Bookless in Baghdad and Other Writings on Reading (Book Review)

Bookless in Baghdad and Other Writings on Reading by Shashi Tharoor

Only a well-read and well-travelled person could have written this book. As a public figure, there have been quite a lot of criticism about him and his personal as well as political life.

But this book has been a refreshing change, offering a glimpse into the working of mind of an intellectual so often judged upon his 'Indian-ness' on the basis of where he resides and what he has to say about certain issues.

What an awesome way of answering his so- called 'critics'!

His writing is fluid,witty and tongue-in-cheek at many instances. After reading it, it somehow strengthens my belief that books are really an important part of our lives for 'in order to survive, we eat. But why do we live if it is just to eat more and survive? There must be a purpose'. Books do provide a sense and purpose to our existence.

Thanks Mr. Tharoor for offering a glimpse into many events that took place over the years and that too, in your non-Stephen's, yet impeccably Stephen's style.

P.S.: Even though it feels like a heavy read and a dissection and then sewing back together of his own literary journey via books it has much more to offer.

- Divya Nambiar

Author:

Other books by the Author:

The Great Indian Novel by Shashi Tharoor

India From Midnight to the Millennium and Beyond by Shashi Tharoor

The Elephant, the Tiger, and the Cell Phone Reflections on India, the Emerging 21st-Century Power by Shashi Tharoor

Pax Indica India and the World of the 21st Century by Shashi Tharoor

Nehru The Invention of India by Shashi Tharoor

The Five Dollar Smile and Other Stories by Shashi Tharoor

India The Future Is Now The Vision and Road Map for the Country by Her Young Parliamentarians by Shashi Tharoor

India Shastra Reflections on the Nation in Our Time by Shashi Tharoor

Shadows Across the Playing Field 60 Years of India Pakistan Cricket by Shashi Tharoor

Kerala, God's Own Country by Shashi Tharoor

Epic India M. F. Husain's Mahabharata Project by Shashi Tharoor

A Monsoon Feast Short Stories to Celebrate the Cultures of Kerala and Singapore by Shashi Tharoor

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