Publisher: Janaki Prakashan
ISBN: 9789381313541
Pages: 174
Price: INR 400
Ankit Kumar’s book ‘On a Drive with Life‘ is a collection of 13 short stories. It deals with a variety of emotions and themes such as love, tragedy, horror, separation, adventure, regret, happiness and desire. The stories revolve around the concept of how a small misunderstanding can have a tremendous impact in the long run. The stories are endearing, but the editing is not.
Of the thirteen stories, ‘Spicy Bet’ was my favourite, simply because it was fun and different. Apart from this, there are an overwhelming number of stories regarding horror in the book and each of them is has a different premise. But all seem generic and usual. The other stories revolve around son-father relationships, love and filial relationships. All the stories are morose and quite sad, each leaving you with a bitter taste in your mouth. But yet, the author has tried to bring in diversity with the settings. Unfortunately, all the stories ultimately seem generic and well-worn out. There is nothing new that the reader can look forward to.
The stories, though mean well are let down by the poor editing and obvious grammatical errors. These are glaring mistakes that are a let-down and could have been taken care of easily. Also, the are no stories with happy endings, which is quite sad considering the author wants us to experience the emotions akin to those of life.
Overall, it was a good effort but a lot can be improved upon, both the author and the editors.
Rating: 5/10
If you find the book interesting, buy from Amazon or Flipkart here:
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7 comments
Shivesh says:
Jul 16, 2014
I felt the same but I loved The Sweetest Gift Ever the most…I attended the seminar of him where I put the same question…he just said stories’ content gives emotions and endings show how small mistakes can ruin lives …
Suresh Shetty says:
Jul 22, 2014
i think the price is Rs150…good effort by the writer…
Vidya says:
Jul 24, 2014
Hey Ankit….
U r an amazing writer that too in so young age.. you have touched the feelings of readers.. very nice..
the best story among all are the Sweetest gift and spicy bet.Other stories are good too but, these two are the best. :)
lemme tell u a small story- which wont be perfect like in your book. Am in Argentina right now with limited access to internet, only spanish channels in TV, no Indian friends, people around don’t know english.. but am so glad that I carried your book and now, here, “On a drive with Life” has become my best friend who entertains me everyday with mixed feelings.. Thank you for this wonderful creativity you have shared with us….
I have almost completed reading your book.. please keep writing..
i am really a big fan of yours.. highly appreciate your talent Ankit Kumar…
Jyoti says:
Jul 27, 2014
I bought the book today after reading numerous reviews on google after seeing the adds…I don’t which version u read…but I must admit I liked quite a few stories…the language is raw and may it takes time to relate to the readers…But yes towards the end of the last chapter I saw did see some mistakes like “the” had “t” missing etc…those can be ignored thought if the stories are good…the concept is new but yes I hoped few happy endings, yet the sad endings left a bitter though a new taste…
Shristi says:
Jul 27, 2014
Hey I think I wud rate 7.5/10 ;)…good work…
Deepak Shah says:
Sep 5, 2014
I think i would disagree with the review. It’s pretty harsh on reviewer’s side…I would give it 7 out of 10….I mean it was not at all bad as per indian standards…I think the reviewer is more into western novel style..but again everyone has their own views
Nitya says:
Sep 7, 2014
the stories are well presented and i would give it a score of 7.5 out of 10…