Synopses & Reviews
Supremely personal, yet always probing and analytical, this brilliant collection of essays is part memoir, part literary criticism.A fluid and powerful writer, one of the best in a generation of Indian authors (New York Times Book Review), Shashi Tharoor, the acclaimed author of six books, all published by Arcade, is once again at his provocative best.In the title piece, we learn what Iraqis go through in their beleaguered land merely to get hold of a book, and how selling books from their own libraries on the street helps some put bread on the table. Tharoor reminisces about growing up with books in India and discusses the importance of the Mahabharata in Indian life and history. There is also a poignant homage to Chilean poet Pablo Neruda, whose home was raided by the oppressive military regime while he lay on his deathbed, and who famously said: There is only one thing of danger for you here-my poetry Pondering world affairs, Tharoor declares that the defining features of today's world are the relentless forces of globalization-the same forces used by the terrorists in their macabre dance of death and destruction. Tharoor's astute views on Salman Rushdie, India's love for P. G.Wodehouse, Rudyard Kipling, Aleksandr Pushkin, John le Carr, V. S. Naipaul, and Winston Churchill make for fascinating reading. His insightful takes on Hollywood and Bollywood will intrigue even the most demanding cinephile. Together, these 39 pieces reveal the inner workings of one of today's most eclectic writers.
Synopsis
"This amalgam of essay, literary criticism, and memoir blends into a tribute to the world of books." --Chicago Tribune
Synopsis
Shashi Tharoor is once again at his provocative best. In the title essay, we learn the steep price paid by some Iraqis just to obtain a book; what does it mean when selling books, essentially selling culture, out of ones own library is the only way to put bread on the table? Later, Tharoor reminisces about growing up with books in India and the central position of classics like the Mahabharata in developing his own literary identity. The poignant homage to Chilean poet Pablo Neruda recalls his incendiary deathbed challenge as an oppressive military regime invaded his home: There is only one thing of danger for you heremy poetry!”
The defining features of todays world,” Tharoor writes of the global stage, are the relentless forces of globalizationthe same forces used by the terrorists in their macabre dance of death and destruction.” His astute views on Salman Rushdie, Indias love for P. G. Wodehouse, Rudyard Kipling, Aleksandr Pushkin, John le Carré, V. S. Naipaul, and Winston Churchill make for fascinating reading. His insightful takes on Hollywood and Bollywood will intrigue even the most demanding cinephile. Together, these thirty-nine pieces reveal the inner workings of one of todays most eclectic writers.
About the Author
Shashi Tharoor was born in London and brought up in Bombay and Calcutta. He has written for the New York Times, the Washington Post, the International Herald Tribune, the Times of India, and Foreign Affairs. A human rights activist and winner of a Commonwealth Writers Prize, he is currently a member of the Indian Parliament and lives in New Dehli, India.