Hooked by Nir Eyal – The compressed version
Uncategorized / February 2, 2018

Hooked by Nir Eyal is a book on understanding behavioral designs. The Hook Model explained in the book, is a framework based on human psychology and a close examination of today's most successful habit forming prodcuts. Below are the notes that I took during my second read of the book. The notes have helped me revisit concepts whenever I needed. I am pleased to share with you my personal notes so that you can save time and also learn the Hook Model. Pointers :   1. The piece below includes all the concepts in the book, along with examples.  2. It takes lot lesser to read this than actual book but be assured that you won't miss anything.  3. While reading, do the activities listed in 'Do this now' OR do it at some point to better understand the Hook Model. 4. This is not a summary, and its fairly a long read. Read carefully and enjoy.     INTRODUCTION : THE HOOKED MODEL Through consecutive Hook cycles, successful products reach their ultimate goal of unprompted user engagement, bringing users back repeatedly, without depending on costly advertising or aggressive messaging.  The four steps of the hook model provide the framework for creating a behavioural cycle for users…

Excerpt from Film Director Tanuja Chandra’s New Book – Bijnis Woman
Uncategorized / May 7, 2017

Tanuja Chandra, A known name in Bollywood as a director, is debuting in book writing with Bijnis Woman. Tanuja, sibling of Vikram Chandra and Anupama Chopra, has been in directorship role since 1998. She has directed movies like Dushman, Sur, Sangharsh, Zindagi Rocks.  Backed by Penguin India Publishing, Bijnis Woman is a collection of short stories covering people of every stratum of UP society. The book brings to the fore the hurdles and humour of the past, while initiating conversation on matters of the present. Excerpt from Bijnis Woman:  They never discovered where Ranvir was through the night; he would step to the front door the next morning,hardly aware where he had been. He slept right through the desperate screams which went on for an hour as his familywatched, shamefaced. Thakur Rajpal couldn’t help but feelpity for this girl in her crazed, unhinged state, shouting so violently he thought she would faint. The blame would be his to shoulder if something were to happen to her; would she be at his gates still when the sun was up, wasn’t it wrong, shutting his door on a helpless girl, alone in the night? He had never faced such embarrassment. Her inconsolable, unstoppable screams…

Book rangoli – what’s that? These will touch every booklover’s heart!
Uncategorized / November 2, 2016

Book Deals for Broke Bibliophiles – India, a popular FB group, invited book-lovers to draw a book cover, or anything bookish, with rangoli. Many booklovers took up the challenge to create their own book rangoli. We bring you some of the best rangolis amongst the lot! Harry Potter makes an appearance… naturally! Notice the tiny detail… a diya placed in the centre of the moon! Kudos to Bhagyashree Ganatra, the creator. In fact, more than once! Anyone could have guessed that Harry Potter would be most popular! This one is by Devika Datta. A rangoli which copies the book cover almost verbatim! Clearly a most accomplished rangoli artist! Bravo Chitra Kotian! Book rangolis can include children’s books too! Soumya Inavilli does a great job with Jeff Kinney’s Wimpy Kid. A feminist book rangoli… Damini Ray chose some feminist literature to recreate in rangoli form. And a Young Adult one! Pooja Upadhyay drew a rangoli for a young adult favourite. This one is superbly executed. Notice the colour shading? Nikhil Baisane went all out to recreate the Animal Farm book cover! Getting creative with To Kill A Mockingbird… The placing of the diya by Trupti Karjinni makes this picture even prettier….

Toni Morrison is back!
Review , Uncategorized / March 12, 2016

Author: Toni Morrison Publisher: Penguin Books Year: 2015 ISBN: 9780307594174 Rating: Read book reviews from other readers Children are such impressionable little things. They struggle to get their parents’ approval, do everything to make their parents realize that they are the best they could have. The extent they go to to get a pat on their back or a ‘Great going kiddo!’ is often amusing to watch. I strongly believe that a kid is what he/she is raised as, the values and principles that are instilled in them by their surrounding influences – parents, relatives, neighbors, playmates, books, TV etc. And if any of these influences take a bad turn, it not only affects the kid’s choices but all those surrounding the kid as well. It is in this manner, Bride aka Lula Ann ends up choosing to do something so despicable to gain her mother’s acceptance that it will haunt her for all her life. In ‘God help the Child’, Toni Morrison tells the story of Bride aka Lula Ann, who has risen in life from being a familial and social stigma to a successful executive in a cosmetic company and the choices she makes in the course of…

An Interview with Sudha Menon
Uncategorized / January 14, 2014

Sudha Menon is a business journalist and author of 2 bestselling non-fiction books, Legacy and Leading Ladies IndiaBookStore had a chat with her a few weeks ago, where we talked about women’s issues, writing and making a difference to society.

Top Teachers Day picks!
Uncategorized / September 5, 2013

“Once in a while our school has half days, and the teachers spend the afternoon ‘in service,’ which I think must be a group therapy for having to deal with us.” ― Neal Shusterman, Bruiser Whether your teachers need therapy after dealing with you, or the other way around….  check out these awesome Teachers Day picks from us. Goodbye, Mr. Chips! Author: James Hilton Click for latest prices An old-fashioned, sentimental novella about an old-fashioned yet beloved teacher of boys at an English school. Mr. Chips, like many teachers who go on to become favourites among their students, was not the most brilliant teacher at his school, but his dedication and, later in the book, his blossoming sense of humour contributed towards his popularity among the boys. A comfortable, feel-good book about bygone times.   The Offering : The Story of Ekalavya and Dronacharya Author: Hansa Pathak Click for latest prices A look at the dark side of student-teacher relationships. We all know this story of a wily old teacher who demands a terrible sacrifice from his best student just to appease his favourite one … but Campfire brings alive the mythological tale in a scintillating graphic novel format. An…