reading habit

Editor’s note

Subscriber Sahar Mansoor is the founder and CEO of Bare Necessities, a brilliant zero-waste social enterprise. She is a circular-economy nerd, a voracious learner and a curious traveller. She is also co-author of ‘Bare Necessities: How to Live a Zero-Waste Life,’ a one-stop guide on how to move towards a more sustainable lifestyle in India. Who better to take the Book Addict’s Quiz?

PS: This is our last instalment of this quiz. Stay posted for what is coming next:)

What is your most powerful and/or cherished childhood memory of a book?

It’s definitely ‘The Jungle Book’ by Rudyard Kipling, hard bound, filled with gorgeous imagery and dreamy forests. Of course, the large font was perfect for dyslexic Sahar. 

<‘Jungle Book’ is the best… though truth be told some of us haven’t exactly read the

book 🙈>

What line of literature or poetry can you quote ad nauseam? Brownie points if you can tell us when and where you quoted it most recently. 

“To be or not to be, that is the question” from ‘Hamlet’ by William Shakespeare. I think I’ve been asking myself a million to-be-or-not-to-be questions lately. It’s part of being in this social media era; we are constantly comparing ourselves to our peers and questioning, sometimes, the very core of who we are. To be or not to be part of this capitalistic society, to hustle purely for the joy of creating something you love and believe in or to try harder to be like all the hundreds of founders raising millions in VC funding. More every day to-be-or-not-to-bes are to-fly-or-not-to-fly, to-Netflix-or-not-to-Netflix. 

<Whoa, this may be the most honest and profound answer we’ve had to this question.>

An author you adored as a child but haven’t thought about in years?

Ruskin Bond, especially ‘The Tree Lover’ and ‘The Hidden Pool!’ 

<Ruskin Bond is the author everyone loves but no one reads. Sad but true. He’s not even at airport bookstores anymore:(>

Which book would you gift to your new best friend, and which to your worst enemy?

A book for my new best friend: ‘The Little Book of Otter Philosophy’ by Jennifer McCartney. Did you know otters hold hands with their friends whilst napping so they don’t float away? This is only one of the fun facts I learned from this book. It is adorable, heart-warming and encourages us to never forget our sense of play. 

A book to my worst enemy: I don’t have an enemy per se, but if I did, I’d give them a book that would encourage us to put our differences aside and to put into perspective all the more important issues at stake. I would pick ‘Manifesto for a Moral Revolution’ by Jacqueline Novogratz. Jacqueline shares inspiring stories from social impact entrepreneurs across the world, stories of difficult experiences and the mindsets we need to rise above them. Her book offers fresh perspectives for anyone who seeks to leave this world better off than they found it.

<Sigh! The problem with kind people is that they rarely have mean answers to mean questions>

I would love to see a movie/series adaptation of ___________ starring ____ as _____  

‘A Promised Land’ starring Sterling K Brown as Barack Obama. 

Being a political science major in undergrad while Obama was in the White House was something insanely special—being hopelessly optimistic about the future and the world moving forward (I decided to spend my summer working at an environmental non-profit in Washington DC.) I watched, over those four years, a few conservative Orange County Republicans in my poli sci classes become Democrats; some even went on to work for Obama in his second term. My current obsession is ‘This is Us,’ and I think Sterling K Brown would make a pretty kickass Barack! 

<Given the big fat Netflix deal the Obamas have, they probably will be paid millions just to play themselves:) And maybe Malia and Sasha can write the script?>

A book review that was better than the book? 

I honestly don’t read book reviews, because I love for the element of surprise to stay alive. I love going into a book with a clean slate, giving me ample headspace to form my own opinions.  

< A deliciously bad review is way better than a bad film or book. Get with the program, lady:)>

Which book do you pretend to have read? 

A book I haven’t read and wish to read is my own book, ‘Bare Necessities.’ After countless hours of writing and editing I haven’t managed to actually read it in its final version! Although I have loved flipping through and admiring the gorgeous illustrations by Mouli Paul. 

<❤️❤️for the endearing honesty>

What’s one of the funniest books you’ve ever read? Something apart from Wodehouse, Adams, Durrell et al would be even better. 

‘Bossypants’ by Tina Fey and ‘Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?’ by Mindy Kaling. Both hilarious life accounts of badass hilarious women who share real life stories about growing up, hustling to make it, motherhood stories—including eating things off the floor—and just being their authentic, hilarious selves! Stop whatever you are doing and borrow or buy these books (from your favourite small book shop); they’re perfect, chill night time reads just before bed! 

<Yess, these are the true Boss Girls who inspire all of us—insanely successful and always true to themselves.>

Send us a photo of your tsundoku pile

<150/100 for any pile that has both Tagore and Mandela.>

Thanks for playing, Sahar! Be sure to check out Bare Necessities—which is our go-to brand for building a more sustainable life.