JustBooks Connect - January 2011 newsletter

Volume 1 Issue 11
www.justbooksclc.com
blog.justbooksclc.com CONNECT January 2011
For limited circulation
A Justbooks Publication

JustBooks Picks of 2010
Fiction Pg 7

T
he Glass Room by Simon Mawer: A 2010 Booker favourite. Though you wish Quiz
haunting tale set in 1930s you'd been spared the hype around the
Czechoslovakia. book, allowing you to savour it without
Spanning several decades, knowing snatches of the story. A beauti-
the book looks at individ- ful story of courage and parental love.
ual lives shattered by (RC)
larger historical shifts. It

6 Pg 11
takes a little while to get 1 Hours by Lee Child:
into but after a hundred This is the next book
pages, it's hard to put in the outstanding
down. It is a story of love series of Jack Reacher Just
and mysteries, coincidence and ends and
beginnings. It carried me along. (AS)
tales. The book, as all
Child books do, moves at
Kids
a breathless pace right

S
erious Men by upto a stunning climax,
Manu Joseph: This deliberately kept open-
book takes into a ended. This is probably not in the same
carefully constructed league as One Shot and Bad Luck And
world, where men Trouble. But it is a great read and not to

Pg 12
pursue the truth, i.e. be missed. (YA)
the fictional Institute

M
of Theory and useum of Innocence by Orhan
Research. Ayyan Mani, Pamuk: A book as Author
a Dalit secretary who much about lost
works for Arvind love as about Istanbul.
Profile
Acharya, the director of the institute, is Kemal meets Fusun and
outraged every single day by how power gets hopelessly tangled in
is still distributed on the basis of caste. a web of lust, love and
Joseph is able to probe the lives of charac- obsession. For nine years,
best poems written
ters through desire, science and the he visits the now married
over three decades.
everydayness of things, still packing in Fusun and her family hop-
Simple, direct and
monumental happenings, which are ing to eventually win her
spare to the point of
about to change their lives and everyone back, becoming in the process, a collector
being minimalistic,
else's around them. (DA) of all things associated with not just
D'Souza's poems talk
Fusun but also his time with her. A

R
about her Goan-
oom by Emma detailed, slow and languid read, much
Catholic upbringing,
Donoghue: Jack's like a stroll through a much beloved city.
religion and marriage,
voice, which tells (RC)
repression and anger. Many of these
this story, is one of the

A
poems are intimate with hard-hitting
most brilliant creations of Necklace of Skulls by Eunice
lines that resonated and remained with
the year and when you D'Souza: A slim volume for some-
me. (AS)
read this book, it's easy to one's collected works but it brings
see why Room was the together some of Eunice D'Souza's contd on pg 2...

2 JustBooks Connect - January 2011

From the Editor’s Desk contd from pg 1...

T
he Help by Kathryn roulette of chancy events?
Stockett: Different How do we choose the
read for Indian roads to cross or those

W
readers because of the which we don't? Who
ishing you all a very happy
premise it is based in. The fixed the road map from
2011. It’s that time of the
Help is set in Jackson, which we chose? Sheena
year when everyone tends
Mississippi, circa 1962 and Iyengar's insights are
to rate and rank books they read last
tells the story of two black intriguing- for our daily
year
maids and a white woman lives and game changing situations like
We at JustBooks have been toying
who decides to write down their untold education, jobs, marriage and death. (DR,
with the idea of associating
stories. It's a society divided along racial MS)
'RentalRank' with books and using
lines, as the Black help deal with restric-

C
the same to arrange books on the
tions that can be suffocating and the risis Economics by Nouriel Roubini
shelves at various branches.
boundaries they aren't meant to cross. (RC) and Stephen Mihm: Roubini is not
There are readers who like to read
just another economist who foresees

T
what others are reading and there are
he Dead Camel and Other Stories of a crisis after the event.
readers who like to read only those
Love by Parvati Dubbed a 'doomsayer', he is
books that others may not take to
Sharma: This is more like a seismologist
very easily.
Parvati Sharma's first book. tracking the pressures
We think, arranging books on the
Her stories are touching building along the fault-
basis of RentalRank in all our libraries
and insightful, full of ten- lines of the financial world,
may make it easy for people to know
derness and humour. predicting potential earth-
what others are reading and make
Sharma's prose style is ele- quakes. In a simple lan-
their decision on either going with the
gant and quirky, full of guage, this book will help us appreciate the
popular rentals or sticking to the hid-
unexpected turns that took me to unusual underlying causes and why the recovery
den gems.
places. These stories are not afraid of ambi- this time will be slow. We get a view of the
Watch this space, as we work on the
guity or darkness and this is refreshing. road and the pitfalls ahead. (DR)
details and implement this on an
(AS, DA)

M
experimental basis in few branches to
y name is Gauhar Jaan: The life

J
collect member feedback. If you
immy The Terrorist by Omair Ahmed: and times of a
already have an opinion on this,
Omair Ahmed tells us musician by
please feel free to write to us.
about a father and son Vikram Sampath: This
On a transactional note, we are
in a small fictional town work traces the interest-
amazed by the number of inter
called Mozzamabad. At ing life of Gauhar Jaan, a
branch activities that we see at
once political, but deeply highly talented singer of
JustBooks. The number of books that
personal in the way the north Indian classical
we move across branches and the
world affects and shapes (Hindustani) music of
number of members accessing multi-
his characters, this book is the early twentieth cen-
ple branches, lead us to believe that
an honest look into the life tury. Also a composer,
the platform we set out to build con-
of these people, who the author knows dancer and a bold and good looking
necting books and readers is truly
well. (DA) woman, she was apparently the first Indian
emerging.
whose vocal renditions were recorded,

T
The accessibility to books created
he Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's each piece ending with the words in the
by JustBooks coupled with the flexi-
Nest by Stieg Larsson: The third and title. This book is a must for lovers of
bility in reader friendly plans seems
final book in the Indian music and its cultural history as it
to be effectively addressing a gap that
bestselling Millennium captures an important slice of it that has
was not very visible when we started
Trilogy was published perhaps never been brought out in a book
off.
after Larsson's death and earlier. (PA)
As we strengthen our delivery net-
appeared in our book-

S
work and sort out teething troubles,
shops early 2010. It's a imply Fly: A Deccan
we expect to be able to serve more
sequel to The Girl Who Odyssey by Capt
requests in lesser time.
Played With Fire and fol- G.R. Gopinath: I
As the New Year starts, we would
lows Lisbeth Salander as would highly recommend
like to take the opportunity to thank
she recovers in the hospi- this autobiography. Capt.
all our members for standing by us as
tal after being shot by her father and half- Gopinath shows his sever-
we went through the pain of growing
brother Niederman. Action, new romances al avatars in one life: an
from a four branch single city opera-
and alliances, this book is as enthralling as army man, farmer, broker,
tion to a 25 branch operation span-
its predecessors, even if a bit too elaborate hotelier, two-wheeler
ning across 4 cities.
and detailed sometimes. (RC) dealer, politician, and last
The journey would not have been
but not the least, a pioneer in bringing air
possible without your support,
patience and continuous inputs. Look Non - Fiction travel down to earth. He was not born
with a silver spoon in his mouth. A good,
forward to your continued support as

T
authentic, heart-warming and well written
we brace ourselves for a more ambi- he Art of Choosing by Sheena Iyengar:
success story, that is worth a weekend of
tious and more fulfilling journey Our life- is it destiny or a path chosen
reading. (DR)
ahead. by others? Is it a mere Russian
Happy Reading.  contd on pg 4...

JustBooks Connect - January 2011 3

A Life Less Ordinary Angela's Ashes
Baby Halder Frank McCourt
Translation: Prabodh Kumar (Hindi), Urvashi Butalia (English) Harper Perennial
Zubaan

Pushpa Achanta Anindita Sengupta

A
domestic worker, Baby Halder traces When Frank McCourt's memoir Angela's
her unique journey in A Life Less Ashes was published in 1996, it won a slew of
Ordinary. awards, boomeranged onto bestseller lists
The first ever book in India by anyone in this and created a stir in McCourt's hometown
profession, it created quite a sensation and gen- Limerick. Despite the unrelenting gloom of
erated a lot of attention on the author and her the story, McCourt infuses humour into many
mentor. Adopting a non-linear narrative that situations.
moves between the first and third person, Baby One wishes McCourt allowed more
presents her story in a simple yet captivating insights into Frank's thoughts because
manner. Baby's mentor, Prabodh Kumar translated her original through large parts of the book, the author
Bengali work Aalo-Andhari into Hindi. Urvashi Butalia, the seems so determined to avoid sentimentality, that he also
well known Indian writer and feminist rendered it from Hindi avoids reflection. It is still an engaging read for a picture of the
into English with Zubaan publishing it in 2006.  times and a coming of age story told well 

If You Don't Know Me By Now: A Memoir of The Return of Khokababu: The Best of Tagore
Love, Secrets and Lies in Wolverhampton Translated by Sipra Bhattacharya
Sathnam Sanghera HarperCollins
Penguin

Geetanjali Singh Chanda Dr. Rajeshwari Ghose

T
At the age of 23 Sathnam Sanghera stumbles his is a collection of twenty five short sto-
upon a family secret that his father and older ries, chosen out of nearly a hundred writ-
sister suffer from schizophrenia. Then silence. ten in Bengali by Rabindranath Tagore.
It takes him another decade or so to come to Most of the stories are taken from the Bengali
terms with this and to then confront his family anthology Galpo Guccho (Bouquet of Stories).
and write about them and him. This tragi- Five stories in this collection deal with the
comic memoir, which won the Mind Book of supernatural, while several others address the
the Year Award in 2009, recounts Sanghera's subtle and fragile nature of human relation-
journey of childhood and adolescence in an immigrant Sikh ships. The focus is on that particularly intricate bond between a
family in the small town of Wolverhampton in the England of man and a woman, woven either by love or by the complex insti-
the 1980's. His education eventually takes him to university in tution of marriage, with all its socio-cultural ramifications. A few
Cambridge and then to London. The distance between his two stories in this collection defy being slotted into any neat genre.In
existences threatens to tear him apart and he decides to write a all these stories there is an undercurrent of melancholy, a feeling
letter to his mother to reconcile his two lives.  of uncertainty and conflict. 

The Big Short Small Wonder - The Making Of The Nano
Michael Lewis Philip Chacko, Christabelle Noronha & Sujata Agrawal
Allen Lane Westland ltd

Dr. Rajagopalan Manjula Sundharam

A
This book is a welcome addition to others on s urbanization gathers pace, personal
the global financial crisis. Lewis, a master story transportation has become a big issue
teller, gives flesh and blood to the misunder- especially in India, where mass trans-
stood 'shorts'- those who bet prices will fall. port is of poor quality. A father driving a two
Even as spin doctors paint a rosy picture, the wheeler, the elder child in front and the wife
shorts keep their wits about. Unlike armchair behind holding a baby is a common sight in
scaremongers, shorts are willing to risk their Indian roads. While sharing the road with
money where their mouth is. such two wheelers, Ratan Tata, the head of
They dug out the secrets behind the supposedly secure AAA Tata group of companies, too felt anxious about the safety of
rated securities, spun by Wall Street's modern day such families. He wanted to build a safe and affordable car for
Rumpelstiltskins out of sub-prime mortgage loans. They them. To beat the boredom of board meetings, he got into the
exploited that knowledge to make money. Who lost ultimately? habit of doodling during these meetings. One such doodle was
The book reads like an Arthur Hailey classic, with an amazing a car around scooter. That was the first rough sketch of Nano,
cast of characters.  Tata's dream economical car. 

For detailed reviews check out justbooksclc.com


contd from pg 2

Non-Fiction

T
he Truth About Me - A Hijra Life Link a Delhi-based story of the Nano
Story by A. Revathi, translated by V. environmental NGO that entered the mar-
Geetha: If one can has compiled its 15 ket with a price tag
appreciate those people years worth of action that is roughly
who live at the margins and experience into an equivalent to the
of Indian society and easy-to-read graphic price of a DVD play-
still come out on top, book. Following the er in a luxury car
this book is for her or everyday lives of the from the west. The
him. It is a simple and Sachdeva family and authors give an
lucid rendition in their acquaintances, insight on the
English of a self portrait the book not only convincingly points out administrative, man-
penned in Tamil initially. The first by a the folly of our upscale, unthoughtful agerial and engineering strategies adopt-
hijra (a transsexual woman) in India, the lives and the adverse effect that this has ed at Tata motors to change the quality of
autobiography lays bare a story of on our environment, surroundings and life for millions of Indians by building an
courage and success in the face of trauma the innocent bystanders, but also suggests affordable and safe personal transport.
and extreme harassment. (PA) ways to minimize this effect through (MS)
changes in our attitude and lifestyles. (AJ)

Y L
ou are not a Gadget by Jaron Lanier: inchpin by Seth Godin: It is challeng-

T
Lanier, a pio- he Big Short by Michael Lewis: How ing to stand out in
neer in virtual do Wall Street's Rumpelstiltskins the overcrowded
reality, passionately conjure up highly secure assets market place but Seth
appeals for restoring from junk loans? Godin says in Linchpin
the primacy of the Why do others buy that becoming indis-
individual and warns it? Who tries to call pensible will help to
of the dangers of a their bluff? Why sell. Passion, commit-
lock-in to demeaning didn't they inform ment and creativity cre-
'Web 2.0' technolo- the regulators ates unique and indis-
gies. He asks pointed instead of trying on pensable experiences.
questions on the 'open culture': Why are their own? How This book is a motivational read for peo-
important innovations like Apple's iPod can you make ple who wish to follow their heart and
and Google's PageRank proprietary? money if you think make a difference. (MS)
Why are the real paying customers of the price of some-
social networks, its advertisers, not its thing is about to fall? Go ahead and read By JustBooks Literary Team :
members? In a way, Lanier argues why it, if you want to understand the players
Anindita Sengupta (AS), Reshmi
the 'wisdom of the crowd' is a mere tool in the financial markets. (DR)
Chakraborty (RC), Deepika Arwind (DA), Y.
and not a superman. (DR)

S
Ananthanarayanan (YA), Pushpa
mall Wonder - The Making Of The

O
Achanta (PA), Aradhana Janga(AJ), Dr.
ur Toxic World - A guide to haz- Nano by Philip Chacko, Christabelle
Rajagopalan (DR), Manjula Sundharam
ardous substances in our every- Noronha & Sujata Agrawal: It is excit-
day lives by Toxics Link: Toxics ing to read the production and success (MS) 


Book Review

The functional dysfunction of family
This Is Where I Leave You who spends his life making deals
worth billions of dollars on his cell
phone and not really noticing his
Jonathon Tropper
wife and kids. She has a romantic
Orion Books past with Horry, their neighbour
Linda's son (whose mental state is
not what it used to be), and whom
she visits during the shiva days
Reshmi Chakraborty when the present gets too over-
powering. Linda, a woman who is

L
Judd's mother's best friend has
ife can't get any lower for Judd some secrets of her own.
Foxman in Jonathon Tropper's Judd who's trying to get back to
funny yet insightful book. His wife a normal life after his marriage
has left him for another man who hap- debacle hitches up with Penny, a
pens to be Foxman's boss. He has quit his friend with whom he has had an
job, left home and is living in a base- on and off thing in his younger
ment. days.

A
To add to the already complicated situ- s the Foxman family's nerves
ation, his father dies and his widowed are strained with the enforced
mother announces that it was the not-so- proximity and endless visits from
religious dying man's wish to see his neighbours and friends with
family sit shiva, a Jewish mourning ritu- mountains of food, Jen, his
al. estranged wife, lands up. She's

T
This forms the basis of the story, told o make matters worse Judd's wife Jen pregnant. And insists the baby is
from Foxman's point of view, since this has left him for his boss, a radio show his. While all these make for racy ingredi-
involves the entire family, including sis- host whom most wives seem to hate, ents, what lifts the book from becoming
ter, brothers, their spouses and offspring except his, as Judd quips to a shiva visi- another banal bestseller is the witty writ-
to live in close proximity for seven days, tor. ing. Wisecracks drip off Tropper's pen as
leading to tragic-comic, downright funny The sitting shiva ritual forms the spine easily as his many shaded characters.
and sometimes racy situations. of the narrative, creating situations that He even has the ability to make you

T his Is Where I Leave You by
Jonathon Tropper is the ideal vaca-
tion read. It's incredibly funny and bris-
are wicked, hilarious and even sad.
Mama Foxman is a bestselling author on
believe in absolutely ludicrous situations
and wring enough humour off them to
child psychology and a shrink who keep you laughing out loud. As the ritual
tling with quips and doesn't require you believes in being honest with her children comes to an end, it turns out that each
to stress your mental faculties much. about everything, including their person has reviewed or at least softened
What lifts it from being the vacation book impaired sex lives. Judd's older brother their opinion of the other after seven days
you forget all too soon is its brilliant writ- Paul holds him responsible for an acci- of closeness and they are probably on
ing. dent in his youth that changed the course their way to being a family once again.
Central character Judd Foxman's facul- of his life. Phillip, their other brother is Predictable but touching nevertheless.
ties are certainly stretched to extreme somewhat of a vagabond with a taste for As for Judd, he finally comes out of his
limits as he is forced to sit shiva (a Jewish the good things in life, like his life coach gloomy existence to realise that life is full
mourning ritual) after the death of his cum girlfriend's Porsche. of options, even if it means leaving or
father with the rest of his non-religious Their sister Wendy is mother to three being left behind. 
and highly dysfunctional family. raucous kids and married to Barry, a man


Reader’s Reader’s Contribution
Voice Chicken Soup for the Girl's Soul lead others in the bargain will lend a
hand in them becoming commendable
By Jack Canfield, Mark Victor humans too.
Young book lover Raghav Srivaths Hansen, Patty Hansen Cultivating virtues such as forgiveness,
shares his thoughts on JustBooks, Indira compassion, honesty, etc. can actually
HCI
Nagar Branch. serve the purpose of making them down-

I
to-earth individuals. A conscious effort
discovered JustBooks when I heard has been made to introduce the girls to
about it from my father this summer. Dimple M. Tahilramani the sorrow associated with situations
When I went inside, it was full of concerning divorce, death of a loved one,
books, just books. That's why, I think they suicide, etc. However, this has been done

T
named the library JustBooks. in a subtle man-
I like JustBooks because there are so his book is ner so as to not
many books. Often, I am very confused definitely a traumatize the
because there are so many books I like and must read reader's mind.
I don't know which one to select. I like to and maybe a One other thing
use the library computer to search for my 'should buy' for worth mention-
books. I usually pick books from Magic preteen and teen ing is that there
Tree House, Rainbow Fairies, Secret girls. A must are toll free num-
Seven, Boxcar Children, Cam Jansen read because it bers (applicable
series for myself. informs them only in the US)
My brother, who just turned five also about the vari- as well websites
picks books for himself like I Spy and ous phases that (which can be of
Doctor Dolittle. It's so simple to borrow they will go course accessed
and return a book. The uncles and aunties through or have by one and all)
at JustBooks are very nice to me and my already started which provide
brother. That is why, JustBooks is my going through in more informa-
favourite library. detail. tion or help on
A must buy various subjects
Raghav Srivaths, mainly due to be it smoking,
Age 7 years, the fact that a girl bullying, eating
Grade 2, NPS School can keep going disorders, death
IndiraNagar back to it when- and grief, and
ever the need suicide. This
arises! book is truly
The preteen here to help girls
and teen years is the time when girls all over the globe.
(and maybe even boys) are very unsure Mommies can also go ahead and read
of what's going on, what they should do, this because it will assist them in compre-
etc. They sometimes find it difficult to hending as to what could be possibly
differentiate between right and wrong. going on your lil' girl's mind. This in turn
Hence, this book can surely direct them will aid in understanding your preteen,
as to how they could muddle through teen better and in providing handy solu-
things in a better way. tions in a tactful manner as and when
For instance it lays emphasis on how needed.
they must learn to accept their bodies And this understanding will transform
and realize that no one is 'perfect'. That us into our lil' girl's best pal, one into
mental and physical development is a whom she can confide and discuss any-
prominent feature of this stage but it will thing she has doubts about. So all you
not occur at the same pace in one and all, gals out there- daughters, sisters, mom-
is a fact accentuated in this book. mies, girlfriends, aunts, grandmas, etc.
Nowadays, when everything is so get up and get your copy of this remark-
advanced and children have much more able handbook and have a great time
exposure to media, it highlights the truth reading these true stories all sent in by
that, there is a 'time' for everything and "The Girls". 
let's not go speeding way too fast.
The realization that they don't need to
worry about what others think of them Dimple is a mother of a beautiful 10
but just keep the focus on and perform year old daughter. She is softskills
and that embarrassment are a part and and language trainer and loves read-
parcel of everyone's life not just their life ing books and interacting with people
can also do wonders to their personality. and believes that each of us is special
The conviction to stand for the right and in his or her way.


1. "Must You Go" is memoir of 4. The famous quote "Nothing can come of nothing" is from:
this writer's wife: King Lear
Harold Pinter War and Peace
Sidney Sheldon Way to Go
Kurt Vonnegut
5. In 1984 which famous writer returned his Padma Bhusan
award in protest against the storming of the Golden Temple
by the Indian army ?
Girish Karnad
2. Name the author of "The Keys to the Kingdom" series: Khushwant Singh
Philip Pullman Arundhati Roy
Rick Riordan
Garth Nix

3. It's called the 'town of books':
Hay-on-Wye
Pudducherry
Tranquebar

1.Harold Pintez 2.Garth Nix 3. Hay-on-Wye 4.King Lear 5. Khushwant Singh

JUSTBOOKS Begone, you bugs!
TOP 5 I
f there is one issue that bugs us booklovers, verily, it's them.
Bugs, I mean. Haven't we all dropped a book in a hurry when
we've seen them crawl out suddenly from inside the pages or
the spine of a dear & cherished book? Just in case you think these
N EW A RRIVALS creatures are a 20th century phenomenon, rest assured they are not.
1. The Sunset Club by In this article [http://www.hindu.com/lr/2010/12/05/sto-
Khushwant Singh ries/2010120550260600.htm] penned by the venerable K.K.S
2. Parrot and Olivier In Murthy, Proprietor of Select Bookshop, Bangalore, he states:
America by Peter Carey "Aristotle in his Historia Animalium complained that he had found tail-
3. Jimmy The Terrorist by Omair less scorpion and other arachnids between the leaves of his books. C.M.E
Ahmad Towne's Autobiography of Master Bookworm also mentions that a worm
4. Beautiful Thing by Sonia Falerio was born on the first page of Samuel Johnson's monumental Dictionary of
5. The F-Word By Mita Kapur English Language."
In the recently concluded Bangalore Book Fair, we bumped into
Mr. Murthy in his stall. Cordial as always, he posed happily for our
R ECOMMENDED roving camera.
1. The Curious Incident Of The One of these days, we will interview him for our blog here. Stay
Dog In The Night-Time by Mark tuned... 
Haddon
2. Serious Men by Manu Joseph
3. The Romantics by Pankaj
Mishra
4. Women Of The Tagore
Household by Chitra Deb
5. Falling Off The Map by Pico Iyer

R ENTALS
1. And Thereby Hangs A
Tale by Jeffery Archer
2. The Red Pyramid (The
Kane Chronicles) by Rick
Riordan
3. 2 States: The Story Of
My Marriage by Chetan
Bhagat
4. The Lost Symbol by Dan
Brown
5. The Confession: A Novel by John Grisham From JustBooks blog - http://blog.justbooksclc.com


Connecting the dots

Tracing the story behind Karnataka Rajyotsava
and turned out to be a defining point. It ation of Andhra Pradesh but not
was inaugurated by Sardar Patel and in Karnataka. This was the last straw and A
Subhash Bhushan
his speech, Sardar Patel declared that the J Dodmeti, a senior Congress leader and
interests of all linguistic groups would be the member of the Bombay assembly,
high on the list of priorities for the new immediately resigned from his seat and

I
n this last part of our series, we will government of independent India. This launched a hunger strike at Jakkali in
look into how Karnataka came into Dharwad. This found widespread sup-
existence. port and the situation took a violent
During the period of British rule, turn.
areas that today comprise Karnataka
were under as many as 20 different
administrative units with the princely
I n the Hubli-Dharwad by elections
that followed, the Congress suffered
a thumping defeat, while the
state of Mysore, Nizam's Hyderabad, Karnataka Ekikarana Paksha's candi-
the Bombay Presidency, the Madras date won by a landslide. Buckling
Presidency and the territory of under pressure, Prime Minister Nehru
Kodagu being the most important constituted the States Reorganisation
ones. Committee or the Fazal Ali commis-
What this meant for the Kannadigas sion.
in these regions was that in spite of The States Reorganisation Commission
their large numbers they did not enjoy eventually recommended the reorgani-
an administrative patronage. It was sation of the states based on linguistic
against this backdrop that the move- demographics and it got ratified in
ment that first started as a protest parliament . This brought unbounded
against linguistic oppression, soon mor- assuaged the apprehensions of the move- joy to the entire Kannadiga population
phed into one that began demanding a ment leaders and the common people. that now was merged under the state of
separate state be created consolidating all India soon gained independence in 1947. Mysore. Along with all the joy, came the
Kannada-speaking regions. This was The joy of independence soon gave way acute disappointment at the non inclu-
essentially a movement that was spear- to disappointment as the new govern- sion of certain parts in the Mysore state.
headed by the poets, journalists and writ- ment started dragging its feet on The biggest disappointment lay in the
ers and was called the Ekikarana or Karnataka Ekikarana movement. non inclusion of Kasargod in the newly
'Unification' movement. Kannada speaking areas now got formed state. The irony also lay in the fact
R H Deshpande established the grouped under five administrative units that Kasargod was one of the bastions
Karnataka Vidyavardhaka Sangha in of the Bombay and Madras provinces, from which the Ekikarana movement had
Dharwad, with the objective of working Kodagu, and the princely states of launched its agitation.
for the resurgence of Kannada language. Mysore and Hyderabad. The Akhila On 1 November 1973, Mysore state was
The influence and success of the Karnataka Ekikarana Parishat met in renamed as Karnataka since it was felt
Vidyavardhaka Sangha soon paved the Kasargod and reiterated the demand for a that Karnataka was more 'inclusive' of all
way to setting up other organisations like separate state for Kannadigas. the other regions of Karnataka than the
Kannada Sahitya Parishat(Bangalore) in
1915, the Karnataka Sangha (Shimoga) in
1916 and the Karnataka Samithi in
I n the same year, the government
appointed the Dhar commission to look
into the demands of the Ekikarana move-
name Mysore. It's on this day every year,
the birthday of our state is celebrated,
popularly called as Karnataka Rajyotsava.
Kasargod. ment. The Dhar commission in its report 
The movement took a dramatic turn opposed any reorganisation of the states
with the arrival of Aluru Venkata Rao on and recieved severe flak .The government (Source credits: Wikipedia)
the scene. He made a case for integrating then formed the 'JVP' committee, which
all Kannada regions of Madras Province had Jawaharlal Nehru, Vallabhai Patel
and north Karnataka with Mysore king- and Dr Pattabhi Sitaramayya on the
dom. In 1920 at Dharwad, Karnataka board. The JVP report, however,
State Political Conference was presided favoured only the creation of the
over by V P Madhav Rao and a unani- Andhra state while the Karnataka
mous resolution was passed demanding Ekikarana movement was given the
the unification of all Kannada speaking cold shoulder. The Ekikarana move-
areas. ment saw this as a betrayal of the

I n 1924, the Belgaum congress was held
under the aegis of the newly formed
Karnataka Pradesh Congress committee
Congress which had declared the cre-
ation of linguistic provinces as one of its
goals in its 1951 manifesto.
arm of the INC. Mahatma Gandhi The movement now formed the
presided over this historic conference Karnataka Ekikarana Paksha to contest
which was attended by Kannadigas from the 1951 polls. In January 1953, the
all parts in large numbers. The tenth con- movement entered its last leg when at
ference of the Ekikarana movement was the Hyderabad Congress session, a reso-
held on January 10 of 1946 in Bombay, lution was passed favouring just the cre-


Book Review

India 'Shining'? Not quite yet!
Everybody Loves A Good
GDP on education. In many states, more
than 75 percent of agricultural labour
households are in debt, with Dalits and
T ake the case of health in India. While
we continue to build PHCs (Primary
Health Centres), like over 15,000 in
Drought tribals the worst off. Bihar, nobody is accountable to see that
But Sainath's book is not about num- these function as well. Modern medicine
P. Sainath bers and their statistical significance; it is still evades tribals who continue their
Penguin about people who live their lives being a dependency (or rather belief) in the good
part of them. old magic man; as a result they have
Covering issues like education, health, more deaths and the highest infant mor-
Aradhana Janga land, literacy, irrigation etc, Sainath's sto- tality rates. PHC doctors, who operate
ries have a matter-of-fact narration, full private practices on the side, make
of frankness. Basic fundamental rights money from both-the PHC and their

T
he provocative title achieves its own practice. And then there are
aim; you wonder what it's all the quacks who masquerade as
about and skim. And then you are respectful doctors with degrees
hooked. from unknown medical colleges.
The first chapter "Very few specimens - Sainath points out "We have built a
but a lot of bull" ensures that your health system for doctors, not
curiosity gets the better of you; in the patients."
1980's the Indian government evolved a If you get the drift, from the title
scheme to benefit the poor in Orissa by of the book which happens to be a
creating a new, higher breed of cattle section heading too, then yes, it is
through artificial insemination. Rs. 2 about how there is money to be
Crores and two years later, the scheme made when there's a drought,
proved disastrous with hardly any cross- mostly from the drought 'relief'.
bred calves and the local 'Khariar bull'
rendered almost extinct. This is just one B ut just when you start to
despair that maybe nothing
seems to go right in India, you get
among the many tales which might pass
off as anecdote in social gatherings, but to the section "With their Own
is ironically depressing. Weapons" that documents the
Everybody Loves A Good fights that some of these same
Drought is a collection of real oppressed people have won despite
life stories documented by all the odds piled against them.
Sainath during his travels as Sainath's unadulterated reporting
part of a journalism fellowship has always been impressive and it
conferred by The Times of is no different here. These stories
India in the 1990s. from his 80,000 km long travel
As Sainath explains in the across seven states demolishes
introduction "Too often, poverty are merely one's idea of 'development'; 'develop-
and deprivation get covered as written ment' is always at some cost, most often
events. That is, when some disas- word for than not, borne by the poor.
ter strikes, when people die. Yet, the poor, There are just too many forces at play;
poverty is about much more than like promis- the poor and gullible, the powerful
starvation deaths or near famine conditions. es at election time, never to be imple- politicians, the corrupt officials and
It is the sum total of a multiplicity of fac- mented while loopholes are for the many times the well-meaning govern-
tors." Sainath is better known currently ingenious to get richer and more power- ment that ends up implementing ludi-
for his candid well-researched editorials ful. crous projects that ends up lining some-
in national dailies.
S chool buildings taken over by herds body's pockets instead of benefiting the

A bout 312 million (40 percent of the of goats in the absence of teachers poor.
population) in India live below the (and consequently students), headmas- Journey with Sainath and know India
poverty line. About 26 million have been ters and teachers nonchalantly collecting better, with all her faults, achievements,
displaced by 'development' - dams, their salary from the coziness of their guts and corruption. Sainath helps you
canals, mining, industries, thermal plants homes, household chores that keep chil- with the math, the justification and rea-
and defence installations and 75% of dren away from school, schools with soning. Devoid of any development sec-
these still haven't been provided rehabil- barely any infrastructure to support tor jargon, this compendium is pure
itation even after 45 years. The first five 'education' are just some examples of unbiased reporting at its best; sometimes
year plan gave education 7.86 percent of India's schooling 'strategy' in the rural the government is at fault, sometimes the
its total outlay; this figure was down to areas. And Sainath aptly comments "The denizen. You cannot like or dislike the
3.5 percent by the seventh plan. basic reality of the education system (in the 'book'; what hopefully you end up liking
Compare this with Kenya that spends 6.7 district) is that there isn't one. Certainly not is the bravery and fortitude and disliking
or Malaysia which spends 7.8 percent of a system that works." the rampant corruption and apathy. 


Book Review

The Other Face of Fear
The Driver's Seat psychedelic clothes. On the plane, she absurd statement says a great deal about
tries to befriend a man who is so afraid the universe Spark is describing, its
Muriel Spark of her that he changes his seat. loneliness and futility, its sense of repeti-
Modern Classics Her other co-passenger, Bill, comes on tion and error.
to her and insists he is "her type". One is Fear is the most important emotion in
not sure where all of this will lead and the book. The man on the plane is afraid
some of the details seem superfluous but of Lise and it is only later that we realise
this is a 'whydunnit' and they really why. Because we know Lise will die, we
Anindita Sengupta aren't. are afraid for her. Certainly, there seems
Reading the book becomes an act of to be no dearth of suspicious characters
faith. For much of the book, Spark's in her life.
writing is sharp and engaging enough But Spark's genius is that she turns
to make this easy. Lise's behaviour fear on its head and makes us question
seems downright fussy sometimes but our assumptions about it. At a 100 odd
in retrospect, all of these details fit pages, this is a brief book that packs in a
into the larger scheme of things and lot. It is ingenious in content and form.
one realises what a superbly crafted Its essentially bleak subject is set off
novel this is. with incisive black humour, plenty of
Many aspects of modernism come wit and play. It is a delight to read once
into play in this book-the single life, and worth reading twice. 
airline travel, psychedelic clothes, sex-
ual freedom-and each of these is
pushed to its boundaries. This is a sin-
ister statement on a world that's mad
and clever in equal measure. Lise is
representative of this hideous combi-
nation. (Just how clever she actually
is, one understands only towards the
end when the dreadful denouement
plays out exactly as she had planned
all along.)
But the others characters are hardly
reassuring. There is the harmless but
senile Mrs. Fiedke who Lise befriends.
There is Bill, a macrobiotics enthusiast
who natters on about Yin and Yang
and insists he must have two orgasms
a day, never mind with whom. And so

D
on.
escribed as an "ethical shocker", This then is a world where normalcy
The Driver's Seat is a spine- cannot exist, where cleverness has
chilling tale that turns the crime replaced intelligence, new age fads have
thriller upside down and inside out. replaced spirituality and grotesque fasci-
Lise is a misfit, a spinster accountant nations have taken the place of social
who lives in an unnamed city in fulfillment.
Northern Europe. Taking a few days off Beneath all of this, Lise's loneliness
from work, she goes on holiday. Early in ticks on like a portentous clock. Isolation
the book, we are told that Lise is going is a precondition to terror in the book. It
to meet a bad end, that she "will be is precisely because Lise is so alone that
found tomorrow morning dead from she can maneuver events the way she
multiple stab wounds…." The book does.
then goes on to examine how and why What transpires in the end is depend-
events led to this and Spark described it ent on nobody knowing where she is,
as a 'whydunnit'. and nobody caring. At one point in the
The most striking thing about Lise is book, there is this passage: "Not really a
her remoteness. From the outset, we presence," Lise says. "The lack of an
know she is odd but her oddness is nei- absence, that's what it is. I know I'll find
ther explained nor judged. She goes it. I keep on making mistakes, though."
shopping for her trip, buys outlandish, And this incongruous, seemingly


Just Kids
At Least A Fish July 2010. This is the first book of the
Zain & Ana series.
The author, Anushka Ravishankar is
Anushka Ravishankar
a Mathematics graduate, who turned to
Illustrations: Shilo Shiv Suleman writing as a hobby. She has written
over 10 books of verse, fiction and non-
Age group: 8-14 yrs fiction in her literary career so far.
Pages: 108 Some of her other titles are An
Scholastic Elephant Never Forgets, Alphabets
Are Amazing Animals and Excuse Me,
Jayanthi Harsha Is This India? The illustrator, Shilo
Shiv Suleman is an expert in the field
of illustrations for children's projects

A
na is a daughter of rich parents, including the book Pampasutra.
who own almost everything; This book is specially designed for
she, herself was rarely refused young children, with the author mak-
anything she asked for. She also has ing use of simple language. The story
several friends, including her best is not made "too simple", but is ren-
friend, Zain, whose house is just round dered in a suitable way, and certain
the corner. It is with Zain, that Ana has elements, which every small child
her best adventurers. However, Ana is loves to find in books like fantasy,
missing something in her life - some- mystery and humor are retained.
thing which her parents had denied Children will also associate well with
her for so long - a pet, most preferably a er the only place to obtain the seaweed Ana and Zain and relish in seeing them
dog. When she makes her first serious is a highly forbidden local lake. So the do strange (and dangerous) things
attempt at getting a puppy into her life, duo set off for the lake while both sets of which their parents normally would not
she gets three fish instead. parents are deluded into believing that allow them to do at home.
Fish are one of the most remarkably they were out to have fun with a couple The shortcomings can be said to be
inert creatures of our planet; they rarely of relatively harmless twins - Beena and present in the novel's short length -
sleep, just eat, eat and eat, and wander Meena. more events could have been added,
the aquatic territory. It is totally useless The lake soon turns out not to be only making it a much more interesting read.
to teach a goldfish some tricks, as it has a sewage dumping area, but a ground The story uses interesting pictures,
an incredibly minuscule memory. where a strange and wholly new types which not only describe scenes in the
So, Ana just has to make do with of fish seem to inhabit its waters. Before book, but plays a part in "completing the
watching the fish grow, feed them every long, Ana and Zain, beset with the bore- story", and goes a long way in putting
day and indulge in some "activities" dom of the summer holidays, make a an impression on the children. The book
(more often dangerous than the "safe" plan to catch the creature and possibly is an interesting read and makes you
ones like playing board games and play- keep it as a pet. Will they succeed, or feel content. The author winds off the
ing cricket) with her best friend, Zain. will they be caught before their attempts story after giving explanations for every
Still, the fish are not to be left out from it are successful or worse still will they be strange event. It is unlike any other
all. Ana seeks to find some new food eaten up alive? book series, that dont have a "complete"
sources to make the fish grow much fat- The book was written in early 2010, ending, and explanations given in the
ter, seaweed would hit the spot; howev- published in June 2010 and reprinted in next book of the series. 

JustBooks Picks for Young Readers
Leaves by Enrique Lara Samira's Awful Lunch by Bharati The Giver by Lois Lowry
Jagannathan
The Woodcutter Of Gura by Veena Set In Stone by Linda Newbery
Seshadri The Rumbling Island by Zai Whitaker
Flipped by Wendelin Van Draanen
The Veena Player by Anjali Raghbeer A Curly Tale by Vayu Naidu

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins


Author Profile

SOMERSET MAUGHAM Locations
Whitefield
42053027, 32999406
ences with patients from JP Nagar
Anindita Sengupta the Lambeth slums of 42351761
London. The book
achieved some public

S
Bellandur
omerset Maugham was acclaim and Maugham 25740710, 42118813
probably the Chetan abandoned his medical
Bhagat of his day. The career. Soon after, he left Sarjapur Road
highest paid writer in the for Italy and this pattern of 42129279
1930s, Maugham was rich, pro- travel and story-telling
lific and acclaimed but critics would continue for the Kalyan nagar
and peers remained sniffy next sixty years. 42084394, 9986072204
about him. Maugham reacted Stories about Maugham's
to this with statements like "I sexuality have intrigued HSR Layout
have never pretended to be any- people. He had relation- 22587430, 7259974251
thing but a story teller. It has ships with people of both
amused me to tell stories and I sexes. Frazer Town
have told a great many. It is a Most impor- 41644449
misfortune for me tant among
that the telling of a these was his Indira Nagar
story just for the sake involvement 65831547, 42044157
of the story is not an with a married
activity that is in woman, Syrie Koramangala
favor with the intelli- Wellcome. In 40982460
gentsia" (from 1915, she gave
Creatures of birth to his Jayanagar 5th Block
Circumstance, child. After her 9740894014, 42068676
1947). husband
It is not surpris- certain divorced her, the two married JP Nagar-Dollar's
ing that Maugham condi- but he continued to live with Colony
was scorned because the intelli- tions. Many of his books have Gerald Haxton. 42003087
gentsia of the day comprised been made into movies. In 1928 Maugham settled in
Virginia Woolf and James Joyce, Born in Paris, the sixth and Cape Ferrat in France and dur- RMV II Stage
compared to whose experimen- youngest son of the solicitor to ing World War II, he moved to 23410800
talism and risky prose, the British embassy. Maugham Hollywood. During the war,
Maugham was conventional and learned French as his first lan- Maugham volunteered for the Malleshwaram
dull. Was he aware of lack in guage. Red Cross and was stationed in 41280649
himself? Quite likely. He became an orphan at 10 France. There he met the
In his autobiography The and was sent to England to live American Gerald Haxton, who Vijaya Bank Layout
Summing Up (1938), he said with his uncle, a reverend. would be his long-time compan- 41645690
that he stood "in the very first Educated in Canterbury, he ion. Maugham also served as a
row of the second-raters". It was developed a stammer during his British espionage agent for a Vijaynagar
an observation that must have school years and this humilia- year and is credited with pio- 42117539
been made with some bitterness. tion found its outlet in his most neering the modern spy story
The appreciation of his read- famous work Of Human with Ashenden: Or The British Nerul Mumbai
ers might have made up for Bondage where Phillip, the Agent (1928), a collection of six 02227729788,
some of these slights-Maugham club-footed boy suffers similar short stories set in Switzerland, 09004819059
was tremendously popular and losses and embarrassments. France, Russia, and Italy. Other
continues to be. His handling of After school, Maugham went renowned works include The Dombivli
plot is fairly skilful. on to Heidelberg University and Moon And The Sixpence (1919) 02516505544
He often based stories on real then studied medicine in which was loosely based on
life, believing that the ordinary London for six years. He also artist Paul Gauguin's life, The Pune
life is the richest source of mate- lived in Paris for ten years as a Painted Veil (1925) and Cakes 02025896016
rial for a writer. His novels are struggling author and in 1897, And Ale (1930).
imbued with a tone of cynicism his first novel, Liza Of Lambeth In the 1960s, Maugham began Hyderabad
or world-weariness. This can be was published. to suffer from dementia. He 04030560660
alienating at times, but at other The novel, written in realist died in Nice in 1965 at the age of
times, there are real insights into mode, drew upon his experi- 91.  For franchise
inquiries contact:
Advertise with us, contact (080)-6001-5285 or editor@justbooksclc.com manager@just
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