Book Review

The Ghosts of Indian Small Towns: Ruskin Bond's journey through time

Ruskin Bond's reflective essays revisit vanished small-town India, blending nostalgia, memory, humour, and the quiet ghosts of changing landscapes

Chapal Rani: A poignant portrait of gender and exclusion in folk theatre

Through the story of a female impersonator in theatres, this book offers a commentary on how queerness exists around us in different shapes, forms, words, and feeling

River Traveller: Hazarika brings alive the Tsangpo-Brahmaputra ecosystem

Mr Hazarika's book will appeal to environmentalists, historians, diplomats, anthropologists, political scientists, bureaucrats, and activists as well as readers who enjoy reading travelogues

London Falling: Deception and a death without answers in a gilded city

How a teenager in London crafted a double life as the son of a Russian oligarch, and paid for it with his life under suspicious circumstances

The Good Reporter: Rural women's stories, uninterrupted amid media clutter

In a crowded media world, a women-led newsroom offers a refreshing breather

AI For Good: Can artificial intelligence become a force for humanity?

AI for Good is structured like a travelogue and the author's prose is breezy, concise and well observed. But travellers don't always come home with a nuanced understanding of what they've seen

Flower of India: The life and times of the lotus in myth and memory

The lotus is mentioned in some of the oldest creation myths of India. The Puranic myths state that Brahma was seated on a lotus when he conjured up the universe

Japan's imperial hubris holds a dire warning for a violent century

As new empires pursue old ambitions and borders become bargaining chips, this anti-war treatise reminds us how history repeats itself through humanity's amnesia

China Under Xi Jinping: Caution gives way to control, nationalism, ambition

The book provides a one-stop access point for information and analysis on China under Mr Xi

Science and Practice of Public Health: A manual for the developing world

At a time when the world is grappling with public health challenges, this book is an easy-to-read handbook for policymakers, connecting theory to the practice of public health

James McDougall's 'Worlds of Islam' celebrates rich heritage and diversity

One recurring theme that unites this book is Sufism

Our 'screenified' future: How screens turned people into performers online

The book is at its strongest when Garber gets hyperspecific, forcing the reader to wrestle with the fact that the far-reaching power of the screen has touched all parts of life

Test Cricket: Tim Wigmore's masterly history of the game and empire

A sweeping review of Tim Wigmore's Test Cricket: A History, exploring how empire, race, class and politics shaped the game's longest format

The Rules That Make Us: Anthropology meets corporate strategy in this book

This book offers a fascinating look at the intersection of big business and the humanities, offering a glimpse into a unique career, though it can sometimes feel self-promoting

Reimagining Government: Handy AI guide for govt, but falls short on detail

While the book is written obviously for policymakers in the United States, it can actually pretty well be used by most governments in both developed nations and fast-developing nations like India

Two Bandra Girls: Farm life memoir blends dreams with reality of rural life

Two women leave their Bandra lives to start an organic farm in Raigad, resulting in a book packed with action, drama and occasional plot twists

Trauma Nation: India's neglected mental health challenge needs addressing

As anxiety, depression, physical illnesses and addiction become global problems, this book studies their impact with an Indian lens

The Successor: Boris Nemtsov, a Russian road not taken and its legacy

For Fishman, Nemtsov embodies the promise of the free, democratic Russia. Had he fulfilled his destiny, there might not be fighting in Ukraine, with the spectre of World War III

Portrait of An Artist: Exploring the art of practice in the studio

Rohit Chawla and Kishore Singh's book, Portrait of An Artist, rises to the occasion, choosing to focus on what happens in the studios where artists create