BOOK REVIEW: BROKEN CRAYONS CAN STILL COLOUR BY CAPTAIN RAKESH WALIA

TITLE: BROKEN CRAYONS CAN STILL COLOUR
AUTHOR: CAPTAIN RAKESH WALIA
PUBLISHER: NOTION PRESS
GENRE: AUTOBIOGRAPHY
PAGES: 143
PRICE : INR 249





BOOK REVIEW:

We all have heard and read many inspiring stories of people who had access to education, had their family support and they worked hard to achieve success, but.. have you ever heard a story of an orphan boy who had nothing in his life, who lost his parents, had no family to call his own, no money to buy even him a food, no education, no resources, not even basic facilities and without any experience in any job and HE MADE IT BIG!! He accomplished his dreams without any support.  Broken Crayons Can Still is an autobiography of Captain Rakesh Walia, his extraordinary life story, which will serve as an inspiration to all. In this book we can read how Captain Rakesh Walia sir earned the olive green dress with his hard work and with his never say die attitude. 




At the age of of 6, he lost his parents and at that tender age when he deserved love, care, counselling and acceptance, all he received was avoidance, hatred and violence. When all seasons bring joy in childhood, most precious phase of life was turned haunting for him, and each new season brought its own challenges for him. First few pages will fill you with anger and will make you feel like finding these characters who did this inhumane behaviour with him and ask them this question~ how can they be so cruel to a  6 year old kid? There was no one to guide him, to boost his self-confidence but this young passionate boy Rakesh who accepted everything and without becoming negative, he chose to keep his thoughts positive and he kept himself motivated. His this self-motivating attitude surprised me the most. He knew very well that he never wanted to live a life less ordinary and always yearned a better meaningful life . His this desire made him turn his failure into success and he worked towards building his life brick by brick. His life journey tells readers how he fought battle with trying circumstances, gained skills on his own and achieved everything due to his devotion to work. He looked at life from a different perspective and he focussed on becoming the solution and not staying like a problem where he was.

In the first few pages we get to read his encounter with the Gurkha Officer that had shaped his destiny. The Gurkha's gentle words had given him the strength to overcome his struggle. He took this officer's words as God's own command and he worked hard with a strong mindset to achieve his dream of becoming an army officer. At the very young age, he learnt his lessons of teamwork, competitive spirit, punctuality and value of hard work. He did not have any choice of work like many of us. He got his first job for newspaper circulation and he was excited when he got this work. His commitment was so strong, he worked all day in the factory and used to study at night. In his free time, he visited library and acquainted himself with the many intricacies of English. Finally after preparing himself he joined Army but coping with the training and its challenges was also not easy for him but his mental toughness helped him at every challenging phase. Later on he got a job in leading conglomerates in the travel industry. He kept achieving once milestone after another. And then his joining at Matrix added a new chapter to his corporate growth.







Here are my  favourite takeaways from this book:

  • Hard work, honesty and faith in yourself pays in life.
  • We should always keep trying to raise the bar of performance to next level higher level once a level is achieved.
  • We should not always only be interested in our own elevation but we should try to help others as well.
  •  I have not known him personally but after reading this book, I can say he is a man always looking to learn something to improve himself and we should also be like him.


The cover design is 'par excellence'. The title is apt. The writing style is excellent and the story will keep you hooked till the end. This story inspired me and I am sure it will inspire others as well. I am glad I read it.


ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Captain Rakesh Walia is a positive influencer, motivator, life coach and an author. A self-made man, who decided at very young age to shape his world, rather than be shaped by it.

From being orphaned at the age of six, to reaching the hallowed annals of the Indian Army, and then becoming a corporate success; he is a man who broke the shackles of his circumstances to be the maker of his own destiny. He holds all the elements of perseverance, grit, determination and will; a will to not only survive, but succeed.

Comments

Popular Posts