Reviews & Musings

  Image Source: Amazon.com Publisher ‏ : ‎ Pan Paperback ‏ : ‎ 224 pages  ISBN : ‎ 978-9390742172  Price: INR 350/- About the Book Kunti, a rare matriarch in the Mahabharata and one of the revered Pancha Satis, holds an unforgettable position in the Indian literary imagination. Yet, little is known about the fateful events that shaped her early life. Taking on the intricate task, Koral Dasgupta unravels the lesser-known strands of Kunti’s story: through a childhood of scholarly pursuits to unwanted motherhood at adolescence, a detached marriage, and her ambitious love for the king of the devas. After the remarkable success of Ahalya, the first book in the Sati series, Kunti presents a brilliant and tender retelling of a story at the heart of our culture and mythology.  In the Sati series, Koral Dasgupta explores the lives of the Pancha Kanyas from Indian mythology and reinvents them in the modern context with a feminist consciousness. 

Edited by: Mary E. John and Meena Gopal  Published by Orient Blackswan, 2021  You can get your copy from *-*-* Introduction As I stared at this headline by The Print : Covid has devastated India’s self-employed women – I kept thinking about this book I had recently completed.  According to World Bank data released in June 2020, that year India’s female workforce participation fell to 20.3%. India has one of the world’s lowest participation rates for women.  This book features 20 essays by women scholars and researchers who share their thoughts and observations about how India is failing its labouring women. We are staring at a huge crisis waiting to explore and it is high time we act on it. 

  Image Source: Amazon.in Publisher ‏ : ‎ Amaryllis  Year: 2021 ISBN ‏ : ‎ 978-9390924080  About the Book  When Kamla Malik's husband Nihar dies of a heart attack in Goa, she’s devastated. Haunted by the lack of closure, she tries mediums, séances, and Ouija boards to help her establish contact. All she wants is a final goodbye. She tries to find him in the twisted labyrinthine worlds that he now inhabits, but does she really want him back, and worse if she finds him, will he let her go? Or is she, as the doctors believe, living in the tunnels of her mind, making it impossible for her to distinguish hallucination from reality? Coincidentally, her eccentric and ailing maternal aunt invites her to visit her splendidly isolated and crumbling villa in Goa.  Here, Kamla meets Victor, her aunt’s stepson. He stakes his claim over the villa and with it, over Kamla. While she accepts that Victor is her here and now, why does Nihar continue to torment her? Is she doome...

  Namrata reviews  One Drop of Blood by Ismat Chugtai  based on the battle of Karbala. Published by Women Unlimited (An Associate of Kali for Women), 2020 Featured in  Hindustan Times  as one of the interesting books early this year,  One Drop of Blood  by Ismat Chugtai is a unique book in many ways. Firstly, it is the last work of Ismat Chugtai and secondly, it so different from her usual line of work. One drop of Blood  is based on the battle of Karbala fought in 680 A.D. in present-day Iraq between Yazid, the reigning Caliph and his mighty soldiers and Imam Husain, the grandson of Prophet Muhammad with his small army. According to the Islamic calendar Muharram is the first month of the year and the second holiest month, after the month of Ramzan. Muharram is also a period of  mourning the martyrdom  of Imam Husain and his family (including his infant grandchild) in the battle of Karbala. As she herself states in an interview, “ The tr...

Image Source: Amazon.in About the Book In a peaceful southern town, amidst lush spice plantations, trouble is brewing. In the town live three generations of two families, one Hindu and the other Muslim, whose lives will be changed forever by the coming violence. At risk are Dada, the ageing grandfather who lovingly tends and talks to the plants on his estate; his strong-willed grandchildren, Abu and Fareeda; the newly married Devaki, who cannot fathom the forces that are turning her husband and her father into fanatics; Mariam, of the gifted hands, who kneads and pounds the fatigued muscles of tourists into submission; and Garuda, the high-school teacher who, in his own desperate way, is trying to impart the truth about the country’s history to a classroom of uninterested students. Quietly but surely, the spectre of religious intolerance is beginning to haunt the community in the guise of the Self-Respect Forum whose mission is to divide the town and destroy the delicate balance of res...

Source: Pinterest Dear Readers, I am very grateful to The Book Elf for providing me with the opportunity to feature on the blog. It’s a refreshing feeling to be welcomed into sharing my literary work without the small caveat of constantly being asked to pay for the privilege. Before I tell you about my new novel, I want to answer a question that might arise in your mind. Given there are already so many writers ( some might think too many ), the question is: Why should I write at all?

Source: Goodreads.com Blurb 1998. Twenty-two-year-old Mina is moving to the US from Bangalore to begin a new life with her husband. Then there’s a horrific murder and her life is turned upside down. Mina’s best friend Neelu helps her out of the abyss. Mina gradually leaves her past behind and settles into a new life in the US. Years later, she is forced to return to India and is confronted by the demons from her past. In her fragile mental state, she is unable to support Neelu in her time of need. Their friendship hits rock bottom. Mina goes back to the US and faces further hurdles, this time on the work front. She tries to make amends with Neelu, but their friendship ends with Neelu accusing Mina of something unimaginable related to the murder. Something, that deep down, Mina knows is true... Will Mina redeem herself? Will the people she loves forgive her for what she did? Alternating between flashbacks and the present day, What Mina Did explores how one...

Source: Goodreads.com ~About the book~ RECLAIM / RESIST is a forthcoming two-part anthology series that aims to weaponize contemporary literature in reclaiming women's body from the oppression and victimization that we continuously endure in a capitalist-patriarchal society. RECLAIM: An Anthology of Women's Poetry will be the first installment of this series, set for release in Fall 2019. RESIST: An Anthology of Women's Prose will be out in 2020. You can know more about it HERE .

Source: Feminism in India

From the Blurb Indian women are taught to put others before themselves from an early age. This book aims to change that. Boundless is a powerfully honest collection of poems that encourage a young India to find its own identity. The last ten years for the poet, Natasha Malpani Oswal, have been a journey in experimentation and self-discovery. Natasha has tried to capture her exploration of the idea of home and identity over this time frame through these poems. In the recent times, poetry as a medium of expression has been widely celebrated which only means more to love for poetry lovers like me. With poets like Rupi Kaur, Harnidh Kaur, Rochelle Potkar we have been introduced to new forms of poetry which is poignant and relatable at the same time. They seem to pick up extremely relevant themes from what is happening around us and weave the emotions around it to create poems which leave a deep mark on the psyche of the reader. Natasha Malpani Oswal is a big believer in the...

Introduction ISBN:978-9353332686 Genre:  Fiction / Mythology Publishers: Rupa Publications Price: Rs. 295/- (I got the book for review from the publisher)

Introduction Source: Amazon.in ISBN:978-9386228840 Genre:  Fiction / Contemporary Publishers: Juggernaut Price: Rs. 299/- (I got the book for review from the publisher)

Introduction Source: Goodreads.com ASIN: B07HLBHDFW Genre:  Fiction / Romance / Romantic Suspense Publishers: Amazon Price: Rs. 289/- (I got the book for review from the author)

Introduction ISBN:978-93-5302-345-4 Genre:  Fiction Publishers: Harper Collins India Price: Rs. 299/- (I got the book for review from the publisher)

Source: Amazon.in

Introduction Source: Goodreads.com ISBN:978-93-5304-714-6 Genre:  Fiction Publishers: Rupa Publications Price: Rs. 250/- (I got the book for review from the publisher)

Introduction ISBN:978-93-87561-42-7 Genre:  Fiction/ Classics Publishers: Aleph Book Company Price: Rs. 399/- (I got the book for review from the publisher)

Introduction Source: Goodreads.com ISBN:978-9385854651 Genre:  Fiction / Fantasy Publishers: Readomania Price: Rs. 299/- (I got the book for review from the publisher)

Introduction Source: Goodreads.com ISBN:978-1509859849 Genre:  Fiction / Contemporary Publishers: Pan Macmillan India Price: Rs. 759/- (I got the book for review from the publisher)