Book Name: Mad Money Journey
Author’s Name: Mehrab Irani
Rating: 4.5/5
Story in a nutshell-
The novel opens up with an accident which lands the protagonist, John Pinto in the hospital.
He is taken to the hospital by a guy whom he later on, recognises to be his childhood friend, Vijay Desai. It doesn’t take long for Vijay to find out John’s problem and the reason behind his suicidal attenpt. He calls him to his office the day after he is supposed to be discharged from the hospital. John always looked down upon Vijay as he was a high school dropout. But now, the times have changed. Vijay is one of the business tycoons of the country. Vijay convinces John to take up a mad, money journey in order to help him out with his financial issues.
The first place on the ‘to-visit’ list is Bangkok. John is escorted by a man to Duan Aimond, a lady who runs an NGO in order to rehabilitate the prostitutes. She herself has been in to the profession in the past. She wishes to make earth a better place for the girls and hence, the NGO. Dhe gives John the first lesson of money management. She also shares her life story with John. How did she land up in the NGO? What was her connection with Vijay? What had John learnt from Duan?
Kabul, Afghanisthan is the next destination and John is expected to meet Mr. Feda Wahidi. What impression do we have of terrorists in our minds? A negative one. Isn’t it? Would you believe me if I was to tell you that a terrorist saved lives of many? Meet Mr. Feda Wahidi! John meets up this man and his opnion about terrorists changes completely. ‘If you do good to others, good will come to you’ Mr. Feda says. Read about Feda’s life and his association with Vijay. What did Mr. Feda teach John?
John Pinto then finds himself with Faline Cheong in Zhujiajiao, China. At a very young age of 25, Faline has attained incredible knowledge of karma and spirituality. She converses with the spirits. She is an epitome of knowledge. She gives John the fourth lesson of financial wisdom. What does the fourth lesson say?
The next place on John’s list is Sydney where he is supposed to meet Adaline and Christopher Jones. This daughter-father pair offers John excellent lesson about life and finance. They believe in equal allocation. Some real life incidents give you lessons for lifetime. What knowledge did Sydney impart to John?
Budgeting is something which is usually a matter of concern for a person who has a family. Vijay sends John to Nairobi, Kenya. He wants John to spend time with Richard Omondi and his family to learn the lesson of budgets. Does John successfully learn budgeting? In what way is Richard’s life story related to budgets?
John then flies away to Johannesburg to meet Mandisa Kyuger- a young widow. Mandisa teaches him the seventh lesson of financial wisdom. She talks about her life so that John understands it better. But John makes a fool out of himself by asking a stupid question. What was the question? Is the lesson which Mandisa taught him understood by him?
John moves to New York to meet Mark Adams. He gives him the lesson of equity investments. Mark relates equity to exercise and helps John learn the lesson in a better way. John is convinced with his teaching. What did he learn?
London is the next place on John’s list. He is welcomed by Brandon Smith to London. Spacious apartments and magnificent villas have always attracted man. He doesn’t think twice before investing in real estate. Mr. Smith and his family offer an incredible lesson to John. What was the lesson all about?
John is back to India after a long journey of 23 days. But he is being taken to Nashik to a small village named Deolali. He is supposed to meet Captain Shyam Singh. Along with the financial lesson, John is being educated with inspirational life lessons. What are they?
Haridwar is next and the final destination. Why does Vijay want John to visit Haridwar? What does he receive there? A spiritual lesson? Financial wisdom? Or both? What does the final letter state?
My take-
I just have one word for this book ‘Incredible’. Being a science person, I was sceptical whether I would understand the commerce/ finance terminologies of this book. But the book proved me wrong. Every single term has been very well explained. The incidents in the lives of the characters have made it easier to understand. The use of simple English adds cherry on the cake. One won’t just learn financial lessons but also lessons for lifetime. Each chapter has a story nested in it. It is this story that gives you lesson for life. Each chapter can be labelled as inspirational. The overall narration was perfect and there isn’t any loophole in the entire novel. A well-crafted, inspirational novel!
I must say I have updated my financial knowledge through this novel.
Likes:
John and Vijay’s friendship.
The description of places that John visited and the food that he tasted. It seems like the author wanted to make the reader familiar with the place and the food. It loved it very much.
The letters and the envelops (the symbols were intriguing.)
This review was written by Divya R Bandodkar. She dwells in Ponda, a small town in the state of Goa. She is a Computer Science Graduate from Goa University. Eleven stories from her pen have been published so far. You can read her thoughts and her book reviews on her blog –Musings of a Vivacious Heart.