Lessons from history we refuse to learn
The English historian, Lord Acton, said in a letter to Bishop Creighton of the Church of England in 1887
Read more
Wordsworld
Can writers be apolitical?
It’s been a season of elections all round — with interesting results — in India, the UK, France, and Iran, for instance, and the season is upcoming in the US. It was serendipitous that I had occasion
Read more
Hiss, Don’t Bite
We are all familiar with shows that follow seemingly fearless individuals dig unceremoniously into the private lives, so to speak, of animals deemed to be dangerous.
Read more
On the reading highway
Where do I begin to tell the story of how engaging it was to read Amor Towles’s The Lincoln Highway, all 576 pages of it in smallish print? Possibly for the first time in over 60 years of reading, I fell in love with a chapter.
Read more
The Word from Down Under
After a recent stint of travel, I realised once more how important it is for bookstores to focus attention on local authors
Read more
When You Have Nowhere to Call Home
Thank you! Thank you!’ My friends from our book club — Pandu Aunty, Bhama and Usha — wouldn’t stop thanking me as we made our way to the car on the evening of February 29.
Read more
Seeing from the Inside Out
When the offspring of someone close to you does something special — and we’re not talking awards — you feel an indescribable joy and pride.
Read more
Weaves of words
We live in troubled times, and as the years roll by matters will only get more complex.
Read more
People in Places
Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 by the South Korean writer Cho Nam-Joo was our book club’s November read.
Read more
A cage with a view
This beautifully observed and tenderly written book about life inside a prison teaches us a great deal. A must-read. I
Read more