Join today and start reading your favorite books for Free!
Rate this book!
Write a review?
As a kid hearing these stories I guess I never really put that much thought into the character of Karna. He was on the losing side of the grand battle, and the comic book versions that I read seemed to focus more on his arrogance. But this version of the story opened up my eyes to what a grandly tragic figure Karna really is, and it was his struggle with fate that was my favorite part of this half of the Mahabharata (his beheading is easily the best death this side of Bhisma). I guess I never re...
This is part 2 - I gushed and gushed about part 1, but part 2 is even better. When the war happens...it really happens. It's brutal and seems to go on forever, yet there's never a dull moment.For me, what makes this book is Karna. And Duryodhana. I understand why Duryodhana hated the Pandavas. They weren't even Kuru blood. They shouldn't have been heirs. Krishna cheated left, right and centre. The Bhagavad-Gita takes on a whole different meaning when you read it in context. It's actually a littl...
UnbelievableThis shows the Pandava and Kaurava families building a tension to an unbelievable edge - and the incredible 18 day war where everything comes to a head.I love how all the characters are nuanced, and it is very easy to see everyone's point of view. More importantly for me, this is not at all obvious: there are a bunch of twists in the plot that keep the surprises coming.Karna (the tragic archer) is my favourite - and possibly one of the most torn characters in the book.If you get the
First of all, I was fascinated by the scale of this epic. It nicely articulates the philosophies in Hinduism with the combination of history and mythology. What I liked about this rendering is the fact that it is fast paced and once you start reading you tend to get hooked to the book.I had the basic idea of the story of Mahabharata from the TV show which I had watched as a kid. I kind of knew that it was the story about the good vs. evil; and in the end good prevailing against the evil. But aft...
A bolt of lightning streaked through my heart as the unearthly steeds bolted forward when the rutilant Krishna flicked the reins of his chariot while the lion-tailed monkey, Hanuman, emblazoned alive on its banner and the lambent Arjuna standing like a colossus with his Gandiva gifted by the God of Fire clasped in his hand. A spasm of a joy twitched my eyes as the Nara Narayana surge toward the phalanx lead by the eighth Vasu, Bheeshma, to face the most contemptuous creature on the earth then,
Wow. I've been reading the Mahabharata for a while now between this and the first volume so it is has been quite a journey - but so worthwhile.There were actually quite a few unexpected twists and turns toward the end. And most surprisingly follow things through to the end, well beyond you'd expect such writing to actually do. I will definitely look forward to reading it again - just not quite yet. Need a break for a bit.Very readable translation that brings it to life pretty well.Definitely rec...
“"Mahabharata Vol II Read this to understand that beyond the Pandavas & Kauravas there existed a far more complex situation waiting for this long drawn battle to occur. Ramesh Menon has simplified the complex reading in a story format for all to understand clearly the nuances for existence of each character. ”
A very well written version of Mahabharata.... This part starts with the Gita, simplified for the reader.... Author has simplified the whole of mahabharata but kept the essence and all the important as well as popular stories intact....
Took me quite some time to finish this one but still a classic
kayaknya ni buku seru deh, jadi pin cari bukunya, belum punya nihada yang mau pinjemin ? ngasih juga ngga nolak, kok !!
FANTASTIC
The best description of the war and the characters. Only Vyasa's Sanskrit rendition can be better!
Perhaps the best story ever told...
One of the best renditions of the timeless epic that I have read. Highly recommended.
Phew. The last few chapters made up for the slow and repetitive bulk of the two books. Mostly because the ending of The Epic was the only thing I didn't already know. Also, going to Swarga upon finishing the books is nice.
Best renderingI liked the book and more importantly the language was easy to understand and kept me hooked till the end.
The second part was very different from the first, but to finish the story it was necessary to wade through this second volume. The book was mostly about the war at the end of an era: hundreds of pages of depiction of fighting. Mostly not that interesting at all to read who beats whom and what kind of chariot some never-before-and-never-again-mentioned character has - and this is the vastly shortened version. I dread of the full-length story. But at least I can now understand the references to t...