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Book Review: My Feathered Friends & the Book of Poems by Sunil Bhatia

Reading this book is like strolling through a bird sanctuary and talking to birds while thinking about one’s life. This book is neither fiction nor non-fiction; it is something different where the narrator interacts with a variety of birds. The narrator seems to be a young man living in a flat, working in a big city, and is often busy with his professional life. This introduction is enough to conclude that the narrator is not happy with his life and seeking something else. He seems to be a misfit in the world where hedonistic desires take toll over life.


The narrator interacts with birds and provides them bajra and water like a saint. He indulges himself with these feathered friends as he is chatting with his school friends. As the book advances, we come to know some fascinating tales about birds, like the love story of Missy Pigeon, advice of fish from the aquarium, wide-reaching listening powers of the owl, the story of a village rooster, the peacock family, and the songs of the nightingale and its plight in adjusting with humans, and many more stories…

Throughout the story, the narrator meets many species of birds and they often indulge in conversation about life. Many birds compel him to take a look about his life and actions. He needs to overcome his fears; he needs to release his past deeds in order to live a good life. As with the case of humans, they don’t let go things so easily, be it past or worldly desires. From most of the conversations it comes out as those birds never appreciate the development of humans. The changing ways of humans actually disturbs the nature and harmony of bird species. They don’t like humans. Because of the cement cities, they are bereaved of the trees and forests and are forced to make temporary shelters in the city. They hop from one balcony to another in hope of water and food.

After reading this book – the narrator’s encounters with birds – you will realize that not all people in the world are made for rat race. Some seek a higher self in themselves; some want to listen to their hearts and wish to follow the path derived by pure essence of love and compassion.

The second part of the book delves into some of the mesmerizing poems. Each poem has a distinct voice and the message that comes out is not only strong but also worth attention.

Futuristic poems at the end of the book sound too real and relevant, some of the best ones are Cyber Wars, Clones Vs. Robots, and Time Machine.

My controls are with
My Company
I live for them
But nobody lives for me.

Poems are written in a prose style, in fact the entire book is written that way. The writing style of the author is simple and lucid but at the same time makes you feel one with the birds.

Other than life lessons, the fringe benefit of reading this book is that you will get to know more about birds. Probably, the author is inspired by Salim Ali.

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