Princess Lubna Orchid of India

Reading & Writing is like breathing for me…If I stop both….I’ll stop breathing….. :)

My passions besides books is writing, painting, cooking and traveling! As is evident I am a bibliophile....a book addict as most on Shelfari! I have always been a voracious reader of fiction and non-fiction books. My curious mind always asking for more... more »

Reading & Writing is like breathing for me…If I stop both….I’ll stop breathing….. :)

My passions besides books is writing, painting, cooking and traveling! As is evident I am a bibliophile....a book addict as most on Shelfari! I have always been a voracious reader of fiction and non-fiction books. My curious mind always asking for more & more and invariably reach out for anything new and unusual.

I am surrounded by thousands of books that I own and have on my shelf at home on almost all topics and various subjects eg. Classics, Literature, Best selling authors that I love, Mysteries, Travel, History, Geography, Literary criticism, Humor, Poetry, Fiction, Memoirs, Romantic, Thrillers, Suspense, Biography, Autobiography, Philosophy, Psychology, Anthology, Anthropology, Spiritualism, Mystics, Medicine, Biology, Religion, Islam, Astrology, Zodiac, Numerology, Tarot, Art, Painting, just to name a few.....yes....right...there sure are many more subjects those are still not mentioned here....:)

Children books, with wonderful stories & illustrations, Comics, journals & magazines also represent a significant part of the collection on this shelf.

I am absolutely in love with the Libraries anywhere, any city and in any country!! I use the library extensively many a times to read books before I indulge in buying them. I can spend hours and hours in the reading room at Gymkhana Club, bookstores, book fairs and libraries, these definitely are my favorite haunts! I just love the feeling of being there with so many books within my reach…browsing…flipping pages in between…..reading the back page.. reviews…..credentials…..love to read the preface as well…..the information on the first page….publication year, publishing house, author’s address etc. interests me also…..well anything written in the book……:)….Invariably I loose track of time while reading and am so much engrossed in a book that in fact there are times when the librarian comes and politely reminds me with a smile on his face….Ma’am its closing time now!!.....lol

In my historical and wonderful city... New Delhi..where I live....there are hundreds of libraries both public and private. The most popular being the American Library and British Council Library among the expatriates and residents as well. India International Center the library for bureaucrats abundant with research books and journals available for reference on Arts and Social sciences…..I spend hours in IIC doing my research work and they sure have latest stuff & journals on various subjects! Gymkhana Library has almost become my second home…frequently visiting every other week…:)….familiar surroundings, familiar faces….one of my favorite places where I hunt for fiction novels, new, just released books, all best selling and upcoming authors!!

Being brought up in academic & bureaucratic environment, my parents have instilled great values in my upbringing. My father being a world renowned economist with UN & IMF, a diplomat with Government of India traveled all over the world therefore I experienced many aspects of life and met many people from all walks of life. Exposed to various cultures since early childhood, have toured the world extensively, have visited over twenty countries in America, Europe, Africa & South East Asia.

My love for books takes me to such exotic and quaint places in many cities all over the world. I love traveling to unusual places...:)
As much as I am fond of reading I also love buying and owning books....another addiction! I always loved to buy, still do, buy one book from the numerous Airports I passed/pass or use in transits and I register it on the first page of the novel...the year/date of purchase, place and country. ...:)

When I had gone to Lusaka, Zambia, where my father was posted on an IMF assignment, to spend my holidays awaiting my graduation result. After doing a stint at a computer job at Bank of Zambia I was all of a sudden left with ample time leaving me restless and feeling worthless. My father suggested that I become a member at the British Council Library and Wow! I found my haven...:)I practically devoured all classics available there in the Literature section…..reading the whole series…..it was all they had…the rest being reference and academic books. Reading the whole series became an obsession, a peculiar habit, developed during this time….my reading one book….liking it….and …reading all written by the same author.

I lived in picturesque Istanbul, Turkey for three years. To my utter horror I discovered and understood what "language barrier" actually meant.......everything written was in Turkish....even the most popular American Soaps...Santa Barbara....Bold and Beautiful.....Knight Rider....Remington Steele etc....all my favorites..... were dubbed in Turkish!! .....lol

Oh! My God! How was I to survive in this country.....no books....meant no joy for me! I started my hunt to quaint markets in the by lanes of Istanbul to look for books in English « less