Invincible Mind by Arati Katre

Arati Katre happens to be a friend’s friend. And this is how I got to read this privately circulated book Invincible Mind. The book is a compilation of thoughts by various thinkers that have impressed the author over the years. She has gathered thoughts from thinkers like Vivekanand, practitioners like A P J Abdul Kalam and people in her own world like her mother.

Invincible Mind

Each thought has been briefly explained by the author. Based on how she would have related or would have like to relate to the thought. There is nothing much you gather from her explanations. As thoughts are very scattered, lost in the brevity and diversity. There is an absence of practicality in explanation. So the reader feels that anyone can write these 5-7 sentence view on popular words. There are too many things covered: self, community, country, virtues, action, hard work etc. The author could have as well connected all these somewhere in the book, which would have taken away the randomness of the quotes.

I could not understand the categorization also that is done, some more effort was probably required here too. One thing that I could see throughout the book was the focus on action and importance of action. And most of what the author says can be traced back to Bhagwat Gita.

As someone who has never been able to sit down and write the intended books, I can not undermine the effort put by Arati in compiling the book. But I feel she should have explored lesser thoughts for one volume. And should have gone a few levels deeper into what she wants to say. She needs to get her messages across to her audience. And also identify and define her audience very clearly. The intentions are good, need a bit of more work from the author.

Congratulations Arati on your first book, and all the best for the future ones…