"Building a Life Worth Living" by Marsha M. Linehan

"Building a Life Worth Living" by Marsha M. Linehan was recommended to my daughter by her therapist. The therapist quickly summarized the book as being about a young girl who was sent to a psychiatric hospital for two years after which she was able to recover and become a world known psychotherapist and the creator of Dialectic Behavioral Therapy. 

On amazon the book is called one of the most inspirational books ever and is very valuable not only for 'clients' but by therapists, counselors and psychologists themselves. What's special about the book (one of the amazon reviewers said) is that it is not by someone about someone else but it's written by the person diagnosed with BPD (borderline personality disorder) who herself later gets out of it through determination, hard work, spirituality and self-work.

My daughter didn't want to read the book because, as she said, the therapist already narrated to her the whole story, but she took a photo of the cover and brought it home. I however couldn't forget the pink cover and decided to get it myself.

It was an amazing book, drawing me in immediately like a good thriller and keeping me engaged for the whole time. It is written like an autobiography but also it's so interesting, like some adventure fiction. Marsha M. Linehan tells her story starting from childhood and moving towards adolescence and adulthood, from high school to psychiatric ward, to the university and she shares her spiritual experiences and techniques as well. 

Even if one cannot find a therapist for BPD or any other disorder, this book is a great start that gives hope for everyone out there and really explains what DBT is and how it started and was created.

I will read and reread this book as there are so many things to go back to. It can be used as reference and even as a book for personal guidance. It's that inspiring and Marsha M. Linehan is inspiring too!

Would recommend for anyone interested in psychiatry, counseling, anyone who knows someone or suffers from mental issues, suicidal thoughts and behaviors, depression, anxiety and especially BPD. 

"Banquet on The Dead" by Sharath Komarraju

"Banquet on the Dead" is a detective fiction story written by the Indian writer Sharath Komarraju.

I bought it at a bookshop at a mall because I was looking for a not so thick, easy to finish book written by an Indian author in English.

My previous attempt to read a book by an unknown (to me) author was not a good experience as the writing seem to be a mess and full of mistakes.

I approached "Banquet on the Dead" a bit skeptically but from the first page onwards I loved the style that it was written in (short, clear and well thought of/edited sentences), great humor and a clear story/ problem to focus on. 

This was a classical crime novel written in a Agatha Christie's or Sherlock Holmes' type of way where a senior detective Nagarajan and a an older man -  Hamid Pasha (who was an ex con) try to solve the drowning (murder?) case of an old and wealthy grandma. 

They dive deep into the family business and question each and every family member. The story is well balanced between descriptions of only necessary people and places and dialogues, as every, crime novel is written in an 'interrogation' style. You can picture the scenes easily because they are so much like the TV show 'Crime Patrol".

Sharath Komarraju's work was quite interesting and easy to read. I can imagine a big number of readers being able to read and enjoy it. While it might seem sometimes too 'easy and simplistic', I think this story was perfect in a way that it was implemented. 

An excerpt from page 127: "Kamala's eyes blazed, and her voice broke. 'You know, sir,' she said, 'that is the problem with this house. People don't talk. People don't think about things. They don't solve things. They ignore them. They think that each incident in life is a one-off, and if you could gloss over one, you could gloss over all the others. They don't realize that everything is connected, that resentment builds over time if it is not nipped, that once hate topples over a little idiosyncrasies become huge fighting points; that people can be brought to a level where they would be ready to kill you because they don't like the way you smile or the way you tie your hair."

This was an excerpt that I just loved. The characters communicate some important truths and express valid points when it comes to the dynamics of a large joint family. Everyone who has lived in one, could relate.