"Five Point Someone---What not to do at IIT" by Chetan Bhagat

This is the first book i had read ever in my life. Yeah i know i started quite late but thats how it is.
Anyways I would like to say that "Chetan Bhagat" became my favorite writer once i read this book. His bohemian and informal style of writing impressed me to the limits. Well i think any Indian who has even a mild habbit of reading books or novels would have read this book. But still i would like to give its synopsis in so called "Gags style".

The novel is set in the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, in the period 1991 to 1995. It is about the adventures of three mechanical engineering students (and friends), Hari Kumar (the narrator), Ryan Oberoi, and Alok Gupta, who fail to cope with the grading system of the IITs and come to be known as five pointers due to their perennially low 5 point something GPA's.

The book is narrated in the first person by Hari, with some small passages by his friends Ryan and Alok, as well as a letter by Hari's girlfriend Neha Cherian. It deals with the lives of the three friends whose elation on making it to one of the best engineering colleges in India is quickly deflated by the rigor and monotony of academic work. Most of the book deals with the numerous attempts by the trio to cope with and/or beat the system as well as Hari's fling with Neha who just happens to be the daughter of Prof. Cherian, the domineering head of the Mechanical Engineering Department.

While the tone of the novel is humorous, it takes some dark turns every now and then, especially when it comes to the families of the main characters. Most of the action, however, takes place inside the campus as the boys, led by the ever creative Ryan, frequently lamenting how the internationally lauded IIT system has stifled their creativity by forcing them to value grades more than anything else. Uninspiring teaching and numerous assignments adds to their woes although the boys do find a sympathizer in Prof. Veera, the new fluid mechanics professor.

At the end i would like to say that it was mere the writing style of the book that made it best selling rather than the story line-up

ADVISE FOR BEGINNERS: If anyone, especially in India, who is yet to start reading books, I would advise you start with this book. You will easily find its critics but still its my personal experience which says that you can easily built habbit of reading books and novels after going through this book

If you would like to say anything after reading, you are most welcome. Please post a comment