Skip to main content

The Fountainhead

Saturday, May 10, 2008 12:00 AM [Transplanted from my musings]


I was jumping up and down with joy. Couldn't believe my luck. Mom had informed me that she will buy me a book, because i passed my pre boards well. And that book would be Ayn Rand's The fountainhead or Atlas shrugged. My first reaction, utter surprise, mom...going to buy me a book,
a book she has recommended...*Scratching my head* naa,,, something is wrong here. My second reaction, jumping up and down on the bed...Mom going to pay for this book, and she herself asked me to buy this...Whoa!!!!!!! finally the third reaction, What is Ayn Rand? who is fountainhead? isn't it a strange name? Sounds philosophical, na, i read only crime [at that time, i preferred crime and mystery] and what the hell is atlas shrugged? Whatever, mom is going to buy me this book,* More jumping and bumping*


Age bars

This book has some explicit content and the message the author is trying to convey in this book, i would advise that you should be at least 16 years of age if you want to read the fountainhead. This book is for the mature minds.The more mature, the better.


The book

SO we finally bought the book the fountainhead from ebony on the mall road. The first reaction of anyone who holds this book in his/her hands is...O MG!!!! around 700 pages,approx 50 lines in each of them.
Its going to make a hell of a read. And it is, a hell of a read. The narrative style is absolutely unique and such a long book, but its irresistible you wanna read more and more. The story is about an architect Howard roark, and Dominique francon his love who spares no chance to destroy him. However the most splendid thing i found in this book was that,this book was first published way back in 1943 yet everything written in this book looks so relevant, as if its a story of our current times. Another thing likable in this book, is its theme,
"that the man's ego is the fountainhead of human progress."
Go grab a copy, borrow it, do anything and read it once. I know people who have read this ultra thick volume more then 10 times even. You may get afraid to read it in the beginning, looks very thick and philosophical, but its a nice book. Read it once. A good one for collectors too.


Gifting ideas

This book, you should get in around 250 rupees. So ain't very bad to gift a special friend. If the person whom the gift is being given is a avid reader or fond of collecting books, then this will make an ideal gift. On the other hand don't gift this book to a friend who is an occasional reader, he/she may not like it. Also check out the intellectual level of your friend, or family member.
Highly intellectual people should love this book. Also check out the maturity factor. The more mature the better,like i said in age bars.

Do write in your comments regarding this book.
Thought for the day is by
"Books are the carriers of civilization. Without books, history is silent, literature dumb, science crippled, thought and speculation at a standstill."

Happy reading!!!

Happy blogging!!!

Added on 13th may 2008, Tuesday,12.20 pm
Outlook magazine asked some eminent readers their choice of top reads of 2007
see outlook,31 December 2007 page 69
Shahrukh Khan, actor sent this
Fountainhead
Ayn rand
"I re-read this 1943 novel and found it even more relevant today then I did years ago.I think it's a must for all good people who believe that finding your own path is the most important job of our life."

4 comments:

Zahra said...

this would really be a nice book.
enjoy:)
please do visit my blog sometimes
Tshhar Mangal said...

Thank you for visiting
Keep Visiting!!
:-)
everything is illusion said...
This book doesn't need mature mind to read, but if u read this book u will attain maturity.. n u will start thinking automatically in that direction..
Tshhar Mangal said...

A good point mam
Thank you for bringing it to our notice

Comments

the hobbit said…
u know what is the problem with the book.....these days every time i wear an accessory i am reminded that i am wearing it for the purpose of looking nice in others eyes....its like this constant reminder of being a second hander....dont like that feeling
Akansha Agrawal said…
Even I loved the book, but reading it after Atlas Shrugged had a slight disadvantage coz I kept comparing it to Atlas Shrugged and found that Atlas Shrugged had stolen away all the thunder!

Also read

Mrs Dalloway by Virginia Woolf

Why does Mrs Dalloway still speak to you after a hundred years? A human reading of Virginia Woolf’s novel A reflective and thoughtful review of Mrs Dalloway that explores why Virginia Woolf’s modernist classic continues to resonate. From memory and mental health to love, regret, and time, this article examines characters, themes, context, and craft while questioning whether the novel still challenges and comforts today’s reader. Why does a novel about one ordinary day linger in your mind for years? This long form review of Mrs Dalloway explores through its quiet power. You will find analysis, critique, history, and personal reflection on why this book continues to unsettle and comfort readers alike. Can a single ordinary day hold an entire life? Have you ever reached the end of a day and wondered where it went, and more unsettlingly, where you went within it? That question sits at the heart of Mrs Dalloway , Virginia Woolf’s 1925 novel that dares to suggest that the smallest moment...

Spill the Tea: Noor and the Silence After Doing Everything right

Noor has done everything she was supposed to do — moved out, built a life, stayed independent. Yet beneath the neat routines and functional success lies a quiet emptiness she cannot name. Part of the Spill the Tea series, this story explores high-functioning loneliness, emotional flatness, and the unsettling fear of living a life that looks complete from the outside. The verandah was brighter than Noor expected. Morning light lay flat across the tiles, showing every faint scuff mark, every water stain from old monsoons. The air smelled of detergent from a neighbour’s washed curtains flapping overhead. On the table, the paneer patties waited in a cardboard bakery box I’d emptied onto a plate. A squeeze bottle of ketchup stood beside it, slightly sticky around the cap. Two cups of tea, steam already thinning. In one corner, a bamboo palm stood in a large terracotta planter. Thin stems. Too many leaves. Trying very hard to look like it belonged indoors. Noor sat down and pulled the chair ...

Why do we crave bookshops when life falls apart? A deep reading of Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop

This article reflects on Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-reum, a gentle novel about burnout, healing, and second chances. Through Yeong-ju and her quiet community, the book reminds you that meaning often returns slowly, through books, people, and ordinary days that begin to feel like home again. Why do so many of us secretly dream of walking away from everything? At some point, usually on a crowded weekday morning or during yet another meeting that could have been an email, you wonder if this is all there is. You did what you were told. You studied, worked hard, built a career, stayed responsible. And yet, instead of contentment, there is exhaustion. Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop begins exactly at this uncomfortable truth. Hwang Bo-reum’s novel does not shout its intentions. It does not promise transformation through grand revelations. Instead, it sits beside you quietly and asks a gentler question. What if the problem is not that you failed, but that you nev...