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Pain
of being a Kashmiri Muslim
Shahira Naim
Manufacturing Terrorism: Kashmiri Encounters with Media and the Law
by Syed Bismillah Geelani,
Promilla & Co publishers in association with Bibliophile South
Asia and
Poles Apart
Pages 234. Rs 450.
Most
of us read about the mid-air drama where 12 passengers, all Indian
businessmen, every single one of them a Muslim, 10 from Mumbai alone,
were singled out, handcuffed and detained on flight no. 42, in front
of 149 other passengers. They had to suffer such humiliation as the
crew had reported "suspicious behavior". Responding
promptly, the pilot of the Mumbai-bound Northwest Airlines cut short
its scheduled flight and returned to Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport
with US sky marshals on board and escorted by Dutch F-16 jetfighters.
Intrepid
warrior queen
Jyoti Singh
Raj of the Rani Tapti
Roy. Penguin. Pages
236. Rs 295.
What
we have here is a pulsating rendition of Rani Laxmi Bai’s biography.
An objective study of her circumstances, achievements and limitations,
it gives a concrete and complete shape to Rani’s life. Roy has
deftly integrated the authenticated incidents with the stories that
grew around her, wherever the information falls short and seems
relevant.
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Anatomy
of a way of life
Roopinder Singh
The World According to Sikhi
I. J. Singh The Centennial Foundation, Ontario. Pages 170. $ 20.
One
of the most sought-after erudite writers and speakers in the USA and
Canada on matters concerning the Sikhs is a Professor, not of religion
or philosophy as you might imagine, but of anatomical sciences at New
York University.
The
Enid Blyton mould
Rachna Singh
3 Novels
Shashi Deshpande. Puffin Books. Pages 379. Rs 295.
As
a child with passion for reading, all my summer holidays were spent in
the library sitting in a har-backed chair reading the adventures of Famous
Five or Secret Seven or Adventurous Four et al. The
wonderful world created by Enid Blyton was completely enthralling and
captivating to a child of nine. Even today, almost three decades
later, a book by Enid Blyton brings back those wonderful summers when
my friends and I would try our hand at sleuthing or disguising like
"Fatty".
An
absorbing treat
Arun Gaur
The Library of South Asian
Literature series:
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The Second
Wife
Premchand.
translated by David Rubin.
Pages 206. Rs 175. |
Land of Five
Rivers
Stories selected and translated by Khushwant Singh Pages 199. Rs
175. |
Phatik Chand
Satyajit Ray translated by Lila Ray.
Pages 112. Rs 150. |
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All
titles: Orient Paperbacks, New
Delhi.
Indian readers
of Hindi fiction must be familiar with Premchand’s Nirmala.
First published in 1927, it is the story of a young girl who,
married off to a widower with three sons, suffers a series of
miseries and an eventual catastrophe. The book under review is a
translation of Nirmala with a changed title. |
EXCERPT
Epic quest
The Mahabharata: An inquiry
in the human condition
by Chaturvedi Badrinath
Orient Longman. Pages 683.
Rs 1095.
Chaturvedi
Badrinath shows that the Mahabharata is the most systematic
inquiry into the human condition. Its principal concern is the
relationship of the self with the self and with the other. This book
not only proves the universality of the themes explored in the Mahabharata,
but also how this great epic provides us with a method to understand
the human condition itself. Badrinath shows that the concerns of the Mahabharata
are the concerns of everyday life — of dharma, artha, kama
and moksha.
HINDI REVIEW
New-Age
Brahmastra
Ashok Malik
Soochnadhikar : Naya Loktantra, Nayi Patrakarita
Arvind Kejriwal and Vishnu Rajgadia, Lohia Granthalya, Ranchi.
Pages 112. Rs 225. (HB) Rs 65.00 (PB)
Corruption
is so widespread in India that it is practically impossible to get
your passport, driving licence or ration card without paying a bribe.
If you refuse to pay a bribe for getting a new electricity connection,
replacing a faulty meter or rectification of a wrong bill, endless
objections will ensure that you keep making the rounds of offices.
Portraits
by a killer
Andrew Buncombe
Patricia
Cornwell, the crime writer who famously claimed to have discovered 80
works produced by the artist she believes was the notorious serial
killer.
Young
fare
Pirates
make for a hearty read
Laurie Muchnick
What
is it about kids and pirates? I think it comes down to one word:
costumes. Just like princesses, fire-fighters and other perennial
preschool favourites, pirates have great gear for playing dress-up. At
my three-year-old son's pirate party, his friends loaded up with
beaded necklaces, rings, eye patches and hooks and were as happy as if
they'd found real buried treasure.
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of the book
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