In My Hands Today…

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Shadow of the Swords: An Epic Novel of the Crusades – Kamran Pasha

8176243An epic saga of love and war, Shadow of the Swords tells the story of the Crusades—from the Muslim perspective.

Saladin, a Muslim sultan, finds himself pitted against King Richard the Lionheart as Islam and Christianity clash against each other, launching a conflict that still echoes today.
In the midst of a brutal and unforgiving war, Saladin finds forbidden love in the arms of Miriam, a beautiful Jewish girl with a tragic past. But when King Richard captures Miriam, the two most powerful men on Earth must face each other in a personal battle that will determine the future of the woman they both love—and of all civilization.

Instagram Interludes

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After more than a year, I finally made it to the Indian Heritage Centre here. And surprisingly I learnt that my mum is also interested in museums like me! This museum is is very small with just two floors of the permanent exhibits and one floor which is the seasonal exhibit. The top floor consists of how Indians lived in pre independence Singapore and the level below was filled with contributions from prominent Indians across different fields. The seasonal exhibition floor was closed when we were there. The photos below are from the top floor.

In My Hands Today…

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Mistress of the Throne – Ruchir Gupta

192297201631. The Empress of India Mumtaz Mahal has died. Yet, rather than anoint one of his several other wives to take her place as Empress of India, Mughal King Shah Jahan anoints his seventeen-year-old daughter Jahanara as the next Queen of India.

Bearing an almost identical resemblance to her mother, Jahanara is the first ever daughter of a sitting Mughal King to be anointed queen. She is reluctant to accept this title but does so in hopes of averting the storm approaching her family and Mughal India. Her younger siblings harbor extreme personalities from a liberal multiculturalist (who views religion as an agent of evil) to an orthodox Muslim (who views razing non-Muslim buildings as divine will).

Meanwhile, Jahanara struggles to come to terms with her own dark reality: as the daughter of a sitting King, she is forbidden to marry. Thus, while she lives in the shadow of her parents’ unflinching love story, she is devastated by the harsh reality that she is forbidden to share such a romance with another.

Recipe: Tomato Bell Pepper Chutney

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TBPC4.1This is a new take on an old, but gold chutney recipe. This chutney is super easy to make and goes very well with any Indian flatbread or even dosai or ildi. My helper even had it with rice and she relished it a lot!

TBPC3.1Tomato Bell Pepper Chutney

Ingredients:

  • 4 tomatoes, roughly chopped
  • 2 onions, roughly chopped
  • 1 red bell pepper, roughly chopped
  • 4-5 fresh red chillies (can use dried red chillies instead)
  • 4-5 cloves of garlic
  • 1-inch piece of ginger
  • 1 tsp mustard seeds
  • 1/4 tsp fenugreek seeds
  • 2 tbsp Gingelly oil
  • Salt to taste

Method:

  • In a blender, blend to a fine paste without using water the tomatoes, onions, bell pepper, ginger, garlic and red chillies.
  • Heat the gingelly oil in a pan and when it warms, add the mustard seeds. When the seeds pop, add the fenugreek seeds.
  • Next, add the blended paste and stir occasionally until it becomes thick. Add salt and when it reaches the thickness you want, switch off the gas and let it cool.
  • Serve with an Indian bread of your choice.

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In My Hands Today…

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The Samurai’s Garden – Gail Tsukiyama

51113A 20-year-old Chinese painter named Stephen is sent to his family’s summer home in a Japanese coastal village to recover from a bout with tuberculosis. Here he is cared for by Matsu, a reticent housekeeper, and a master gardener. Over the course of a remarkable year, Stephen learns Matsu’s secret and gains not only physical strength but also profound spiritual insight. Matsu is a samurai of the soul, a man devoted to doing good and finding beauty in a cruel and arbitrary world, and Stephen is a noble student, learning to appreciate Matsu’s generous and nurturing way of life and to love Matsu’s soul-mate, gentle Sachi, a woman afflicted with leprosy.