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‘After all, a story survives only a few minutes…Who doesn’t know that most newspapers are waste in the afternoon?’ This is Ramayan Prasad, a journalist, working for one of the leading national newspapers in India. For past many years, he has swiftly and skillfully worked on some really troublesome reports; he follows the cases, files his copies and moves on. But something has changed since he started working on a case of a gang rape in the national capital…

If the children of India dream, let them dream of India.’Anant PaiOn Anant Pai’s 90th birth anniversary, it is fitting for Rajessh M Iyer to have penned a homage to the life and work of the father of Indian comics in his biography Uncle Pai: The Man Behind the Iconic Amar Chitra Katha. From the Author’s Note to the Epilogue, the biography pays glowing tributes to Anant Pai, his vision and dream, in such a way that some readers may even term it a hagiography.In terms of including criticism of Pai’s work, there do exist fleeting indications of ‘baseless criticism’ (p. 316), a passing reference to Pai’s anger and a brief section entitled ‘Objections’ describing Valmiki Sabha’s objection to Valmiki being portrayed as a thief, leading to Pai’s effigies being burnt…

This is the first time I have encountered a movie adapted to a book. It is based on an adivasi boy called Oonga and his story. The author has created a brilliant atmosphere around the whole plot. The book is an eyeopener for me. The words come alive right from the first few lines. The characters in the story are also so unique, they are brought to life in the story. The story woven is realistically displayed with all the flaws in life, in the system, in different people…

A well-written book with extensive vocabulary, Teji Grover’s Mann Mein Khushi Paida Karne Wale Rang is full of memories, stories, haikus and appealing art. Divided into fourteen chapters, the author reminisces about some of her childhood memories and describes them in detail. Each of the fourteen chapters tells a different story. Readers are able to vividly imagine the incidents, some of which include the rescue of a cat on Deepavali, the life story of the author’s friend Alan or the recollection of her visits to countries. She also writes about the art she made in her childhood, the use of natural colours and their importance…

Little America is the story of Sharif Barkati, a boy from the slums of Karachi who aspires for more—he wants love, he wants to be free. He achieves this by creating his own little haven of ‘freedom’, first in his school, then in his father’s car and then in a few ramshackle buildings with his friend in the city. He himself does not indulge in any of the freedoms he offers others—a space to drink, smoke, dress, speak and love as they want to; his exhilaration comes from their joy at expressing themselves unrestrained by society outside. And the space he creates is for everybody…

Everyone is a work in progress.’Go back and read that sentence, again and again. Andaleeb Wajid focuses on teaching us how to love ourselves while dealing with many problems in and around us. Although Mirror, Mirror is a young adult book, anyone can read it. It may seem like a young romance novel, but it is so much more than that. It deals with issues like fat-shaming, adult pregnancy, societal expectations, and first loves.Most importantly, it raises the issue that most teenagers face, ‘choosing the subjects/stream for their future’ and ‘deciding what they want to do in life…