Bodyguard

Series Review: Bodyguard 

Available on: Netflix My Rating: 8 out of 10

Bodyguard, released in 2018, was very successful in Britain, and has been available on Netflix for US viewers for some time. It showed up in Netflix recommendations, and I am glad I watched it.

Giving a spoiler-free synopsis of a series that’s filled with twists and surprises is hard. So it’s best to keep it very short and introductory. The main protagonist is David Budd (Richard Madden, who played Robert Stark in the “Game Of Thrones”). David is a war veteran, now serving in the Police. As we have seen in numerous such series and movies, he is suffering from PTSD, which has affected his marriage. After an heroic effort in the opening sequence, he is assigned to protect the home secretary, Julia Montague (played brilliantly by Keeley Hawes). The home secretary’s views are extremely hawkish and it’s clear to us that David doesn’t appreciate them at all. From here the situation gets very complex and dangerous, and I won’t mention further as I don’t want to give anything away

This 6 episode series feels like a movie because it goes by so fast. Except the last episode, in which one sequence felt dragged to me. This is definitely an edge of your seat thriller that grips you right from the opening sequence. And the series does that by constantly surprising the viewer. It does take liberties with believability, but those are less common. Now twists and turns are very common in the thriller genre and can get tiresome. The reason it works here is, there are so many cross currents, that the series manages to create an air of suspicion around almost every character, including David. 

The credit goes first to the writer and creator Jed Mercurio for crafting this tale. With any successful series, the cast matters, and I was impressed by most of the large ensemble. I admit that, even though I found Richard Madden’s portrayal of David Budd satisfying, some may find it inconsistent. In addition to Keeley Hawes (who plays the Home Secretary) I must highlight Sophie Rundle who plays Vicky Budd, the wife of David Budd.

This is a very bingeable series and I highly recommend it to those looking for pure entertainment. It’s correctly rated TV-MA.

Islam: A New History from Muhammad to the Present

Book Review: Islam 

Author: John Tolan My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

The complete title of the book is “Islam: A New History from Muhammad to the Present”.

In today’s hyper-tribalistic world, few topics generate as many heated and intense discussions as Islam. In my social circle, mostly comprising of Indian diaspora, it’s a recurring hot button topic, and unfortunately, no points for guessing what kind of tone is used abundantly in these discussions. My interest in Islam is a byproduct of my interest in Urdu Poetry and a necessity to understand Urdu Poetry better. I am very attracted to poetry that has Sufism deeply embedded in it, and have always tried to learn more about the frequent historical references. That’s how I stumbled onto this book looking for a way to educate myself, and also, hopefully, a book that I might be able to recommend to others.

Now, I am not sure about the claim “New History” as made in the title, but I admit, I am not qualified enough to judge the claim anyways. What I can say is, this is comprehensive and concise, akin to a bird’s eye view, of the history of the Islamic world since its inception.

The period spans centuries, from the time of Prophet Mohammed to the recent times. The empires and kingdoms cover a vast geographical area from Spain and Northern Africa to Far East Asia. Entire books have been written about much smaller slices of time and space. So it’s not a surprise that for such a large scope, a single book can offer only a high level summary. In doing that, the book succeeds really well.

What is even more admirable, is the book clearly conveys how complex the societies were, how paradoxical the alliances and conflicts were. It’s easy to accept, after reading such a history, that discussions around complex topics cannot be simplistic and have to be nuanced.

At the same time, the tone of the book, while discussing history, can be appealing or problematic, depending on the point of view of the reader. It’s not an opinionated editorial, and judgements are infrequent. Those readers, looking for a positive or negative narrative supported by history, will be disappointed. I liked it that way as I prefer forming my opinions myself.

That can make the tone dry and less engaging. And I think many history books have that disadvantage. One chapter though, about the travels of Ibn Battuta in the 14th century, stands out in its story telling. This was all new information to me, and surprisingly so. Ibn Battuta, a Berber Arab from Morocco, traveled over 70K miles, far more than any other, including famous travelers such as Marco Polo. He lived in India for six years, and then traveled to Indonesia, China to name a few countries. He chronicled his travels and they provide a first hand account of life in so many parts of the world. It’s a fascinating story, worthy of a movie.

Interestingly, the tone changes as the book starts discussing recent events that happened after the Second World War. From the effects of decolonization and the drawing of arbitrary boundaries, which gave rise to bloody regional conflicts, to the emergence of what the author calls “Political Islam” are discussed with candor. The author presents a multi-faceted picture. He highlights efforts of numerous liberal Muslim intellectuals, feminists and activists who risked it all for fighting for democratic freedoms, and separation of religion from state. And he also does not shy away from calling it naive to say that “Islam is a religion of peace”, as history has shown that the struggle between pacifist and militant factions of Islam has been playing out for centuries.

I highly recommend this book for a quick and nuanced overview of a vast and complicated history. It’s a well researched book with pages of references, and has been updated for events in the 2020s.

2026 Pleasanton Hot Rod Show

Pleasanton City organizes an annual Hot Rods show in the downtown. It's a great opportunity to see beautiful classic cars and talk to the owners who lovingly take great care of their prized vehicles. 

The Main Street is blocked for this show and is full of classic cars on display.

Here are some absolutely gorgeous cars.

Some owners take pride in displaying the well maintained engine in a pristine condition.

And everything inside is of course as well maintained.