Can the great essayist Christopher Hitchens really prove to be the saviour of the Left?

In his new book, Matt Johnson argues that the Left should take inspiration from Hitchens’s commitment to anti-authoritarianism, universalism and free speech.

Brendon O'Connor, The Conversation

· Mar 20, 2023 · 05:30 pm

‘Sultan’: A witty and heartfelt memoir of legendary Pakistani left-arm fast bowler Wasim Akram

Reading ‘Sultan’ is like witnessing the highlights of world cricket through the eyes of Wasim Akram from the 1990s till the end of his career.

Saleem Rashid Shah

· Mar 19, 2023 · 12:30 pm

‘My Daughter’s Wedding’: Sangeeta Kampani’s poetry reveals the power and persistence of patriarchy

The simplicity of Kampani’s verse exposes the ugly truths of a sexist and unequal society with unflinching directness and great finesse.

Veeksha Vagmita

· Mar 18, 2023 · 05:30 pm

Ambition, corruption, guerrilla gardening: Eleanor Catton’s ‘Birnam Wood’ is our horror story

Set in 2017, the book follows the intriguing activities of a gardening collective in New Zealand that plants crops where no one will notice.

Julian Novitz, The Conversation

· Mar 11, 2023 · 05:30 pm

‘The Laughter’: Sonora Jha’s novel about the hypocrisies in academia is layered and oh so real

In the beginning, professor Oliver Harding appears to be an average American liberal. Soon, however, the depth of venom in his psyche becomes evident.

Shubhangi Tiwari

· Mar 11, 2023 · 08:30 am

‘Shurjo’s Clan’: In this novel, horrors of the 1971 Bangladesh war refuse to remain buried

Will Shurjo, the bright child of a new country, survive the haunting of the ghosts and make peace with her past?

Gemini Wahhaj

· Mar 05, 2023 · 05:30 pm

Shumona Sinha’s ‘Down With the Poor’ is a poetic narration of France’s modern-day refugee crisis

The reader silently watches several such people walk several wires, as the narrator hears and interprets their tales of helplessness.

Aishwarya Dani

· Mar 04, 2023 · 05:30 pm

‘Not Quite a Disaster After All’ is a fine dissection of feminine entanglements and freedoms

The protagonists of Buku Sarkar’s debut novel offer glimpses of their lives but do not fully let you in.

Sayari Debnath

· Mar 04, 2023 · 08:30 am

US sanctions rarely work, but maybe they are still the least worst option, says this book

Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping continue to defy the West, which is why sanctions appear to attractive to western powers.

Mark Beeson, The Conversation

· Mar 03, 2023 · 11:30 am

‘Insatiable’: Shobhaa Dé’s memoir starts with the pandemic but moves fearlessly to the political

Shobhaa De’s reflections on mortality, her everyday fears and vanities, have been our own.

Saloni Sharma

· Feb 25, 2023 · 03:30 pm

The ugly face of justice: Anand Teltumbde reviews Abdul Wahid Shaikh’s ‘Innocent Prisoners’

The book exposes a sinister modus operandi of the police of charging innocent Muslims for terror acts, which is structurally made easier in India.

Anand Teltumbde

· Feb 25, 2023 · 08:30 am

‘The Body by the Shore’: Tabish Khair’s new novel tries hard to blend sci-fi with literary fiction

A fascinating storyline is interrupted by ‘cerebral’ writing.

Isa Ayidh

· Feb 19, 2023 · 12:30 pm