The Fresh Brew : Chronicles of Business And Freedom

When I started out to read The Fresh Brew, authored by two of my batch mates at IIM Lucknow, I really wasn't sure what to expect. Sure, there was quite some hype that had been generated around the book (after all, the ex-President of India was kind enough to write the Foreword!) but that still did not tell me much about what sort of content I would be getting to read. I was pleased to find that the Fresh Brew is quite a brilliant read. The stories about each of the 25 protagonists are refreshingly crisp and raw. The grit, determination and sweat that has gone into each and every one these start-ups is vividly captured in the book as is the euphoria of gradually watching one's hard work transform into a successful venture. Even though I did not have any plans of 'starting-up', I must say the book's tremendously high inspiration quotient has rubbed off on me and set me thinking about the road less traveled. I guess this would be the best measure for Mr. Haralalka and Mr. Thakur of a job well done.

I had read Amitabh Thakur’s blogs on Sulekha and when I saw the announcement of the book here on Flipkart (which also stated that it boasted of a foreword by Dr APJ Abdul Kalam) I ordered the book. The subtitle is “Chronicles of Business and Freedom”.

My guess was that it’d be something like Rashmi Bansal’s “Stay Hungry Stay Foolish” (SHSF) was confirmed by Thakur’s epilogue in which he acknowledges that the book is indeed inspired by her book.

The book’s back-cover states that it contains “inspiring life stories of 25 IIM Lucknow Alumni who followed their heart, their dream, their passion!”

The book makes for informative reading, yet comparisons with SHSF are unavoidable. The raciness of the latter is missing – thankfully compensated by the blurbed comments and observations of the kin and colleagues of the 25 Alumni whose life is showcased here. A value-for-money buy at the price, yet one would like to make some suggestions for the next edition.

The book appears to have been packaged in a hurry – evident in two major aspects:
(i) the proof reading could have been undertaken more diligently
(ii) the editing could have been tighter; as in many places it appears to be unsure of the niche its aiming at – is it just the Alumni of IIM Lucknow (& release coinciding with the celebration of the Institute’s silver jubilee) and/or the management graduates desiring to be entrepreneurs. The sentences at places are full of jargon – and abbreviations – which could have been explained and detailed out separately in an appendix; and language is stilted.

The authors deserve praise for this “product” and I earnestly wish that the next edition is thoroughly revamped and made crisper and a lot easier to read.

Book quite dissapoint me.It may be because they have not pick the good examples for their book. "Stay Hungary Stay Foolish" is a quite a good read.