Customer Reviews on Amazon.com

1. By J. Parisse-brassens on Amazon.com 31 March, 2013

   A decent read with a nice setting

   "The three mistakes of my life" is a book by Chetan Bhagat, an author from India. Bhagat is quite successful and has written many good books. In this one he tells the story of Govind and his two friends Ish and Omi, who live in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. Govind wants to become a businessman, Ish loves nothing else but cricket and Omi is just happy being with his friends. Together they open a cricket shop and become somewhat successful in their business endeavours. This is the background to the story of how they discover a young Muslim boy called Ali, who has a gift for cricket. Ish trains him hard and tries to make him an elite cricket player. But things don't come easy to any of the three friends. Govind's business dreams are shattered by a powerful earthquake, Ali does not want to relocate to Australia to become a successful cricket player, and Omi has to face the political ambitions of some family members. The politics and religious clashes between Hindus and Muslims are part of the story, and in fact, will contribute to its tragic ending. This novel reminded me of the tensions I myself felt between Hindus and Muslims when travelling through Rajasthan. The story is okay, although a bit superficial at times - and the cricket thing can be a little tedious. It's a nice story of love, passion, money, politics, and hate. Well written with fun characters, but it would benefit from more depth in its character depiction. A good read, and one in a different setting for once.
2. 1 of 2 people found this review helpful

   By Dalok on Amazon.com 9 January, 2012

   Nice fun read. Not a memorable book.

   This is the first Chetan Bhagat book I have read. The book was a very nice read and I couldn't put it down. The characters were well defined and believable and I could identify with some of them. The budding romance between the hero and Vidhya was well handled.
   
   Topic of communal violence is a tough one to handle and I am not sure if author had the luxury of handling it properly in this small paperback.
   
   The ending of the book was rather muddled and confused. It seemed like editor said to author that I need the manuscript now and author caved in. I find this to be a case with most Indian authors though.
   
   Overall a good read but I am not sure if it will be discussed much over the water coolers.