A Face For Picasso, Ariel Henley

Despite the personal challenges of reading A Face for Picasso, I wished that I had read this book as a young adult. Knowing others are going through experiences similar to mine would have helped me get over my isolation. While everyone harps on about inclusivity and diversity on International Day of Disabled Persons today, it is high time that stories and experiences of living with disabilities and physical differences told through own voices are promoted and given a wide space across all platforms. And we do need a wide space because we have tons of stories to tell about our lives.

Gift in Green, Sarah Joseph

prose flowing into poetry, songs, and folk tales across the narrative, the story of Aathi in the book could feel like a series of environmental investigative reports we encounter every day. Much like what happened in Baghjan (Assam), Kodaikanal (Tamil Nadu), Ler village (Gujarat), and many such innumerable places, we see Aathi sinking under toxins. 

7 books for November

Here is a month-end round up of new book releases. This may give you an idea about which book to read and almost get closer to your reading resolution for 2021.

The Itch You Can’t Scratch, Sumit Kumar

A review of Sumit Kumar’s debut graphic novel, an autobiography. Kumar is known for his work in the comics Savita Bhabhi. His comics have popularly appeared in independent news platform Newslaundry.

5 Books of Exciting Murder Mysteries

Murder mysteries IRL are scary. But it is so weird that books with fictional murder mysteries are one of the highest selling ones. There is something about getting hooked to these stories. Even if the gruesome murder may be shocking, there is indeed a second-hand thrill experienced when the character posing as the detective tries to unravel the mystery. If you like getting cosy (wrong verb? guess not) with a murder mystery book, here are 5 recommendations for you.

Obsessions & Wild Pigeons, Ismat Chughtai

The center of all of Chughtai’s stories are women; they are some of the strongest ones in Indian fiction till date. These women defy societal norms. However, Chughtai never puts them on a pedestal; they are flawed in their own ways. Chandni and Abida inhabit complete different worlds, but they are the same. They are two women trying to experience love and desire while trying to hold on to their own sense of agency and self.

Where the Crawdads Sing, Delia Owens

For years, rumors of the “Marsh Girl” haunted Barkley Cove, a quiet fishing village. Kya Clark is barefoot and wild; unfit for polite society. So in late 1969, when the popular Chase Andrews is found dead, locals immediately suspect her. But Kya is not what they say. A born naturalist with just one day of school, she takes life’s lessons from the land, learning the real ways of the world from the dishonest signals of fireflies. But while she has the skills to live in solitude forever, the time comes when she yearns to be touched and loved. Drawn to two young men from town, who are each intrigued by her wild beauty, Kya opens herself to a new and startling world—until the unthinkable happens.