Bibliofile

She may not be Rowling, but the 51-year-old Jung Chang, author of the best-selling memoir of the bad old days in China, Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China, had the red carpet rolled out for her in Delhi. The hospitality and luncheon meeting the sedate India International Centre laid out for her may have come as a surprise for the London University professor, but in the mad race among sponsors (too many) to grab literary celebs (too few), the IIC is patting itself on the back for its little triumph. Jung, whose Wild Swans is banned in China, has just completed a biography of Mao. A former Red Guard, her views on the late chairman's China are unlikely to be appreciated in the land she was born.

Is the Indian publishing scene better than in Canada? Opinion was evenly divided at the poolside farewell to the man who virtually created the Penguin India stable from nothing. David Davidar is looking forward to the challenge of his new job as publisher, Penguin Canada, but some of his authors were convinced it was like going to Serbia, after the richness and variety of our publishing scene.