LEADER :-

ABHILASH MISHRA (Roll No-2)

MEMBERS :-
 Abhijeet Samal (Roll No-1)
 Ankit Nayak (Roll No-3)
 Ankita Pattnaik (Roll No-4)
 Anurag Jena (Roll No-5)
 Ashutosh Mishra (Roll No-6)
 Meenakshi Reddy Madhavan blogger is a and writer.
She writes under the pseudonym on The Compulsive
Confessor. Her first book, a semi-autobiographical
attempt, is "You Are Here", published by Penguin group.
Her second book is titled 'Confessions of a List maniac'
which was published by Scholastic.
 She is the daughter of the famous malayalam writer and
IAS officer N.S.Madhavan who is one of the most
powerful voice of Malayalam literature. Her mother Shiela
Reddy is a journalist.
 EXPERIENCE OF THE
AUTHOR(MEENAKSHI
REDDY MADHAVAN)
Correspondent:
 Outlook Magazine
 December 2006 – April 2008 (1 year 5 months)
 Worked as the Mumbai features correspondent for Outlook magazine.
Author:
 You Are Here (Penguin Books, India)
 August 2008 – Present (4 years 3 months)
 My debut novel You Are Here was released in August 2008 and was on the bestseller charts for several months. It is now
being optioned for a movie.
Features Writer:
 Indian Express
 Privately Held; 5001-10,000 employees; Newspapers industry
 January 2005 – December 2007 (3 years)
 Worked as a features reporter covering books, alcohol and embassies, along with several trend stories.
Freelance writer:
 Freelance (Self-employed)
 April 2008 – Present (4 years 7 months)
 I do two columns on books and blogging for Hindustan Times and Deccan Chronicle. I also do freelance assignments for
other publications, including international media--reviews, opinions and so on. I also work as a guest blogger for the
British Airways website, Metro twin Mumbai. (mumbai.metrotwin.com)
“ 17 year old Layla knows that
Journal writing is way retro but
decides to recreate the whole
blog thing in a note
book. Layla’s journal entries
often morph into quirky lists that
record her observations on her
life and times."

It mostly deals with the lives of

a teenager who cannot decide
between a right and a
wrong. She falls for popularity
and makes her life
miserable. The story mostly
deals with fashion, peer
pressure, boy troubles,
friendship, her interests and not
to mention family and the
decisions that affect her lives.
This is a young adult book about Layla, an ordinary 17-year-
old who loves to make lists and even though journal writing
is considered ‘retro’ in this day and age of the internet, she
decides to give it a try and re-create the whole blog thing in
a book. She has always been on the fringes of popularity
and wonders what it would be like to be a part of the ‘in’
crowd, like her older brother, who she adores. Like any other
typical upper middle class teenager in a cosmopolitan city
with liberal parents, Layla loves hanging out with her best
friend, tries out the world of online friendships, and wonders
what it would be like to have a boy friend and go to all
night parties. When suddenly, one day, the most popular
boy in school takes a fancy to her, she finds herself thrown
into the world she always longed to be a part of. A chance
encounter with a cute diplomat’s son and a major fight with
her best-friend make Layla question her new life.
  It’s a fairly simple and straight forward coming of age story.
Madhavan’s writing is lucid and witty and she does a good job of
delivering a simple story with style. She stands out because of this,
among the new generation of Indian authors churning out books by
the dozens because of what I’d like to call “The Chetan Bhagat
effect.”
 Any parent or adult looking to delve into what teenagers of today are
like can get a glimpse through this book. It’s a perfect light, summer
read when you’re too hot and bothered to take up a bulky book, and
makes for a safe-bet gift for that adolescent sister or cousin’s
birthday for which you have no idea what to get them.
 The first impression – found the cover design appealing as well as
interesting. In a few hours I was already wading in through the life of a
17 year old teenager, Layla. She is like any other girl living in our
neighborhood who loves to shop, cribs over, fights with her brother, is
curious about late night parties, hangs out with school friends, makes
internet friends, can’t live without her best friend and is very confused
about having a boyfriend.
 The first thing that comes in mind as I put the book down is what a
‘cute refreshing treat’ it was. I enjoyed it thoroughly and it was an easy
and breezy read. The book is fresh, bubbly and real. I am sure it will
take you back to those wonderful, charming years-’teenage’ where
things were actually so uncomplicated and fun. I was reminded of those
petty issues which gave me sleepless nights but now seem so trivial
compared to the other complexities in life.
 The observations and confessions in this book have originality in plenty
and relate perfectly to today’s teenagers. Layla, longs to be the centre
of attraction in school but eventually realizes that there’s more fun in
being an ‘Ordinary’ than ‘Extra-ordinary’. A lesson to be learnt!

 This book urged me to go for List making. I have come to believe that
List making can be turned into an art if you let it. Some advantages of
list-making that I have realized:

1. It eases your work and highlights the concerns.

2. You rarely tend to forget anything.
3. Its way simpler than writing in paragraphs.
4. Also helps in time management.
5. Its simple, fast and easy to share.
6. Less wordy but conveys apt.
7. Helps to remember in sequence.
8. Keeps everything under control.
9. Makes reading interesting.

 On another positive note, Lists help to preserve memories and if

maintained on a daily basis helps to organize the day well. The aim
should never be to have a long list but even when you complete half of
the list; it gives a feeling of great accomplishment.