Book Review: Romance In My Coffee

 

Romance In My Coffee by Nisha Susan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Teenage is a phase of life when you're neither innocent nor mature. "Romance In My Coffee" captures the different hues of teenage romance through a few short stories. Among the authors of the stories, there are a few prominent names like Andaleeb Wajid, Jerry Pinto, Nisha Susan, Suniti Namjoshi etc.

The stories portray the teen protagonists with all their quirks. There are stories on myriad themes — same-sex love, an imaginary love interest, jealousy in love, a disabled protagonist yearning for love, one-sided lust, love that doesn't get parental approval, dream of an idyllic life with a loved one, meaning of love for an asexual protagonist. The stories will make you pause and reflect on what love truly means.

Enjoy this book with your coffee!

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Book Review: Parenting Unplugged: The Drama Mama Diaries

 

Parenting Unplugged: The Drama Mama Diaries by Lalitha Ramanathan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

"Parenting Unplugged: The Drama Mama Diaries" is not a parenting guide, as Lalitha herself has made clear in the last chapter of the book. Instead, it's a compilation of funny anecdotes about parenting adventures (and misadventures) that every mother will find relatable.

When I started reading the memoir, the opening chapter transported me to my own initial days of motherhood — the trepidation and anxiety of giving birth, the unadulterated joy coursing through my veins after becoming a mother — everything came rushing back like a torrent. From learning to feed and burp the child to having that difficult conversation about "Where do babies come from?" with the child — every major parenting challenge and some minor ones faced along the way, have been discussed.

"Drama Mama" — as Lalitha calls herself — is far from perfect. She is not the epitome of sacrifice. Nor does she claim to be one. She is just a mother with all the follies and foibles that come with being human.

The book is witty, humorous and inherently entertaining. There are many laugh-out-loud moments in the book. There are times when you'll chuckle to yourself, at other times you'll find it hard to control the erupting laughter. There's never a dull moment in the narrative. Instead of sounding preachy, the book makes parenthood sound like a journey full of love and laughter, while growing as a mother along the way.

A must-read book for all the mothers and would-be mothers. Even if you are neither, you'll enjoy this book written by the Queen of Humour, as it'll surely tickle your funny bones.

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Harvest of Hope

I had sown the seeds

Long ago in the monsoon,

Now the golden harvest

Will come home soon.

Seeds mingled with

sweat and blood in the field,

Were planted with the hope

Of a bountiful yield.

They remind me of

Those days of struggle endless

Days of hard labour

Laced with wild hope and madness.

My eyes are moist today

Blurring the golden vision in my front,

I forget how days of hard work

Have made me gaunt.

Now the monsoon clouds

Have taken their leave,

My field is filled with crops

Swaying their heads in the gentle breeze.

A Big Fat Indian Delay

"This isn't what I planned for today.", mumbled Sonia under her breath. But the day had begun as usual. In the morning, she received a message from IndiSlow, "Hi Sonia, get ready for your trip! Your flight IndiSlow 3F 176 to Bengaluru departs today at 11:30 am. We look forward to welcoming you aboard. Safe travels, The IndiSlow Team." 

Though a colleague had warned her that the IndiSlow's schedule was completely haywire, she had no other choice but to go ahead. This trip was urgent. After all, her wedding reception was in Bengaluru the next day. How could she possibly cancel the flight and skip her own reception?

Since childhood, Sonia had dreamt of becoming a bride. She always wanted a big fat Indian wedding - the kind of wedding that Madhuri Dixit had in "Hum Aapke Hain Koun...!" and Kajol had in "Kuch Kuch Hota Hai". Then she grew up, finished her studies, got a job, met Siddharth and fell in love with him. Through it all, that little girl's dream stayed tucked in some quiet corner of her heart. When their marriage was finally fixed, it felt like her long-cherished dream was about to come true. 

Hers was a cross-cultural marriage. Sonia was a Bengali, while Siddharth hailed from Karnataka. The wedding was to take place in Kolkata and the reception was scheduled in Bengaluru. The wedding, in stark contrast to Sonia's expectations, was a tedious affair. The endless rituals, keeping a fast the whole day while watching others wolfing down delicacies, relatives coming out of the woodwork, the chanting of incomprehensible Sanskrit hymns while sitting in front of the fire - it was not fun in the least. At the height of despair, even the thought of divorcing Siddharth crossed her mind. Then realisation dawned that she couldn't possibly divorce him unless and until she married him. She was looking forward to the reception where she would have to do nothing except accepting gifts from the guests with a smiling face. 

She left for the airport in the morning, along with Siddharth, her parents and a handful of close friends and family members who were supposed to attend her reception. The information board displayed that the flight would go ahead as scheduled. But minutes before the scheduled time, a gentleman from IndiSlow informed the passengers that they didn't have a pilot to fly the plane. 

Passengers were furious. The rumour mill was abuzz that the flight might be cancelled. Sonia had no option left but to cancel the flight, her heart sinking.

No alternate travel arrangement was possible at this last hour. Sonia headed home with her entourage, called in the salon girl, decked up in fineries and appeared online for her wedding reception in Bengaluru. With folded hands, she and Siddharth apologised to the guests for not being able to attend their own reception in person and thanked them profusely for their gracious presence. Being a gourmet, Sonia sighed for missing the delectable spread of the reception buffet. 

Image source: Downloaded from Unsplash and edited by AI.

A Christmas Party in the Dictionary

"Words are, in my not-so-humble opinion, our most inexhaustible source of magic. Capable of both inflicting injury, and remedying it."

~ J. K. Rowling, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows."

It was that magical time of the year. The soft glow of twinkling technicolour lights filled the lawn of the villa, while the soothing sound of carols drifted through the air. The unmistakable aroma of delectable dishes rendered the chilled December air fragrant. All the words from the dictionary had gathered to celebrate a Christmas party at the villa of the word 'Celebration'.

The guests gathered around the tables laden with delicious food and beverages. In the soft glow of the fairy lights, they looked happy. 

'Happiness' and 'Laughter' stood hand in hand. "The evening belongs to us.", they declared triumphantly.

'Celebration', the host of the party, gave them an indulgent smile and raised a toast to its fellow words.

"To words — the most powerful forces in human civilization."

'Speech', with its spectacles perched on the tip of its nose, cleared its throat and added in a sombre voice, "You're right. Every civilization was built on words — spoken promises, written laws, shared stories and passed-down beliefs. Words shape how we see ourselves, how we relate to others, and how we interpret the world."

Everybody concurred. "We are powerful, indeed.", they nodded in unison.

'Science' interrupted them. "What you're saying is true. But it's also true that for ages, people were punished for expressing ideas backed by me. Can you remember Michael Servetus, the physician from Spain? He was burned alive in 1553. His crime was not murder, treason, or any other act of violence. His crime was contained in his book 'Christianismi Restitutio' where he offered groundbreaking insights into blood circulation."

'Book' nodded in agreement. "Many of my offspring were banned, many were burned in public ceremonies for going against established norms. From banning 'De revolutionibus orbium coelestium' written by Nicolaus Copernicus in 1616 to the ban of 'Uncle Tom's Cabin' written by Harriet Beecher Stowe to the more recent ban of Salman Rushdie's novel 'The Satanic Verses', the list of banned books is endless."

'Power' laughed uproariously. "That's because of me — Power. All these acts were committed to demonstrate myself."

'Faith' bristled in anger. "Many of my fellow words have hurt my sentiments on many occasions. Don't forget that."

'Blind' chimed in. "Please 'Faith', don't be like me. You have the power to move mountains. Please focus on that. Remember that your true job is to reconnect the hearts of human beings to the God and draw them back into the harmony of His way of life."

Everybody agreed with 'Blind'.

'Truth' was perhaps a little drunk. Too exhausted, he was no longer interested in arguing. In a tired voice, he said, "No matter what happened, the complete destruction of Truth always proved impossible. I, Truth, have a way of surviving."

With brows furrowed, 'Power' looked sternly at 'Truth'.

"But you were always afraid of me. Isn't it? Do you remember how, in 1844, when Charles Darwin had finished working on his essay outlining his theory of "natural selection", he was terrified to publish it?"

'Fear' whispered, "That was because of me. He was mortally afraid."

'Courage' entered the party just at that time. He was late. He addressed 'Fear', "Why are you whispering? Man up and speak aloud! What good have you served till date by cowering in defeat, instead of speaking up?"

'Fear' retreated in the darkness when named by 'Courage.'

An uneasy silence fell on the party. The clinking of glasses stopped. 'Silence' who was never invited to any party, stood in an empty corner, yet it was very powerful. It spoke the loudest when emotions were high.

'Celebration' felt uneasy. It never imagined the grand Christmas party to go haywire. The lights flickered. It was unsure about what to do to salvage the party.

Then 'Warning' came forward and addressed everyone, "Friends! Enjoy the party! It won't last forever."

'Love' looked resplendent in its party costume. "I also exist.", it fluttered its eyelids.

"And me too.", 'Hope' chimed in. "Together we will make the world a beautiful place."

Everybody clapped in unison.

References:

1. "The Book That Broke An Empire: When Words Became Weapons" by Adam Langweiler.

2. "The Power of Words" by Kenneth Onuegbu.

Image source: Unsplash

Catch me live on Storyscrapers

On 19th December, 2025, catch me live on the page of Storyscrapers. On the occasion of their 5th Anniversary, this creative writing platform is conducting a series of Anniversary Special Live Shows. Marking the beginning of this memorable journey is their very first event, the Storytelling Evening - "Story Circle."

I'm a regular contributor to this platform. So it gives me immense joy to share with you all that I'll be a part of their magical Storytelling Evening where I'll share about my writing journey, read a short-story written by me and another story written by one of my favourite authors. So, please join us to make the evening a joyous and memorable one!

Blogchatter Wrap Party: Chapter 5

 

Here goes the teaser for 2026. 

In 2026, I want to experiment with a genre previously unexplored by me. It may be science-fiction, may be horror, may be historical fiction or anything else.

Drop your suggestions in the comments section.

Would love to hear from you.

#BlogchatterWrapParty