Book Summary of Life Is What You Make It
'Life is What You Make It' is the story of Ankita Sharma, an ambitious and full of life youngster who has everything that anyone of her age would dream of. But, when life does a U-Turn on her, how does she cope up with it? Read this inspiring tale of the daunting human spirit.
Summary of the Book
How would you react if destiny shook the entire world around you and set you on a new path? What if it would put you in a place, which would change your entire course of life? The question is, would you run, fight or would you gladly accept life?Sprawled across the early 80s, 'Life is what you make It' unravels all these questions through the protagonist, Ankita Sharma’s life.
Ankita is the most happening person in her college and she knows her way around. She is good looking, young, smart and has a number of boys who swoon over her. Life in college is a dream that every youngster sees and Ankita manages to gain admission to a reputed management school. All is well.
What follows next?
Six months down the lane, she is admitted to a mental health hospital as a patient. How did things take such a bad turn? Will she be able to lead a normal life?
Life Is What You Make It is a tale of the indomitable human spirit. It is a tale of how Ankita fights back at life, which has snatched her most precious years. This is a deeply inspiring and moving account of her life and the immense power that faith holds. It shows you how you can overcome challenges even if destiny pushes you back.
This book is a love story at its heart that kicks up questions about the perception of sanity and shows us that life is what you make out of it.
About Preeti Shenoy
Preeti Shenoy did her schooling all over India, due to her father’s regular job transfers. This inspired her to take up Sociology during her graduation. She started blogging in the year 2006 and soon got an offer to contribute regularly for Times of India and other popular dailies including Reader’s Digest too. She has also written 34 Bubblegums and Candies and Tea for two and a piece of Cake
Writing Style
Preeti Shenoy has an impeccable sense of carrying a story and keeps it straight and simple. She delves into the mysterious psyche of her characters and flawlessly pictures it. Her books have been widely read throughout the country.
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Details of Book: Life Is What You Make It
| Book: | Life Is What You Make It |
| Author: | Preeti Shenoy |
| ISBN: | 9380349305 |
| Price : | Rs.180 |
| Binding: | Paperback |
| Publishing Date: | 2011 |
| Publisher: | Srishti Publisher |
| Number of Pages: | 209 |
| Language: | English |
| Dimensions: | 8.35 x 5.35 x 0.63 inches |
| Weight: | 181 grams |
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5 comments:
Life is what you make it is Preeti Shenoy’s second book.
Her first book, 34 Bubblegums and Candies is a lighthearted book about the journey called life and the bittersweet experiences that we get out of it. It’s delightful and it’s peppy. Her second book however, is in a totally different league.
Life is what you make it is a story about Ankita Sharma, a regular college kid. Her life is like that of any youngster, revolving around her friends, studies, with a few romantic swings thrown in as well ! She is smart, intelligent and very sure of what she wants out of her life. Life for her couldn’t be better. Suddenly and totally unexpectedly her life is thrown out of gear as starts showing symptoms of a mental illness and is finally diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder. What follows is a gripping tale of how a mental disorder turns a young girl’s life topsy turvy and how she manages to come out the abysmal depths of her depression and fights tooth and nail to regain her sanity and her hold over life. This book is about growing up, not only physically but mentally and emotionally, by redefining your beliefs, your opinion about life and emerging out of a life threatening incident as not only a stronger but a far more insightful person.
There are two things that stand out about this book. One is the unusual but very sensitive topic that Preeti has chosen to write about. Almost all the books that we read now days are either chic lits, or books about college life (I am sick of Books about life in IITs and management institutes! ) or about the corporate jungle. Preeti has dared to go off the beaten track to write about a topic few people know anything about, let alone would care to write about. The second thing that actually makes this book such a good read is the way Preeti has written it. The topic could have been dealt in a cold clinical manner or in an over emotional rambling way that would just make the reader pity Ankita and shed tears. Preeti however, has dealt with the issue in a very sensitive and perceptive manner without being over dramatic. In the first part of the book, She takes us through Ankita’s life as a college student with the usual escapades and happenings that gives us that `been there done that` feeling and brings a smile to our lips. But Preeti truly comes into her own as a writer in the second half of the book when Ankita goes through an emotional roller coaster thanks to Bipolar Disorder. Preeti has described the fears, agonies, frustration and pain that Ankita goes through in a very touching yet realistic manner that moves you beyond words and leaves you totally numb. The narration is simple, yet extremely eloquent. Words flow easily and lucidly and do a much better job in portraying feelings and emotions than complicated or intricate sentences would have done. Life is what you make it is that rare blend of emotions, sensitivity and excellent writing that makes Preeti a class apart from the other writers that we see these days.
This is a very intense book. A book that moves and inspires you immensely and makes you realize that life can change at any moment and within the happy, carefree and supposedly balanced individuals that we see every day a mental illness can rear its ugly head at any time. This is also a highly inspiring tale of determination, courage and a tribute to the indomitable spirit within each one of us.
Life is what you make it: a review
I have been through the highs and lows of bipolar disorder today.
Well, not technically.
Preeti Shenoy's second book, a full length fiction called "Life is what you make it" is the story of Ankita Sharma, a young girl (my age in fact!) from a middle class Indian family. She's beautiful, she's talented and she knows it.
Then life takes a turn for he worse.
Yes, you've heard it before. The typical drama.
Except it is not. It is anything but.
It is a story about finding oneself and not having to force upon yourself the baggage of new age gung ho forced positivity. It speaks the truth.
Preeti has managed to show us through this story that life is not always butterflies and roses, even for the apparently "lucky" ones: and she has not made a pretense of an unreal out of the blue happy ending.
It's about the process of a girl next door faced with an extraordinary situation.
In many ways it answers back to the society that we are raised in. Ankita's multiple love interests, her inability to respond, her often dreaded "belittling" of love, her decisions to drop out of a prestigious college, her admission in a "mental health" facility and the ultimate phoenix like rise from the ashes to pursue what lies true to her heart speak out loud that a person can go through hell and in Ankita's words "proudly live to tell the tale."
They all tell us one thing: it is a person's own life and what they make it is in their hands. even when faced with a seemingly impossible situation; albeit with the right kind of help.
Preeti has dealt with a real issue in a very real manner. Mental health is real. It exists and making it a taboo only accentuates the problem. She tells us that pretty girls who have it all can have a disease of the mind as much as they can have a road accident. They can also deal with it if given the right kind of support.
I only have to say that a hundred bucks is nothing for a read like this. Generally books from young, new authors are considered light "metro" reads. While I will refrain from estimating it's literary value (which is a matter of personal choice anyway), I will go out on a limb and say that this is what new age classics are made of. A real issue, characters we can relate to, a very practical yet emotional approach.
Loved it!
This is how life is! You have to make it !
To read a work of fiction in familiar surroundings is not one usually gets a chance to do in life.
Here I have an opportunity to read a chapter of my life and how I grew up through an author who happens to be my best friend those years…A rarity in all ways …The book is a masterpiece of the surroundings I grew up .. I am thinking of giving this book to my girls when life’s decisions are thrust upon them …and say this is how it was and we still made it and you will it after all “Life is What you make it”
A very compelling title and a story that keeps you in touch with realities of conservative families in the late 80’s. The book also illustrates of how innocent our ambitions are how important they are at certain stages of life. It shows how one gets drawn into relationships that end in consequences beyond one’s control. The book captures circumstance in a real life yet things or actions least expected makes an impact .Finally everyone makes life the way they want it. It is only a matter of when!
The book is well written and keeps you engaged till end. It is set in a world where we had no modern gadgets and yet we nurtured log distance relationships and wrote letters.The world is so different yet ultimately “ Life is what you make it”
A great book and must buy!
An Excellent Read
I usually take around 2 days to complete a book of 200 pages, but this book made me read it at a stretch.I couldn't move till i knew what happened to ankita.The story was a very gripping tale and was easily able to travel along with ankita. Usually books which deal with an illness are very emotional making our eyes welled.But Preeti have handled it an excellent way of making the situations more practical than sentimental.The shifts in Ankita's mood were portrayed very well.Her pain and the voice of her mind reaches the readers effectively.I couldn't cry for ankita,instead i started hoping that she would be able to come out of her illness and fly out of her nest.
That's what i like the most in Preeti's writings. Silently she is able to pass the message that "Life is not over with failures, there is something still left to explore, we should just not give up and we can always make it if we try enough".
Loses/Mistakes and failures are part of everyone's life. Many times we are lost not knowing what to do.At times we need a hand to pull us out.Like Dr Madhusudhanan for Ankita, on so many of my situations her writings/blogs have helped me. It had made me think that i am still in the game and its not the time to quit yet.
I loved the book a lot and am sure everyone who reads will share the same.
Amazzzing Read !
A Well written beautiful Book . A definite Page-Turner.
What really really attracted me to the story is that our dear Ankita is there in almost all of us in bits & pieces .There are some places where you can relate to it and say "This is real" "been there done that" . As the story builds you begin to worry as to why Ankita is behaving the way she is . Her each action, her fears, her frustration has been explained so well that you can feel what she is feeling. The part where she calls her parents and asks her mom to hug her and tell her everything will be alright brought tears to my eyes. You can feel the pain that she is going through. Finally at the end when you can come to know she is suffering from bipolar disorder you sympathize with her , you want her to get better and when she is getting better you feel happy for her :) All in all you get engrossed in the story so well that you feel you have seen it all happening in front of your eyes. Not many books have the capacity to do that. This one goes as my "Priced" Collection Book :) A Must Must have in your bookshelf :)
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