Book review on “Passu Diary” second edition (2021).

Except for few, most of us have heard about “Time machine” and even seen one from some sci-fi films. However, have you ever wondered how a real time machine looks like? And have you ever wished to time travel? Well, if your answer is double yes, then you should grab a copy of “Passu Diary” and buckle up your seat for a roller-coaster ride as you read the book.

The author mentions the word “Time machine” in his book several times to highlight the importance of the various museums in our country. His book is a time machine in itself. The book does everything a time machine is expected to do. It takes you into the past, highlights the present and also discusses an exciting prospect for a better future. Amongst numerous articles written in his blog “Passu Diary” over a decade, the book contains around 304 selected articles. The book revolves around topics such as history, culture and various social issues prevalent in our society. Any Bhutanese readers can easily relate to whatever message the author is trying to convey because of the authors usage of narrative style. The fact that the author has used simple yet effective words to write this book makes this book all the more wonderful.

The book presents various social problems in our country which are followed by questions to ponder upon. The issues highlighted by the author in the book have been presented through his personal observation backed by research. The author has done more than simply complain which is apparent from the humble suggestions and solutions offered for the questions presented in the book. Some stories in the book will make you sad and emotional but don’t you worry about that. Generally, most of the stories have a beautiful ending, this book is no different. The author has done an excellent work in including hilarious stories which will lift the reader’s spirit whenever and wherever they become sad and emotional. There are also stories which will inspire and motivate you. Not to forget, the element of surprise has also been used in some stories.

As written in the blurb, readers have the freedom to pick any article from the book to read but I would suggest readers, not to jumble up the stories. Readers will understand the premises behind my suggestion once they read each and every article in their chronological order. The feeling of satisfaction you get as a reader when you finish reading the last article in the book is amazing. There were few articles which could have given the book a good ending but there could not have been a better punchy article to finish the book than the article chosen by the author. So let first article be the first and the last article be the last. Otherwise, there is a chance that readers might miss some aspects of the book. This book is about Bhutan, our history, our culture, our society, our community and the issues and challenges in our country. Having said that, this book is also about the journey, the growth and the transformation of an ordinary Bhutanese into a social worker. The book is about a man who dares to dream, work for that dream and revolutionized the toilet culture in Bhutan.

Minor observations from the book.

ü  Back cover blurb, second paragraph – Spelling of “Chronological.”

ü  Page 82 & 84, title of article – Usage of “iwitness”, looks like it has been used deliberately or is it a mistake?

ü  Page 87, second paragraph, third sentence – Sequence of the words, “called in whole her family” or “called in her whole family.”

ü  Page 99, first paragraph, third sentence – Is it “Bloody read doma spit” or “Bloody red doma spit?” Or is it “Bloody doma spit?” Does the meaning change?

ü  Page 142, last paragraph, fourth sentence – Is it “My perspective could be driven of my ignorance” or “My perspective could be driven by my ignorance?”

ü  Page 207, last paragraph, sixth sentence beginning – “Its” or “It.”

ü  Page 247, first paragraph, second sentence – Is it “Sough after” or “Sought after?”

ü  Page 276, third paragraph, first sentence, repetition of words – “Can we have have.”