In On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous, Little Dog writes a letter in English to his uneducated Vietnamese mother at a time when he is in his late twenties. He documents the history of his family that begins much before he was born, with the story of his grandmother Lan. Like many Vietnamese families of that era, their story too is rooted in war. It starts with the war and it is the war that dictates what eventually becomes of them.
Independence | Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni | Book Review
Set during the time of the partition of India, in a rural village in Bengal, the story narrates the tales of three sisters – Priya, Deepa, and Jamini. They are the daughters of the respected village doctor, Nabhkumar. Their happy and sheltered family suddenly breaks apart when their father Nabhkumar is killed during a riot and they find themselves all alone, in a situation so terrible that even their neighbours have turned against them.
The Stationery Shop of Tehran | Marjan Kamali | Book Review
As the 1950s began, Iran was welcoming a revolution. Their new Prime Minister brought in numerous reforms. There was education, dance, art, and freedom. As is the case with every politician, he too had both – staunch supporters and enemies. For young Roya and Bahman who shared similar political ideologies, marriage was the imminent plan. But fate had other plans for them.
Carrie Soto Is Back | Taylor Jenkins Reid | Book Review
Carrie Soto is the best tennis player ever to walk this planet, She retired after having won twenty Grand Slam titles, but now six years later, as she is sitting in the stands to watch the 1994 US open and her world record being broken by the stunning and magnificent player Nicki Chan, she can’t help but feel a tad disappointed. Now at 37, she decides to come out of her retirement and play for one last year so that she may reclaim her record.
I Remember Abbu | Humayun Azad | Book Review
Translated from the Bengali edition titled ‘Abbu K Mone Pore’ into English by Arunava Sinha, I Remember Abbu is a soul-stirring tale, told from the perspective of a little girl who used to share a deep bond with her father, but who hasn’t seen her father for 16 odd years. It is a story that unravels the tale of the birth of a nation and its many children who have met with a similar fate.
The Drop and the Glop | Sanjiv Saran | Book Review
A power-hungry Pakistani politician is busy paving the path for his future success, all the while being involved in a scandalous affair with a dusky beauty. A nomadic Bakarwal shepherd girl is inducted as an undercover infiltrator. A gorgeous young beauty gets recruited as a CIA agent. A Delhi teenage boy, just out of high school, lands up in the Himalayas as a hitchhiker.
Gorkhaland Diaries: Even Dreams… Uneven Lives | Satyadeep S. Chhetri | Book Review
Gorkhaland Diaries is a diary of all the major events of the Gorkhaland Movement which took place in the four decades spanning from the 1980s up to 2017. The book revolves around the stories of its two main characters: Rajen Thapa from Kalimpong and Bijay from a tea garden in Darjeeling.
बलिदानम् (Balidanam) | मनु सौंखला | पुस्तक समीक्षा
जहां तक इस उपन्यास के कालक्रम का प्रश्न है यह 4000 वर्ष पूर्व पृथयानी राजवंश को लेकर रचा गया है, जिसके केंद्रबिंदु 2000 वर्ष (ईसा पूर्व) पृथयानी के राजा अश्रवण, रानी नंदिनी तथा उनका परिवार है।
अपने प्रारंभिक भाग में तो यह ऐतिहासिक परिवेश पर रची गई सामान्य कहानी प्रतीत होती है परंतु, जैसे-जैसे कहानी गति प्राप्त करती है उसमें एक नई सोच और सामाजिक क्रांति का बीजारोपण होता हुआ दिखाई देता है।
Honor | Thrity Umrigar | Book Review
Smita Agarwal, who left India as a teen two decades ago and doesn’t want anything to do with this country, comes back to cover a story. The story is of Meena Mustafa, a woman whose house was set on fire when she was pregnant. In Honor, Thrity talks about casteism, patriarchy, religious fanaticism, crime, and India’s legal setup.
Mastaan: The Fallen Patriot of Delhi | Vineet Bajpai | Book Review
As the brutalities and monstrosities of the East India company reach their peak, there are voices of dissent rising from all across the Indian sub-continent. The imperial giant continues to ignore the warning signs, but all around, kingdoms, small and big, are plotting a major overthrow.
Chaturanga | Anand Neelakantan | Book Review
‘Chaturanga’ parts with us on an interesting note promising a thrilling journey ahead. It leaves us with many open-ended questions, igniting our curiosities and flaming the fire with a tease here and a tease there.
War Hero | M.K. Devidasan | Book Review
“War Hero” by M K Davidasan is the story of a hero who fought in the Indo – Pak war of 1971. Its patriotic fervor infuses the reader with love and respect for the country, reminding the readers why a soldier does what he does.