Protected: Stepping Into 2021, in Books and Music

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Gandhi in India and Beyond

The last book I read in 2020 was Ram Guha’s Gandhi: The Years that Changed the World and I don’t think I could have ended what was a tumultuous year with a better read. In a year that was arguably the most chaotic that India has seen since Independence and the Partition, and that has… Continue reading Gandhi in India and Beyond

History of Burma, But Which One?

I am back to reading non-fiction now, as you can tell. My father bought The Hidden History of Burma early this year and I thought it’s time I read it. Thant Myint-U, the author, being the grandson of U Thant, former UN Secretary General, was an important draw, of course. It’s a country I first… Continue reading History of Burma, But Which One?

Machines Like Us. Do They?

The days of the pandemic, when technology is playing an even bigger role in people’s lives and many are singing its praises, is a good time to turn to science fiction. To imagine what AI can do to our lives and our work. More importantly, to our relationships with each other. These days, I read… Continue reading Machines Like Us. Do They?

Of Open Cities in the Time of Lockdowns

Deserted city streets. Empty or shuttered shops and restaurants. Air travel pretty much grounded. And a raging pandemic in our midst. Seems to be a strange time to be reading a book that is about just the opposite. About a life we once knew, which makes the act of reading it now, a study in… Continue reading Of Open Cities in the Time of Lockdowns

Protected: Reading in the Time of Reckoning

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Something of Kipling, Sans the Colonialist

Many months ago, I spied a copy of Rudyard Kipling’s autobiography at my parents’ flat in Goa and I was puzzled because I couldn’t imagine my father ever buying a copy of Kipling’s book, unless forced to! It turns out that it belonged to my grandfather, another avid reader. I decided I must read it… Continue reading Something of Kipling, Sans the Colonialist