Comfortably Numb - Sheila Kumar's Storehouse

Book review: Goagr@m by Bina Nayak

When influencers come of age Author and graphic designer living close to the Dear Zindagi road in Parra, Bina Nayak has painted us a very detailed picture of Goa — the Goa where people actually live and not just beachbum at. The authenticity runs through every page of the book showing the locals going about…

Column: Happy is as happy does

In the pursuit of happiness, being kind is key Could we dwell for a few moments on the concept of happiness, please? Truth to tell, after Pharrell Williams` catchy tune of the same name, we haven’t really paused to think too hard about the state of being happy. Again, truth to tell, we lead uber-hectic…

Book review: Your Utopia by Bora Chung

They walk amongst us Bora Chung`s Cursed Bunny was shortlisted for the 2022 International Booker Prize. In this new offering by the accomplisher author, titled Your Utopia and immaculately translated by Anton Hur, we meet a host of characters, some human, some decidedly not, all imbued with strong streaks of strangeness. One hesitates to categorise…

Book review: Mayadevi`s London Yatra by Bulbul Sharma

Human foibles, gently exposed The latest book from consummate storyteller Bulbul Sharma is a collection of old published tales and new stories. Here the story isn’t as much king as the characters are. Drawn up with an eye for delightful detail, each character — sweet, strong, eccentric, creepy — totally take over the story and…

Lorenzo Searches for the Meaning of Life by Upamanyu Chatterjee

The quest for a higher spiritual purpose This story charts the spiritual journey of Lorenzo, who as the title states, is on a quest to find the meaning of life. The author says in his note at the start, ‘This is a true story. That is to say, like many true stories, it is a…

Book review: Three Women in a Single-room House by K Srilata

Through many lives, softly This slim volume of poetry packs a deceptive punch, fights above its weight, and what`s more, mostly wins too. Like the title indicates, the collection has a core story, as well as many stories within stories to tell, and does so with a touch of sentiment, wistfulness and the occasional preening…

Book review: Chandni Chowk The Mughal City of Old Delhi by Swapna Liddle

CHANDNI CHOWK, The Mughal City of Old Delhi by Swapna Liddle. Speaking Tiger Books, out in 2017. In all the years I lived and worked in Delhi, the old parts of the city always had me in thrall, even as much of the new city repelled me. Now I live far away from Delhi but…

Column: All who wander are lost but happily so

The Popcorn Brain syndrome Tech terminology has unleashed another kicker on us, telling us all about the popcorn brain and how to avoid developing one. The term refers to a multitude of kernel-like thoughts jostling about in one`s brain, rather than one or more substantial concepts. It was coined by a researcher at the University…

Book Look: Our Man in Havana by Graham Greene

OUR MAN IN HAVANA by Graham Greene. Penguin Books. So. How does this black comedy, this satirical send-up of the world of espionage measure up many many years after it was written by the Master in 1958? Very well, I would say. The story of how a hapless British vacuum cleaner salesman in Havana was…

Book review: Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan

SMALL THINGS LIKE THESE by Claire Keegan. Faber Books. This slim volume punches way, way above its weight, and leaves the reader full of emotions, the way a really good book does. The story takes us to a small village in Ireland where people are all eking out an extremely hard living in extreme weather…