I have been wanting to contribute to K's blog for a long time now and i finally have something to write about. It is a book called 'The Man' by Irving Wallace. (No spoilers!)
We were at the lending library and my mom said, "have you read this one?" what i saw was an extremely healthy looking book with tiny print. Not reader friendly. So i hemmed and hawed till she just took it for me and said " read it, its one of the most beautiful books i have ever read."
Being the obedient daughter that i am, i duly took it along. I finished all the other books i had taken and then when i got really desperate for something to read, i finally picked this one up. That was all i had to do and my life just stopped. I stopped cleaning. My house was a mess. I stopped cooking. I got hubby dear to buy food from outside. And my two and a half year old was the only one i took time out for (not before i subjected the poor guy to some unparliamentary words which he thankfully couldn't understand)
The rest of my time, i spent with Douglas Dilman. The unwilling, unelected, strong yet scared, official President of the United States of America. I watched him sit uneasily in his chair at the white house. i watched the people around get more than just uneasy at him being the President. I agonized at all that he was put through and i rejoiced at his very few victories.
What most people would be able to relate to is this : He was extraordinary but he felt less than ordinary. He was far from perfect. Yet, he got his strength from the people he held closest to his heart. His best friend and the woman he loved. Characters that one cannot help but admire. This book is an ode to the fact that people who believe in you can give you the courage to be yourself.
It is also a book which reinforces priorities, redefines generosity and also re-establishes what being human/e is all about. There is the odd situation here and there which might seem a bit contrived but in no way do they take away from the integrity of the book.
Its just one of those books that makes a difference. One which makes you feel that somewhere along the line, you might become a better person, just for having read it.
4 comments:
welcome, Arch! ;) great to have you!!
the last time I read an Irving Wallace was 'second lady'...and that was atleast a decade back...and loved it...thanks for givin me a reason to head to the 'half price book store' again (which BTW is a much more beautiful place than the name suggests)
k,i forgot to add..this book is closer to being 5 decades old itself :)
cool :) been waiting for a good book for some time now. will check it out.
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