Author: sonashreesarkar

Born in one of the oldest city famous for temples and ghats. I'm a calm, confident, passionate and dedicated person with a versatile skill set and willingness to bring creativity in whatever I do. I'm an active listener and an ardent explorer who is constantly looking for new opportunities.

BOOK REVIEW : Jessica Barry’s Freefall

JESSICA BARRY
  • About the author :

Jessica Barry is a pseudonym for an American author who grew up in a small town in Massachusetts was raised on a steady diet of library books and PBS.

She attended Boston University , where she majored in English and Art History , before moving to London in 2004 to pursue an MA from University College London.

  • Preface of the Novel ” Freefall” :

Freefall by Jessica Barry is published by HarperCollins on 8 January in U.S and wii be released by Penguin on 7 March in the U.K.

This book is a thriller about a plane that crashes amidst the Rocky Mountains and the woman who is the sole survivor and has a reason much bigger than herself to stay alive.

  • Summary of Freefall :

Maggie Carpenter’s world is shattered when she learns that her 31-year old daughter, Allison , has been in a plane crash over the Colorado Rockies and is presumed dead. Maggie and Ally haven’t spoken since Maggie’s husband , Charlie , died of cancer two years ago , and Maggie blames herself for that.

The reason for the disconnect is heartbreaking , but Maggie didn’t realize that her heart could be broken even more. It turns out that Ally was in a private plane with fiancé , pharma CEO Ben Gardner, and although Ben’s body has been recovered, Ally’s has not, which kindles a small flame of hope in Maggie’s heart. However, that hope dies when an explosion consumes the plane, leaving no doubt, at least in the minds of authorities, that both passengers of that plane didn’t survive.
However, in her wildest dreams, Maggie could never have imagined what really happened when that plane crashed. Ally survived, and getting out of the unforgiving woods is her first order of business. Once Ally gets free of the wreckage after realizing she’s the sole survivor, she assesses her physical state.

Things could be better, but Ally is, as readers will discover, a survivor, and she has a reason much bigger than herself to get out of those woods.

As the neighbors start sending casseroles to Maggie’s front door (Owl’s Creek, Maine is nothing if not insular), Maggie is climbing the walls. Her Allison was strong. Her Allison is a survivor. But one thing is blindingly true: Maggie didn’t really know Allison anymore, not since she moved to San Diego after her dad’s death. To cope, Maggie sets out to find out who Allison was.
By all appearances, Allison was living a glittering life with the handsome, ridiculously wealthy Ben Gardner, but all that glitters is certainly not gold. As Allison reveals, her life before meeting Ben was grim: waitressing at a club that catered to rich and powerful men yielded plenty of cash, but self-respect was collateral damage, and it becomes obvious in her telling that Ben saw Allison as a beautiful doll meant to be on his arm, charm his friends, and fulfill his every fantasy. It’s an empty existence that the formerly vibrant Ally chafes against, even as she tries to convince herself that she truly loves Ben. However, that love is called into question when a man approaches her with explosive information on Ben’s company. He claims that a drug meant to help women with postpartum depression is causing alarming (to say the least) side effects and that Ben and his cronies are covering it up. It’s unconscionable, and the old Ally never would have stood for it, but can she break free from the life she’s fallen into?
As thriller readers know, large sums of money tend to attract really bad people, and they are determined to keep their dirty secrets under wraps. Ally certainly isn’t safe, and neither are the people she loves, especially Maggie. Luckily, Maggie, a retired librarian, has some skills of her own up her sleeve, and she’s determined to find out what really happened to Ally, at any cost.
Readers that are looking for a lightning-paced read, with a mother/daughter relationship at the core, will find a lot to like. Maggie and Ally’s alternating chapters create urgency, and Barry does a particularly great job with Maggie, a woman who is suffering debilitating grief, but finds strength and purpose in finding the truth. This one will keep readers turning the pages, and there’s even a nifty twist in the final act.

!! HAPPY READING !!

ADHIYOGI : The source of yoga

” Adiyogi is here to liberate you from disease, discomfort, and poverty – above all, from the very process of life and death. “

SADHGURU

OVERVIEW :-

Over 15,000 years ago, predating all religion, Adiyogi, the first yogi , transmitted the science of Yoga to his seven disciples , the saptarishis. He expounded 112 ways through which human beings can transcend their limitations and reach their ultimate potential.

On the auspicious night of Mahashivaratri at Isha Yoga Centre , an iconic face of “Adiyogi – the Source of Yoga” was unveiled by the honorable Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Recognised as the world’s largest bust sculpture by the Guinness World Records, the face of Adiyogi is 112 feet high , representing the 112 ways he offered for one to attain to wellbeing and one’s ultimate nature.

  • Location : Isha Yoga Centre , Coimbatore , Tamil Nadu , India.
  • Designer : Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev.
  • Width : 548
  • Height : 34 m ( 112 ft )
  • Completion date : 24 February 2017
  • Dedicated to : Lord Shiva as Adiyogi.

Adiyogi Shiva statue in Tamil Nadu declared largest bust by Guinness World Records.

  • SET THE RECORD : The 112 feet tall bust of “Adiyogi” Lord Shiva at the Isha Yoga Foundation has been declared the world’s largest bust by Guinness Book of World Records. The Guinness has made the announcement in its website.
  • ATTRACTS THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE : The face of Adiyogi , set up the Isha Foundation led by spiritual guru Jaggi Vasudev , attracts thousands of people every day , a press released said.
  • PM MODI UNVEILS THE BUST RECENTLY : The bust at the Isha Yoga Foundation on the outskirts of Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu was unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on February 24 this year.
  • IN FUTURE : Isha Foundation plans to set up three more statues of similar height across the country. This is the second time the foundation had accomplished a Guinness record. On October 17, 2006 , the foundation had entered the Guinness Book of World Records for planting 8.52 lakh saplings, the released added.

THE PRESENCE OF THE U.S. MILITARY TROOPS IN AFGHANISTAN.

AFGHANISTAN: BACKGROUND AND U.S. POLICY ( in brief )

Afghanistan emerged as a significant U.S. foreign policy concern in 2001, when the United States, in response to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, led a military campaign against Al Qaeda and the Afghan Taliban government that harbored and supported it. in the intervening 19 years, the United States has suffered over 22,000 military casualties in Afghanistan and congress has appropriated approximately $144 billion for reconstruction and security forces there. In that time, an elected Afghan government has replaced the Taliban; improvement in most measures of human development is limited; and future prospects of gains remain mixed.

The United States and its international partners are removing their military forces from Afghanistan as part of a withdrawal announced by President Biden on April 14, 2021, heralding a possible end to the nearly two-decade U.S. military presence in the country. In a February 2020 agreement with the Taliban, the Trump Administration preventing other groups, including Al Qaeda, from using Afghan soil to recruit, train, or fundraise toward activities that threaten the United States or its allies.

INTRODUCTION :-

This report provides background information and analysis on U.S. policy in Afghanistan, with a focus on the ongoing U.S. military withdrawal and its implications for a number of factors, including :

  • security dynamics and the ongoing conflict between the Afghan government and the Taliban.
  • the social and political gains made in Afghanistan since 2001; and
  • intra- Afghan negotiations, which began in Doha, Qatar, in September 2020, but appear tp have since stalled.

The report also provides information on question about the future of U.S. development and security aid to Afghanistan.

BACKGROUND : U.S.- TALIBAN AGREEMENT

After more than a year of negotiations, U.S. and Taliban representatives signed a bilateral agreement on February 29, 2020, agreeing to two “interconnected” guarantees : the withdrawal of all U.S. and international forces by May 2021, and unspecific Taliban action to prevent other groups from using Afghan soil to threaten the United States and its allies.

In the months after the agreement, several U.S. officials asserted that the Taliban were not fulfilling their commitments under the accord, especially with the regard to Al Qaeda. U.S. officials also described increased Taliban violence as “not consistent” with agreement. Although no provisions in the publicly available agreement address Taliban attacks on U.S. forces in non- public annexes accompanying the accord. Some lawmakers have raised questions about the executive branch’s decision to classify these annexes.