Books For Beginners

I immediately warmed to these two volumes for three reasons. Firstly, the nice get-up—attractive red and yellow covers dotted with what at first glance seemed like emojis. On a closer look they turned out to be tiny portraits, objects and monuments and a very catholic choice also—a kullar of tea, a Harappan seal, a cell phone, a veena, a temple bell, Alexander, The Buddha, Akbar, Tipu Sultan, Rani Jhansi, Jinnah, Nehru, Ambedkar, Manmohan Singh, Narendra Modi, Amitabh Bacchan, Gol Gumbaz, Taj Mahal… a foretaste of the range covered by the authors. Secondly, the couplet from Firaq Gorakhpuri quoted at the head of the Introduction.