On The Racks

Romila Thapar et al
Which Of Us Are Aryans? | Aleph

‘Indigenous’ or ‘invaders’? The origin of ‘Aryans’ is an evocative issue in contemporary India. The authors—historians, geneticists and journalists—examine various hypotheses on the subject and draw upon Vedic compositions, linguistics, archaeological data and DNA analyses from the Harappan settlement of Rakhigarhi to challenge persistent myths and popular assumptions about our forebears.

David Robson
The Intelligence Trap | Hodder & Stoughton

Kary Mullis, a Nobel Prize winner, claims he was abducted by aliens and swears by astrology. Arthur Conan Doyle, the writer of detective mysteries, fell for two teenagers’ scams. Through engaging anecdotes, the book scrutinises the concept of intelligence and discusses why people with high IQs are more likely to make certain kinds of mistakes.

Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain
Freedom Fables | Zubaan

The first stirring of emancipation of Muslim women an Bengal, and India, owed much to Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain (1880-1932): ess­ayist, poet, activist. Deeply invested in the early nationalist struggle, in these satires, ‘fables’ and ‘fairy tales’ like Muktiphal and Gyanphal, Rokeya playfully excoriates colonialism, laments the state of the poor and is anguished by the 1907 split in the Congress. Tr. from Bengali.

Correction: Charcoal Portrait by Selina Hossain is published by Palimpsest, not Om Books.