For one more day-Mitch Albom

I've found this in my friendster's blog.  Link asal. 

Macam biasa, karya Mitch Albom, sangat menekankan kasih sayang dan kekeluargaan.

Cerita ni berkisah mengenai Charley Chick Benetto…once a baseballer yang sangat menyerlah semasa zaman muda dia. Disebabkan minat dalam sukan baseball yang sangat mendalam, Chick sanggup berhenti belajar dan mengikut nasihat ayah dia dengan menyertai team pro untuk bermain dalam some sort of sport liga.

Selepas berhenti sebagai baseballer, Chick bekerja sebagai sales oficer..yang memang tidak kena dengan jiwa dia. Success was not always on his side, Chick rasa tertekan, started drinking…dan mula mengabaikan keluarganya…

Wife Chick meninggalkannya dan Chick semakin tertampar bila his only daughter, Maria, tidak menjemput beliau ke majlis perkahwinannya.

Chick mengambil keputusan untuk take his own life (bunuh diri)…dan dia mengambil keputusan untuk kembali ke Pepperville Beach (his hometown) because he decided to end his life where he started it.

He’s got into an accident, but when he woke up to escape to his home, he was shocked to see that his mother, who died 8 years earlier, was there. So many things happened from the time he reached his home that night, most of them was priceless moment with his mother.

These moment made Chick realized that there’s so much more to life, and there’s never too late to fix relationship with the families. Chick got to know many things about his father (who left the family when he’s about 9-11 years old).

Chick later woke up to find that he’s lying on the road (accident’s site) and he recovered to enjoy and to redeem his life, his time with families.

It was a good reading. Mitch Albom… 

Tuesday With Morrie

I believe you guys have heard or read about this book. Well, I just finished reading it, in Malay version. I read the original version while I was waiting for my friend at Border, The Curve some time ago. Hah.

This book was actually a thesis, done by Mitch and his beloved Prof. Morrie.  His lecturer while he was doing his degree. It was a book/thesis discussing about life and what are important things about it. 

Mitch called him Coach, that was something to distinguish him from Morrie's other students, and while he was studying at the University (Brandies) he had always find time to spend with Morrie, to talk and discuss about everything. It was his way of escapism from the life which he thought boring. He thought when he's with Morrie, he was himself. 

It was 16 years after the convocation that he found out from a tv show that Morrie was sick. He started to keep in touch with Morrie and then the idea of doing the thesis came. They started to reminisce their old days, and started to discuss like they used to do.  

Mitch, while sharing Morrie's thoughts on life, couldn't help but thinking about  how he had spent his life. 

Mitch came out with 13 ideas of topics to be discussed with Morrie and they met on Tuesdays to discuss everything on each topics.

This book was divided into few chapters each with a short and simple story, with pieces of Morrie's story from his life in between.

The way Morrie saw life was unique. He was positive and he brought love with him and shared with everyone around him. You'll feel the love when you read this, I bet. :)

I cried. Hehe. It was moving. Love it.


p.s : good for pressie. here. here. here.  

Love Over Coffee

With the Indian culture and the IT development background, the story revolves around Anup and his love, Rajni. Nothing interesting but this book is quite funny. Anup, acts as a story teller , telling details about his colleagues, the closest which make them 4 as a gang. Each of the characters is different but with certain similarities that keep them bind together.

Rajni, the girl, works in the same office, but different division. The love over coffee is about their secret meetings/datings at the office coffee machine. Few things happen in their work, which involve the office politics to the extent of leaving them speechless and the shocking truth, the love, the feelings, the comedies.

It was like watching a Hindi movie-minus the songs.

The relationship between Anup and Rajni is against their parents decision, as we could always predict in Hindi movie but they find the solution anyways.

It's a good read, with good laugh here and there.

It's quite boring in the beginning but it gets better once you understand and I found myself guessing and hoping what could have happened.

Jaja dan Din - Noor Suraya

Salam.

Sekarang I minat baca buku Bahasa Melayu la kawan2. Pening dah mengadap semua bahan kerja berbahasa Inggeris. Nak relakskan kepala otak baca novel Melayu.

Novel Melayu sekarang ni, I rasa semuanya bernafas baru. Dah kurang tema cliche, kahwin paksa, then akhirnya jatuh cinta tanpa disedari, nama cantik-cantik dan cinta dua darjat-that sort of things, well kalau pernah baca novel Melayu, tahulah. (Opss.. membebel pulak)

Well, novel Jaja dan Din ni dicadangkan oleh my colleague, Salina. Dia teringat novel ni bila I cerita hari tu I ada berkawan dengan seorang Ustaz, lulusan Al Azhar. Tapi betul, ustaz tu zuhud juga orangnya. (Sama macam karakter si Din ni). Jaja pula media planner, jumpa Ustaz Din tu masa sedang berusaha buat iklan keselamatan jalan raya. (I worked with Jabatan Keselamatan Jalan Raya before, and memang I jaga kontrak media JKJR-iklan dalam tv tu... dulu). Well, me dan Ustaz tu takde apa2 pun.

Jaja ni, (menurut novel) seorang yang berjaya, anak pertama, sentiasa digesa kahwin oleh parents beliau (sampai sini, kisah I dengan Jaja masih selari-eh, review buku ke review persamaan I dengan Jaja?). Seorang yang ceria, talkative, bersemangat, tapi solat dia tak sempurna, tak pakai tudung, kiranya bab-bab agama dia tak berapa sangat. Baca jawi pun tak reti. Dia susah sangat jatuh cinta. Bukan takde yang cuba, tapi hati dia keras. Malas.

Sampailah masa dia membantu kawan dia cari gambar untuk poster keselamatan jalan raya. Tetiba secara tak sengaja dia terpandang gambar randum seorang lelaki dekat pusara, sedang baca Yasin dan dia rasa gambar itu sungguh indah, syahdu dan terus dia rasa berdebar-debar dan blushing. Dia jatuh cinta dekat lelaki tu, dengan hanya tengok gambar begitu.

Sejak hari itu, Jaja bertekad nak cari lelaki ni, akhirnya dia jumpa dan paling kelakar, dia suruh family dia 'pinangkan' lelaki tu untuknya. Ustaz Din tu pun, entah mengapa rasa lain bila ber'jumpa' Jaja.

Banyak lagi kisahnya... ye, tentu sekali happy ending!

Gaya penceritaan adalah sangat segar! Diselitkan juga dengan hadis-hadis dari Al-Quran dan riwayat-riwayat dari sahabat-sahabat. Sungguh, novel ni telah berdakwah, secara tidak langsung.

Kalau ada kelapangan, dan mahu cuba sesuatu yang baru, buku ni memang sesuai. Murah jer, RM20.00. Kalau ada kad popular boleh dapat diskaun 10%. :)

Beli kat sini lagi murah! (klik)

Buku Tarikh Luput Cinta tu pun I beli malam tadi, (sama dengan JDD ni). Tajuk dia menarik. Nanti I review. :)

Happy reading guys!

His and Hers, by Mike Gayle.

This is the review on the first book that I bought which was written by Mike Gayle.

Fiqa dear...
I've found this review dated back on 6th August 2006 in my friendster's blog. Guess what, you were the only one who left comment, excluding me.

I recently finished reading a new novel, his and hers, by mike gayle…it was a nice book, anyway, it was written, mainly based on a man’s and woman’s point of view, how they view the same things from the different sides..

hmm anyway, the writer is a guy…

the story based on what they couple had been thru, from the first time they met, their first date-eating takeaways from an Indian restaurant-,they get married, their searching for an apartment, and how finally, the man-found himself fall out of love with the woman who he used to think-"this is the woman im going to spend my life with"-hmm man….

anyway, as love story shud end, because of a small meaningful event happened-which is the death of "Disco"(real name-Best of Disco Volume II)-the couple’s cat, basically, it was given to the woman (Alison) by the man (Jim) after his confession of love towards Al…they got back together…

they reunited after couples of years of seperation, Al is getting married to another man, and Jim just moved in with his new girlfriend…but the event, had waken them up, made them realized, that what they felt for each other was never over….

hmmm u cud predict there will be a happy ending in the end..:P

reading the book, i realized, that there is a possiblity of couples breaking up suddenly, it doesnt have to have a firm reason to break a relationship up…so in falling in love, there is no firm reason needed to fall in love…it is to love and beloved that count…

Love Life, Ray Kluun

Buku ni adalah prequel kepada The Widower. Tapi jodoh saya terlebih dahulu dengan The Widower, dah baca baru sedar, ada buku pertama iaitu Love Life. Pertemuan dengan Love Life sangatlah penuh cabaran. Tak kisah, akhirnya ketemu juga.

Buku ni, mengisahkan kepada kehidupan Danny dan isterinya, Carmen. Mereka hidup bahagia, dengan kehadiran seorang baby girl, Luna. Hidup mereka turut ditemani dengan rakan-rakan yang memahami, yang sentiasa berusaha untuk berada di sekitar mereka ketika diperlukan.

Carmen disahkan menghidap penyakit kanser. Dengan jangka masa yang terhad seperti diramalkan oleh Doktor, Carmen sentiasa positif dan mahu meneruskan kehidupan seperti biasa, dengan gembira bersama-sama kawan2 dan keluarga.

Danny walaubagaimanapun, mempunyai isu tentang monogamy. Tambahan pula dengan Carmen yang menghidapi breast cancer. Memang susah untuk mempertahankan monogamy. Carmen menyedari tentang itu dan cuba bertoleransi dengan perangai Dan. Dan cuba untuk merahsiakan semua tu tapi, sudah namanya isteri, semuanya terhidu, dan terbuka dengan sendiri. Dan, despite all of the bad things, tried his best to always be by Carmen's side.

Sehinggalah Dan bertemu dengan Rose, perasaan dia menjadi lain dan peliknya, dia boleh mengamalkan monogamy dengan Rose. Tapi masih tetap menyayangi Carmen.

Carmen berusaha dan berjaya membuat Danny berjanji untuk tidak curang sepanjang masa-masa terakhir Carmen. Masa ni, paling sedih. Mr. Kluun pandai sekali mengekspresi segala perasaan sampaikan I pun turut mengalirkan air mata towards the end of the book.

It is a usual story, tapi gaya penceritaan tu berjaya membuatkan ia lain dari yang lain. Menarik, deskripsi semua perkara adalah lengkap.

Sesuai untuk dibaca oleh husband2 yang susah nak monogamy. Harap2 takdelah di sekeliling kita. HUHU.

Sekian. :)

The Widower by Ray Kluun

"When honesty is too much"

The Widower evolves around Dan and how he copes with the death of his wife. The story is written in a beautiful chronology, from their early days as couple, to the day they married, and up until the death of Carmen. (Dan's wife).

Basically it was a reminisce for Dan, on how he started to remember everything good and bad, the people whom he had hurt, the broken things he had done, since the day he knew Carmen will be leaving him, the after Carmen's death days, in recovering his strength and his life.

Dan had involved himself in a wild life, darker side of him was revealed after Carmen's death. It's his way of grieving, it seems. He had neglected his daughter, and many more people that love him.

It was until he planned to go traveling with Luna, his daughter he started to realize what a waste his life had been and who had actually been by his side, all along. He tried to establish new relationship.

It's a good read, and full with nice quotes. It will make you want to appreciate all the people around you. I would suggest this, if you are mending a broken heart. :) HAHA.

That's all.

Anyway, this is my favourite quote;

There are often a hundred reasons not to do something, but, just one reason to do it should be enough

-From Carmen to Luna.