Comfortably Numb

Sheila Kumar's Storehouse

Book review: The Forest I Know, a gathering of tanka verses by Kala Ramesh

the forest i know, a gathering of tanka verses by Kala Ramesh. HarperCollins Books.                                         Tanka is a five-line lyrical form of poetry which originated in Japan, and Kala Ramesh peppers the pages of this book…

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Sheila Kumar • September 16, 2021

Guest column: Social media as therapist

Social media as therapist  One has become quite used to the abrasive, abusive nature of certain  social  media platforms,  and  it is with relief that one sees its potentially curative nature. Alongside the political rants, the generic puppies and kittens pics, the humble-brag travel and acquisition posts, I started to see people posting about intensely…

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Sheila Kumar • September 15, 2021

Book review: A Beginner`s Guide to Japan by Pico Iyer

Pico Iyer, that consummate Japanophile, is back to doing what seems to be a labour of love: parsing his adopted land, the Land of the Rising Sun. But don`t be fooled. A BEGINNER`S GUIDE TO JAPAN is no breezy read. You will pore over each line, trying to decipher the unwritten meaning as much as…

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Sheila Kumar • September 8, 2021

Book review: Rumours of Spring by Farah Bashir

A life of loss Farah Bashir’s poignant memoir is set in the Kashmir of the nineties. It`s a coming-of-age novel, only, in that particular period,  coming of age meant navigating the challenges of living in the lethal shadow of conflict. The memoir examines a combat zone, the survival skills and state of mind that needs…

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Sheila Kumar • September 5, 2021

Book review: My Salinger Year by Joanna Rakoff

`We must talk about Jerry` MY SALINGER YEAR by Joanna Rakoff. Bloomsbury Books, 2014 release. Obviously, the author will have Salinger fans at the second word in the book`s title, but it really is a lovely read, all of it. The peg is irresistible: a young New Yorker freshly graduated having majored in literature, goes…

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Sheila Kumar • August 26, 2021

Guest column: To inconvenience and be inconvenienced

To inconvenience and be inconvenienced, that`s the Indian way Some years ago I was sitting next to an Australian tourist in a coach headed to Kovalam. First, they showed a movie, with tinny sound turned up to full volume. Those of us not interested in watching the 80s movie kept silent because other passengers might…

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Sheila Kumar • August 8, 2021

Book review: Return of the Brahmin by Ravi Shankar Etteth

Excitement redux The Brahmin, that enigmatic Machiavellian warrior-strategist, is back, and engages the reader as intensely as he did when Ravi Shankar Etteth first introduced us to the character in 2018. For the necessary recap aimed at those who have yet to read the first book, the Brahmin is spymaster to Ashoka,  ruler of Pataliputra, eventual…

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Sheila Kumar • August 1, 2021

Guest column: Korea`s intriguing Tamil connect

Vanakkam, Seoul: the intriguing Tamil connect It doesn’t take long for the hardcore Kdrama fan/certified Koreaboo (that would be people obsessed with Korean culture) from India to sit up and take notice of several familiar sounding words that fall from the lips of a Kim, Park, Choi or Song on-screen. Out in South Korea (and…

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Sheila Kumar • July 25, 2021

Book review: It`s a Wonderful Life by Ruskin Bond

IT`S A WONDERFUL LIFE: Roads to Happiness by Ruskin Bond, Aleph Books. So, before the cynics (and yes, there are a few about) go into a spasm of eye-rolls at this latest offering from the Ruskin Bond factory, I need to say this: so, yes, not all the short pieces featured in this book are…

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Sheila Kumar • July 22, 2021

Book review: Ikigai by Hector Garcia and Francesc Miralles

My Wednesday review of this week is going to be a most enthusiastic one. Just finished reading IKIGAI, The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life  by  Hector Garcia and Francesc Miralles (Penguin UK Books), and I totally recommend everyone has a go at this. It`s a neat but not dumbed down  simplification of…

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Sheila Kumar • July 14, 2021

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