New Releases – April 2022
11 min read
A comprehensive list of New Releases from Asia – this list includes some soon-to-release and some already released titles.
Blue Sky, White Cloud by Nirmal Ghosh
About the Book
A defenceless male elephant calf, born on the grasslands of the great Brahmaputra River, grows into a formidable tusker, journeying through the verdant green hills of northeastern India and Burma. With him, we walk through the vastness of the Indo-Malayan rainforests as he attempts to understand the humans who have irretrievably changed the jungles he roams.
Hira Singh, a forest guard in the Nadhia Wildlife Sanctuary, crosses paths with a female leopard who is facing shrinking forests in the hills that are her home. Their lives closely mirror each other’s, following similar patterns of love and loss, as fate resolves to bring the two together, perhaps for the last time.
Nadia, a wildlife biologist researching geese, travels to Mongolia, where she tags two geese: Blue Sky and White Cloud. As the birds fly southwards over the Himalayas, she meets Vivek, India’s Minister of State for Environment. Their instantaneous friendship soon takes Vivek to a lush valley at the base of the soaring Himalayas, where he must make a decision that will impact the lives of all around him.
With beautiful illustrations and rich prose, the three novellas in Blue Sky, White Cloud narrate stories from the perspectives of man and beast, showing us that, much like us, animals, too, have extraordinary stories to tell.
About the Author
Nirmal Ghosh is a foreign correspondent, writer, and wildlife conservationist. Born and raised in Calcutta of mixed German–Indian parentage, he has subsequently lived in New Delhi, Singapore, Manila, New Delhi (again), and Bangkok. Currently, he lives in Washington, DC. This is his fifth book.
Forgotten Refugees: Two Iraqi Brothers in India by Nandita Haskar
About the Book
‘My brother and I have tried to preserve our humanity and keep alive our hope that one day we will find a country that will welcome us and a people who will embrace us.’
This is the remarkable story—as moving as it is inspiring—of two Iraqi brothers who grow up in the midst of unending violence and become refugees, losing everything, yet refuse to be broken.
Born in 1988 and 1991, even as children they saw their country descend into chaos and impoverishment after the Gulf War, and into bloody sectarian conflict after the US-led invasion of 2003. Civil war and the sudden disappearance of their father eventually forced them to take a flight to India and seek the protection of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
But in a country they had been told was a place of tolerance, they became the nowhere people, branded ‘illegal’ foreigners, living in constant fear of being deported and coping daily with a communal situation where they found their Muslim identity was almost as perilous as their Shia identity in Iraq. Worst of all, the very agency that exists to support refugees like them and help with resettlement, abandoned them.
This book is the first time that any refugees in India have spoken so candidly and in such detail of their experiences. Their testimony exposes many truths about India, as it does about the international refugee problem and the world’s premier refugee agency. Written by a human rights lawyer who has set precedents in refugee law since the 1990s, it is a passionate plea for the recognition of the rights of refugees.It reminds policy makers, agencies like the UNCHR—and every one of us—that refugees are, first and always, human beings and not mere statistics.
About the Author
Nandita Haksar has been a practising human rights lawyer, campaigner and teacher. She has defended the rights of refugees both in Indian courts and internationally, and set precedence in refugee law. She has authored more than 15 books dealing with various aspects of nationalism and human rights, among them,The Judgement That Never Came: Army Rule in Northeast India (co-authored with Sebastian Hongray); The Many Faces of Kashmiri Nationalism: From the Cold War to the Present Day; Kuknalim—Naga Armed Resistance (with Sebastian Hongray) and The Flavours of Nationalism: A Memoir, with Recipes for Love, Hate and Friendship.
Indian Citizenship and Immigration Law by Amish Tandon
About the Book
The law relating to citizenship in India has been a matter of public debate in recent times. The CAA (Citizenship Amendment Act) and NRC (National Register of Citizens) are topics that have led to public protests and debates, as well as petitions in various courts of the country. Written in simple language and citing the relevant sections of the law, the author clarifies what it means to be a citizen of India, the various ways of becoming a citizen, who the CAA is meant to help, and why border states such as Assam are a special case in this matter. He also explains the laws concerning immigration, clarifying who is an ‘illegal immigrant’ and how legal citizenship can be obtained. Concepts such as Overseas Citizen of India (OCI), foreigners’ registration, and the Passport Act of India, among others, are lucidly explained to the reader. The author has provided a clear background and understanding of Indian Citizenship and Immigration Law in this handy book, which will be of use to lawyers, students, policymakers, NGOs, and the general reader interested in these topics of current debate.
About the Author
Amish Tandon is a corporate commercial lawyer practising in New Delhi for almost 13 years with extensive experience in the areas of dispute resolution and corporate advisory.
He is the co-founder of a law firm “Innovatus Law” which specialises in litigation, alternate dispute resolution, and general corporate practice. He is also the author of the best selling book titled “Law of Sexual Harassment at Workplace: Practice and Procedure”
He can be reached at amishtandon@gmail.com.
How to Rule the Internet and Make Money on Every Click by Seema Gupta
About the Book
Wondering what makes digital entrepreneurs tick?
Want to know how to make money without leaving the comfort of your home?
No matter what your skill set is, this book directs you to a gateway of financial freedom in the digital world. You will know not only the WHAT but also the WHY and HOW of new age activities such as affiliate marketing and influencer marketing and set out on the path to becoming a digital entrepreneur.
About the Author
Seema Gupta is an Associate Professor of Marketing at the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIMB). She specializes in digital marketing. She is an author, speaker, blogger, consultant and trainer in the field. She helps businesses drive more traffic and increase return on investment. She uploads videos on her YouTube channel @ProfSeemaGupta and writes about latest trends in digital marketing on her blog http://www.profseema.com.
She provides corporate training and consultation in the same field. She is also a visiting faculty at Esan University, Peru, and Egade University, Mexico. She has published papers in reputed journals such as Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice, Public Relations Review, Corporate Reputation Review, IIMB Management Review and Vikalpa. Winner of EFMD Best Case Award (2011) and ISB-IVEY Best Case Award (2011), Professor Gupta has written cases on marketing challenges faced by companies such as Volkswagen, Bosch, Nielsen, DDB Mudra,
Dainik Bhaskar and so on. Her cases have been registered with Harvard Business School Publishing. She has presented papers at several international conferences. She is often quoted in national media such as Economic Times, Brand Equity, Financial Express and Rajasthan Patrika.
Prior to IIMB, she worked with RPG Group in sales and marketing function and Mudra Institute of Communications (MICA). She is a badminton player and loves travelling to different parts of the world. She is a mother of two kids.
The Ghost by Keki Daruwalla, illustrated by Ekta Bharti
About the Book
Who has not heard stories of ghosts? Do you know how many kinds of ghosts are out there? Join the noted Sahitya Akademi award-winning poet Keki Daruwalla as he sets out to tell us about all the kinds of ghosts one can meet.
There are transparent ghosts, uninvited guest ghosts, partially invisible ghosts, and even loudly bathing ghosts!
A laugh-out-loud poem illustrated with lots of funny and minute details, The Ghost will have readers giggling even as they look over their shoulders to check whose was the shadow that flitted by!
About the Author
Keki N. Daruwalla is one of India’s foremost poets and writers. His works of poetry have won the Sahitya Akademi Award and the Commonwealth Poetry Award, Asia. He was awarded the Padma Shri in 2014. He was honoured with the Poet Laureate award at the Tata Literature Live! Mumbai Litfest, 2017. His work has been translated into Spanish, Swedish, Magyar, German and Russian.
Invocations and Prayers of Khwaja Abdullah Ansari of Herat, translations by Sardar Sir Jogendra Singh and A. J. ArberryIntroduction by Syeda Saiyidain Hameed
About the Book
Khwaja Abdullah Ansari—Pir-i-Herat, or ‘Sage of Herat’—who lived in the eleventh century, is revered as one of the world’s great and earliest Sufis. He turned to tasawwuf (Islamic mysticism) at a very young age and came to be regarded as an extraordinary teacher, mystic, and an authority on Islam. Thousands were drawn to him and became his followers, and to this day his poetry and prose—are collected in Persian and Arabic texts that are widely regarded as masterpieces—inspire and instruct scholars, seekers, and the pious faithful alike.
Abdullah Ansari’s tomb in Herat, in modern-day Afghanistan—a country ravaged in recent decades by discord and violence—remains a place of pilgrimage and peace for millions. In that beautiful sanctuary and elsewhere—including Panipat in India, where his descendants settled in the thirteenth century—his legacy and teachings continue to give solace to humanity, guiding us towards humility and compassion.
This compilation of Abdullah Ansari’s invocations, prayers, and counsels, selected from translations by two celebrated scholars, is a book of wisdom for all times. It is of particular relevance today, over a millennium after these words were spoken and recorded. As Syeda Hameed writes in her introduction, for our highly troubled and deeply hurt world, this is the healing hand of a wise Sufi Pir.
About the Author
Khwaja Abdullah Ansari (1006–1086 CE) was born in Herat, Afghanistan. Ansari excelled in the knowledge of Hadith, history and law. He became a revered authority on Islamic mysticism and philosophy quite early in life and shared his wisdom with common people. His writings and collected sayings, in Persian and Arabic, continue to inspire Sufis and seekers around the world today. Khwaja Ansari’s tomb – the shrine in Gazur Gah – is a pilgrimage site that attracts thousands every year.
Going: Stories of Kinship by Keki N. Daruwalla
About the Book
He had turned footloose, moving from vihara to vihara, an exile not from his faith so much as from the times, and a family is a part of the times… He wrote to his mother—it was some years since he had seen her. He wanted to become a bhikshu, he wrote.
A man drifts away from family and home and becomes a monk, yet nothing fills the void. The only constants are dreams and hallucinations where his mother sometimes appears.
Another son retreats to his room, then disappears. It has been ten years and the father,Sudhakar, doesn’t want to harbour false hope, but the mother, Hemlata, clings to it.
Ardeshir and Firoza face a similar predicament. Only their daughter, Arnavaz, hasn’t gone missing; she lives with them, even in her absence.
A woman, half-estranged from her mother, comes to visit her grandmother, perhaps for the last time.
The stories in this collection are among the finest explorations of family ties you will read—ties that injure and heal; ties that can be everything, yet never enough. Keki Daruwalla, a great poet of our time, proves again that he is also a great master of the short story
About the Author
Keki N. Daruwalla is one of India’s foremost poets and writers. His ten volumes of poetry include Under Orion, The Keeper of the Dead (winner of the Sahitya Akademi Award, 1984), Landscapes (winner of the Commonwealth Poetry Award, Asia, 1987) and The Map-maker. Among his acclaimed short story collections are Sword and Abyss (1979), The Minister for Permanent Unrest & Other Stories (1996), and Love Across the Salt Desert (2011). His first novel, For Pepper and Christ, was shortlisted for the Commonwealth Fiction Prize in 2010.He was awarded the Padma Shri in 2014. Most recently, he was honoured with the Poet Laureate award at the Tata Literature Live! Mumbai Litfest, 2017. His work has been translated into Spanish, Swedish, Magyar, German and Russian.
Youth: The Balakandam of Kampan’s Ramayana, translated by Blake Wentworth
About the Book
Composed in the 12th-century by Kampan, regarded by many as Tamil’s finest poet, the Kamparamayanam is perhaps the most splendid retelling of Valmiki’s Ramayana. This first regional retelling of the great Sanskrit epic is set firmly in Tamil country and draws from Puranic lore and Tamil literary masterpieces. The approximately 12,000 verses that make up the six books of the Kamparamayanam fully and unabashedly embrace Rama’s identity as a human avatar.
The first kandam, or book, of Kampan’s Ramayana is Balakandam, about the boyhood of Rama, who under the tutelage of Vishwamitra learns the lay of the land he will one day rule, as well as his true nature. This son of Dasharatha, along with his brother Lakshmana, reverses ancient curses of sages and gods, amasses powerful weapons, and protects the sacrificial rituals of the rishis from vicious rakshasas. In Mithila, he falls in love with Sita, the daughter of King Janaka. The chapters that follow describe—in a manner unique to early Tamil literature—the joyful procession of Dasharatha’s retinue to Rama and Sita’s wedding, and contain some of the most beautiful verses composed in any South Asian language. The book concludes with Rama’s first true test of manhood and a sign of the times that lie ahead: a conflict with the mighty Parashu Rama, an avatar, like Rama himself, of Vishnu.
Translated from the Tamil with great skill by Blake Wentworth, Youth brings the lyricism, the exquisite imagery and the wonderful sensuousness of Kampan’s masterpiece to modern-day English-language readers.
About the Author
Blake Wentworth studies Tamil and Sanskrit literatures, with a specialization in medieval Tamil literature and the religious literatures of south India. He has taught Sanskrit and Tamil at the University of Chicago and Yale University, and Tamil at the University of California, Berkeley. He is the translator of Sundara Ramaswamy’s mid-century Tamil classic, Oru Puliyamarattin Kathai
If you are interested in reviewing any of these titles, please write to editor@kitaabinternational.com.
About Author
You must log in to post a comment.