Naban by Marzuki Ali

Picture and details dawama

Started reading 28 August 2006
Finished reading 29 August 2006

Naban is the Malay word for stories on the prophets sung sans music. According to the dictionary, a melodious voice is needed to do justice to the stories. The poems in this collection takes a leaf out of the traditional naban. The rhythm and stanza of each poem seems to conjure images of the words. The sketches that accompany each poem are also illuminating. Some of the poems are social commentaries whereas others are on love, not just among men but the communion with the Creator. Reading the poems out loud may add another dimension to the beauty of the poems. Minimal use of words conveying layers of emotions and feelings. Definite food for the soul.

Faithless: Tales of Transgression
by Joyce Carol Oates
ebook version

Picture and details harpercollins

Started reading 14 August 2006
Finished reading 25 August 2006

A satisfying read. A collection of short stories centred on the emotional state of each main character. The author is superb in her depiction of the scenes where the action takes place. She also gives vivid pictures of the physical and emotional state of the characters. Most of the themes dealt with transgressions - mind, body as well as the emotional side of each of us. We may never have the same experiences as the characters in the stories but surely can emphatise with most of them in their predicament. Some of the actions may have turned another way with a different conclusion, but the author's choice seems appropriate to the whole idea of the collection.

The Little Book of Philosophy by Andre Comte-Sponville

Picture and details amazon uk

Started reading 7 August 2006
Finished reading 13 August 2006

This might be a slim volume but the author has managed to distil the main arguments of the Western philosophical canon into palatable bits. He divides the main ideas into 12 different subject matters. Some topics may require a second or even more readings for those not familiar with the concepts. Fortunately, the bibliography lists more titles for those who want to delve deeper into the subject.

Our Ways by Ismail Husin

Picture and details mybooks

Started reading 29 July 2006
Finished reading 5 August 2006

Simple style. The reader gets a look at the life of a village boy from his childhood days, the progress through school, the government job and eventually his successful business venture. The boy is representative of the nation's progress throughout the years since independence. The story is also intertwined with the way he copes with family and friends. A positive read.

What We Believe But Cannot Prove by John Brockman

Picture and details simon&schuster

Started reading 18 July 2006
Finished reading 29 July 2006

A collection of essays by prominent minds in their respective fields. There are so many facts we take for granted but how sure are we they are what they seem? These essays confirm that man are still scratching the surface of what is known about the world within and without. Humbling fact.

This Blinding Absence of Light by Tahar Ben Jelloun

Picture and details us penguingroup

Started reading 12 July 2006
Finished reading 15 July 2006

Frightening. Depressing. The things that those in power can do to break the human spirit - physically and mentally. The story shows how one man manages to overcome the horrors of his incarceration. He is a changed man when he is finally released about 20 years later. His experiences could never be imagined by anyone else - family or friends. The lost years of his life, lost forever.

The Opposite of Fate by Amy Tan

Picture and details harpercollins

Started reading 7 July 2006
Finished reading 11 July 2006

Fascinating. The author relates how fate has played a major role in her life. She gives glimpses of her life as a child brought up by immigrants from China, incidents in her family, how she was brought up by her mother and the mother's influence throughout her life. In all these, fate had a say.

Moondust by Andrew Smith

Picture and details bloomsbury

Started reading 13 June 2006
Finished reading 5 July 2006

Intriguing. There are only nine men left who had been involved with the lunar landings at the time the book was written. Their life after that historic moment is the subject of this book. It is a fascinating read. We find that all of them have been affected one or the other. All of them have different perspectives of that moment. The author had also managed to give everyone involved including their families a say on how that event affected them.