Book Reviews - Comfortably Numb

Comfortably Numb

Sheila Kumar's Storehouse

Book Review: The Himalayan Arc Edited by Namita Gokhale

The Himalayan Arc, Journeys East of South-east. Edited by Namita Gokhale. HarperCollins. More geopolitical than travelogue, this is an interesting compilation where the snow-topped mountains feature less, and the lands that lie east of the massif, on its sides and its foothills, its plains and valleys feature more. Nepal, Bhutan, Tibet, Myanmar, all of the…

Brief Review: All The Lives We Never Lived by Anuradha Roy

All the Lives We Never Lived By Anuradha Roy. Hachette India Books. Anuradha Roy is like Anees Salim. With each new book by these two authors, the reader knows they are in for a truly immersive experience; this is virtual reality of another kind. In this intriguing read, Roy picks up strands of history like…

Book review: Rafina by Shandana Minhas

And they all fall flat A dramaybaaz protagonist, but where’s the drama? Shandana Minhas wrote this story in 2004; it saw the light of day 14 years later. Luckily, the story, that of a determined if rather naïve girl’s attempt to carve her niche in the world, is such that it can’t really…

Book review: Temporary People by Deepak Unnikrishnan

I was blown clean away by Deepak Unnikrishnan`s Temporary People (Penguin Books). It is a set of short stories, a poem or two, some pages of artwork about the `guest workers` the migrant labour of the Gulf, mostly Malayalis, who toil without any recognition, without much dignity, without adequate creature comforts and worst of all,…

Book review: A House for Mr Misra by Jaishree Misra

Trivandrum Diary A House for Mr Misra (Westland) This slim volume is the ideal read when you are between books that tackle matters of a more serious, even grim nature. Or in my case, a break from editing a turgid manuscript. Written rather like a Trivandrum diary fleshed out in engaging detail, it keeps the…

Book review: The Cows of Bangalore by Shoba Narayan

For the love of cows A book about cows of India in this day and age? That kind of subject can either be an inspired one or plain minefield-walking. However, Shoba Narayan sticks to her set script and delivers an easy read that will delight cow-admirers as well as intrigue those who view…

Book review: A Faceless Evening by Gangadhar Gadgil

Of the human condition… Fourteen evocative short stories by the Marathi master. Gangadhar Gadgil carved a niche for himself in Marathi literature decades ago, and is a known name to those who read translations but alas, not to scores of other readers. Now, Ratna Books and translator Keerti Ramachandra have rectified that omission with this…

Book review: Hush A Bye Baby by Deepanjana Pal

When the cradle falls Deepanjana Pal`s Hush A Bye Baby (Juggernaut Publishers) is a police procedural where the action shifts focus continually amongst a small group of participants, rather like an Agatha Christie mystery. Mumbai socialite and gynaecologist Dr Nandita Rai (we get a cracker of an intro to her) stands accused of female…

Book excerpts: The Lake District, An Anthology compiled by Norman Nicholson

The Lake District An anthology compiled by Norman Nicholson. Penguin Books. 1977. This delightful composition of prose, poetry and essays, some of them in the Cumbrian dialect, contains such nuggets as the ones reproduced below. Gentleman in a hurry It was customary, I am told, to dash by them (i.e. the Lakes) with an…

Book review: The Story of a Long Distance Marriage by Siddesh Inamdar

A marriage of inconvenience Rohan and Ira are an “unjinxable couple” (Rohan’s words, not mine) and that, of course, tempts fate. Ira goes off to NYC to study, Rohan stays behind at his newspaper desk job, and a series of jinxes proceeds to hit them. A gulf begins to yawn between them, their…