Reading list

The Bird King
G Willow Wilson
Grove Press, 2019, pp 403, Rs 1,573
Set in 1491 during the reign of the last sultanate
in the Iberian peninsula, this is the story of
Fatima, the only remaining Circassian concubine
to the sultan, and her dearest friend Hassan,
the palace mapmaker. It asks us to consider what
the price of freedom is.

Ikigai
Héctor García & Francesc Miralles
Cornerstone, 2019, pp 208, Rs 499
According to the Japanese, everyone has an ikigai
— a reason for living. It’s learnt from some of the
villages that the key is to remain active and work at what they enjoy, because they’ve found a real purpose in life — the happiness of always being busy.

The Haunting of Tram Car 015
P Djeli Clark
Tor.com, 2019, pp 144, Rs 878
Cairo, 1912: The case started as a simple one for
the Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantments and
Supernatural Entities handling a possessed tram car. Soon, Agent Hamed Nasr and his new partner Agent Onsi Youssef are exposed to a new side of Cairo stirring with suffragettes, protests, automatons etc.

The Moment of Lift
Melinda Gates
Bluebird, 2019, pp 288, Rs 478
For the last 20 years, Melinda Gates has been on a mission to find solutions for people with the most urgent needs, wherever they live. Throughout this journey, one thing has become increasingly clear to her: if you want to lift a society up, you need to stop keeping women down.

A year of wednesdays
Sonia Bahl
Fingerpress, 2019, pp 280, Rs 199
Two travellers meet on a plane. Their common wish for an empty seat next to theirs is turned down, and a crying baby forces them into a conversation. Soon, they are completely engaged in it, inseparable. And after touch down, they go their own paths. However, their lives are interlocked forever.

Fight with fat
Dr Kamal Mahawar
Fingerpress, 2019, pp 272, Rs 299
Over three crore of India’s population is obese, and a much larger number overweight. This issue can be tackled. With text interspersed with
no-holds-barred commentary on Indian intelligentsia and outdated
social norms, this presents how you can fight obesity.

A Brightness long ago
Guy Gavriel Kay
Penguin, 2019, pp 448, Rs 350
A man looks back on his youth and the people who shaped his life.
Set in a world evoking early Renaissance Italy, vivid figures share the unfolding story. Among them are a healer determined to defy her
expected lot; a charming, frivolous son of immense wealth;
a powerful religious leader et al.

Becoming Boston Strong
Amy Roe
Skyhorse, 2019, pp 280, Rs 1,325
This has Amy falling in love with the Boston
Marathon & its community, for better or for worse. It chronicles the ups and downs of her training, delving into the mystical appeal of the greatest marathon in the world and how it attracts those who return to it.