Life is Beautiful. Review on Reader's Digest

The man who does not read good books has no advantage over the man who can't read them.

• Mark Twain

(Personal Opinion: I have no clue as to why Reader's Digest finds an entry under the HEALTH column of the Magazine section in MouthShut.It's STRICTLY A FAMILY magazine & should be carried into the FAMILY column of the MS.Sadly, none has protested till date!!)

Books are often termed as the garden of knowledge and Reader's digest, the pet of De witt Wallace is a jewel in the crown.

I have been subscribing to this excellent magazine for over a decade & half now, 15 years to be very precise.

Reader's digest is probably the only magazine that caters to the need of one & all, youngsters & grandmoms all alike, with a geographic distribution ranging from the oriental cultivations of Java to the far off rubber plantations in Brazil. A magazine as small in size as our very own Chandamama with 200 odd pages projecting us into the varied facets of information, this liliput of a book is a piece de resistance.

There are a variety of sections featuring the most eventful of incidents, interviews, snippets of humour, excerpts from to be released/already released books, thought-provoking articles and what not !! Colourful images, pictures and illustrations galore. And for the ones looking for a foray into shopping, fashion and movies, I suggest they search no farther, since the pandora's box is raring to breathe life into the moronic ordeals of human life.

The magazine is a monthly one & is at your doorsteps even before you realize that your salary payslip is due. The publication gets a headstart from the Reader's Digest INDIA located in Nariman point, Bombay. It's delivered to your abode if you opt to subscribe with a yearly fee of 300 odd rupees. It comes out to be very cheap since a singular copy costs around 40 rupees (In the early nineties it was a mere 23.50), which further amounts to around 480-500 rupees for the entire year if purchased from the regular book-stalls. The yearly subscription is heavily discounted & carries a couple of free gifts (Not to be disclosed, subscribe to find out :)).

Now, a round of anatomical dissection of the mag. The paper quality used to be very good although it has ceased to remain the same of late. Since All Good Things Perish Fast that doesn't deter the reader from savouring the unfathomable knowledge that comes along. The contents section provides a panoramic view of what lie inside replete with thumbnails. A ''Quotable Quotes'' a la Quotations page soon lights up your day, (I literally transplanted the Mark Twain quote from there). Then,follows the Word Power arena, where you get to wrestle with new words and their meanings. That's one of the sections I enjoy to the fullest since you come across Anglicised versions of scandinavian,latin-american & even HINDI jargons. After a wordy breakfast, we have a huge fiesta of articles ranging from socio-cultural anecdotes, business clippings, True-incidents, Health-SEXplorations,science & technology and virtual tours around the globe. The usage of grammatically opulent english and the savvy editing give the articles a royal treatment. There used to be a section called ''Drama in Real Life'', where real events of grit, courage & determination were showcased and this section has been merged with the general stream of late.And if you crave to laugh your heart out at any moment, try to get a sneak preview into the worlds of ''laughter the best medicine'',''Humor in Uniform'' or ''Life's like that''.The magazine consummates with a Book section highlighting extracts from the works of celebrated authors even before they hit the stands. A gallery brings into picture current happenings & the motivators through diverse platforms, namely ''Heroes for Today'' and ''People''. The reader is taken for a JOYride after he has glossed over an article for there awaits a tickler in the form of a humorous incident at the end of all articles. Occasionally you get even with a few quizzes dedicated entirely to your knowledge about famous personalities like Sherlock Holmes, James Bond to name a few. The entire voyage is blissed by countless pretty faces admiring you in different poses, thanks to the conquest of Advertisements, Duty free shopping, Gala events & Promos.

India is given a good coverage in the issues owing to her techno-politico-cultural diaspora.

Finally, when you flip the last page oscillating between distinct emotions, your eyes catch glimpse of a painting adorning the rear-cover page, often by a hitherto unknown painter who seems to convey that,

''Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder''.

READERS DIGEST THE KNOWLEDGE...