Another change in my daily routine is that instead of driving to work, I'm using the office cab. I last used the office conveyance more than 7 years ago, and then it used to be a bus - those were quite fun days. But I digress. So, there are 3-5 people in the cab, some days we chat, some days we don't. In the initial days, we usually didn't. So, even though it was only 25-30 minutes commute, I thought I might utilize it catch up on long-neglected reading. Didnt want to read anything heavy, so started with some relatively light re-reading.
First picked up "To Kill A Mocking Bird" (had read it twice earlier, 13 and 8 years ago, I think). Enjoyed it, as ever. Simple, endearing, enriching. Though, to be honest, read the last part of it in a quiet hour I managed to snatch at home.
Next, I started on "The Bridges of Madison County". Had read it twice or thrice earlier, more than 6 years ago, and had seen the movie as well. I had mixed feelings about the movie, even though it was directed by and starred Clint Eastwood - I found it really well made, but very slow. The book though had a big impact on me - I had found it very intense, and extremely sad - so much so, that for years, I didnt want to read it again. But anyway, I thought it was good time to enjoy it again. Imagine my surprise - halfway through, I realized I wasn't enjoying it half as much as I did earlier. The intensity didnt come through, and there were parts that I found kitschy - particularly the part describing the love affair. I tried to see the reason for this extreme difference in experience. You change with time, and experience is undoubtedly a factor of the mental state. So was it because I have grown up and matured, that I didnt find the idealistic story quite realistic/creditable? Or was it because I read it on my short commutes, with so many breaks and interruptions, and therefore didnt get involved with the story? To try to get an answer, I looked for some reviews. Another surprise - the book, even though a huge best-seller, was panned as limp and overdone, while the movie was highly acclaimed. Perhaps time to revisit the movie.
There is an amusing incident for me, associated with this book. I still clearly remember the first time I read it - in IITD hostel, lying down in the common room, a borrowed copy. Few years after that, I remembered this book, and wanted a copy of my own. For a long time, I looked for it in all the bookshops, online stores, but it was out of print. Some of my close friends had assisted me in this search and so knew of my near-desperation. After looking for it for months, I finally found it in a bookstore, along with a sequel (A thousand country roads)!! I spared no time or second thoughts in purchasing them both. Barely a few days after this was my birthday, and I received a copy of TBoMC from a dear friend as a gift! And, another set of both books (from then my "good friend", and now my better half), who had located them in an online store and ordered them for me as a surprise!! Patience and perseverance rewarded in thrice? :-D
