Book Review : Unsung Heroes - Real Stories To Inspire You

I have previously observed the need for the Media to cover local Success Stories, stories of normal people who add value to society, or achieve something special in a relative sense. Such stories can galvanise and motivate a people, and spread positivity all  round. Our Media is in dire need of a refocus along these lines. While the   Media may be taking its own sweet time to come around, it is nice to see normal people coming up and stepping forward to fill the void. One such person is Major Pradeep Khare, who has decided to contribute to the above in his own small way.

Unsung Heroes is the name given to the book, one which does full justice to the book, its contents and to the people whose stories are given in it. 51 high-calibre stories of struggle, sacrifice, hard work, imagination, and dedication. These are stories which either never reach your eyes and ears, or are covered sporadically in minor news snippets; yet, each story deserves a deeper contemplation, and provides a series of learnings as well as motivations for the reader.

The name sounds preachy – trust me, it isn’t preachy in the least. Each story is thought-provoking, each story makes for a deep connect on an individual level, and each story gives deep lessons and learnings without exception. This is a top-notch collection of stories on a variety of parameters, aspects and realities of our nation, {except for a few odd stories of people from abroad} – covering Academics, Entrepreneurs, Academicians, Prodigies, Environment, Survivors, Women Successes, Differently Abled, Rural India, Trail Blazers, and more.

The best part about the book is the narrative style – simple, easy to understand, using simple words and language, making for easy absorption by even those not too comfortable with English. That is a vital point. To top this, each story is engagingly told, and draws in the reader with consummate and effortless ease – with a complete lack of over-emphasis or needless dramatization. This is what makes the content of the story much more powerful. Each story is balanced, and with  the right positive direction in it.

This factual style of narration not only drives home the reality of the lives of these 51 people, the absence of needless dramatization actually engages the reader as it gives an overall positive tone to the book and its flow - thus making for a fascinating and deeply absorbing read. Each story presented the narrator with a clear opportunity to underscore the trials and tribulations these people went through. That is the route many would have taken; yet, this has not been done. The trials that each person went through are factually stated, not overemphasized – the entire focus is positive, stated in terms of how each individual fought his or her way out of the scenario.

The net result of this approach is that each story actually lifts your mood from page one of each story – which is a tremendous achievement, given the struggles these people initially went through. The entire focus on “the how they succeeded” parameter also gives lasting lessons and case studies, which can be applied by all of us in our lives. These are real stories of real people – people like you and me; these aren’t your page-3 people whose lives have been covered elsewhere. These are normal people you can spot anywhere; it is their approach that has made them special – an approach that can be easily adapted to each of our respective lives and implemented with ease. That is what makes this book special.

 While the book may not have taken the preachy road, {thankfully}, this reviewer is under no compunction to do so. I could not but help notice that in most of the stories, either the apathy of the Government officials, or their incompetence, or their shortcomings, or their resource crunch was visible. We need to improve on ground governance  on each of these parameters : attitude, competence, ability, awareness, and performance. Some of these stories give standing lessons in one or more of these attributes. But each story also showcases that it is possible for all of us to help out individually, not to beat the system, but to give it time to build, given that we are a developing nation with a resource crunch. Each story leaves that standing lesson – One Man Can Make A Difference!