactive. Fun. This books makes star-gazing understandable and easier.

Keyword : h

Canon EF 70-200mm f/4 L IS USM Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras

Canon EF 70-200mm f/4 L IS USM Lens for Canon Digital SLR Cameras

I should have gotten it sooner

Its already been said about this lens 100's of times. I got the f4 because of the lighter weight than the 2.8. I don't shoot indoor sports so I don't miss the extra stop. This lens is super quick to focus and very sharp. Love the build quality, focus and zoom rings very smooth.

Worth every penny

This is a fantastic lens. The pictures are razor sharp, and the smoothness of the focusing is incredible. I recently used this lens on vacation in Walt Disney World and I can say it is not something you want to use as a walk around lens, but for the animal shots at the Animal Kingdom park it was the best. If you want to get an affordable "L" series lens that produces fantastic results, this is the one.

Spectacular!

After reading many good things about this lens, my wife and I decided to try it as the replacement for our consumer grade 75-300 telephoto zoom. It really lives up to all the good things people say about it. We have tested the lens on both our 5D body and 40D body. The first thing that stands out to me is the beautiful color reproduction. 'L' series lenses usually seem better than the non-L's in color accuracy (at least to my eye they do) but this one seems to have a 'pop' beyond that my 17-40 and 28-70 L series have. The sharpness is also incredible, and that helps 'pop' the image I'm sure. This is our first lens with an Image Stabilizer. It is one of those things that I never felt like I would benefit from, but now wonder how I lived without it. I was at a convention with a costume contest taking place in dimmed theater style light and was able to hand hold images at 1/15 shutter speed, F4 aperture, ISO 1600 and still get almost all images as keepers. Usually I find I need 1/30 on a good night, but preferably 1/60 at these focal lengths to have a chance. IS seems to work as advertised! In fact, between this and the superb high ISO performance of the newer DSLRs, unless you need the shallow DOF or faster shutter speeds for sports that the F2.8 version of this lens would provide, I'd say save the money and the weight and get this version. One thing I thought I might not like was the loss of the 200-300mm focal lengths. So far, I am pleasantly surprised that I have not missed it as much as I thought. The 75-300 was my 'spy glass' on the 40D, used for wild life, etc. On the crop body, the exceptional clarity of the 70-200 lens helps offset the shorter focal length by allowing a bit more image cropping while still providing a sharp result. On the full frame 5D this focal range takes on a much more candid, people shooting, medium range feel and so I haven't found myself missing the reach because the lens does not feel like it's trying to be a 'spy glass' and falling short. In summary, this lens is well worth the money. Light, sharp, excellent IS, and color quality make it a must have. -Brian

Excellent Glass

Canon EF 70-200mm f/4 L IS USM Len It was the reviews of this lens here at Amazon that made me go for it but i must say, i had my apprehensions and thought probably those reviews were biased in one way or the other but the moment i mounted it on my CANON XTI, was astonished with the colour quality, the sharpness and the speed of focus this thing has. In low light conditions, when you get below 1/15 ( even with IS ) at 200mm end, you just cannot avoid the shakes but then, this was already advertised by the manufacturers. As for results above this, each time you'd take a picture, you'd thank yourself a million times for going for the huge payment. I dont test stuff in the lab but on my pc, the results had No CA at all and the least of vignetting even at 200mm. I would recommend it to everyone going for a canon lens in 70-200mm range and if he is willing to pay the amount.

My favorite lens

I highly recommend this lens. It surprised me when it arrived that it's so small and light (I'm comparing to the EF 24-70 f2.8 L and the EF 300 f4 L). It internally focuses so there is no change in length throughout the zoom range. It's extremely sharp wide open - I've used it both for close-ups with an extension tube and for more distant shots. Got my first decent close-up of a hummingbird. The IS works so well it's hard to distinguish from shots on the tripod - it really does give you an extra stop or two hand-holding the camera. This is pretty much state of the art in lens design. If you're looking for a lens in this range, go for it! You won't be disappointed.

Keyword : l

Gonzo: The Life of Hunter S. Thompson

Gonzo: The Life of Hunter S. Thompson

Mourning the Loss of the Last Great Hippie

I received this book as a B-Day present, and took my time reading it. As it does deserve careful attention. In the last few years, I have been doing some searching to find evidence of the great American Experience in an existentialist way. This book more than satisfied the questions that call into question whether we as Americans are living the lives of delusion, that all of this...the economics, status as international monster, the excess and addictions really make us out to be anything other than a poor caricature of the nation we are meant to be. So here is our anti-hero, our protagonist. What made the man stir? Was there a core to this being at all? I read the first review here, a re-publishing of the Anita Thompson note to Jann Wenner. It was a convincing enough gesture...who but his last partner could really assess the significance of the man, and does this book in fact do justice to the man. I thought, that this book must then be another idolotrous homage to a person who amused more than changed the world in which he lived. It was a difficult bias to overcome, and admittedly, it made me cynical as well. Over the course of the reading however, I realized that Jann Wenner did Hunter a great service and give him a great credibility by exposing his limitations as a person, and that the choice of format for the book as a running documentary through chronological time, chronicled by dozens of admirers, friends, acquintances et al. This approch in fact, brought greater perspective to the character of Hunter S. Thompson. whom I now believe was one of the last hippes to actually impart something meaningful. Let's consder the subtext here of the book. We see the evolution of Hunter in all its awkward unravelings starting from his youth. In many ways, Hunter was like the Holden Caufield of his day, only he knew how to have fun. What was that worth anyway, you may ask. When you have grown accustomed to the antics that made up his stage persona, you realize that it has taken dozens of people, hundreds of pages just to talk about this guy. Whatever your thoughts or impressions, that in itself is an achievement. But in terms of significance, we again realize that Hunter revived and gave noteriety to the fact that writing itself can be an artform. More important than the facts themselves, (as typically the measure of a journalist), Hunter managed to weave a fictional, hyperbolic and comical interpretation of reality in order to lift and polish the essential, more intuitive meaning of the matter at hand, whatever that happened to be. So what if this man stopped growing at the age of 17. For every decade that he lived, he aged one-year. And perhaps as the anti-hero of the story he wrote through a variety of books, essay's and columns, he struggled to keep his sense of adolescent entitlements. He started off as a narcissitic teenager, graduated on to being the motley renegade, serious student of local politics, party-crashing celebrity and icon, and then, as he had to graduate and face the world where he could no longer run amuck....took his own life upon realizing that the game was up. In an epic warrior story, he send himself away when he can no longer carry on the great fight. Most artists do little but dimension a problem. Some drawn to the absurdity, others enjoy the ranting that gives them release. Hunter, sought to impart of philosophy for the underdog. "Don't take any guff from these swine." For him, I gather it was about the righteous struggle and he didn't mind enjoying himself along the way. We see then, that Hunter did in fact carry forth the great works of authors that inspired him including Hemingway, Conrad, Fitzgerald, Wolfe and others. His method, albeit grotesque and shocking were humanistic pieces in that, at the heart of it all was coping with the fear and loathing. Hunter understood that journalism had exposed the hypocrisy of Nixon and the corruption in the establishment. He never forgave the people who inherited the torch of the idealistic tradition that is American by origin. This infidelity caused him great concern and he was patriotic to the end. The book does a phenomenal job of sharing Hunter from those who loved and tolerated him. It shows us that in fact our country had spawned great talent in the way of the early 20th century authors, some American had further developed the art of writing, a powerful force for implementing change at the fundamental level. That Hunter was an American, complex by nature as a teenager in denial of the responsibilities ahead, had in spirit at least inspired others to recognize that it isn't necessarily what your doing as much as it is about how you go about doing it. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and think that the contributers did a great service of bringing out the Hunter that meant something to them, rather than limit the mans significance to that of a pimple on the a$$ of the American Dream.

The Reality of Hunter S. Thompson for all to read

Hunter Thompson (HST) was born and raised hell in Louisville, Kentucky. His incorrigible ways led him to the military via a criminal judge's orders. Many of his childhood and college friends made a living by the written word and, after fulfilling his enlistment agreement, Thompson joined them. Only, his way was different. It seems that Thompson looked at the world through a kaleidoscope, stopping occasionally to pull his eye away and see a reality he didn't know how to change. The need for change he put into words in a way only he knew. Drugs were a part of his life from an early age-and whether he did them because life was crazy, or he made life crazy by taking them-is open to opinion. Either way, drug use influenced, and impeded, his writing. Friends, editors, movie stars, a small-town sheriff, wives, a son, assistants and cocktail waitresses all had stories to tell. Some make you thankful you didn't have to deal with the troubled and troublesome man. Others illuminate his intelligence and sense of humor. The writer, who could be both fearless and fearsome, was vocal when greed and politics stood in the way of world order as he saw it. The list of celebrities he encountered and befriended is long and varied: Johnny Depp, Jack Nicholson, Jimmy Buffet, Sean Penn, Ed Bradley, and George McGovern, just to name a few, and all have stories of HST. While the drugs may have fueled his stream-of-consciousness writing, it also interfered with his relationships. A fair-minded man at heart, Thompson could be abusive and a serious irritation when his mood of the hour didn't match the task of the day. Contributors to the book have many impressions of the writer. So many opinions that it is evident Thompson was a complex man who influenced, affected and stimulated all who encountered him. Gonzo, The Life of Hunter S. Thompson reads like a published wake, recorded so no one forgets the bigger-than-life, flying-by-the-seat-of-his-pants outrageous man. The story is definitely worth the price of the ticket. Armchair Interviews agrees.

GONZO

I haven't finished the book yet but it is very capitvating.I think that Hunter was a very interesting man.I look forward to reading everything there is about him & everything he wrote.thanks mjb

A must read for Thompson fans

If you're a fan of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson, then this is a must read. Although it unveils some sides of the journalist that aren't pretty, this book gives the reader a great sense of Thompson's personal life and a chance to find out how real all of his stories were.

A Profile of Extremity

This biography of the journalist/writer Hunter S. Thompson clearly shows a man who was by turns sociopathic, assaultive, hilarious, obnoxious, incoherent, and brilliant--and this was to his friends! What amazes me is that he had so many friends, ones who stuck with him and still harbored affection for him, long after break-ups, divorces, and betrayals large and small. Somehow, there was enough in this creator of a new brand of journalism--with the author as necessary and intentional part of the events as they unfolded--to engender loyalty and forgiveness among a wide range of people. That he was multiply addicted to drugs (alcohol notable among them) was central to his lifestyle. In itself, this is hardly unique, but I can't recall another personality who indulged on an everyday basis to the extent that he did...and still be able to function. Unsurprisingly, over time, he wasn't--and his real genius imploded in a caricature of himself. At this point, his many friends seem more enablers in his suicidal extremes than anything else. The book is structured as reminscences by people who knew Thompson at various stages of his life. This provides an interesting and quasi-objective view of the man, as enough different perceptions and experiences are brought in, that no one image or "take" predominates over the others. That said, there is remarkable agreement among the various voices recorded in the book, especially with regard to Thompson's brilliance and his self-destructiveness. This book strikes me as an honest and clear accounting of Hunter S. Thompson's life. At many points through the reading of this book, I laughed out loud; whatever else he was, Thompson had unparalleled chutzpah--who else would have gone to a fancy restaurant with an ultra-rich person he'd never met, and bring along his own "dinner"...in the form of a maggot-ridden piece of liver?

Keyword : s