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Saturday, September 27, 2025
TopicBook review

Topic: Book review

With a touch of Marquez, a non-fiction fairy tale gives China’s people a voice

‘Becoming China: The Story Behind the State’ is an excellent starting point for someone wanting to move beyond a traditional, i.e. statist, understanding of China.

Dalmia’s ‘Fiction as History’ undercuts grand narratives to tell unspeakable tales

Her book is a lucid entry point for those unfamiliar with the Hindi novel in the past 150 odd years and offers a sharp analysis of tradition, nationalism, and modernity. 

‘The Bengalis’ does a thing that books of its kind rarely do: criticise the Bengalis

Sudeep Chakravarti's mammoth undertaking to trace the Bengalis from its genesis to now results in a detailed, intriguing, and confounding book.

Art and narrative that delineate the complexities associated with Northeastern identity

Edited by Parismita Singh, ‘Centrepiece’ brings to the readers stories of a region which still remains largely absent in the popular imagination.

‘The Dawn Watch’ is an attempt to understand Conrad in a globalised world

In Maya Jasanoff’s book 'The Dawn Watch', Joseph Conrad is placed in the context of world politics. Jasanoff refuses to treat Conrad as mythical personality

Sujatha Gidla’s ‘Ants Among Elephants’: Baring the caste bugs in India’s revolution

‘Your life is your caste, your caste is your life’, writes first-time author Sujatha Gidla, who has been unable to escape caste ostracism in faraway USA.

No Songs for Silence: A Review of Gulzar’s ‘Two’

In Two, Gulzar carves the facts of the partition to its bare bones in a masterpiece stoic prose

‘The Last Battle of Saraighat’ is a battle half-won

Rajat Sethi & Shubhrastha’s book eulogises the BJP’s victory in Assam, but fails to capture the truepicture of the Northeast and its complex issues.

R.K. Narayan through an Indian philosophical lens: Ranga Rao’s new book shines

In ‘R.K. Narayan: The Novelist and his Art’, Ranga Rao pleasantly surprises the reader by ushering in a new critical paradigm through the theory of gunas. 

A gripping story from pre-Partition Punjab

‘A Memoir of Pre-Partition Punjab’ traces the life and work of Ruchi Ram Sahni; freedom fighter, educationist and story-teller, Sahni wore many hats.

On Camera

The Bads of Bollywood finally gives us the sidekick that everyone needs

Sidekicks are quintessential in Bollywood, and every few years, when a star or lead shines, a filmmaker reminds us that the person next to the hero is a key ingredient in the recipe.

Market regulator SEBI clears Adani Group of impropriety alleged by Hindenburg Research

SEBI probe concluded that purported loans and fund transfers were paid back in full and did not amount to deceptive market practices or unreported related party transactions.

With MiG-21’s exit, India’s squadron strength hits 6-decade low. What are IAF’s plans for the Tejas

While the IAF remains committed to the Tejas programme and has placed orders for 180 Tejas Mk1A, the force is eagerly waiting for the Tejas Mk 2 version.

Something’s hidden in the Oval Office photo of Trump, Munir, Sharif. India must look closely

What Munir has achieved with Trump is a return to normal, ironing out the post-Abbottabad crease. The White House picture gives us insight into how Pakistan survives, occasionally thrives and thinks.