Message sent to twistntales@yahoogroups.com on 16th June

Hi all,

With Schools re-opening and T 20 out of the way, guess parents can now breathe free and find time for reading. We have this huge list of books reviewed and huger pile listed. Do drop in and browse and make your selection.

Indian Writing

“The Hotel At The End Of The World” by Parismita Singh @ Rs.350/- (Pgs.139)
Drawing from various oral storytelling and folklore traditions, and with influences ranging from Commando war comics to World War II history and Buddhist art, Parismita Singh creates a world that’s magical yet very real. Exquisite in terms of both narrative and artwork, The Hotel at the End of the World marks a new height in graphic fiction in India.
In The Hotel at the End of the World its business as usual, as Pema dishes up rice and pork curry to travellers who stop by for a drink and refuge from the rains. Everyone there has a story to tell, and at times they end up revealing more than they want to.
On their journey to China, Kona and Kuja, bound together by fate, stumble upon the trail of the Floating Island, promised land of plenty. Pema’s story is about lost love, while her husband speaks of homesick Japanese soldiers in Manipur and the Naga hills during World War II. The Prophet takes us back to the quest for the Floating Island, leading us to the little girl’s story as she sets out to fetch water and chances upon something quite unexpected…

“The Strike” by Anand Mahadevan @ Rs.299/- (Pgs.274)
Hari, a 12 year old living in the 1980s trying to make sense of his tumultuous and complex world. He experiments at eating fish which only leads to the accidental death of his grandmother; he prefers Hindi over his mother tongue Tamil which leads to slanderous graffiti against his family in Madras; and his friendship with the household help lands him in trouble with Vishu, a militant Tamil film fan and political functionary.
When MGR, the film star turned politician, dies and his supporters led by Vishu declare a strike, trapping Hari and his mother in a train bound for Madras…matters come to a head. Oblivious to the cross currents of tension pulsating outside the train, Hari experiences the first stirrings of his adolescent sexuality in the company of an aspiring actor and a loquacious transsexual. Hari’s attempt to help has devastatingly tragic results when protestors try to take over the engine of the train and the driver fights to keep them out. This is a wonderfully accomplished debut, and a tender story about childhood and family that is also evocative of a whole era.

“The Orphan Diaries” by Shashi Warrier @ Rs.299/- (Pgs.465)
At 38, feeling ancient and used up, Colonel Rajan Menon knows his best years as a commando are behind him. But he is soon tested as never before. The Prime Minister’s granddaughter has been abducted, and the kidnappers want some sensitive diaries in the possession of the CBI, the contents of which, if made public, can throw the country into turmoil. Raja works out a meticulous rescue plan, but the raid ends in a disaster – the girl is killed, not a single kidnapper is captured and the diaries disappear. And all the evidence points to Raja’s complicity.
Hounded by the police and, inexplicably, a ruthless psychopath, Raja is on the run, determined to clear his name. As he makes his harrowing journey towards the truth, a sinister plot unfolds an astounding account that began in 1947…

“Atlas of Unknowns” by Tania James @ Rs.660/- (Pgs.319)
It’s a tale of two sisters, Anju and Linno, who are set out on their journey of life… They have been raised in Kerala by their father after their mother’s mysterious death.
Linno is a type of a girl, who can’t promise herself, the way other girls do – I want a house and two children, boy and girl. She wants smooth weighted paper, a new set of soft pencils, a room in which to draw, a window of time… Whereas, Anju is a girl who wishes her family could know of her hardships, which are mostly hardships of heart and to know her loneliness without having to say the word ‘lonely’… Tania James, has beautifully painted the two worlds of the novels – India & America, and has told the story of two sisters whose bonds are powerfully tested

“The Middleman” by Sankar (trs. by Arunava Sinha) @ Rs.200/- (Pgs.192)
This particular story is based in Calcutta of the 70s. Somnath Banerjee is one of the young men who queue up at the employment exchange everyday. This book basically portrays the journey of Somnath Banerjee from an idealistic man into a corrupt businessman and how the city changed his morals and values and made him a totally money driven person. After the hugely successful Chowringee, this translation was much awaited. This was made into the film “Jana Aranya” by Satyajit Ray.

“If It Is Sweet” By Mridula Koshy @Rs.295/- (Pgs 283)
Here is a collection of short stories that are lovely, dark and deep…In these stories, families are seen in their whole corrosive element, and the poor and disenfranchised are returned to history – in language that’s affecting, tender, unexpected, like translations from a tongue infinitely superior to our own.
Her writing is deeply attentive and fearless, telling us the stories other writers overlook, or do not wish to tell: the household thoughts that must always remain silent, the disavowed dramas of the city, the heartbreaking proximity of opposite emotions.
This is a book of savage, beautiful writing, when empathy and curiosity flood over the usual barricades of the imagination – and remind us, indeed, what real writing is.

Fiction:

“The Thing Around Your Neck” by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie @ Rs.299/- (Pgs 218)
A medical student hides from a violent riot with a poor Muslim woman whose dignity and faith force her to confront the realities and fears she’s been pushing away…
A woman unlocks the devastating secret that surrounds her brother’s death…
The choking loneliness of a Nigerian girl who moves to an America that turns out to be nothing like the country she expected…
From the author of The Purple Hibiscus and Half of a Yellow Sun, come twelve dazzling stories in which the author turns her penetrating eye on the ties that bind men and women, parents and children, Nigeria and the West. Searing and profound, suffused with beauty, sorrow and longing, this collection is a resounding confirmation of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s prodigious storytelling powers.

“The Paris Enigma” by Pablo De Santis @ Rs.295/- (Pgs.324)
Pablo De Santis was born in Buenos Aires, studied Literature at the Universidad de Buenos Aires and subsequently worked as a journalist and comic strip creator, becoming Editor- in chief of one of the Argentina’s leading comics magazines, Fierro. De Santis is also the author of many books for young adults. He lives in Buenos Aires.
Introducing the twelve detectives, the greatest sleuths in the world, gathered together for the first time at the 1889 world’s fair in Paris. See the wonderful new work of engineering genius by Gustave Eiffel. Marvel at Buffalo Bill’s world famous show. Witness the sewage tribes of France’s colonies gathered here for the first time! But beware a killer is at large who will test the genius of the twelve to their limits. Secret societies, strange puzzles and seemingly impossible crimes wait within the pages of this book.

“The Secret Fire” by Martin Langfield @ Rs.250/- (Pgs.461)
The world is under threat…from a weapon launched in 1944.
A paper by Sir Isaac Newton is sold at auction to a bookseller’s agent and within minutes of leaving the auction house, he is killed and the paper stolen. The Nazis get their hands on Newton’s formula that will unleash The Secret Fire – a weapon beyond all imagining that can wipe their enemies off the face of the earth. And this document is the key…unless the French Resistance and SOE operatives also on its tracks can stop them.
New York, 2007, Katherine Reckliss learns her grandmother’s SOE radio has started picking up disturbing messages from occupied France, warning that a VI containing The Secret Fire is being launched by the Nazis. It’s target? Present day London. So begins the desperate race to halt The Secret Fire – both in 1940’s Nazi-occupied France and modern day London. The clock is ticking as history starts to re-write the future in a new and terrifying script…

“Daemon” by Daniel Suarez @ Rs.499/- (Pgs.432)
‘We are all connected…There is no escape’
What is Daemon? A computer program that runs continuously in the background and performs specified operations at predefined times or in response to certain events.
Recruiting acolytes from the dispossessed and disaffected, the Daemon grows stronger with each passing day. We face a stark choice: confront a faceless, formless monster or learn to live in a world we are no longer in control. An infernal web of autonomous computer programs, Sobol’s Daemon feasts on the lifeblood of our hyper-connected society viz: information. Gathering secrets and stealing identities, it soon has the power to change lives as well as the power to take them. Those who serve the Daemon are rewarded; those who defy it are eliminated.

“The Split Second” by John Hulme and Michael Wexler @ Rs.299/- (Pgs.301)
‘When time is running out, ever second counts’
Becker Drane is just like every other 13-year-old…trying to live a normal life…But what makes his different than other 13-year-olds is that he has got the best job in the world! - being a fixer in The Seems – the organisation responsible for making our world work! And shuffling between his job and being a normal 13-year-old is sometimes just impossible!
One day, on the way to a family holiday, a bomb explodes in the department of time and Becker is called in to mend the damage. It’s his toughest mission yet, and Becker finds himself going to places in The Seems he never knew existed, and meeting people long thought dead.
Can Becker repair the split second before he runs out of time for ever?

“Rogue” by Danielle Steel @ Rs.240/- (Pgs.480)
Rogue: a mischievous person, a scamp, a rascal, an impish or playful young person – Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary.
Maxine Williams was very happy when she got married to Blake a beautiful, charismatic but very irresponsible and unpredictable person. As an entrepreneur he is earning millions but fails to perform as a husband. Now when they are separated and getting settled in their own lives, Blake wants Maxine in his life again – as a partner in a humanitarian project. She finds him changed from a carefree playboy to compassionate, responsible grown-up.
Here comes a new novel for all Danielle Steel’s fan’s… ‘Rogue’

Socio-Eco-Pol / Current Affairs:

“From Fatwa To Jihad: The Rushdie Affair and Its Legacy” by Kenan Mallik @ Rs.399/-
‘A thorough and highly readable history of the politics of the Rushdie affair and an important intervention in the current debate on freedom of expression’ – Monica Ali
It was in 1989, where a thousand Muslim protestors paraded through a British city displaying a copy of The Satanic Verses before ceremoniously burning the book. It was an act motivated by rage and offence as well as one calculated to shock and offend. It did more than that: images of the burning book become an icon of Muslim anger. These images of protest announced the birth of a new world. The ‘Rushdie Affair’ raised many questions twenty years later – of Islam’s relationship to the West, the meaning and value of multiculturalism, the limits of tolerance in a liberal society – have become defining issues of our time.
By taking the Ayatollah Khomeini’s fatwa condemning Rushdie as his starting point, Kenan Malik examines how radical Islam gained hold in Muslim communities, how multiculturalism contributed to this process, and how the Rushdie affair has transformed the very nature of the debate on tolerance and free speech.
Here is an original and vividly insightful account of one of the major historical punctuation marks of the last twenty-five years.

“Hegemony or Survival” by Noam Chomsky @ Rs.275/- (Pgs.301)
America’s quest for global dominance…
Here is a compelling analysis of America’s pursuit of total domination and the catastrophic consequences that are sure to follow. In Hegemony or Survival, Chomsky exposes the real motives behind America’s quest for power, from US funding of repressive regimes to the current ‘war on terror.’ Insightful and brave, this towering polemic reveals him to be one of the radical heroes of our time.

“Branding India: An Incredible Story” by Amitabh Kant @ Rs.499/- (Pgs.267)
How do you bring a magnificently diverse country – with twenty-eight states, seven union territories, eighteen official languages and 1.12 billion people – under one brand?
How did a sleeping giant like India get its act together? How did government departments not normally known for their speed, dynamism or flexibility build and nurture a brand? How did infrastructure keep pace with the demand so that what was promised to tourists could be delivered?
In what was a complex and massive exercise, this is exactly what the author, Amitabh Kant, former joint secretary in the Ministry of Tourism, and his colleagues cutting across various government departments achieved as they put India on the World Tourism Map with their ‘Incredible India’ campaign.
Launched in 2002 when travel to India was down in the dumps – in the wake of the destruction of the World Trade Centre, the war on Afghanistan and the attack on Indian Parliament – the ‘Incredible India’ campaign triggered a take-off of Indian tourism. This fascinating success story, written by an insider, becomes even more relevant today as the Indian tourism industry again faces a slowdown because of the economic downturn and the attacks on Mumbai in November 2008. Scholarly as well as personal, the book is essential reading for the travel and tourism industry as well as the layperson, and an inspiring business case study that shows how even the bureaucracy can be as dynamic as anyone in the private sector.

“Common Wealth: Economics for A Crowded Planet” by Jeffrey Sachs @ Rs. 350/- (Pgs 386)
Common Wealth explains the most basic economic reckoning that the world faces…Despite the rearguard opposition of some vested interests, policies to help the world’s poor and the global environment are in fact the very best economic bargains on the planet. Jeffrey Sachs is one of the world’s leading thinkers and activists in economic development. In this inspiring new book he sets out a realistic, practical plan for solving the most severe crises our world faces – population growth, climate change, extreme poverty – in a way that will ultimately benefit all of us.
By harnessing new technology and a new ethic of global co-operation, he shows we can find common ground in our crowded world, leaving a healthy, healed planet for future generations. It is a book appealing equally to the head and the heart.



“Malicious Medicine – My experience with fraud and falsehood in infertility clinics” by Anitha Jayadevan @ Rs.150/- (Pgs.105)
A simple slim book, but one that highlights/ brings to light the malpractices and cover-ups indulged by unethical medical practioners and clinicians. Assisted Reproductive Technology or ART is big business today – and a lot of clinics in every big or small town offer the entire range of treatment from intrauterine insemination (IUI), in vitro fertilization (IVF), intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) to surrogate motherhood. This book, though coming from a harrowing personal trauma has questions to ask of the medical world and the society that allows unethical practices go unchecked.

Management:

“The Power Of Four: leadership lessons of crazy horse” by Joseph.M.Marshall III @ Rs.399/- (Pgs.168)
The author was born on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota and raised by his maternal grandparents. He is a historian, educator, motivational speaker, and Lakota craftsman, and has worked as both technical advisor and actor in television movies including the award-winning Into the West.
In 1876, the warrior Crazy Horse led a hundred riders in a spectacularly courageous charge against Custer’s last stand. What can his example teach us about true leadership today? The best selling author of the Lakota Way retells the great chief’s story to reveal the four principles that made Crazy Horse a dynamic and compassionate leader, not only in battle but in life lessons that all of us can use whether we lead or follow.

“Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us” by Seth Godin @ Rs.375/- (Pgs.131)
In this book, Seth Godin argues that today everyone has an opportunity to start a movement to bring together a tribe of like – minded people and do amazing things. And yet too many people ignore the opportunity to lead because they are ‘sleepwalking’ their way through their lives and work, too afraid to question whether their compliance is doing them – or their company any good.
Tribes is for those who don’t want to be the sheep and instead have a desire to do fresh and exciting work. If you have a passion for what you want to do and the drive to make it happen, there is a tribe of fellow employees, or customers, or investors, or readers, just writing for you to connect with each other and lead them where they want to go.

“Nudge” by Thaler & Sunstein @ Rs.299/- (Pgs.396)
Are you looking for a book that changes the way you think about choice? A book showing how you can influence people and improve decisions about health, wealth and happiness…
Here is a book using eye-opening real-life examples, having the authors show that no choice is ever presented in a neutral way.
Now the question is: When do we need a nudge in the right direction?
This book fundamentally changes the way you think about the world and its bigger problems, but also about yourself. Just as surprising, it is fun to read, drawing on examples as far as a field as urinals, organ donations and marriage.
This book won’t just nudge you – it will knock you off your feet!

“Radical Trust: How Today’s Great Leaders Convert People to Partners” by Joe Healey @ Rs.350/- (Pgs.224)
In this engaging and hard-hitting guide to leadership, using inspiring case studies and stories of real leaders, Healey reveals a simple yet powerful method for teaching the four competencies necessary to build performance enhancing trust that form the foundation of financial success in this age of global competition. Radical Trust is a practical, proven guide that actually shows managers how to create the kind of trust that makes a difference.
Once you discover the four competencies inside, you’ll know how to engage the full potential of all your people. Whether you’re a senior-, middle-, or supervisory-level manager, the practical ideas and examples will enable you to quickly modify and expand the way you lead so you can produce tangible results. You’ll learn to generate a radical trust that fuels passion and creates energizing focus. People simply work harder and better for people they trust and admire.

Personalities:

“The Mahatma And The Monkeys”: What Gandhiji Did, What Gandhiji Said” By Anu Kumar @ Rs. 150. Introductory Price Rs 125/- (Pgs 181)
This book, for today’s kids with an introduction by Anupam Kher, brings together the most interesting incidents that shaped Gandhiji’s life and his most important sayings. From his quest for truth, non-violence, equality and freedom, from the lessons he learned, and from his powerful words, you too can learn to be a little bit like Gandhiji.
Through what he did and what he said Gandhiji inspired millions of Indians and made one of the mightiest empires in the world bow to his dream: freedom for India. That’s what made him an uncommon man and the greatest leader of the millennium. And that’s why, even decades after his death, his work and his words matter in today’s world. Mahatma Gandhi never said, “What can I do, I’m only one person.” Instead he said, “In a gentle way, you can shake the world.” And he did.

“A Life of Change” by Noshir H. Antia @ Rs.299/- (Pgs.189)
Antia’s autobiography tells in a delightful style, laced with humour, the story of an extraordinary individual who distinguished himself in many fields and adorned whatever he touched. Noshir H. Antia became a doctor by accident. He wanted to be a forest officer like his grandfather and uncle. But life took a different turn once he chose medicine as his profession. From a modest beginning in Hubli, he became a pioneer of plastic surgery in modern India and established one of the earliest burns units in the country. He realized that ‘health’ could not be the domain of medical science alone, but needed to be framed by the social, cultural and economic perspectives of the common people. He and his team began training women volunteers – an experiment that became the blueprint for the Community Health Workers’ Scheme. In this candid and critical account, Antia is unsparing of the medical profession and laments the emergence of the ‘health industry’ at the cost of ‘health for all.’

“Noon, with a view: Courage and Integrity” by Gulam Noon @ Rs.499/- (Pgs.205)
This is a candid story from a man who values highly his family, friends and country – both his birthplace and his adopted home. Throughout his life, Sir Gulam has made many friends and helped innumerable people, and when the Noon Products factory was destroyed by fire, both friends and clients were there to help him recover. After the Noon Foundation was established and he was awarded an MBE, his time was spent working with many different charities and, in 2002, the Queen honoured him with a knighthood. Sir Gulam accepted nomination for a peerage but the ‘cash for honours’ storm erupted which he related the incident from his personal perspective – his anger, humiliation, frustration and depression.
Reflecting upon the tough questions facing Britain today, such as education, immigration, terrorism, and the role of the government and private citizens, he pulls no punches and his indomitable spirit commands respect – his story demands to be read!

“A Taste of Life: The Last Days of U.G.Krishnamurti” by Mahesh Bhatt @ Rs.225/- (Pgs.161)
‘Those who talk about death don’t want to die. I don’t want to go and I don’t want to stay’
Here is a bare, intensely personal account of a bedside vigil with the dying, A Taste of Life records the final days that well-known film-maker Mahesh Bhatt spent with U.G. Krishnamurti, narrating how, in death, U.G. shows the author and us a way to live life.
It was on the afternoon of 22 March 2007, U.G. Krishnamurti passed away in Vallecrosia, Italy. Known as the ‘anti-guru’, the ‘raging sage’ and the ‘thinker who shuns thought’, U.G. spent his life destroying accepted beliefs in science, god, mind, soul, religion, love and relationships – all the props man uses to live life. And when U.G. knew that it was time for him to go, he refused all attempts to prolong life with medical help. He let nature, and his body, take its course.

History:

“The Ascent of Money: A Financial History of The World” by Niall Ferguson @ Rs.595/- (Pgs.442)
Niall Ferguson, famed for his clarity and verve, reveals financial history as the essential back-story behind all history…that sooner or later every bubble will bursts, and that’s why, whether you’re scraping by or rolling in it, there’s never been a better time to understand the Ascent of Money.
In this book, Ferguson shows that finance is in fact the foundation of human progress. Bread, cash, dosh, dough, loot, lucre, moolah, readies, the wherewithal: call it what you like, money matters. To Christians, the love of it is the root of all evil. To generals, it is the sinews of war; to revolutionaries, the shackles of labour. But what exactly is money? Is it a mountain of silver, as the Spanish conquistadors thought? Or will mere clay tablets and printed paper suffice? How did we come to live in a world where most money is invisible, little more than numbers on a computer screen? Where did money come from? And where did it all go?
He explains why the origins of the French Revolution lie in a stock market bubble caused by a convicted Scots murderer. He shows how financial failure turned Argentina from the world’s sixth richest country into an inflation-ridden basket case – and how a financial revolution is propelling the world’s most populous country from poverty to power.

“The Legend Of Sigurd & Gudrun” By J.R.R Tolkien @ Rs. 899/- (Pgs 377)
Many years ago, Tolkien composed his own version, now published for the first time, of the great legend of Northern antiquity, in two closely related poems to which he gave the titles The New Lay of the Volsungs and The New Lay of Gudrun. Deriving his version primarily from his close study of the ancient poetry of Norway and Iceland known as the Poetic Edda (and where no old poetry exists, from the later prose work the Volsunga Saga), Tolkien employed a verse-form of short stanzas whose lines embody in English the exacting alliterative rhythms and the concentrated energy of the poems of the Edda.

“In Our Time: the speeches that shaped the modern world” by Hywel Williams @ Rs.550/- (Pgs.215)
In Our Time brings together 40 of the most memorable, eloquent and influential speeches since 1945. From stark warnings against the threat of totalitarianism to celebrations of independence long fought for, and from rallying calls for political change to passionate defences of moral principle. Hywel William’s choice of speeches is richly eclectic in scope. This is an anthology with many voices: dictators and democrats, liberals and conservatives, nationalists and internationalists, soldiers and peace-makers, statesmen and entrepreneurs. Each speech is accompanied by a biography of the speaker, a concise introduction setting it in historical context, and a brief account of its impact and consequences. Every major speech of the post-war era can be found within these pages, including some of the most important and memorable orations ever given.
Both rousing and thought-provoking, In Our Time offers a unique and fascinating perspective on world history since 1945.

“Nefertiti” By Michelle Moran @ Rs.295/- (Pgs 424)
“To speak the name of the dead is to make them live again” – Egyptian proverb
It has been a long journey for the author into Nefertiti’s ancient world… a journey that began with a visit to the Altes Museum in Berlin, where her iconic bust is housed. The bust itself has a long and detailed history, beginning with its creation in the city of Amarna and continuing to its arrival in Germany, where it became an instant draw in its first exhibition in 1923.
It is 3000 years after her death…Nefertiti’s allure still captivates tens of thousands of visitors each year. She is one of the world’s great legendary beauties.
This novel takes you into the life of Nefertiti. At the tender age of fifteen, she marries Akhenaten, the Prince of Egypt, and her dreams of face and fortune begins unfolding. Her natural beauty is so enhanced, where she is bathed and decorated by a team of body servants, she soon becomes the darling of the people and her husband’s closest confidant. But when the Prince breaks with a 1000 years of tradition, defying the priests and the military, it takes all of Nefertiti’s wiles to keep the nation from being torn apart. She’s prepared to sacrifice her sister to strengthen her power and this act will lock the two women in a feud…
Seen through her sister’s eyes, she is vividly brought to life in this heartbreaking story of celebrity, ambition, love and loss.

Timeless Cuisine-Recipes from Harrisons By Latha Kannan @ Rs.250/- (Pgs 105)
Harrison’s of Broadway goes back to the era when George Town – in fact, to the era when it was still called Black Town – was ‘The City’, and virtually all business activity in Madras was centred there. It was in 1891 that G Varadarajulu Chetty founded Harrison’s on what was Black Town’s ‘Main Street’, Popham’s Broadway. The ground floor of its two-storey building was stocked with goodies as beautiful as they were tasty. It was a veritable showroom of confectionery imported from England and the Continent, but competing with what Harrison’s itself produced.
There were chocolates in plain and fancy boxes…crystallised fruits and cream caramels…Turkish Delight and almond-rich marzipan coloured like the fruits, flowers and vegetables they were shaped into. But what always caught the eye were the wedding cakes waiting for delivery, from small ones to towering, ornately decorated ones, but every one as fruit-and-brandy-rich as only Harrison’s could make!
Harrison’s, in its heyday, specialised in what is called ‘Butler Cuisine – fusion cooking at its best, Western food flavoured in a way that has made Curry king in Britain. To their recipe books were added the fare that Ethiraj Naidu and his wife, Thulasiamma, experimented with at home. And together that team made Harrison’s meals amongst the tastiest in mid-20th Century Madras.

Others:

“In The Valley Of Mist” By Justine Hardy @ Rs.475/- (Pgs 271)
Mohammad Dar is many things. He is a patriarch who loves his children, a house-boat owner who has had to leave his beautiful lakeside home, a carpet-seller who became an aid worker but, through all, he has been a devout Muslim and a passionate Kashmiri.
In the Valley of Mist is an intimate portrait of one family’s extraordinary story living in a conflict zone and adapting to their changed world. This book shows the reality of trying to stay sane, keep children safe, arrange weddings, and seek solace in religion while being attacked by those acting in its name – all the time, living in a tension-filled pocket of land that is at the heart of the conflict within and beyond the Muslim world. Kashmir, once praised by poets as an earthly paradise has become deeply scarred by bloodshed and political unrest. Justine Hardy has known the Dar family for many years, sharing their lives, their hopes and their shattered dreams. As a journalist and writer, their home has been her Kashmiri base.
Through the experiences of Mohammad, his relatives and friends, Justine reveals what it’s like for an ordinary household to survive raids, street fighting, religious persecution and military oppression.

“Outlook Traveller Driving Holidays Across India” @ Rs.295/- (Pgs 542)
The romantic suggestion that the journey can be as exciting as the destination oftentimes seems out of place in the Indian context. Air travel has little charm in itself, our trains can be crowded or beset with delays and our roads are full of potholes. But, as the writers who travelled for Outlook Traveller Getaways’ latest title Driving Holidays Across India discovered, there are still plenty of reasons for taking the long road to a good holiday. Detailed information is provided in each drive has a route guide that shows places, railheads and airports en route, and nearby water bodies and wildlife parks to help you plan detours. A front-of-the-book section with information on what to pack, getting the car ready, handling accidents and tips for driving on various terrains in different seasons. In the pages that follow, you’ll rediscover the magic of the road. It may be a bumpy ride ahead but it’s well worth your time!

“What to Expect When You’re Adopting…” Dr Ian Palmer @ Rs.655/- (Pgs.260)
Adopting a child can be one of the most rewarding experiences anyone can have – for both the parents and the child. But making the decision to adopt can be daunting and often overwhelming.
A practical guide to the decisions and emotions involved in adoption, Dr Ian Palmer is very well placed to look at the psychological and emotional issues relating to adoption. Adopted himself, he is also a psychiatrist with particular interest in family medicine and psychological trauma. Dr Palmer has wide experience of dealing with individuals and couples attempting to come to terms with difficult experiences and decisions, including going through IVF and contemplating adoption.
In this unique guide, Dr Palmer does not gloss over the realities of the adoption process, but rather leads you through the many stages and emotional aspects involved and offers practical guidance on making crucial decisions, building a strong foundation, separating the myths about adopted children, and dealing with issues of single-parent adoption, infertility and the option of remaining childless.

“Endal: How one extraordinary dog brought a family back from the brink” by Allen & Sandra Parton @ Rs.275/- (Pgs 308)
The book Endal is about a cute golden Labrador that comes into Allen and Sandra lives and changes it in many ways that they could never repay him for. As Allen goes to the Gulf war he returns with a serious head injury that makes him forget everything about his past life. He also forgets about his wife and two children. This causes various problems in their lives. Mostly pain, that is caused by Allen’s war injuries.
As Sandra is a nurse she always thought that she could take care of her husband but eventually she realises that his injury will not allow her to do so as he had no memory of her. He and she could not cope up with daily life. Sandra is determined to take care of her family and keep them together. That’s when Endal enters their life and with his joyous nature brings the family together and gets them closer to one and another.
Endal is a heart-warming journey of Family and the connection they hold with one and another and how a dog with affectionate actions brings a broken family together and gets love back into his family.

“7 Secrets From Hindu Calendar Art” by Devdutt Pattanaik @ Rs.295/- (Pgs.175)
Here is in fact the most democratic expression of a mythic imagery that was once restricted to temple walls and palm leaf manuscripts. Portraits of the Hindu pantheon of gods and the stories that surround them can be found on the walls and puja rooms of almost every Hindu household in India. Rich in symbols, each image is a piece of an ancient metaphysical jigsaw puzzle.
Attempts to explain the ‘fantastic’ imagery are usually defensive, apologetic or chauvinistic, as one tries to legitimize the content using logic or comparisons with other religions. To best appreciate Hindu art, one has to enter a new paradigm, a new way of explaining things. One has to explore new notions of perfection and possibility.
Dr Devdutt Pattanaik, India’s renowned mythologist, decodes these symbols to reveal a wisdom that has nourished India for thousands of years.

“The Rapids of a Great River: The Penguin Book of Tamil Poetry” edited by Lakshmi Holmstrom, Subashree Krishnaswamy and K.Srilata @ Rs.499/- (Pgs.222)
This magisterial collection, the first of its kind, presents to the modern reader chronologically arranged translations from the rich tapestry of the Tamil poetic tradition.
The Rapids of a Great River begins with selections from the earliest known Tamil poetry dating from the 2nd century CE. The writings of the Sangam period laid the foundation for the Tamil poetic tradition, and they continue to underlie and inform the works of Tamil poets even today. Breaking free from prescriptions, the new voices – which include Sri Lankan Tamils, women and Dalits, among others – address the contemporary reader, the poems underscored by a sharp rhetorical edge, grapple with the complexities of the modern political and social world.
The selection is wide-ranging and the translations admirable echo the music, pace and resonance of the poems. This anthology links the old with the new, cementing the continuity of a richly textured tradition. There is something in the collection for every reader and each will make his or her own connections – at times startling, at other times familiar.

“Two Measure of Bhakti” by Puntanam and Melpattur translated by Vijay Nambisan @ Rs.150/-
For four centuries, Jnana-paana and Narayaniyam have been touchstones of faith in Kerala. Puntanam’s Jnana-paana may claim to be the first original modern poem in Malayalam; simple and innocent, it still speaks directly to the reader. Melpattur’s Narayaniyam is ‘the last great hurrah of classical Sanskrit’ in India; the poem excerpted here, majestic in its humility, describes a vision of the Lord. With his elegant verse translations, Vijay Nambisan brings these poems to a new audience. Also translated is a poem by Mahakavi Vallathol which relates the story of Melpattur and Puntanam’s meeting and how the Sanskritist scorned the vernacular poet. Nambisan has explored the dynamics of Malayali culture in his incisive ‘Translator’s Apology’.

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Happy reading and see you at the Store,
From the team at,
twistntales