Title : An Offbeat Story
Author : Siddharth Srivastava
Publisher: Leadstart Publishing
Genre : Fiction, Young Adult

“An Offbeat Story” by Siddharth Srivastava , who is a successful independent journalist, is a riveting account of a young lad, the protagonist of the story. The book depicts the evolutions and transformations that take place in the life of this young boy which turned him into a man, then followed by a full grown adult.

Summary
As the blurb says this book contains 16 chapters which deals with various situations and set of circumstances in the life of a youngster. The story represents the journey of the protagonist who experiences several things in his life.

 In his young days, his father who was an IPS officer also wanted his son to crack the IAS exam. But, the boy was disinterested in the IAS. His family comprises of his mother who always understands him and tried to motivate him and his younger brother who at all times excelled in studies. The story involves his city girlfriend Pooja who was preparing for the IAS exam,wanted him to clear the exam as well. Later, he drifted into journalism. His love life takes many twists and  turns. During the journalist rounds, he met Sushmita, a smart andgrounded lady. She was married. It is interesting to read about how their life changed. He also met Lata who was the daughter of his father batch-mate from Punjab.

Later, the story deals with how he was pressurized by his parents for marriage. His life was destined to be complicated. Fate decided his course for him. Finally he gets married. He moves from adolescence to adulthood. The story depicts the kind of compromises he made for his wife and the people he met, after his marriage. The author described about the highs & lows that he faced in his life. Gradually he became independent and prosperous in his life. His life again took an unpredictable turn when he met Seema.

The story then deals with how he turned into a responsible,mature and a fully fledged individual in his life. His journey of life was greatly influenced by the ideas and opinions of numerous people that were associated with his life such as his family, his lovers, his wife, married lover and his kids.

My Review
The author has put forward the journey of one’s life in a very entertaining manner. The book illustrated the kind of situations that a young fellow overcomes which influenced his life professionally and personally. Apart from this, the author also discussed about several current burning issues of the society. For instance politics, the country’s transition, social and cultural transformations and alterations, modernization, the stereotypes existing in our community and many more. 

The growth and development of an individual in the story is portrayed by the author in a very remarkable way. The book represented the realities of life, the unpredictability of life and the kind of patience and forbearance that one need to have in certain situations. The author’s style of writing is bold and striking.

It was an entertaining and interesting read for me. I thoroughly enjoyed the script which is a mixture of entertainment, reality and humor. I liked the straightforward approach of the author. I felt that the hilarious anecdotes of the book are captivating. Every individual can relate and find himself/herself in the story. The real life situations are described in an exceptional manner. The incidents and happenings that occur in one’s life professionally and personally are certainly influential for me.

Overall, the book is scripted in a very amusing and intriguing manner.

Rating : 3.9/5

Happy Reading!! :D