About this product

Product Identifiers

PublisherRegan Arts

ISBN-101682450503

ISBN-139781682450505

eBay Product ID (ePID)221467174

Product Key Features

Book TitleElephants in My Backyard : a Memoir

Number of Pages304 Pages

LanguageEnglish

TopicCultural Heritage, Personal Memoirs, Entertainment & Performing Arts, Motivational & Inspirational, Books & Reading

Publication Year2016

IllustratorYes

GenreLiterary Criticism, Self-Help, Biography & Autobiography

AuthorRajiv Surendra

FormatHardcover

Dimensions

Item Height0.9 in

Item Weight18.7 Oz

Item Length9 in

Item Width6 in

Additional Product Features

Intended AudienceTrade

LCCN2016-939715

TitleLeadingThe

Dewey Edition23

Reviews"Lovely and human. The tale of a man who began by following a story and ended up creating his own." -- Jenny Lawson, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Furiously Happy, "A beautifully written journey of self-discovery, The Elephants In My Backyard is intimate, moving, hilarious and painful. This quirky memoir unfolds in a series of anecdotes--miniature gems--much like the intricate chalk designs that are one of Rajiv Surendra's many talents." -- Anosh Irani, author of The Parcel, "A beautifully written journey of self-discovery, The Elephants In My Backyard is intimate, moving, hilarious and painful. This quirky memoir unfolds in a series of anecdotes--miniature gems--much like the intricate chalk designs that are one of Rajiv Surendra's many talents." -- Anosh Irani, author of The Parcel, ". . . Imaginative, diversion-full, and refreshingly green memoir about the surprises that living a creative life can offer." -- Booklist, "Lovely and human. The tale of a man who began by following a story and ended up creating his own." -- Jenny Lawson, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Furiously Happy

Dewey Decimal791.4302/80922

SynopsisRajiv Surendra (the rapping mathlete from Mean Girls) read Life of Pi, discovered it was being adapted into a major motion picture, and embarked on a ten-year journey to land the role of a lifetime - but this is not a journey of goals and victories, this is a story of obsessively pursuing a dream, overcoming failure, and finding meaning in life., Rajiv Surendra (the rapping mathlete from Mean Girls) read Life of Pi, discovered it was being adapted into a major motion picture, and embarked on a ten-year journey to land the role of a lifetime - but this is not a journey of goals and victories, this is a story of obsessively pursuing a dream, overcoming failure, and finding meaning in life. The Elephants in My Backyard is a profound and inspiring story of self-discovery in the face of failure - poignant, funny, colourful, and absolutely unforgettable., Rajiv Surendra was filming Mean Girls , playing the beloved rapping mathlete Kevin Gnapoor, when a cameraman insisted he read Yann Martel's Life of Pi . So begins his "lovely and human" (Jenny Lawson, author of Furiously Happy ) tale of obsessively pursuing a dream, overcoming failure, and finding meaning in life. "This was a once-in-a-lifetime chance. I found myself standing dangerously close to the edge of a cliff. Far below me was an incredible abyss with no end in sight. I could turn back and safely return to where I had come from, or I could throw caution to the wind, lift my arms up into the air . . . and jump." --From The Elephants in My Backyard What happens when you spend ten years obsessively pursuing a dream, and then, in the blink of an eye, you learn that you have failed, that the dream will not come true? In 2003, Rajiv Surendra was filming Mean Girls , playing the beloved rapping mathlete Kevin Gnapoor, when a cameraman insisted he read Yann Martel's Life of Pi . Mesmerized by all the similarities between Pi and himself--both are five-foot-five with coffee-colored complexions, both share a South Indian culture, both lived by a zoo--when Rajiv learns that Life of Pi will be made into a major motion picture he is convinced that playing the title role is his destiny. In a great leap of faith Rajiv embarks on a quest to embody the sixteen-year-old Tamil schoolboy. He quits university and buys a one-way ticket from Toronto to South India. He visits the sacred stone temples of Pondicherry, he travels to the frigid waters off the coast of rural Maine, and explores the cobbled streets of Munich. He befriends Yann Martel, a priest, a castaway, an eccentric old woman, and a pack of Tamil schoolboys. He learns how to swim, to spin wool, to keep bees, and to look a tiger in the eye. All the while he is really learning how to dream big, to fail, to survive, to love, and to become who he truly is. Rajiv Surendra captures the uncertainty, heartache, and joy of finding ones place in the world with sly humor and refreshing honesty. The Elephants in My Backyard is not a journey of goals and victories, but a story of process and determination. It is a spellbinding and profound book for anyone who has ever failed at something and had to find a new path through life.

LC Classification NumberPN2308.S78A3 2016