Seeking Sense
Santosh Kr. Singh
Journey into Islam: The crisis of Globalization
by Akbar Ahmed. Penguin/ Viking. Pages 323. Rs. 525.
Post 9/11 the world seems to have changed irrevocably. The US-sponsored war against terror appears to be heading nowhere and everywhere at the same time at least in terms of its spirit of hatred, leaving a trail of blood behind. There is a fear that humanity may face apocalyptic doom if the fault lines are not cemented fast.

Fight the mob
Amarinder Sandhu
The Battle for No. 19
by Ranjit Lal. Puffin.
Pages 184. Rs 195.
A group of eight girls leaves a hilly hometown to enjoy an educational trip to Agra and Delhi. They are accompanied by their teachers Aruna Ma’am and Miss Macaw. Aruna Ma’am has a no-nonsense attitude and does not take no for an answer while Miss Macaw is her second-in-command, usually dressed in strikingly coloured salwar-kameezes. The entire party is travelling in a jeep driven by a jovial Kartar Singh, a Sikh with twinkling eyes and a Santa Claus beard.

Remembering Norman Mailer
David Usborne
The vanishing of the voice of Norman Kingsley Mailer will leave an unfamiliar quiet in the American intellectual echo-chamber. Whether it was women's lib (he did not much like it), the Vietnam War, the decline of the written word as entertainment, the tyranny of technology or the latest news from professional boxing, Mailer always had an opinion to share.

Vignettes of life
Ramesh Luthra
Collected Stories
by Khushwant Singh
Penguin Viking. Pages 461. Rs 495.
Khushwant Singh, a stalwart of Indian fiction in English that he is, portrays life as it is but with a smile on his face as if he enjoy watching people around him. And the characters don’t land from the stars but seem like the ones next door. It’s a bouquet of charming and engaging stories that hold our interest till the end.

Of love and family ties
Aditi Garg
Twilight in Delhi
by Ahmed Ali. Rupa & Co.
Pages 275.
Love is the only language that knows no bounds. It transgresses age, religion and region. In an age of soap operas, when family sagas surround us on all media, falling in love over and over again seems natural. Nothing surpasses either the elation or the torment of being in love. It is perhaps the only instance when even a furtive glance can bring on an avalanche of emotions, when your every emotion is controlled by another. It leaves you vulnerable like never before, and all you can think of is the one who has precipitated this affliction.

Flawed market mantra
Ash Narain Roy
State, Markets and Inequalities: Human Development in Rural India
Ed. Abusaleh Shariff and Maithreyi Krishnaraj
Orient Longman, New Delhi. Pages 784. Rs 975
The proponents of economic liberalisation and neo-liberal gurus are never tired of chanting the market mantra, saying globalisation and market economy will lift all boats. The neo-liberals have sought to project India as the poster boy of economic success. Featuring India on its cover with the poser "Can India Fly?"

New-age authors come of age
Azera Rahman
Their books reflect a young and contemporary India's thoughts. Debutant authors Shubham Basu's Glian and Soma Das' Sumthing Of A Mocktail are their own experiences woven around fiction. Basu's Glian revolves around the central character Dev and his love for nature. In a bid to embrace nature and bond with it, Dev sets off on a tour with three of his friends to the fictitious Panida National Park.

Back of the book
A Coin for the Ferryman
by Rosemary Rowe. Headline.
Pages 336. £ 18.99
In Roman Britain, AD 189, every slave knows his lot in life depends solely on the morals — or lack of morals — of his master. Fortunately for one young Glevum slave, Junio, his owner, former slave turned pavement-maker Libertus, believes heartily in rewarding years of loyalty and service. Junio is to be granted his freedom in an elaborate ceremony at the Basilica Law Court. And what better moment than the manumission to announce the lad’s engagement?

A riveting soccer tale
M.S.Unnikrishnan
The ups...There's only one Neil Redfearn...and downs of my footballing life
by Neil Redfearn with Andrew Collomosse Headline. Pages 312. £ 3.12
Being famous does not always mean successful and successful people may not necessarily be famous. The story of Neil Redfearn falls somehwere in between.

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