As the year 2024 ends in few days time . It is tie took back at the books of the year that made the generated interest among the readers and earned their places in the hall of fame – Best Sellers List.
A Wonderland of Words: Around the World in 101 Essays
By Shashi Tharoor
Category: Non-Fiction ( Aleph Book Company)
Words are power. Words are magic. Words are fun. Words are sexy. Words can move you to tears. Words can make you laugh. And words can show you the world and everything in it with clarity and depth as few other things can. In this gloriously entertaining book, one of our greatest wordsmiths (and self-proclaimed bibliophile) Shashi Tharoor takes us on a tour of the words, concepts, and particularities that constitute the sublime (and sometimes mystifying) wonderland of the English language.
He demystifies punctuation, guides us through the arcane rules of spelling and grammar, and explains a wide array of essential components of the language including acronyms, bacronyms, contronyms, oxymorons, kennings, metaphors, similes, idioms, euphemisms, palindromes, and much much more. He delves into the history and evolution of English, delights in its quirks, embraces its geographical variants, provides hilarious examples of its misuse around the world, is awed by the way in which the masters of literature use it, and revels in its beauty and grandeur.
Passionate, learned, funny, and brilliantly readable, A Wonderland of Words is a book that will enchant and educate all those who delight in the English language.
2024 : The Election that Surprised India
By Rajdeep Sardesai ( Harper Collins India)
* Why did pollsters and pundits get the 2024 election forecasts so badly wrong?
* Why was the mainstream media narrative so one-sided?
* Why did the ‘char sau paar’ drumbeat for the Modi-led BJP not work on the ground?
* How did a Rahul Gandhi-led Congress stage a comeback?
* What changed so dramatically in the last five years?
* How does Team Modi-Shah operate?
* Was it really a free and fair election?
* What role did the enforcement agencies play?
* How did the battle for the states turn?
* Who really won and lost the 2024 election?
2024: The Election That Surprised India brings to life the inside story of a dramatic period in Indian politics and society. Every twist and turn is revealed in an exciting narrative on the tumultuous events of our times. Unsparing and uncompromising, this is an unputdownable account of power politics, the main characters and their role in influencing the headlines of our times. After the bestselling books on the 2014 and 2019 elections, Rajdeep Sardesai now takes a deep dive into India’s most bruising and polarized political battle and the many stories that shaped an extraordinary election verdict.
FEARLESS
By Mohinder Amarnath| Rajender Amarnath
Harper Collins India
An iconic figure in the world of cricket in the 1970s and 1980s, Mohinder Amarnath started his career as a batsman who was found suspect against short-pitched fast bowling and finished it as one of the finest and bravest players of pace. He is still remembered with awe for hooking fearsome pace attacks on bouncy Caribbean and Australian tracks-without wearing a helmet.
Grit, guts and gumption defined Amarnath’s rollercoaster career. According to both Sunil Gavaskar and Imran Khan, Amarnath was the best batsman of their era. But strangely, he kept getting dropped from the Indian team, and subsequently became famous for his comebacks, earning him the moniker ‘the comeback king’. He was a player who didn’t flinch in the face of fire: a fearless cricketer and a man who just wouldn’t be defeated or denied.
His frank, forthright and anecdotal memoir, written with his brother Rajender Amarnath, gives readers a keen insight into his personality and a glimpse into a bygone, glorious era of cricket. For any lover of the game, Fearless is a must-read.
Gods, Guns and Missionaries
The Making of the Modern Hindu Identity
Manu S Pillai ( Penguin Random House India)
In Gods, Guns and Missionaries, Manu S. Pillai takes us through these remarkable dynamics. With an arresting cast of characters—maharajahs, poets, gun-wielding revolutionaries, politicians, polemicists, philosophers and clergymen—this book is ambitious in its scope and provocative in its position. Lucid and exhaustive, it is, at once, a political history, a review of Hindu culture and a study of the social forces that prepared the ground for Hindu nationalism. Turning away from simplistic ideas on religious evolution and European imperialism, the past as it appears here is more complicated—and infinitely richer—than popular narratives allow.
WHY BHARAT MATTERS
By S. Jaishankar
Rupa Publications
In Why Bharat Matters, S. Jaishankar argues that while rising powers seek stability most of all, India must plan to rise amidst serious unpredictability. This process is also exceptional as it represents the rejuvenation of a civilizational state. Simultaneously, he also explains why foreign policy in a globalized world matters increasingly to all citizens in their daily lives.
This book is a must-read for every Indian to understand and seriously reflect on the reality of our times that is becoming clearer with each passing day—that India matters because it is Bharat.
Historical Biographies
Rama: A Man of Dharma (Penguin India) by Priya Arora offers a fresh retelling of the Ramayana, emphasizing the timeless wisdom of Rama’s exemplary values. The book clears misconceptions and highlights the relevance of the Ramayana’s teachings on liberty, equality, justice, and democracy in today’s world, showcasing the wisdom of India’s ancestors.
Gripping, anecdotal and deeply researched Babur: The Chessboard King (Penguin India) by Aabhas Maldahiyar delves into Hindustan’s economic landscape during Timurid rule and portrays Babur as a multifaceted ruler, challenging the typical depiction of an infallible conqueror and a good human being. Meticulously sourced from the Persian manuscript of the Baburnama and other primary sources, this book represents a milestone in Babur’s biographical genre, essential for comprehending the ambitions of this enigmatic king.
Coffee Table Book of the year that evokes nostalgic memories of the 80s.
Romancing The 80s: Snapshots from A Cherished Decade (Om Books) by Seema Sethi is a captivating book that brings the vibrant memories of the 1980s to life. With a mix of striking visuals and insightful commentary, it captures the essence of a decade that shaped India’s cultural, social, and political identity.
Reads With Twist & Turns
The Goa Gambit (Niyogi Books) by Anurag Tripathi is a fast-paced thriller set in Goa’s glamorous casinos. It blends power, ambition, suspense, and a touch of romance, making for an exciting read.
Actor and filmmaker Puneet Sikka comes out with a smoke-and-mirrors story decked in acerbic humour and grief. Take No. 2020 (Penguin India) published by Penguin India is a story within a story about four migrant actors looking to find their feet in Bollywood till they are presented with a real-life plot twist. A hybrid of pop culture and realism that combines her lived experience within the entertainment industry and her passion for writing Sikka’s book is very visual as it is also a reminder of the stark-naked truth of the world of glitz.
