An odd beginning to the New Year

The squabbling between Arvind Kejriwal and BJP leaders over the presumed link between yesterday’s strike by some bureaucrats and the odd-even rule that kicked in today, is a depressing testimony to the way we do politics. It makes one feel that any well-intentioned initiative in this country is under the constant threat of disintegrating into chaos and ultimate failure.

The odd-even rule - that restricts plying of odd and even numbered vehicles to odd and even days - is by no means an innovative idea. It has been tried out in many cities of the world. The only point of interest here should have been how well Delhi’ites adapted to the new regulations; if there were any violators..

On the contrary, all the talk yesterday and today morning was Kejriwal’s allegations that the strike by IAS officers was instigated the BJP to ensure that the odd-even plan failed; and BJP hitting back saying the odd-even plan was bound to fail and Kejriwal was just preparing a ruse to save himself.

The way we have dealt with an important policy decision that has huge ramifications on environment and thereby on our health, in no way portents a promising start to the new year. If AAP and BJP are going to squabble on every important decision, the country’s capital doesn’t have much hope.

Book Review -- Indira: The Life of Indira Nehru Gandhi by Katherine Frank

An 'unputtdownable' biography. It's studded with lots of information, not surprising, considering the in-depth research Katherine Frank has done. The book starts with Motilal Nehru and ends with the assassination of Indira Gandhi.

The books gives a great insight into the person Indira Gandhi was -- as granddaughter of Motilal Nehru, daughter of Jawaharlal Nehru, husband of Feroze Gandhi, mother of Rajiv and Sanjay Gandhi, mother-in-law of Sonia and Maneka Gandhi, grandmother of Rahul, Priyanka and Varun; as a freedom fighter, unofficial hostess of many world leaders who came calling on India's first PM, as hardcore nationalist, a hard-to-beat politician, a go-getter Prime Minister and, as a teenager and a woman.

How much ever the members of the Gandhi family try, they are unable to break free of a centripetal force, as it were; and get sucked into the vortex of politics, and that too riding on a family name, ironically seeming to do more harm than good. Indira Gandhi too was a reluctant politician to begin with. She stuttered and was booed during her first time on a stage in England. She wanted to leave India and she had intensely contemplated buying a house in England. Unfortunately, for her, before she could finalize the deal, someone else had bought that house. The way the highly reluctant Rajiv and Sonia were forced to embrace politics is recent history.

Even though Indira Gandhi ruled the country for a long time, ushered in quite a few reformatory changes, and kept India's flag flying high on the global stage, she never had it easy. She wanted India to progress rapidly, and didn't like people putting spokes in her plans, citing one reason or the other. She didn't believe in dragging things over a period of time in search of a consensus. She would rather get things done without wasting much time. That gave the world an impression that she cared little for democracy, didn't consider divergent viewpoints, and didn't carry everyone along. Surrounded by men, it wasn't easy at all, governing the large, diverse, often riotous nation.

There was trouble from the moment she became the Prime Minister in 1966, to her last days in 1984. Even though the opposition parties in those days weren't so strong, many of her decisions were opposed. With the result, she had to adopt strong and often unpopular measures to push her decisions through. She often seemed to exude the oxymoronic image of a "benevolent dictator".

I liked the book for its every interesting narrative style and loads of information. Definitely worth reading, at least to know a person, a woman fighting all odds, who strode over India's political, economic, social and cultural landscape with a telling impact.

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

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Needing reviews and updates

Good Morning!
I'm about to start keying in the edits from Off the Beaten Path (End of the Line 2). I'm hoping to release that around February. I'm pretty excited to release that and I have had the cover ready for a few months. I love Aaron and I hope others enjoy him as well. Cole, I hope everyone loves him, I got to explore his character. I also think some other questions will be answered in this sequel.

However, End of the Line was released a few years ago and it has been awhile between books. I am sorry that I do that with books as I am writing Beneath the Scars' sequel. Since it has been so long I was wondering if there were people who would be willing to do a review for Beneath the Scars as well or just read it then turn around to read Off the Beaten Path. Or if people remember the first book stay in tone for when I ask for reviewers. If you are interested you can either comment or email me at: ottilieweber @ gmail (dot) com.
~Ottilie  

End of the Line

When so much is lost how does one to have the strength to move on? At seventeen Lauren was prepared for yet another year of school. Then asteroids hit, killing all of those she knew except for a few other teens from her neighborhood. Joining forces with her classmate Aaron, they work together on the journey in the hopes of finding more people that are alive. On the way, threats of starvation, illness, and freezing to death don’t compare to the danger of Dean Manson. Manson is an ex-con out for revenge against Aaron. With so much working against them these teens fight for everything even if it means denying their feelings just for the chance to see a new day.


Stay in the loop with Off the Beaten Path: 
Read a sample here

Book Cover Revealings ~ Diana Nixon

Hello!
Diana Nixon is starting off the holiday season with not one, but TWO cover revealings! I can't wait to catch up on her books and send some reviews your way. Here are the two covers and the blurbs of her upcoming works.

LOUISE

BOOK II

A NEW BEGINNING

By DIANA NIXON

COMING FEBRUARY 2016

Blurb:

Life is not always easy. Especially when you are in love with the man whose life is so much different from yours. Power, money, respect – these are the things that a girl raised in an orphanage can only dream about. But sometimes, love is the only power that you need to get whatever you wish for…

Louise Woods had always been a fighter. She had known since childhood that everything has a price. But freedom was the only thing that she could never have.

Living in a world of lies and betrayal, will she sacrifice her love to become finally free?

Or will she let her heart win?

A new journey full of passion and forbidden dreams; it’s a new dance, it’s a new life.

“We will start it all from the very beginning, from the very first kiss…”

Add on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28053668-louise

Official page: www.diana-nixon.com

SHATTERED

By DIANA NIXON

COMING JANUARY 2016

Blurb:

It was love at first sight; a story that was supposed to last forever. A young heart that had never known true love, and a lonely soul seeking something real. I was that soul, and Elizabeth Brown was my beautiful heart, innocent and full of lawless passion.  She made me believe that love can change anything. And it did change me… It broke me, it shattered me.

The betrayal that I never saw coming, was like a dagger straight through my heart. In the blink of an eye, my love was replaced by endless hate and pain that I thought I would never be able to forget.

But who would have thought that even bleeding hearts can love? Who would have believed that in eyes with no hope, a new fire can start burning?

“I will make her fall for me again. And then, I will ruin her, just like she ruined me…”

Add on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28053723-shattered

Official page: www.diana-nixon.com