00:00I remember I used to have a library in my house and I used to give the neighborhood kids
00:05books that I used to let them borrow my books and I had like a librarian
00:09I used to write down who borrowed my book and when I was going to get it back.
00:13Hi guys I'm Priyanka Chopra Jonas and I'm about to give Marie Claire
00:16a sneak peek into my personal library.
00:19This is Shelf Portrait.
00:24So if I was at home you would have seen my library
00:27and my books which are my prized possessions but at the moment I'm not.
00:32I'm filming a movie in London but I do have a few books in here that I did
00:36bring with me and that I have bought while I've been in London.
00:41I love books. I've been an avid reader since I was a child.
00:44There's something magical about books.
00:47Once they're printed they live on and they have their own legacy and then they get
00:52passed on from person to person and you know it always I always wonder
00:57like I love going into used bookstores and finding used books and I wonder
01:02you know how many people have gone through those pages or leaf those pages
01:08and I find the journey of books fascinating.
01:10I find the journey they take me on fascinating.
01:17One of the books that I want to talk to you guys about today on my bookshelf
01:21is Amnesty by Arvind Adiga.
01:23I have a movie coming out right now called The White Tiger
01:27which is based on a novel that Arvind Adiga wrote in 2008
01:31and I'm a huge fan of his writing.
01:34He writes with wit. He always has a social commentary
01:39and in this one Danny, the main character Dhananjay,
01:43is from Sri Lanka and he's a refugee in Australia.
01:47Basically through his eyes there's also a murder that happens
01:50and him trying to figure out the morality of whether he should you know
01:56tell the police what he knows or he shouldn't because he doesn't have papers
02:00and it's just the writing.
02:02He's so clever in his writing and he's humorous and he's sarcastic and he's dark
02:06but at the same time you know has a very fast-paced sense of storytelling.
02:11This book sort of makes you think about you know refugees and refugees around the world
02:17and their lives and their choices and the choices they have to make
02:22and the ones that are made for them.
02:24It's something that you know makes you think about that
02:26and that's what I definitely picked up from this.
02:29What's my all-time favorite book cover?
02:32I you know I've been a big fan of graphic novels and comics as well.
02:36I have to say The Watchman was one of my favorites
02:39and I remember like you know seeing it and it being seared into my memory
02:43and of course now The Watchman is a TV series and it was a movie as well.
02:47So that's something that I really remember.
02:49The world fascinated me.
02:51Who's my all-time favorite crush?
02:53This is really cheesy.
02:55Instead of it being like some heroic crush from you know one of the great novels that I've read
03:01I would like to say it's Archie Andrews from the Archie comics.
03:05I really think I had a real crush on him.
03:07Weirdo.
03:08This is one of my favorite favorite books of the year.
03:13It's called Homegoing.
03:14It's written by Yaa Gyasi.
03:17It's based in the 18th century actually and it's the story of two half-sisters in Ghana
03:23and who are born without the knowledge of each other
03:28and one gets married to an Englishman and you know lives an affluent life
03:33and the other one gets sold into slavery in the same castle that her sister is married into.
03:39It has a commentary on family.
03:41It has a commentary on the slave trade and what that did.
03:46It has a commentary on being a black woman in America today where the book ends actually
03:51and it really makes you think about life and the privileges that come along with it
03:57and you know what is destined for you
03:59and what are the what are the choices that you make that change your destiny.
04:05What book would I recommend to a book club?
04:08At the moment I would maybe recommend my book to the book club.
04:12It's called Unfinished.
04:13I would love for you guys to check it out and see if I did an okay job you know as a first-time author.
04:18What was the process like to write a book?
04:21Daunting but exhilarating at the same time.
04:24I remember being terrified at the thought of even putting words down
04:30and then now I'm terrified at the thought of everyone reading them.
04:34So I have really newfound respect for all the authors that I've loved and admired.
04:38This is no small feat.
04:40This is the next book I'm going to talk about.
04:42I'm sure a lot of you have heard of it and seen it.
04:45The storytelling is extremely vivid which I love.
04:48It's about how she becomes the woman that she is you know.
04:53From Chicago to the White House and that journey which is so fascinating to all of us
04:59and you know it feels like a Cinderella story.
05:01But she gives that perspective of the hardships,
05:04trials and tribulations that she had to go through and her family had to go through.
05:08Well the one thing about this book was when I read it a couple of months ago
05:12I was also in the process of writing my own memoir.
05:15You know I did take a few lessons from how she really talks about her evolution
05:20and how she digs in really deep to her vulnerabilities.
05:24Since I really admire her I really enjoyed it and I would recommend this to everyone.
05:27What was my favorite childhood book?
05:30I've had many but one of the ones that I really remember is Black Beauty.
05:36It's the story of this black stallion horse.
05:41She's raised by a very loving owner and then gets sold into you know a workforce.
05:48As an animal lover I remember being really really moved by this book as a kid.
05:52Do I make notes or highlights?
05:54Yes I do.
05:54I definitely highlight.
05:56I write notes.
05:57I write my name.
05:58I also look up words that you know I may or may not may not know.
06:02I have a very deep connection when I'm reading a book.
06:05Okay the next book I'm going to be talking about to you is
06:08Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.
06:11Sorcerer's Stone, Philosopher's Stone.
06:13It's the British and American version.
06:15I kind of joined this train a little late.
06:19I watched the movies and everyone kept talking about the books and I was like
06:25reading is a completely different experience you know and I really wanted to
06:29pick up the book and read it and when I started doing it I understood the hysteria.
06:34Yes it's based in a fantasy land and yes you know we're talking about magic
06:39but the kind of issues that Harry deals with and the relationships and
06:44the people they're all so human and I think that's what makes this book
06:49so riveting that you know you want to follow Harry and his friend's journey
06:55and you want to see and learn from him at his young age about being adventurous
07:01but also you know being able to stand your ground and being brave and
07:06so I would recommend this to everyone who hasn't read the books.
07:09You must check out all the books.
07:14What's my favorite genre?
07:16So it depends on my mood.
07:19I think I love reading fiction sometimes I love reading non-fiction depending on
07:24who it is but most of the time I do love getting my hands on a good old murder mystery.
07:30Who gives me the best book recommendations?
07:34Well most of the time Apple does or Google does
07:38but besides that my mom, my friends you know who are avid readers or the book clubs.
07:44I love following Reese Witherspoon's book club, Sonali Bendre's book club,
07:49even Oprah's book club.
07:51Those are really interesting.
07:52One of my other favorite books and I don't have the physical copy of it
07:57is Letters from a Father to His Daughter by Jawaharlal Nehru
08:01and Jawaharlal Nehru was the first prime minister of India
08:04after our independence from the British
08:07and this was a book that he wrote when his daughter was only 10.
08:12Indira Gandhi who was the first female prime minister of India as well.
08:17It's basically 30 essays that he has written to his daughter
08:22telling her about the world and how the world was formed and
08:25you know shaping her worldview and I remember as a young kid
08:30um I was so fascinated to read all of that from a father to his daughter
08:36and I think it was a way of my my dad also sort of you know piggybacking on
08:42on Pandit Nehru's book so that I could learn about how the earth was made
08:48and all the difficult subjects he probably didn't want to talk to me about.
08:52Thank you for watching Shelf Portrait and please make sure you check out my new book
08:56called Unfinished and my new movie it's called The White Tiger on Netflix
09:01and also subscribe to Marie Claire.
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