Bs Reads

Rakesh Batabyal's 'Idea of Order' examines European history, nationalism

Professor Batabyal's Indian perspective on this most recent period of European history is obviously relevant for his home audience, but the European public can also learn from it

Finding the Edge: A masterful tale of Jimmy Anderson's cricketing journey

The story begins at its ending-an ageing but still formidable Anderson-offered a final chance to bow out on his own terms

Diplomat and poet Abhay K reimagines Nalanda's legacy for future learning

The book has eight chapters, the number that holds significance in Buddhist lore. The Dharmacakra, the wheel of Dharma, has eight spikes

Bofors Gate: Chitra Subramaniam's book deep-dives into the arms scandal

A household name for her investigation into the Bofors scandal, Chitra Subramaniam's book offers an unsparing account of the defence deal, even as it examines her own motivation

Every breath you take: Zimmer's Air-Borne explores mysteries of aerobiology

Air-Borne shows us how the scientific community came to understand that Covid-19 transmission was less akin to shots from a gun, and more like smog in a valley

Learning from Silence: Pico Iyer's book explores meaning of suffering, joy

Delicately written, with a rhythm and lyricism that resembles many of Mr Cohen's songs, Learning from Silence is about living a full, robust life with eyes wide open and all senses ablaze

'Casting the Buddha': How Buddhism's ties to power shaped its survival

The chronological approach-from the time of the historical Buddha to the present moment with a Bharatiya Janata Party-run government at the Centre-makes the book easy to follow

Duncan Mavin's 'Meltdown' traces Credit Suisse's grand rise and downfall

Banking often makes for a bad spectator sport. When the money is gone, only the dull parts remain

Michael Sheridan's book explores the Xi enigma and China's power dynamics

It is hard to shake the feeling that the book fails at multiple levels, principally because of the author's biases

All or Nothing: Wolff's book offers a rapid-fire take on Trump's return

The book is undeniably gripping - a veritable harvest of slime, sycophancy and sleaze that tells the story of Trump 2.0, an aggrieved pugilist waging a "life or death" campaign

A crusader on the high road: Sunitha Krishnan's book exposes trafficking

I Am What I Am is not merely a linear recounting of a life in service. In parts, it reads like an action-packed thriller

Devina Mehra challenges investment myths with data-driven insights

In this book, Ms Mehra strongly advocates global diversification to counter single-market, single-currency risk

Bollywood's versatile genius: Karma's Child captures Subhash Ghai's journey

Between 1976 and 1999, Ghai made 15 films, 11 of which were blockbusters, and one of which (Karz) attained cult status

Dark Laboratory: Tao Leigh Goffe ties environmental collapse to colonialism

Aiming to centre Black and Indigenous history and ecology, Dark Laboratory is a pointed response to the dominance of scientific rationalism as the language best suited to the climate crisis

How Hindu culture spread: Manu Pillai's book traces its origins, evolution

How did Hindu culture originate? How did this tradition leap across rivers, climb mountains, and cross deserts to spread its roots? Manu Pillai's exhaustively researched book offers some answers

The Gujaratis: Salil Tripathi's book shines but falters under its ambition

The book, he says in the epilogue, has been the labour of love: Eight years of interviewing 213 people and the reading of more than 100 books about the state

'We Tried to Tell Y'All': Meredith D Clark chronicles rise of Black Twitter

Black Twitter's most lasting legacy, according to Clark, is pulling off a "full-scale revolution" in how American news media reported on Black people

A mensch from Ludhiana: Vinay Gupta's book on a Holocaust saviour

Vinay Gupta's book is a clear-eyed tribute to an unsung hero who saved Jewish families during the Holocaust through ingenuity and compassion

'Embers of the Hands': Barraclough uncovers untold stories of history

People love the blood-soaked sagas that chronicle the deeds of (actual) Vikings. They love what Barraclough calls the "soap opera lives" of Norse gods

Play to Potential book offers fresh ideas for midlife career pivots

If you're in your 40s or 50s and wondering if this is all life has to offer, pick up Play to Potential-it's bound to give you fresh ideas to reinvent and reinvigorate your life