bookshelves by nilaya

An exclusive membership door-to-door lending library initiative by Nilaya with books from cherished personal bookshelves of the patrons.

YESTERYEAR

PRIDE AND PREJUDICE

Published in 1813, Pride and Prejudice is one of the most popular novels in the English language. Jane Austen called this brilliant work "her own darling child”. The romantic clash between the opinionated Elizabeth and her proud beau, Mr. Darcy, is a splendid performance of civilized sparring. And Jane Austen's radiant wit sparkles throughout.

MADAME BOVARY

Emma Bovary is beautiful and bored, trapped in her marriage to a mediocre doctor and stifled by the banality of provincial life. She longs for passion and seeks escape in fantasies of high romance, in voracious spending and, eventually, in adultery. But even her affairs bring her disappointment, and when real life continues to fail to live up to her romantic expectations, the consequences are devastating.

TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD

Compassionate, dramatic, and deeply moving, To Kill A Mockingbird takes readers to the roots of human behavior - to innocence and experience, kindness and cruelty, love and hatred, humor and pathos. It is an unforgettable novel of a childhood in a sleepy Southern town and the crisis of conscience that rocked it.

FICTION

SHANTARAM

Burning slums and five-star hotels, romantic love and prison agonies, criminal wars and Bollywood films, spiritual gurus and mujaheddin guerrillas – this huge novel has the world of human experience in its reach, and a passionate love for India at its heart. Based on the life of the author, it is by any measure the debut of an extraordinary voice in literature. 

THE ALCHEMIST

Paulo Coelho's enchanting novel has inspired a devoted following around the world. This story, dazzling in its powerful simplicity and soul-stirring wisdom, is about an Andalusian shepherd boy named Santiago who travels from his homeland in Spain to the Egyptian desert in search of a treasure buried near the Pyramids. But what starts out as a journey to find worldly goods turns into a discovery of the treasure found within. 

ME BEFORE YOU

A Love Story for this generation and perfect for fans of John Green’s The Fault in Our Stars, Me Before You brings to life two people who couldn’t have less in common—a heartbreakingly romantic novel that asks, What do you do when making the person you love happy also means breaking your own heart? 

INDIAN WRITING

THE IVORY THRONE

Extensively researched and vividly rendered, The Ivory Throne conjures up a dramatic world of political intrigues and factions, black magic and conspiracies, crafty ceremonies and splendorous temple treasures, all harnessed in a tragic contest for power and authority in the age of empire.

THE GOD OF SMALL THINGS

The God of Small Things takes on the Big Themes--Love. Madness. Hope. Infinite Joy. Here is a writer who dares to break the rules. To dislocate received rhythms and create the language she requires, a language that is at once classical and unprecedented. Arundhati Roy has given us a book that is anchored to anguish, but fueled by wit and magic. 

SEA OF POPPIES

At the heart of this vibrant saga is a vast ship, the Ibis. Her destiny is a tumultuous voyage across the Indian Ocean shortly before the outbreak of the Opium Wars in China. The vast sweep of this historical adventure spans the lush poppy fields of the Ganges, the rolling high seas, and the exotic backstreets of Canton. 

NON-FICTION

BETWEEN THE WORLD AND ME

In a profound work that pivots from the biggest questions about American history and ideals to the most intimate concerns of a father for his son, Ta-Nehisi Coates offers a powerful new framework for understanding our nation’s history and current crisis.  Beautifully woven from personal narrative, reimagined history, and fresh, emotionally charged reportage, Between the World and Me clearly illuminates the past, bracingly confronts our present, and offers a transcendent vision for a way forward.

I AM MALALA

I Am Malala is the remarkable tale of a family uprooted by global terrorism, of the fight for girls' education, of a father who, himself a school owner, championed and encouraged his daughter to write and attend school, and of brave parents who have a fierce love for their daughter in a society that prizes sons.

SAPIENS

In Sapiens, Dr Yuval Noah Harari spans the whole of human history, from the very first humans to walk the earth to the radical – and sometimes devastating – breakthroughs of the Cognitive, Agricultural and Scientific Revolutions. Drawing on insights from biology, anthropology, paleontology and economics, he explores how the currents of history have shaped our human societies, the animals and plants around us, and even our personalities. 

INDIAN MYTHOLOGY

THE VALMIKI RAMAYANA

The Valmiki Ramayana remains a living force in the lives of the Indian people. A celebration of the victory of good over evil, this timeless epic recounts the legend of Rama, the exiled prince of Ayodhya, and his battle to vanquish the demon king Ravana.

THE BHAGAVAD GITA

The Bhagavad Gita is an early epic poem that recounts the conversation between Arjuna the warrior and his charioteer Krishna, the manifestation of God. In the moments before a great battle, the dialogue sets out the important lessons Arjuna must learn to change the outcome of the war he is to fight, and culminates in Krishna revealing to the warrior his true cosmic form, counselling him to search for the universal perfection of life. 

THE RAMAYANA - ARSHIA SATTAR

Rama goes to the monkey capital of Kishkendha to seek help in finding Sita, and meets Honuman, the greatest of the monkey heroes. There are two claimants for the monkey throne, Valin and Sugreva; Rama helps Sugreva win the throne, and in return Sugreva promises to help in the search for Sita. The monkey hordes set out in every direction to scour the world, but without success until an old vulture tells them she is in Lanka. Honuman promises to leap over the ocean to Lanka to pursue the search.

POETRY

LOVE - PABLO NERUDA

When it appeared in 1924, this work launched into the international spotlight a young and unknown poet whose writings would ignite a generation. W. S. Merwin's incomparable translation faces the original Spanish text. 

LEAVES OF GRASS

Leaves of Grass, collection of poetry by American author Walt Whitman, first presented as a group of 12 poems published anonymously in 1855. It was followed by five revised and three reissued editions during the author’s lifetime. Poems not published in his lifetime were added in 1897. The unconventional and expansive language and subjects of the poems exerted a strong influence on American and foreign literature but also led to the book’s suppression on charges of indecency

W B YEATS - SELECTED POETRY

Nobel Prize winner W.B. Yeats laid the foundations for an Irish literary revival, drawing inspiration from his country's folklore, the occult, and Celtic philosophy. A writer of both poems and plays, he helped found Dublin's famed Abbey Theatre. The poems here provide an example of his life's work and artistry

MALAYALAM

POETRY

MYTHOLOGY (INDIAN)

NON-FICTION

indian writers

FICTION

yesteryear classics

MALAYALAM

NAALUKETTU

അപ്പുണ്ണിയുടെ യാത്രകളാണ് നാലുകെട്ട്. കുടുംബവും ആചാരങ്ങളും ജീവിതത്തിന്റെ നെടുങ്കൻ കാരാഗ്രഹങ്ങളും വ്യക്തിയെ ആഹരിക്കുന്നതിന് നാക്കു നീട്ടി ആഞ്ഞടുക്കുന്ന കാലസന്ധികളിലൂടെ അപ്പുണ്ണി മുന്നേറുമ്പോൾ കേരളത്തിന്റെ എഴുതപ്പെടാത്ത ചരിത്രവും തുടുത്തുണരുന്നു. നോവൽ ഏറ്റവും സത്യസന്ധമായ സാമൂഹികചരിത്രമാവുന്നതിന്റെ ഒരുദാഹരണമാണ് നാലുകെട്ട്. പ്രകാശമാനമായ ജീവിതത്തിനടിയിൽ നിഴലുകളുടെ ഒരു അദൃശ്യവാഴ്ചയുണ്ടെന്ന് വായനക്കാരെ അറിയിക്കുന്ന മലയാളത്തിന്റെ അഭിമാനമായ രചന.

VERUKKAL

ദൈന്യത മുറ്റിനിന്ന ജീവിതസാഹചര്യത്തിൽ വളർന്ന്‌, ഐ.എ.എസ്‌ നേടി സൗഭാഗ്യങ്ങളിൽ എത്തിച്ചേർന്ന രഘു, സമ്പന്നന്റെ മകളായ ഗീതയെ വിവാഹം കഴിച്ചതോടെ തന്റെ കീഴടങ്ങലിന്‌ തുടക്കം കുറിച്ചു എന്ന സത്യം വേദനയോടെ മനസ്സിലാക്കുന്നു. നഗരത്തിലെ അന്തസ്സ്‌ നിറഞ്ഞ ജീവിതത്തെ പിൻതളളി, ഗീതയുടെ താല്‌പര്യങ്ങളെ എതിർത്ത്‌ പിതാവിന്റെയും പിതാമഹൻമാരുടെയും ഓർമ്മകൾ പേറിനില്‌ക്കുന്ന ഗ്രാമത്തിലേക്ക്‌, അതിന്റെ വിശുദ്ധിയിലേക്ക്‌ ഏകനായവി മടങ്ങാൻ തീരുമാനിക്കുന്നു. അത്‌ വെറുമൊരു യാത്രയായിരുന്നില്ല. സ്വാതന്ത്ര്യത്തിലേക്കുളളതായിരുന്നു ആ യാത്ര. പാരമ്പര്യങ്ങളിലേക്കും മൂല്യങ്ങളിലേക്കും സ്‌നേഹത്തിലേക്കുമുളള മടക്കയാത്ര. മലയാറ്റൂരിന്റെ ആത്‌മകഥാസ്‌പർശിയായ നോവൽ.

KHASAKKINTE ITIHASAM

ഒ.വി. വിജയൻ എന്ന മലയാളസാഹിത്യകാരന്റെ മാസ്റ്റർപീസ് നോവലാണ്‌ ഖസാക്കിന്റെ ഇതിഹാസം. മലയാള നോവൽ സാഹിത്യചരിത്രത്തെ “ഖസാക്ക് പൂർവ്വകാലഘട്ടമെന്നും ഖസാക്കാനന്തരകാലഘട്ടമെന്നും നെടുകേ പകുത്ത കൃതി എന്ന് ഈ നോവൽ വിശേഷിപ്പിക്കപ്പെടുന്നു. ഒ.വി. വിജയന്റെ ആദ്യത്തെ നോവലായ ഖസാക്കിന്റെ ഇതിഹാസം അതിന്റെ ഭാഷാപരവും പ്രമേയപരവുമായ ഔന്നത്യം കൊണ്ട് മലയാളത്തിൽ ഇന്നേവരെ പ്രസിദ്ധീകരിക്കപ്പെട്ടിട്ടുള്ളതിൽ ഏറ്റവും ശ്രേഷ്ഠമായ കൃതികളിൽ ഒന്നായി പരിഗണിക്കപ്പെടുന്നു.