Sorting Out Sid

From the book blurb

Meet Sid, a master at the art of denial, in this hilarious, insightful tale of modern-day living and relationships.

Siddharth Agarwal a.k.a. Sid has it all – a fifteen-year-long marriage, a bunch of devoted friends, and the chance to be the company’s youngest-ever VP, all at the age of thirty-six. 

But, behind the scenes, his life is slowly falling apart, what with his marriage on the rocks, parents who treat him like a delinquent child, and overly-interfering, backstabbing friends. And that’s not even counting the manipulative HR vixen and the obnoxious boss he must tackle in office.

So, when lovely, spunky single mom Neha materializes in his life, she brings into it a ray of hope. But will she cause the brewing storm to finally erupt?

Who said it would be easy sorting out Sid?

Author

Yashodhara Lal's USP is in taking the ordinary and making it hilarious. She graduated from IIM-Bangalore in 2002 and has over 12 years of experience in the Marketing Domain across two large corporations in FMCG and media. She lives in Gurgaon with her husband Vijay, and the three small children they call Peanut, Pickle and Papad - all of whom never fail to provide her with material for her entertaining blog at http://www.yashodharalal.com. 

'Just Married, Please Excuse' is her first book. 'Sorting Out Sid' is her latest work of fiction.

(Click here for my review of Just Married, Please Excuse)

Characters

-          Sid, the hero.

He is like any of us who wears different hats for different occasions – The Office Sid, Party Sid and so on. He remains as the center of attraction and he has s charming persona. But he also gets bored of the pretense and likes to be alone. He is perfectly imperfect and that makes him lovable! He finds it hard to take up responsibilities and has a problem in growing up.

-          Mandira, Sid’s wife

She is two years older to Sid. She comes across and bitter. May be owing to Sid’s reluctance to father a child; his reluctance to take up responsibility in spite of a decade old marriage! But, I think she is more like a jackfruit; a hard exterior and a sweet interior! She hides her emotions. She is bold

-          Neha, Sid’s love

She is a single mother. She is bold and practical. She is emotional and get easily attached to people. She thinks a lot, which is a problem. She is an artist and cherishes friendship.

-          Aditi, Sid’s friend

She is caring and I-will-always-be-there-for-you kind of friend. She is also protective and possessive. She also thinks a lot and as I said, thinking a lot can always cause problems.

Then there is Vikas, Sunny, Krish, Kapil and a few others who makes Sid’s life more interesting.

After all, this is Sid’s story!

What I think

To begin with, the cover-page is super-cool. It hints on what can be expected. Then there is a page dedicated to let us know about Sid, the protagonist. He is witty, easygoing, idiosyncratic, impulsive, smart-ass, metrosexual, Vice-President, Master of Denial, vain, amiable, lovable, beer-loving, thoughtless and idiotic. And as readers, we find ourselves flipping the pages to find out more about him. The simple book blurb only adds to the anticipation!

The narrative style flows with ease and Sid turns out to be everything that he promised..

One thing that I liked about Sid is that he is a real gentleman. Yes, he might hurt people or run away from responsibilities. But, he never carries grudge. He knows to stay within the limits. His gentlemanliness can be felt in the way he handles the women in his life… His mother, towards the end of course, his wife Mandira, his friend Aditi, his love Neha and his colleague Meenakshi.

I appreciate the author for writing a book with about 340 pages from the perspective of a male. I mean, it is really tough to write from the point of view of opposite gender. The author has done a great job here.

What I really loved is that the book sounds real and untouched by cliché. Especially, the unhurried climax. There is no real end per se. It is almost like a new beginning!

But...

The book seems too long and never ending. Almost like same thing is said again and again. It is like a television serial, skipping a few episodes will not make much of difference. I wish more editing was done to make it crispier and more enjoyable!

Should you read it?

Yes. For all the laugh-aloud moments that it offers…

And for Sid. He is a sweetheart in spite of the imperfections!

Rating

3/5

Thank you

Harper Collins for giving away this book for review in association with IndiBlogger

PS: For a reader, there can be no joy greater than getting an author signed copy. I heartily thank Yashodhara for taking time for doing that. Keep writing and all the best!