Suburb January 2019

G-Chai
A People’s Constitution
1 Author: Rohit De, Publisher: Penguin 2
Publisher: Penguin
Take a break and let the wheels of your
mind churn while munching snacks and
sipping tea with our new page G-chai.
The New Releases of the month
on the shelf
“It ain’t whatcha write, it’s the way atcha write it.”— Jack Kerouac
About the book
It has long been contended that the Indian
Constitution of 1950, a document in
English created by elite consensus, has
had little influence on India’s greater
population. Drawing upon the previously
unexplored records of the Supreme Court
of India, A People’s Constitution upends
this narrative and shows how the
Constitution actually transformed the daily
lives of citizens in profound and lasting
ways. This remarkable legal process was
led by individuals on the margins of society and Rohit De looks at how
drinkers, smugglers, petty vendors, butchers and prostitutes—all
despised minorities—shaped the constitutional culture.
De examines four important cases that set legal precedents: a Parsi
journalist’s contestation of new alcohol prohibition laws, Marwari petty
traders’ challenge to the system of commodity control, Muslim
butchers’ petition against cow protection laws and sex workers’ battle
to protect their right to practice prostitution.
Rohit De is an Associate Research Scholar in Law at Yale Law School
and an Assistant Professor in the Department of History, Yale
University.
3
The Ultimate Memory Handbook for Students
Authors: Aditi Singhal & Sudhir Singhal
Publishers: Puffin
The book is especially curated for
students and will help them ace their
curriculum throughsome ultimate
memory enhancing tips and techniques.
With over 300 examples from the present
syllabus, the book covers a wide range of
relevant topics and subjects, such as
mathematical formulas, the times table,
periodic table, learning a foreign
language, improving vocabulary, general
knowledge facts, and dates and events.
The book also features visual aids and artwork that complement
and support the methods being taught and is an absolute musthave
for school students, teachers and parents.
In the City a Mirror Wandering
Author: Upendranath Ashk (tr. by Daisy Rockwell)
Unfolding over the course of a
single day, Ashk’s sweeping
sequel to Falling Walls explores
the inner struggles of Chetan, an
aspiring young writer, as he
roams the labyrinthine streets of
1930s’ Jalandhar, haunted by his
thwarted ambitions but intent on
fulfilling his dreams.
Married to a woman he does not
love while pining for another
man’s wife, Chetan must also
face the prospect of taking up a
dead-end job in the wake of his
recent failures in Lahore and Shimla.
Poignant and evocative, In the City a Mirror Wandering is an
exploration of a dynamic, bustling city as well as the rich
tapestry of human emotion that consumes us all.
4
The
Bhagavata Purana – Volume 1, 2 and 3
Translated by: Bibek Debroy, Publisher: Penguin
A seamless blend of fable and
philosophy, the Bhagavata Purana
is perhaps the most revered text
in the Vaishnava tradition. It
brings to life the legends of gods,
Asuras, sages and kings—all the
while articulating the crucial
ethical and philosophical tenets
that underpin Hindu spiritualism.
The narrative unfolds through a
series of conversations and
interconnected stories. We are
told how the sage Vyasa was
inspired by Narada to compose
the Bhagavata Purana as a means to illumine the path to a
spiritual life. We learn of the devotion of Prahlada, the austerity
of Dhruva and the blinding conceit of Daksha and more.
Tell us your favourite read of the month. Write to us at info@suburblive.in
January 2019 | suburb life 43