There is nothing more satisfying than reading a book while sipping a hot cup of tea.
I read Joan Fleming for the first time last year because the cover of her book, The Chill and the Kill, had me intrigued when I first read about the book at John Norris' iconic Pretty Sinister Books. The cover with its serpentine female figure reminded me of the Indian legend of the shape-shifting Nagins, … Continue reading Two books by Joan Fleming: Miss Bones (1959) & The Chill and the Kill (1964)
aapbeeti: Kale Pani ki Karawas Kahani by Bhai ParmanandMy rating: 3 of 5 stars The writer was a Professor of Modern European History at National College, Lahore and thus was a teacher of Bhagat Singh and Sukhdev. This was his memoir of his days in captivity at the Andamans. The book was proscribed by the … Continue reading Review: aapbeeti: Kale Pani ki Karawas Kahani
Gandhi Benaqaab by Hansraj RahbarMy rating: 4 of 5 stars This is a brave book since many authors would shy away from exposing the 'Mahatma'. However in doing so Rahbar exposes his own prejudices. Nevertheless, it is a well-researched critique of Gandhi and his politics. First Line: Desh ki shashya shyamla bhumi par Shiv ka … Continue reading Review: Gandhi Benaqaab
Richard Mason (1919-1997) was a British author who served in the RAF during the second world-war and fought on the Indo-Burmese front, later becoming an Intelligence officer. Best known for his 1957 novel, The World of Suzie Wong, Mason also wrote a handful of other novels, two of which, The Wind Cannot Read (1946) and The … Continue reading Forgotten Book: The Fever Tree by Richard Mason
To the author, Ben Coes, to be an American is to belong to the Master Race. Period. Superhuman strength; Always right; No doubts, no dilemmas; Always on Top. The only people who can come (somewhat) close to the Americans are the Israelites. The rest are wimps, nincompoops, bunglers, cowards, traitors, avaricious, and brutes. Actually this … Continue reading American Superhero: Coup D’etat by Ben Coes
Bandi Jeewan by Sachindra Nath SanyalMy rating: 4 of 5 stars The book which according to a British secret report sent "more young men to the jails and gallows than any other book" is a first-hand account of the revolutionary movement in India during the second and third decades of the twentieth century. Sachindranath Sanyal, … Continue reading A Revolutionary’s Life: Bandi Jeewan
A History of the Indian Nationalist Movement by Verney LovettMy rating: 2 of 5 stars A biased, often condescending look, at the freedom struggle of India. *First Line: An accurate knowledge of the conditions of the past is necessary for a right understanding of the problems of the present.Pub. Details: 1920. ND: Vishal Publishers, 1972.Pages: … Continue reading Review: A History of the Indian Nationalist Movement
My last read of 2016 was the Complete Tribunal Proceedings of the Lahore Conspiracy Case that had revolutionary Sukhdev's remarks in the margins. I am glad that the first book that I read in 2017 is about Sukhdev's closest friend: Bhagat Singh.M.M. Juneja's biography of India's most famous martyr doesn't add much to all that … Continue reading First Read of 2017: Biography of Bhagat Singh by M.M. Juneja
Despite my love for mysteries, I haven't read much of our Indian detectives. But this month, I was determined to read the exploits of Byomkesh Bakshi, a detective created by Bengali writer Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay, in 1932 and to whom I was first introduced to by an eponymous TV serial that was telecast in 1993.Though, I … Continue reading Forgotten Book: Satyanveshi Vyomkesh by Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay
More than any other kind of novel, I expect the Historical novel to have memorable characters. The past already provides events of great interest which the writer weaves into the plot but it is really the characters that make us care about their life and times.And this is where David Davidar's debut novel The House … Continue reading Literature of India: The House of Blue Mangoes by David Davidar
a hot cup of pleasure 