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Chandran Kalyanam, Clinical Psychiatry

Posted on | January 18, 2012 | 634 views | 1 Comment

Chandran Kalyanam is an assistant professor of Clinical Psychiatry and the medical director, Electroconvulsive Therapy.

What are your five favorite books and why?

Among many favorites, these come to mind now:

My Antonia by Willa Cather. I enjoyed the story itself, the writing style and learning about the Plains states in yesteryear. If I knew that my then-girlfriend did not share my view of this fine book, she might not have become my wife.

Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison. The power of his magnum opus and the metaphor of “invisibility” still amaze me. Attesting to his skill as a writer, Ellison accomplished a significant feat in keeping the narrator anonymous throughout this substantial book.

Tess of the d’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy. I love Hardy’s ability to develop characters and immerse the reader into the setting. When Somerset Maugham read Tess, he concluded that he must marry a milkmaid.

Swami and Friends by R.K. Narayan. No one has portrayed traditional South Indian life in such a gentle, witty and engaging manner. Thank God that Graham Greene saw Narayan’s promise and advocated a wider publication.

Burmese Days by George Orwell. Although Animal Farm and 1984 are more popular, this book deserves attention. Orwell was unique in championing the individual facing larger oppressive systems, including imperialism and Big Brother.

What is the last book you’ve bought?

A Billion Wicked Thoughts by Ogi Ogas and Sai Gaddam. A fascinating book about desire and sexuality, based on actual data from the Internet. An excellent companion to Christopher Ryan’s Sex at Dawn, also an academically informed book about the history of sex.

What “important book” have you not read and why haven’t you read it?

From the 20th century, I would love to take on the triumvirate thick books of Joyce’s Ulysses, Musil’s The Man Without Qualities and Proust’s Remembrance of Things Past. I lack that leisure of mind and time right now.

What classic novel disappointed you?

I am highly indebted to Pierre Ryckmans (pen name, Simon Leys) who observed rightly that reading for pleasure should be for pleasure and not all books are for all people. That gave me permission to abandon books that just don’t work for me now, contrasting mandated reading for class. I loved many books that I read in class, but not all.

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