Staff Picks: The Best of Books, Film & TV

Paranoia Agent: Spanning over thirteen episodes, this anime series follows the intersecting lives of many individuals in central Tokyo, all of whom become victims of a mysterious street assailant. A typical Satoshi Kon story, the series is made more dark and suspenseful with music by Susumu Hirasawa (who collaborated with Kon in Paprika). Also, don’t miss out on one of the most beautiful ending credits.—Sohini Basak, Editorial Assistant 

I am totally in love with the Did I Mention trilogy by Estelle Maskame. Someone who is extremely romantic and has dealt with difficult relationships will be able to relate to it. Though the book talks about a relationship between step siblings and how they fall in love, the best part about the series is that both of them try hard not to fall for each other and how they keep away from one another. But, somehow, the moment they meet or see each other they lose it completely, forget everything else and cannot stay apart. Waiting for the movie now!—Rashi Bhambri, Assistant Marketing Manager

My book of the week is Am I Normal Yet?  Loved it. Totally. At the risk of sounding cliched, I think this book is nearly life changing. This is the story of Evie, a teenager suffering from severe OCD. I know most of us use phrases like OCD and panic attacks in normal daily conversations, almost flippantly to the point of being insensitive to people who actually suffer from these. I do it. My friends do too. We all do it because we feel our minor quirks in behaviour qualifies us to say these things. What we fail to realize is the seriousness of having such mental illnesses and the somewhat limited life experiences that these people have.

Am I Normal Yet? deals exactly with this.

The book doesn’t stop there—it deals with some more serious and real issues like feminism (equality of the sexes and not one over the other!), anxiety as a mental illness, peer pressure to conform to teen norms and more. It is a fresh young adult contemporary story that packs so many important issues into one book. It made me laugh out loud, cry, laugh again through all the tears and snot (gross, I know! Sorry!), and saddened me before leaving me with the utter satisfaction of having read a great book. I am ready for Amber’s story now.—Shalini Raghavan, Product Manager

I’m a die-hard romantic and not one bit ashamed of it. Why then am I a little embarrassed to admit that I am crazy about romance books? The mushier it is, the better.

Married to a journalist covering the energy beat, romance has been all about breaking news, prime time TV, numbers and infrastructure. Till I discovered Romedy Now. My new prime-time partner, the guilt-free extra-martial fling. We meet each night at 9 p.m. sharp, and I spend the day willing the clock to go faster.

A friend sent along this study that questioned whether the make-believe world projected in ‘rom-coms’ might actually be preventing true love in real life. I rolled my eyes. Romantic films fill my world with colour and hope—even on the difficult days in office, and the days that my real-life love has a late night at work. Three movies I recommend and are a must watch—Confessions of  Shopaholic, Pretty Woman and Atonement. Your life will never be the same again . And some days, read Danielle Steel.—Amrita Talwar, Senior Marketing Manager

I highly recommend you check out Blue Jay, a new feature film starring Sarah Paulson and Mark Duplass. According to IMDB, this film had no script: the actors were simply briefed about the storyline and the rest was improvisation. How remarkable is that! The story is about a chance meeting between two former high-school sweethearts (one of them is now married) at a supermarket and how they go about spending a day together. It’s pretty much in the same genre as Richard Linklater’s Before Sunset trilogy, but a lot more believable. I couldn’t take my eyes away from the two lead actors: their chemistry is excellent, their dialogue raw and real, and the deft handling of the subject moved me immensely.—Arcopol Chaudhuri, Associate Editor and Rights Manager