Flip Over Sherlock
Some authors complain that the descriptions of their books in online stores like Flipkart and others are way off the mark. There have been cases where a serious historian’s study of, say, the Bangladesh war has been described as an unputdownable whodunit. In another exhaustive book on Sindh, the description says Sindh was equally split between India and Pakistan at the time of Independence. Why don’t they just take the book details from the blurb the author or publisher has written? Because that could lead to plagiarism, as it has happened a few times in the past. So they say they are forced to rewrite the blurbs in their own words.
Saviours’ Moves
A publisher of feminist/women-themed books is worried these days as she doesn’t know where the likes of Dinanath Batra of the Shiksha Bachao Andolan, who got Wendy Doniger’s book pulped by Penguin, will train their gun next. And with the present dispensation in power, where exactly do its affiliates like the RSS or the VHP stand on women’s issues? The publisher is concerned about the silence from the government on the gruesome rape in Uttar Pradesh and elsewhere. Where does the Hindu brigade stands vis-a-vis feminism, is the question.
Blow His Horn
In this soccer season, everyone is talking of Alex Bellos’ Futebol: The Brazilian Way of Life. But it may be the right time to pick up die-hard Arsenal fan and comic genius Nick Hornby’s classic and bittersweet Fever Pitch too.
