The Secret Garden – Zest to Find the Hidden GarthShort Summary: “The Secret Garden” is a remarkable book identifying the therapeutic power prevailing in mother nature. This novel is magnificently noted by the American writer Frances Hodgson Burnett in 1911. The exceptional narration depicts the magical effect of living in pure nature on humans and the great bonding between the siblings. Indeed, the novel is set in the 20th century, and talks about a girl going throu....
Namesake by Jhumpa LahiriA Brief Overview:Named after Nikolai Gogol – a Russian author, Gogol Ganguli, an Indian-American boy is the centre of attraction of the novel Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri. The story follows his constant struggle with his identity and multiculturalism, sense of belongingness and ultimately self-discovery.Shift to the United StatesThe story opens in 1968 on an August evening w....
A Brief Overview:The tragic fate of the islanders of the Aran Island is the core of Riders to the Sea by J.M.Synge. The play focuses on Maurya, who has lost almost all male members of her family to the inevitable power of the sea – their provider and the destroyer.The Opening SceneIn the opening scene, Nora comes in with a bundle in hand and discusses with Cathleen that the bundle might belong to their missing brot....
A Midsummer Night's DreamA Brief Overview:Love and romance constitute the nuclei of Midsummer Night’s Dream by Shakespeare. There are three men and women engaged in love who want a happy consummation of their love through marriage but are faced with several difficulties. Duke Theseus to marry Hippolytus Queen of AmazonIn the opening part of the play, preparations are being made for the marriage of Theseus....
Fateful Careers ChoicesSet in New York City in the 20s and 30s, the novel Fountainhead, by Ayn Rand, published in 1943, takes the readers into the murky corporate world of architects and focuses on human virtues and vices. It begins with a promising young architect named Howard Roark getting expelled from architecture school before joining a righteous yet disgraced architect named Henry Cameron in New York. In contrast, his batc....
A Brief Overview:The Catcher in the Rye is about Holden Caulfield, who is expelled in his junior year and struggles with a sense of confusion.The Novel Opens in an Asylum Holden Caulfield tells the story from a mental hospital in the form of a flashback on a Saturday in December – the day of the season-ending football match between his old school - Pencey Prep and rival Saxon Hall.He has been expelled and is on his way to say goodbye to Mr. Spencer, his ....
The novel opens up with the March family's four daughters, Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy. Meg is the elder one; she is a pretty woman who is very fond of luxuries and material things. Jo is the second one. She is extremely fond of reading books and has a tomboy personality. Her dream is to become a world-famous writer. Beth is the third one with a kind, shy, and gentle nature. She is such a sweet lady who is willing to take care of others. Finally, we have Amy, the youngest daughter of the March fam....
A Brief Overview:Anita Desai's Clear Light of Day takes place in Delhi in 1980 and follows the journey of Bim, Tara, Raja, and Baba in four sections through events that alternate between the present and the past. Section 1:Tara Returns to DelhiTara has just returned from Washington, D.C. with her husband – Bakul, and their two teenage daughters to attend the wedding of her eldest brother Raja'....
A Brief Overview:The Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper follows the journey of Hawkeye and the members of a dying tribe – the Mohicans as they go on to rescue the daughters of a British colonel through terrains of the traitors and face a gruesome ending.Familiarise with the Settings and CharactersAttack on the FortThe novel starts by familiarizing us with the setting of the wild woodland....
Summary of the Midnight’s ChildrenA Brief Overview:The Midnight’s Children follows the journey of Saleem Sinai, who recounts his life story and moment of birth on August 15, 1947, at precisely midnight - the day India gained independence from British rule.The Story of Saleem Starts 32 Years Before His BirthIn 1915, Saleem's grandfather – a doctor named Aadam Aziz encounters his future wife for the first time on ....
A Brief Overview In Murder in the Cathedral T.S.Eliot explores the power of fate and surrender through the murder of Thomas Becket. Part 1: The Plot against Thomas BecketThe Speech of Tempters Murder in the Cathedral begins with a Chorus of Canterbury ladies, who are fearful of an impending disaster. In a lengthy address, they reflect on how pain defines their lives and their archbishop, Thomas Becket. Heral....
A Brief Overview:Light in August by William Faulkner’s central concern is with the relationship between a man's social role and private being. The story is set in a small fictional town with a planning mill – Jefferson and is based on two strangers who arrive at the town at different times.Lena Grove Arrival in Jefferson The novel starts with Lena Grove – a pregnant teenager, on her way to Mississip....
The BeginningThe Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas tells the story of Edmond Dantes, who, on his safe arrival at Marseilles after the death of the Captain of Pharaon, the ship he works in, and his delivery of a package to respect the Captain’s dying wish, is promoted by Monsieur Morrel, the owner of the shipping company, to replace the dead Captain, under the envious eyes of the ship’s supercargo, Dan....
A Brief Overview:Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot is a tragic comedy in two acts with a minimalistic setting – earth, an open road and a tree. The play through the two primary characters – Vladimir and Estragon, explores existentialism and the meaning of life. Act I: The Beginning of an Endless WaitingThe Meeting between Estragon and Vladimir The play starts with a minimal setting in the e....
CharactersLucie Manette:- She is the main character of the story, she is a beautiful young woman.Doctor Manette:- Father of Lucie, he has an unhappy life he spent approximately two decades in prison for something he didn't do.Charles Darnay:- He is a French accused of being a Spy.Sydney Carton:- Looks like Darnay although he is a lawyer.Defarge:- Nasty woman spend their time planning how she can hurt the people she hate."A Tale of Two Cities" by Charles D....
