Adi

If there's one skill I wished I'd learned years ago it's this: listening.

Listening will propel your career, improve your relationships tenfolds (and even spark up your sex life), understand intricacies and complexities that is the world, improve your learning & knowledge, and make the world a safer place.

When I look at the world today (and my own personal life as well), I realise that listening is screaming in demand and scarce in supply. It's one of the reasons we witness wars, climate change, toxic masculinity, racist/caste violence, violence against women, rise of jingoistic politics, and unhappy relationships.

We all want to be heard but we rarely get it. We all want to listen but we rarely offer audience to people (especially loved ones) who need it. Why? We simply do not know how.

Kate Murphy's book is fantastic and distils the essence of listening. Yes, one could refer to a dictionary and be done with it. But there's a lot more nuance than just hearing & understanding. There are so many levers involved in the process it requires us to fully utilise all our faculties at our disposal, it's not easy. We often get overwhelmed and eventually fail to listen – even if we are trying our best, even if we are making a conscious effort to do so.

Remarkably, after reading this book, I've learnt to listen better and noticed that the quality of my life has improved by leaps and bounds.

I highly recommend this book. Let's have some wine and indulge in a conversation, shall we?

This book is simply a reminder that the internet is a dark, creepy, and scary place. And a place to steer away from. Jon Ronson has done a fantastic job of detailing the finer aspects of a topic that few talk about – public shaming. And how to recover, if you're a victim of shaming.

What have I learnt from reading this book?

1) Don't do anything stupid on the internet. Duh. The fewer footprints you leave online, the better.
2) Don't even try hurting someone on the internet. It's very easy to do this though because of inherent bias of crowd behaviour. This is far worse than doing something stupid.
3) Unfortunately, empathy is a difficult trait to acquire; either you have it, or you don't. Most don't. Even the good guys don't have it.

This book also sheds insights on deshaming and how powerful kindness can be to those affected by public shaming. The world (and the internet) will be a better place if we all read this book.

This book is about sex. Well, sort of.

There isn't much difference between the old & young when it comes thinking about sex. But this book is a lot more than just putrid fantasies & boning - it's about relationships, broken relationships, past lovers, present lovers, spouses, families, children, faded memories, death, orgasms, and clutching to bits & pieces of yourself at the twilight of your life. The sex is quite graphic and erotic, but it takes a backseat, giving way to fully fleshed out characters.

It's a well written book, and it does give perspective on aging, relationships and, to some extent, sex.

What can I say about this brilliant graphic novel? I finished it in one sitting, in less than an hour (all graphic novels/comics are quick to read, usually).

Betty is a cute goblin, who mixes and cooks the most potent booze and food you can imagine. She specialises in thievery.
Dee is a sultry black acolyte and, ironically, an atheist. She specialises in healing.
Hannah is an elven, a sex fiend, and a trash talker. She specialises in offensive magic.
Violet is a blood thirsty dwarf powerful enough to slice the strongest diamond into shreds with her sword. She specialises in killing. 

Meet the Rat Queens!

And I'm totally in love with Betty! Actually, no, I want to sleep with the entire Rat Queens gang: Betty, Dee, Hannah and Violet. Damn it! They're all hot, witty and, above all, kick serious arse that would make [INSERT YOUR FAVOURITE SUPER HERO] shit their pants. No, I'm serious! The Rat Queens are my favourite super heroes.

I love their brand of humour – very colourfully profane, sarcastic and raunchy. There's even a subtle dig at Harry Potter (sort of), where the Rat Queens sing a song while they're drunk, that had me laughing out loud. This graphic novel has all the elements of great fantasy: violence, blood & gore, booze, profanity, humour, friendship, rollicking adventures and monster slaying. And sex. 

The characters are fully fleshed out, each of whom has a back story. This makes you care for them and want to know them more. They even openly talk about drugs, sex, men (and women), and bitch & celebrate in equal measure. They have needs, just like us human beings, and therefore people you could hang out and make out with. In other words, they are relatable characters. 

And oh, did I mention that the violence is intense, excessive, over-the-top which makes the gore in other graphic novels tame by comparison? You may want to read this book before a meal. There, I've warned you. But it's totally worth it.

If you liked Game of Thrones, you will love this even better. Go and buy one right now! 
If you're fond of Dungeons & Dragons, role-playing games (RPGs) and Lord of the Rings, then you need pick this one up. 
If you're a woman, then picking this up will make you wet with glee. 
If you're a man, then put aside your male ego and pride and pick this up to enjoy kickass women slay monsters that will make you rock hard.

I can't wait for the next installment! Go Rat Queens!