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Short Book Review: ABC of Relativity by Bertrand Russell

SBR: A Physics course in the very first year at IITK had taught me the formulae related to the special theory of relativity. But my interest in philosophy has kindled in recent past and I felt that puzzling on metaphysical questions in the 21st century is insincere without some intuitive understanding of things like relativity and quantum physics. And it was to gain this understanding, beyond Mathematics, that I picked up ABC of Relativity. This book might very well be the best attempt to explain relativity as non-mathematically as possible. But here is the heart-breaking truth. There is no understanding relativity without mathematics. Things became unintelligible after a while unless I started seeing them mathematically. If the intent is to explain relativity to a non-mathematical mind, beyond a limited point, the book fails. But what must be said here is that perhaps no other book will succeed half as well. Also, Russell’s is a brilliant mind. So sometimes what he mentions casually in a few sentences, as if it is the most obvious thing in the world, needs a lot of concentration and deliberation to understand.

To read or not to read: So long as you don’t expect to curl up in the bed and gain a breezy understanding of relativity, this book can be a good starting point. But don’t expect to avoid mathematics.

Short Book Review: This Unquiet Land by Barkha Dutt

SBR: This Unquiet Land is a historical account of a bunch of issues faced by India today, the content mostly deriving from the author’s work as a journalist. It covers issues like our wars with our neighbors, Kashmir, religious tensions, caste, class, gender justice, liberalization, politics etc. It makes for a pretty good read, although there is no extraordinary insight you get if you are a regular consumer of news. Once in a while, you get to see something of the personal side of important people, or Barkha Dutt’s impression of them, but that isn’t something I would read the book for. It is also surprisingly uncontroversial, the tone that of strict journalistic neutrality, and judgments, when passed, reserved for the non-contentious issues. The right-wing Internet trolls wasted their time in writing those one-star book reviews on Amazon as soon as the book came out.

The pages spent chronicling her personal growth, or her long replies to her critics can tire you, but otherwise it is a well-written summary of the issues it intends to summarize.

To read or not to read: If you are bewildered with 24/7 news like me and find it difficult to keep track of even the important issues, this book is a good way to catch up. Else you won’t benefit much and can skip.

Robots and Literature@ BYOB Party in April (Part 4)

Have you been reading about the BYOB Party in April?

Ralph, who is a regular BYOB-er, talked about an exciting new book called Rise of the Robots: Technology an Threat of a Jobless Future by Martin Ford. This book was chosen the FT Best Business Book of the year award 2015. We are all excited about technology, but how technology can we afford to have? Ford looks at a world where robots are a better economic alternative. Already factories are doing more today with technology and a same sized labor force than it did in the last century.

Umakant Soni pondered on this idea too. ” Creating intelligence is dangerous, as we can never tell how long we can stay secure. During the Industrial Revolution, children were sent to school so that they could be supervised. The same could happen to adults whose jobs have been taken over by the robot workforce. What will adults do if they are unemployed and what about income?”

Jaya proceeded to discuss her ideas on the value of Universal Basic Income. You can read more about her ideas here: https://jayajha.wordpress.com/2016/05/12/universal-basic-income-nobody-should-worry-about-basic-needs/

Another book that Ralph read was by the very eclectic Anita Nair, a book called Goodnight and God Bless. This book is about writerly stuff- books, book events, anecdotes and literary trivia. It’s a refreshing read and a change Ralph thought from his usual penchant for serious books. A good change at that.

Anvita Bajpai, author of a sort story collection Life, Odds and Ends, found a book called The Holy Indian Cow and Other Stories by Tarun Chopra, a book replete with pictures and altogether a fun reading experience.

What have you been reading?

Kaizen, Suitable Boys and Stories of Sikkim @ BYOB Party in April (Part 3)

Have you read Parts 1 and 2 yet?

One Small Step can Change Your Life: The Kaizen Way by Robert Maurer is the book Himanshu Shah, an author himself, talked about. This book deals with the concept kaizen- the art of making lasting change by taking small steps towards that direction. The book helps in all areas including getting fit or gaining vocabulary. The seven steps include Think Small Thoughts, Take Small Actions, Solve Small Problems, etc.
Vinod Pathangay got the book A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth. This enormous tome still awaits a sequel ‘A Suitable Girl’, on which Seth is still working. For Vinod the book has been a challenge as he hasn’t managed to complete it; yet the depiction of life in the northern part of India holds great appeal for this Chennaite. “Even the Table of contents of the book is a poem,” he said when describing why the book appealed to him. The problem with the book is the elaborate genealogy which forces you to reread the family connections before the book so that you understand the plot better. The story primarily revolves around how Lata tries to find a suitable match. The era the book is set in is the 1950s and deals with the multitude of prejudices and etiquette of Indian society.

Jaya was fascinated by The King’s Harvest by Chethan Raj Shrestha. She speaks about the book in her Short Book Review at Worth a Read Blog. Here’s an excerpt:

“The book contains two novellas An Open-and-Shut Case and the eponymous The King’s Harvest. Don’t look at the hype and the sales numbers and this is easily one of the best English-language books to come out of India. The writing is adroit, literary merit of the text considerable and the juxtaposition of the dark and the criminal with the innocent and the straightforward is hair-raising and heart-tugging at the same time. The vivid elucidation of not just what is picturesque about Sikkim, but also of its towns and villages, police stations and homes, people and their ambiguous characters and moralities is the cherry on the top. While it is unambiguously a “book from Sikkim”, the last one makes it relatable to all, especially those who have grown up in small places.

You can read and understand the stories in many ways. Since that is one of the charms of the books, I am not going to tell you what all I read in the book. I must confess I felt overwhelmed at times. But you must read it and decide for yourself!

The hardcover edition that I read has also been produced beautifully. The cover is bewitchingly beautiful and interiors are well-done too.” You can read more here.

More books shared at the BYOB Party next week.

Spirituality and the Poetry of Bachchan the Bard @ BYOB Party in April (Part 2)

Have you read Part 1 yet? Lots of Indian writers featured at the BYOB Party this time.

Vijay brought along a book from the SriRamachandra mission series called Heart to Heart. The book is for the spiritually inclined and deals with the nuances of Raja Yoga. Through a series of discourses, the author talks about his own his dilemmas and revelations during his travels to foreign shores. It makes you think about the lives of spiritual masters. Discussion around this book led to the mention of an interesting book about spiritual dilemmas that is also linked to mythology- The Importance of Being Good by Gurucharan Das.

Two Harivansh Rai Bachchan books were on the cards this BYOB Party. Harivansh Rai Bachchan is the author of the most famous Hindi book, in fact, the fastest selling Hindi book on e-commerce sites, Madhushala which translates as House of Wine. The book Arisudan got is called Meri Shresht Kavithaein, an anthology of some the best poems written by Bachchan,which he himself has selected. This part of the BYOB Party was poetry heaven for Hindi poetry lovers as Arisudan read out some beautiful stanzas and Jaya went on to talk about the nuances of his poetry, including the inconsistency of his message. When Bachchan was inspired, he wrote inspiring poetry and when he was in a dark place, his poems reflected this. Though he wrote about wine, he was a teetotaller and wine was a metaphor he used to convey his philosophy.

bachchan 2 Umakant Soni, the owner of Artwist where the BYOB Party was held, got a Hindi book called Dashdvar Se Sopan Tak. This book is fourth in a series of Bachchan’s autobiographical works. The series describe the poet’s journey and how the poet’s life and experiences shaped his poetry. Soni mentioned how not many people know that Hindi words like Doordarshan and Aakashvani have his signature behind them.

Dalit Literature and the Problem of Revealing True Identity@ BYOB Party, April, 2016 (Part 1)

The seventh BYOB Party was held in collaboration with Artwist, which believes in whole brained education. Umakant Soni who runs Artwist says, “Learning is not only through books; it’s an experiential process.” At Artwist kids, parents and senior citizens learn through play.

joothan Abhaya started the session with Joothan, an autobiography by one of the most important voices in Hindi Dalit literature. “This book is very similar to Lakshman Mane’s Apara. The story starts with a childhood spent in utter poverty and misery in rural areas and an inclination for education which helped the author break out of surroundings and connect with the growing Dalit(Untouchable) movement in cities. More than incidents of outright violence, the most heart wrenching incidents are those where initial affection and cordiality are shattered once the author reveals caste.” Abhaya found this part of the book as a revelation, “Consider the eternal suspicion that lurks in the mind of a Dalit—he expects that he will be treated badly. The question he asks himself continuously is whether the other person is nice because he does not actually care about caste or has he misunderstood?”

Abhaya cites that this question is relevant in India today. “A large number of people claim that they are caste blind, because they do not know the caste of their friends and colleagues. They might spare their friends a great deal of internal turmoil if they acted as they did in spite of knowing their caste.”

The author’s surname, Valmiki, confused those around him. Many people mistook him to be an upper caste and treated him with respect, only to pull the rug from under his feet when his true caste is revealed. People are forced to lead a double life and move to cities to conceal the identity that others disrespect.

This is definitely a relevant book in these times when discrimination is rampant. Have you read any books that deal with discrimination or racism? Tell us about it.

Short Book Review: Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

SBR: I read Fahrenheit 451 to brave out the disappointment that Brave New World had been. And I was fairly successful. The book is partly futuristic and partly metaphorical. For a book-lover, there is something inherently identifiable in a dystopia brought about by burning of the books! But that can also be a criticism of the book. That it is excessively partial to books as the carriers of good things in life. Books disappearing need not mean everything meaningful and intellectual disappearing from life. However, Bradbury seems to anticipate this criticism. Hence, the elderly Faber says in the book, “It’s not the books you need, it’s some of the things that once were in books … The same infinite detail and awareness could be projected through the radios and televisors, but are not.”

To read or not to read: If you are someone who goes all gooey inside at those grand or sweet quotes about books, you must read this book! And if you think that the society is increasingly producing people who are intellectually dumb, you will find a companion in this book for sure.

Short Book Review: Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

SBR: Despite it being a classic, and being credited with predicting so many things about future correctly, and being compared and contrasted with 1984, I did not like Brave New World. Because the futuristic world Huxley creates is very shallow and the story he narrates pretty flat. He takes some of the prevalent moral dogmas, turns them on their heads and creates this brave new world. But if you do turn the moral dogmas on their heads, the world cannot remain the same otherwise. For example, it is difficult to digest a society that treats promiscuity as the norm for both the genders but has the same gender equation as our current society. The author forgets to consider the effects of the changes he has brought in the society. The world is unconvincing, not for being futuristic, but for being devoid of any character. At no point does the story or the characters evoke any feeling (apart from boredom) in you.

To read or not to read: Read only if you need to complete your to-read classics list. It isn’t a good read as a dystopian fiction.

Short Book Review: The Devotion of Suspect X by Kiego Higashino

SBR: I decided to read The Devotion of Suspect X because when I looked around to see what people were saying about my previous Higashino read, those who had liked that book, and even those who hadn’t, were recommending this one. I don’t know if it is about the order in which you read things, but I liked Salvation of a Saint better than this one. It could partly be because the quality of translation might not have done justice to The Devotion of Suspect X. What is interesting in this book, however, is that you know within the first few pages who committed the crime and how. Still the book manages to hold your attention.

To read or not to read: Yes if you like mysteries. Otherwise, there is no reason to start reading with this one.

Short Book Review: Devices and Desires by P. D. James

SBR: Devices and Desires by P. D. James is a different sort of a mystery fiction in the sense that most of the book is not focussed on the detective activities, but the affected characters and their lives. While I liked that, overall, the book didn’t work for me. The same things were being said about the characters again and again in the beginning and it made for a boring start. Even though the story did become interesting later on, the lack of enough detective work became a weak point at that stage. Only the reader gets to know the complete story, which by itself is an interesting plot device, but the way reader gets to know it is all forced and contrived. It was as if at one point of time the author realized that too much has been written and now the story needs to be wrapped up. So she quickly starts introducing conversations which would explain it all.

To read or not to read: Some of the Amazon reviewers who didn’t like this book still liked the earlier ones in the Adam Dalgleish mystery series of which this is the eighth book. So if you haven’t read the series it might be better to start with one of the early ones rather than this particular book.

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