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Edgar Allan Poe -Kicked out of Military Academy!  

Meghna , , , , 11 comments

Edgar Allan Poe


Who has not heard of Egar Allan Poe??? Everyone has, irrespective of being a literature lover or not! But did any of you know him as a Sergeant-Major? It's true. Poe already had published his first volume of poetry, Tamarlane and Other Poems, when he joined the U.S. Army as a Private in 1827.

So what with it, eh? Apparently, the next year, in 1830, Poe secured an appointment to West Point. Poe excelled in his studies at first, but after an argument with his adoptive father, John Allan, Poe apparently let his studies degrade deliberately. After a court-martial in January of 1831, Poe was dismissed from the academy and from the army.

Edgar Allan Poe's classic poem "The Raven" talked about his reputation as a black-feathered literary master of the macabre. Later, Poe mixed poetry with work as a soldier in the U.S. Army. He was dismissed from West Point and moved to Baltimore, Maryland, where he began writing prose.


Poe wrote for various magazines in Richmond, Philadelphia and New York, and also published creepy short stories and poems, including "The Purloined Letter," "The Tell-Tale Heart" and "The Cask of Amontillado." His story The Murders in the Rue Morgue is widely considered to be the first modern detective story, with Poe, later emerged, masters of the craft like Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Agatha Christie.


Being a heavy drinker and smoker, Poe was never in robust health. Poe thus, died under mysterious circumstances at age 40 after visiting Virginia to lecture. He was found languishing on the street in Baltimore and taken unconscious to a local hospital, where he died.


Now, as I say….life histories about writers are always interesting and Edgar Allan Poe’s biography is one of the most interesting of all others! Hope you enjoyed reading and please pardon my for a while for not posting regularly for me exams are around the bend…..But I promise to be back soon!!!

Three Men In A Boat- by Jerome K Jerome  

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Three Men In A Boat- by Jerome Kafka Jerome

I had a chapter while in junior school adapted from one of the stories in the book 'Three Men In A Boat- by Jerome K. Jerome'. And I remember how it had fascinated me, thus I vowed to read the whole book.

And I was overjoyed when I could lay my hands on it. Jerome K. Jerome has a sense of humor much possessed by modern writers but lost in the old ones. The book is based on the adventures of the three friends (Jerome, George, Harris- not to mention the dog, Montmorency ) on the river Thames, between Kingston and Oxford, in a boat.

He wrote it after returning form his honeymoon where his wife was replaced by his friend George Wingrave (George) and Carl Hentschel (Harris). This allowed him to create comic (and non-sentimental) situations which were nonetheless intertwined with the history of the Thames region.

And as I told you, the humorous element has the whole charm in a book which is missing in all classic books. The jokes seem fresh, relevant and witty even today. The adventures of the three friends are all real but the dog, a major part stands fictional but according to Jerome his emotions and a tad bit of biography of his lies within the part of the dog.

The journey has many funny and sentimental instances of their adventures. It is a purely enjoyable book for every book lovers, and in that I do not deter from saying- modern. The incidents in the book seem really authentic which helps the reader connect.

Though, I do not blame you if you get bored of reading it after a while. As all old writers, Jerome too has the habit of accentuating minor points and increasing the length of the story. But I know you’ll be tempted to read on.

So go, grab a copy, immerse yourself and have a good laugh and enjoy yourself.

Not A Penny More, Not A Penny Less- by Jeffrey Archer  

Meghna , , 18 comments

Not A Penny More, Not A Penny Less- by Jeffrey Archer

"Jeffrey Archer" I believe the name needs no introduction! He’s now the master of crime thrillers. Today I have another of his critically acclaimed books- Not A Penny More, Not A Penny Less.

The book caught my attention the time I flipped through the first few pages. His name being famed and so the book, I got hooked on. And I’d say for luck because it was a great read certainly.

I think the book is one of Archer’s best, till date. The plot is one which is really interesting and compels you to turn the pages. The twist in the end does it all to have an indelible impression on your mind! This was Archer’s first novel; and a climbing ladder to success. It is based on his real life experience of near bankruptcy.

The story is about Stephen Bradley, an American professor teaching at Oxford, Dr. Robin Oakley, a Harley Street physician, Jean-Pierre Lamanns, a French art dealer with a gallery in London, and James Brigsley, heir to an earldom. Four different people but all brought together by the turn of fate.

The four of them had been shot into trouble by a common innocent friend, David Kessler, a recent Harvard MBA who has also been cheated. David took up work in the most promising and upcoming successful companies, Prospecta Oil.

He was told by Harvey Matcalfe, the owner, that they had discovered huge shares of oil and incites him to invest in the oil shares which guarantee profit. David elatedly does so and also encourages four of the others to do the same. But they all are cheated when the company closes down unexpectedly and the stock markets for their shares tumble down.

But this time Harvey Matcalfe, the genius, chose the wrong men for the four of them Stephen Bradley, Dr. Robin Oakley, Jean-Pierre Lamanns and James Brigsley wouldn’t sit and watch. They made a group which was firm on their goal- to retrieve their lost money- Not A Penny More, Not A Penny Less.

Now that you know the basic frame, the rest of the story takes you on a roller coaster ride about how the four men retrieve their money in different ways. That surely is interesting and the twist, as I told you before, spices it up! Thus, it’s a must- read and a sure page-turner…..don’t miss out on it!!

Writing Prompts For Kids!  

Meghna , , , , 13 comments

Surfing the net has many useful results for me. Recently, I stumbled upon a very interesting website. All amateur and young writers like me, glance up and cross your hands!


Have you ever been out of ideas?? Especially for young ones like me....who suddnely loose out on what to write! But not anymore! For there is a website, ABCTEACH, which offers great and interesting writing prompt for kids and others. These prompts will certainly stimulate your brain cells and you'll come out with interesting results! For the prompts, click here.


Another site, Tooter4Kids has interesting writing prompts for us on a daily basis. You get prompts on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday……and every other day of the week, that also for every month. The prompts are such that they will compel you to churn your grey cells, if not force you to pick up the pen. To visit, click here.


So go, get a pen and sheet and put on your thinking caps…..

Chew Your Food Well!  

Meghna , , , , , 22 comments

Franz Kafka

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It is a strange world, strange people and strange things…….so today again I draw the curtains on Franz Kafka, a very renowned writer. He has written prominent books like- The Trial, The Castle, The Metamorphosis. He was a major German language fiction writers of the 20th century.

Now what is to do with him that intrigues me, you ask? If you are interested in further reading about him, you can click on the link for Wikipedia. Yes, so now I come to the point!

How many of you know that you chew your food well or you swallow it in haste to finish dinner and get on with work? Very few, I believe. And to be frank, I was one of these until I learnt a very interesting fact of Kafka.

Franz Kafka believed that a healthy body has a healthy mind and one of his major exercises or methods to remain fit was……yes……to chew his food well.

I am not certain about the figures, but they say he chewed his food at least 45 times before swallowing it. I guess he wasted major part of his time at dinner table but does that matter until, he kept fit and excelled in his profession? And fortunately, he did……setting a perfect example for all those ignorant people like us!

So go on guys, the next time at dinner, remember me and this post, pay attention to the way you chew you food and chew it well and hard and who know this might be the secret behind your success just like Franz Kafka.


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  4. Do Some Gambling Nad become A Great Poet! 
  5. Sleep facing North And Improve Your Writing!




Meghna

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