FunnyColumns

Reviews of "Bala Takes the Plunge"

Updated Dec. 1, 2011

Here are some reviews of my novel "Bala Takes the Plunge," both positive and negative. Click on the links to read the full reviews.

"This fiction should delight all intelligent readers, and the rest of us too. Bala takes the plunge, and readers should plunge into this story and then surface to much laughter. Since the 1980s this is one of the three best novels of humor!" -- Robert Clyde Moore, author of "Oddball Squadron" at goodreads

"The book is a welcome relief from the myriad books penned by different newbie Hinglish driven Indian Authors. The book is funny but sometimes the jokes get overboard. ... Personally, I liked this book. A perfect travel read." -- Divenita in Mota Blogs

"Bala Takes the Plunge, written by Melvin Durai, is a very funny and sweet book! This really will make a great romantic comedy movie as well! Love it!" -- Connie Devadoss at goodreads

"It's a pretty short book, and I devoured it in less than a day after I got it, and it was one of the few books that has actually made me laugh out so loudly that other people around me started giving me odd looks and asked me what the hell I was reading." -- Sakhi Shah in In My Bookshelves -- Book Reviews

"Melvin Durai is a extremely witty blogger and he has done justice to his first book. Bala takes the plunge is entertaining and extremely funny without going overboard with the humor." -- Ruchira in Nirjharini

"I read most of this book while travelling by train to work & back and it made pretty easy reading, the humour was clean and smooth and I often had to re-read a part of the text because Melvin slipped in his jokes so subtly I'd skim the surface before it actually registered. Something in the book makes you connect with Bala and you're unwittingly drawn to his quest." -- Melvin D'Souza in theadventuresofmelvin

"The Tamil Nadu born and Canada based writer Melvin Durai has probably interspersed a large part of his own life into the story. So one can definitely say that he has lead a very funny life. At the end you are almost sorry that the book at a short 192 pages gets over a little too soon." -- Kishore Shah at goodreads

"This delightful hilarious novel chronicles Bala’s search for the perfect bride at a time when he has made a success of his career and settled comfortably into his life in the US." -- Gargi Mehra in Gargi's World

"If there was a genre called guy-lit, Melvin Durai’s debut novel Bala Takes the Plunge would easily qualify as one. A few pages into the book and I was guffawing at Melvin’s play of words and funny observations. Rajinikant-lovers will be thrilled to encounter some of his famous dialogues in this clever and extremely witty book." -- Bedazzled

"The plot is as thin as the paper the book is printed on, but the puns and chuckles keep flowing." -- Amritha in Playing the Critic

"On the whole, 'Bala takes the Plunge’ is the kind of book which you can make use of on a boring Sunday afternoon.If you are not looking for a light read, please stay away from this one." -- Nikhi Menon in Random Thoughts

"Written in a lighthearted tone, the book Bala Takes the Plunge by Melvin Durai is a hilarious read. Bala’s account of his father, his mother, his home and relations are utterly humourous." -- Dr. Vaidehi Nathan in Organiser

"A short and sweet novel. This book is extremely funny in parts; huge numbers of Indian men of marriageable age will identify with Bala’s predicament really well." -- Nishita in Nishita's Rants and Raves

"Bala Takes The Plunge is labelled ‘Fiction/Humour’ by the publishers. The former is really an excuse for the latter. It falls into  the  joke book genre. The plot is very thin but the one-liners and puns come thick and fast, a few of them laugh out loud, most others puerile. In any case, the book suffers from an overdose of jokes." -- S.A. Karthik in Deccan Herald (Spoilers galore!)

"An otherwise simple and straight forward story is made very interesting to read, by clever usage of  language by the author. Smartly induced words and lines bring smile on your face at regular intervals as you read this." -- Shrinidhi Hande in eNidhi India

"FUNNY in places, hilarious, rollicking, rocking in some, and kind of overstretched in some other portions, Bala Takes the Plunge is an amusing book. However, there are some no-holds-barred moments of joyous laughter which the reader must beware. Why must you beware? Because it’s best that you do not read it while sipping a coke (or tea or coffee or water or any beverage) lest something tickles you so bad that it makes you splatter the coke (or whatever you are drinking) right on to the pages as you erupt in laughter." -- Aradhika Sharma in The Tribune

"it's a fun, light-read book full of witty puns." -- Vibha Sharma in Literary Sojourn

"Melvin banks on his strength – word play. In fact the initially 50 pages are the best and worth the price tag hopefully you will be paying for it." -- Sanjeev Kotnala in Impressions and Inferences

"Funny, witty and entertaining! When someone says ‘Indian Authors’  the writers who come to my mind are  Ghosh, Rushdie, Seth and the like. But this book is something completely new (at least to me) and what’s more I really liked it!" -- Vishesh Unni R. in Book Reviews for Booklovers (and also The Light Shines the Brightest)

"B.Balasubramaniam is undoubtedly a character who keeps you going page after page. What more would a reader ask for in a protagonist. He had me cheerfully turning pages. The book is a thoroughly entertaining light read and is a “one-go” type book, start to finish. It’ s breezy, witty and creative and definitely well crafted." -- Manjulika Pramod in Friends of Books Blog

"The strength of the book lies in the humorous narrative done by Melvin, who has exploited the common incidents which happen in life a funny take." -- Prateek Gupta in Ginger & Cardamom

"Bala takes the plunge is a bagful of laughter at every page. The book is a brilliant piece which packs in a lot of satire on the American society at large and gives the reader a view of what turns an American on." -- Julia Dutta in xebecbooks.

"Humor is a difficult genre (didn’t I say the same thing in my last review) and Durai scores well here. He is witty and humorous. His play with words leaves you laughing your heart out." -- Anamika in What I have been reading ...

"I found two very different kinds of humour in the book – situational humour, and the word play. I’ve  always been a fan of word-play and really enjoyed those small strokes of genius." -- Kunal in Something About Nothing

"Thoroughly entertaining, wildly creative and accurately placed puns that made it a laugh riot, it was refreshing indeed." -- Joshua Karunakaran in The World As I see It

"Durai shines through the funny dialogues between the son and his parents. Sample this. Bala says that he and his parents should take a cab to the prospective bride’s home to impress them. His father retorts, 'You are in Amricka. What more there is to impress?'" -- Janani Rajeswari S. in New Indian Express

'Bala Takes the Plunge' update

 

Here's the cover of Bala Takes the Plunge, my humorous novel that will be published by Hachette India in six weeks. The cover was designed by Kedarnath Gupta. Nice work, Kedarnath.

We finished the final proofing on BTTP last week.The novel has been listed on several Amazon sites, so I'm hoping readers outside India will eventually be able to order it online. I'll be visiting India in August to promote the book, with a launch in Chennai and other events.

My book has a home

I'm pleased to announce that my humorous novel will be published in 2010, around July, by Hachette India, a branch of the world's largest general books publisher. Hachette has been in India for only a few years, publishing its first local book, My Friend Sancho, this past May. The novel, by Amit Varma, was the highest selling fiction debut of the year. I hope to follow in Amit's footsteps -- that's why I've decided to title my book My Friend Pancho.

Actually, my book will be called Sancho Takes The Plunge. No, wait -- it's Bala Takes The Plunge. As reader Viswa aptly put it, the novel is also about me taking a plunge. I've been writing humor columns for almost 15 years and enjoyed doing so, but I consider that period somewhat of an apprenticeship. It has allowed me to experiment with humor, to see what works and what doesn't. The time has come to plunge into something new, without giving up the old (not yet, anyway). I hope to write more novels in the coming years, even if I have to publish them myself and sell them all to my mother. (If you happen to be one of my relatives, please buy 10 copies of Bala Take The Plunge, even if you have to make two trips to the bookstore in your Nano.)

My book will be launched in Chennai -- and hopefully go high enough to reach other cities. I plan to visit Chennai and a few other cities to promote the book. If you don't live in India, you'll still be able to buy the book online, perhaps from India Plaza. You can also wait until the book is published in your country. But if you live in Saudi Arabia, I wouldn't hold my breath. (The Saudi authorities are eager to see me take a plunge -- into the Indian Ocean.)

I'll keep you updated on any book news. And, of course, I'll create a Facebook page for the book, so we can easily exchange messages about it.

Me: "Did you buy the book?"

You: "Yes."

Me: "How many copies?"

You: "Just one."

Me: "Just one?!! What about your dog? Don't you want to buy a copy for him?"

You: "My dog can't read."

Me: "So what? Neither can my relatives!"

You: "Is that true?"

Me: "Well, a few of them can't read. But they're still buying my book."

You: "Why are they bothering?"

Me: "I told them that I mentioned them in the acknowledgments page."

Sorry, I'm a terrible juggler

I wish I was good at juggling, but I'm not. I'm terrible at it. No, I don't mean juggling balls or other objects (though I'm terrible at that, too) -- I mean juggling tasks. I don't know what it is about me, but I just can't seem to easily switch from one task to another. That's why this blog has been dormant for the last few weeks; that's why I didn't produce any columns in that period; and that's why I have to apologize to all of you.

What was I doing? Putting the finishing touches to a humorous novel (tentative title: "Bala takes the plunge") that I hope will get published in 2010. The novel is under consideration by a publisher in India. I hope to have it published there first, then in North America and elsewhere. We'll see how it goes, but the important thing is, I've finally completed the novel (I started it in 2005 but let it sit for long periods) and am pretty happy with it, though after reading it hundreds of times, I'm also pretty sick of it.

What's the book about? Well, the main character is a guy named Bala from Chennai who becomes an engineer, though his dream is to direct Tamil  movies and work with his favorite actor, Rajnikanth. He lands a job in America, working for a company that makes exercise machines, and, with his 30th birthday fast approaching, begins searching for a bride, a journey that eventually puts him in position to achieve his dream. Most of the material in the book is new, though I've also incorporated humor from some of my columns.

I got so obsessed with the book over the last few weeks that I didn't have the interest or mental energy to blog or write columns. I hope to make up for it over the next month.

I really wish I could be a better juggler. Then perhaps I wouldn't feel like such a clown.