Book Reviews
AI: Prometheus unbound
As the AI frenzy sweeps the globe and data centres multiply, consuming local water and power, who exactly is this new world being created for? That is the question at the heart of this book
Making room for better futures
Can political events wound us as intimately as private loss? This book explores that question, ending not on an optimistic note, but with an acceptance that we must keep making room for better future
Tomorrow's route map for India's economy
Eleven essays by noted economists and academics tackle questions concerning India's economy, society and polity, and explore pathways for the country to emerge from the prevailing turmoil
The spy who came in from the Cold War
Ben Macintyre's Redwood explores a Cold War spy defection that had deadly consequences for Iran
Fractured Communities: Adivasis and their elusive homelands in modern India
There are two versions of Khalid here - the endlessly discussed activist and the rarely acknowledged scholar who spent years researching and writing
The importance of 'blue-green' infrastructure
As the tragedy in Nepal reminds us, water and forests cannot be taken for granted. This book offers policymakers a practical guide to building resilience against extreme weather
An epic attempt at data gathering
Using data to control people is nothing new. A digital humanities professor attempts to show how data has been used from pre-history to modern times to control empires
Indian democracy in brick and mortar
The story of how the Indian Parliament was built after the capital moved from Calcutta to Delhi is a riveting account of a building that radiated power, and later became the centre of Indian democracy
Helpful boundaries for productivity
Do humans perform better when forced to work within constraints? Blending anecdotes with personal experience, this book sets out to answer the question
Canada: More than America's polite neighbour
Canadians happen to know plenty about the United States; with its comparatively tiny population of 41 million, Canada has long paid close attention to its hulking neighbour as a matter of necessity
Diplomacy and souffles on the Prime Minister's table via India's history
The book has all the right ingredients, from simple comfort foods to regional specialities, it explores the intersection of culinary tradition, politics and post-Independence history
Hard calculations on Tiktok's soft power
How Tiktok's influence among younger Americans can become a tool in the hands of the Chinese state to manipulate US elections Gunjan Singh
Storytelling for the corporate world
The book is riding the current boom on publications that teach us boring corporate types the benefits of telling a story
Migrants on the margins
From climate change to survival and resilience, a story of a family in Kolkata weaves together many aspects of migration
The cutting edge of governance
From 2G spectrum allocation to India staying out of RCEP, a former bureaucrat provides a peek into the inner functioning and decision-making processes behind key incidents
The rise and fall of an Epstein financier
In Money to Burn, the journalist William D Cohan offers a detailed account of Black's rise and fall
1873: A great deflation, not quite the making of the modern world
Within the narrower canvas of the origins of the 1873 financial crash and its consequences, Ahamed tells a gripping tale
Brics: Non-West vs Anti-West
Can the ragtag grouping of emerging economies still drive the shift towards a more multipolar world? This book explores that and much more
Countering disinformation
This book is a compelling account of how India lives online, and what we can do - to make it a more dignified and inclusive space
India's sub-optimal industrial policy
From gender bias and employment to equal pay, this book traces various policy developments and the lessons they hold for policymakers today