Basket Case

i.e. the other side of the coin. If you ever get some time, try to find out if there is an office of "Publication Division" in your city and pay it a visit. I bet, you would be surprized. I was when I first went to the Bangalore office in Kendriya Sadan. The whole place is full of books. Some of them are on display while most of them lie in bundles all around, on the top of shelves, in every corner, covered in layers of dust. Among those books, there aren't many titles that would attract an average reader but there are some which you won't find anywhere else. They publish a series of biographies called "Builders of Modern India". It has biographies of every famous person you may have heard of and some more. They publish a series called "Builders of Modern Indian Literature" in which I found titles like Banbhatt and Bhavbhuti. There are books on famous forts of India, handicrafts of India. There are books on various communities of India. Bounded vol...

Books for all - II will come a little later. Meanwhile you can read the article " Drowning in words " from Hindu. On a note related to Books for all - I, consider the strategic pricing of Chetan Bhagat's books, just below 100, ideally suited for the crowd he is trying to reach. This is one thing I must give him credit for.

I am an avid buyer of books however I happen to be quite price conscious. So many times I have looked at nice lovely books and let out a sigh! My problem is not one of affordability. I can afford much more than what I let myself buy. For me, price of a book reflects directly on the author (and publisher) of the book. Buying and reading a book is not a simple business transaction of giving money and getting the book. It is much more than that. The process of reading is the process of connecting with the author at an emotional level and trying to live and feel what he would have felt while writing the book. There are books for which this may not be entirely correct but even there, the words of the book are supposed to be thought over and understood. And when I look at a thin, big font, one inch margin on each side book priced at 300 Rs. , the first question that comes to my mind is whether the author has written the book for me or for my money? And even if I can afford it, t...

It is said that any situation that can occur in this world finds a mention in Mahabharat. With its countless stories, characters and huge timeline, you are bound to find something that fits what you are facing. I sometimes get the same feeling for The Matrix triology. Always, without fail, I can find something said somewhere in the movie that can so adequately say what's on my mind. "..Which brings us at last to the moment of truth, wherein the fundamental flaw is ultimately expressed, and the anomaly revealed as both beginning, and end. There are two doors. The door to your right leads to the source, and the salvation of Zion. The door to the left leads back to the matrix, to her, and to the end of your species. As you adequately put, the problem is choice. But we already know what you're going to do, don't we?" - The Architect, Matrix Reloaded