Tuesday, August 30, 2016

Stranger to History




Title: Stranger to History – A Son’s Journey Through Islamic Lands
Author: Aatish Taseer
Publisher: Picador, 2009 (First)
ISBN: 9780330511155
Pages: 323

India, a multicultural, multi-religious and multiethnic country, was partitioned in 1947 to make room for a republic of Muslims, who claimed to be a nation that can’t coexist with others. Feuds among brothers are common in families, and when a partition plan acceptable to all is implemented, peace eventually returns. But not so in the case of India and Pakistan. Communal riots of the worst kind broke out in both countries and a mass transfer of populations took place. Families were divided, relatives ended up across the border. Ties between the two countries floundered and people to people contacts also died down. Even in such frozen state of affairs, rare contacts indeed took place and love got the better of patriotism. Aatish Taseer had worked as a reporter for Time magazine. He is a bridge that connects the two countries, as his parents – Indian Sikh mother and Pakistani Muslim father – met in the fag end of 1970s and the author was born. Salmaan Taseer, his father, being somewhat a playboy, broke the relationship and returned to Pakistan. Aatish Taseer grew up in India in his mother’s household. He had only a dim recollection of his father as an infant. At the age of 21, he traveled all by himself to Lahore to meet his father, but was distracted by his indifference. His father had married many times in the meanwhile and had children through all of them. When his father read the author’s coverage of the London terrorist bombings of 2005, he advised his son to learn more about the religion to which they both belonged and to understand the Pakistani ethos. Aatish made a travel through Islamic countries which terminated in Pakistan, meeting his father. This book, the first one from the author, analyses the socio-religious ferment in the Islamic states and its precarious reconciliation to modern Western society.

Aatish travels through Turkey, Syria, Saudi Arabia and Iran, before finally arriving in Pakistan. With his discussions among intellectuals and ordinary people in these places, he identifies the fault lines with unerring accuracy. He rightly observed in 2006 how fragile Turkey’s forceful brand of secularism, backed by the army, which could silence even the boldest Islamists. Fundamentalism is right there beneath the authority’s noses, as exemplified by the author’s visit to the neighbourhood of Fatih Carsamba in Istanbul. Islam was coming back in through the back door. These words appear prophetic, with the recent failed coup against President Erdogan. Fundamentalists want to break away from a nation’s secular history, making the citizens strangers to it, and go back to the religion’s historic roots with anachronistic desires to dress or think like the Prophet did. In short, their aim is to return to a moment of time, some 1400 years ago, in a time warp if possible. As expressed by representative men in Turkey, Islam wants to dominate the world, where they are ready to grant the right to life to other religionists and perhaps nothing more. They also consider their own governments and political classes as corrupted by western style. There is only a single way out for a clean government – Islam – which is shared by many billions of people having supra-nationalist affiliation to a common brotherhood. What this produces is an absurd insistence on trifles like detailed control of the believer’s life from his personal habits to his food choices.

The picture is not much different in Syria, where Islamic universities don’t offer any real solutions, but harness the grievance of the people against the West. When the author traveled the country in 2006, they openly sided with the regime of Assad. After the civil war broke out in Syria, these universities turned out to be the breeding ground of ISIS terrorists. Islam’s peculiarity observed by the author in the wake of the protests against cartoons appeared in a Danish journal against the Prophet is that even the moderates among them called for violence! Of the countries he toured, Turkey and Iran present contrasts of a glaring nature. The regime made secularism compulsory in all public transactions in Turkey, but the people were often deeply religious in private. In Iran, the government insisted on strict Islamic code of conduct in public, but the people were more or less secular in private. The author tells about the unbelievable tendency of a growing number of city dwellers to follow the Hare Krishna movement in Iran. It should, however, be thought only as a form of resistance to the regime of clerics and Basiji, the militia that enforces religious virtue, rather than due to any interest in Hinduism. There also, Islam encompasses all its followers under a species, jokingly called Homo Islamicos. People of other religions are thought to belong to other species. The youth has become strangers to their own history, where pre-Islamic history is blacked out. Islam in Iran is not a religion, but politics. By making even minor transgressions a crime, it has made an entire urban youth criminalized.

Pakistan presents the most tragi-comic example of all. It was founded on faith, but was never part of the tradition of high Islam. They didn’t have an Islamic past, as virtually all of them are converted Hindus, so now look forward to a great Islamic future. The country was established on the single agenda of rejection of India in every sphere. Pakistanis, at least a sizeable number of them, live in a hallucinogenic misunderstanding of the supposed ‘manliness’ of Muslims and emaciated cowardice of Hindus. It is amusing to observe this delusive image created by self-hypnotism or something! It is a plain fact that nearly 100,000 ‘manly’ soldiers of the Pakistan army meekly surrendered to valiant Indian troops at the end of the 1971 war and India cut Pakistan neatly into two fragments, like a piece of cake! This is all the more significant now, as another dismemberment of the country in the form of Balochistan is on the cards. In the absence of a credible state, local militias and crude power was everywhere. Rich people travel to the countryside only with a loaded Kalashnikov within their reach. Aatish records instances where the police themselves turn dacoits during their off-duty hours.

Subtitled ‘A Son’s Journey through Islamic Lands’, the book is a re-evaluation of Islam on the basis of its strict demand of allegiance from its adherents. Taseer brings out the points where mainstream society break ranks with fundamentalism, but adopts a semi-resigned compromise with it. Fundamentalists always go by a feeling of victimization, a sense of persecution whether living in a Muslim society or not. That’s the well from which youngsters who were born and brought up in Europe turn away from the society and go east to the deadly embrace of the Islamic State. Religion has become a political and historical grievance against the modern world. Such fusing of history with faith spells danger to pluralistic and multicultural societies. Taseer answers a perennial problem often associated with Islamic societies where the voice of the moderates are not heard. Even though it is often claimed that the terrorists constitute only a tiny minority of Muslims, the voice of the ‘moderate’ majority is conspicuous by absence. The author identifies them with his father and step-siblings, who don’t pray, wear any dress they like, drink what they choose, but harboured feelings of hatred of Jews, Americans or Hindus that were founded on faith and only thinly masked in political arguments.

The book is a very good one to read, considering this is the first one from the author. A set of photographs and an index would’ve added much interest to the book.

The book is highly recommended.

Rating: 3 Star

Wednesday, August 24, 2016

An Incurable Romantic




Title: An Incurable Romantic – The Musical Journey of Lalgudi Jayaraman
Author: Lakshmi Devnath
Publisher: HarperCollins India, 2013 (First)
ISBN: 9789350291887
Pages: 434

Indian music has two distinct streams – the Hindustani of North India and the Carnatic of the South. In both streams, vocal music reigns supreme, but instrumental music has found its voice in the last century. Shri. Lalgudi Gopala Iyer Jayaraman (1930 – 2013) was a great violinist of South India who redefined the role of the instrument in traditional concerts. The violinist’s expected role was to unobtrusively support, creatively mirror and subtly inspire the vocalist, who is the leader of the recital. With his excellent solo performances, Lalgudi created a niche for violin, whose origin is Western European, but which came to be an inseparable part of Carnatic music. Lakshmi Devnath is a well-known writer on Carnatic music and other aspects of Indian culture. Her deeply researched articles find a place in prestigious publications in South India. She has extensively written on composers of Carnatic music, texts on Indian music philosophers and saints of India. The author’s ability to write with ease on a variety of subjects and for diverse age groups has won her wide admiration. This book on Lalgudi Jayaraman is undoubtedly her magnum opus.

Lalgudi Jayaraman hails from an extremely orthodox Tamil Brahmin family that traces its links to the eminent doyen of Carnatic music, saint Tyagaraja. Lalgudi Rama Iyer, one of his ancestors, was a direct disciple of Tyagaraja. The tradition of music runs unbroken in the family, which boasts of six generations of professional musicians. The maestro’s father, Gopala Iyer, was a strict disciplinarian and instructor, who had imparted the knowledge of music to Jayaraman and his descendants. Mastery of the art entailed respect from all concerned, including one’s own father, as noted by the author that Gopala Iyer, in response to queries on the whereabouts of his son from visitors, often replied “avar illai” (he is not here), the term “avar” being a respectful form of address. Iyer believed that unless he was seen respecting his own son, others won’t do it either! Lalgudi’s siblings and offspring also excelled in music. It was once a recurrent theme of Chennai concerts to stage Lalgudi and his sister Srimathi Brahmanandam duo in double violin stage shows. However, the family assigned the highest priority to music as illustrated in an episode in the book. One of Lalgudi’s sisters was ill for a long time and suddenly died at the moment he was about to go out to stage a concert. The family decided that he should attend the program as committed!

Lalgudi earned fame for his tremendous mastery over rhythm. He came out with impromptu, but creative responses to difficult pallavis recited by the vocalist. Cushioned somewhat by one of the grandest pedigrees in South India, his high-voltage entry into music transformed later into vertical takeoff mode. He was not only a violinist, but a composer as well, with that rare ability to compose lyrics and their corresponding musical setting. As is the wont of any violinist, he began his career as an accompanist. As his fame soared, solo appearances started coming out and finally in 1986, at the age of 56, Lalgudi ended his career as an accompanist. All his later performances were solo. The Sri Krishna Gana Sabha in Chennai has a prominent place in the artiste’s life, as they grew together in the 1960s. Lalgudi has given the largest number of concerts on the Sabha’s podium. He excelled as an orchestral composer and conductor too. Lakshmi Devnath summarizes the contributions of Lalgudi and he is remembered for “his pioneering a revolutionary style of violin playing described as the Lalgudi bani; his creation of sterling compositions that include his sizable musical; his discovery of a new rhythmic pattern; his success at getting the violin recognized as a centre-stage instrument; and his all-round efforts towards spreading awareness, appreciation and knowledge of Carnatic music” (p.337). Lalgudi was appreciated by maestros of world art. Yehudi Menuhin once gifted him a violin and he returned the favour with an idol of Nataraja carved in ivory.

Professional jealousy and unhealthy competition is present in all walks of life, and it is amusing to note that they are not entirely absent in classical music as well. Devnath presents a number of cases in which Lalgudi was at the receiving end of canards and machinations by a few personalities, who were otherwise eminent and well learned in their area of expertise, whether it is vocal, flute or violin itself. But she has carefully reproduced some of the allegations against the master as well, such as his supposed haughtiness and condescension towards younger artistes in later years. Lalgudi pioneered a synthesis of three prominent musical instruments in Carnatic music, namely, violin, flute and veena under the sobriquet VVV (violin – venu – veena). But after a few performances, this effort floundered on a ruckus between the performers on such silly accusations like the veena and flute was relegated to the background and the players were not properly paid. R Venkitaraman (veena) and N Ramani (flute) ranged against Lalgudi in this unfortunate episode. The Chennai Music Academy maintained the practice of awarding the title ‘Sangita Kala Nidhi’ to eminent musicians. Unfortunately, this award eluded Lalgudi, however much he yearned for it. The author points the accusing finger at the famous musician Semmangudi, who had his acolytes in the decision-making fora of the Academy. Not only that, when a politician mistakenly praised Lalgudi as a receiver of the award, Semmangudi publicly corrected the politician that he has not yet received the award. This infuriated Lalgudi very much and led to a rift between them. This was later reconciled, but Lalgudi declared that he won’t accept the award, even if the Academy deign to present it to him. After many years, a sort of rapprochement was arrived at, by the Academy gifting him a Lifetime Achievement Award. Lalgudi was severely criticized many times in his professional career. A few considered him as opinionated, arrogant and closeted himself in an ivory tower. He was aloof and his reticence, brusque manners and lack of social graces might be a reason for the misunderstanding. His tillanas were said to be slow. But, Lalgudi always kept a stoic approach to such allegations, remarking that it was up to the critics to accept or reject his work. The book mentions a number of artistes of Carnatic music, not only violinists, but flautists, vocalists, masters of mridanga and veena and even dancers. However, the name of another great violinist of the era, Kunnakudi Vaidyanathan, is never mentioned. It is strange and inconceivable that these two great maestros had no occasion worthwhile to recall in their decades of interaction.

The book begins with a Foreword by none other than Pandit Ravi Shankar, which is quite impressive. Lakshmi Devnath’s personal acquaintance with the great violinist has helped imprint a touch of intimacy to the narrative. Lalgudi’s aphorisms given in little boxes throughout the text help the readers focus more on the protagonist. The book assumes basic familiarity on the part of readers towards classical music. There is a glossary at the end, describing musical terms such as raga alapana, swara prastara, chittaswaram, violin’s pitch and kattai and others, but uninitiated readers don’t find much comfort in it. A compact disk is also provided along with the book, which includes samples of the master’s art that would be extremely useful for readers. There is a nice collection of photographs of Lalgudi and his family members, but none showing the young master with a kudumi (tuft of hair) and a kadukkan (ear stud) worn by orthodox Brahmins which was his usual attire in the early years! Going through the numerous references to musicians one comes across in the book, one can’t help wonder at the fact that Carnatic music is dominated by the Tamil Brahmin community. The long list of Iyers, Lalgudi himself being one of them, is mind-boggling. Perhaps this might be one of the reasons why classical music is unable to be appealing to a large section of contemporary society? Lalgudi had campaigned far and wide for enhancing the popularity of Carnatic music with his pollination campaigns, but he also doesn’t seem to have appreciated this point. The book is graced with a good index. The title of the book become relevant when we bear in mind the constant refrain of the maestro in bringing out the sweet aspects of music through his innovations which were deeply founded in tradition. His first and foremost love was for music and hence, he may be referred to as an incurable romantic. In real life, nothing could be further from the common meaning of the word, for Lalgudi never even accompanied women vocalists on his violin!

The book is highly recommended.

Rating: 3 Star

Saturday, August 13, 2016

The Pirates of Malabar





Title: The Pirates of Malabar and an Englishwoman in India Two Hundred Years Ago
Author: John Biddulph
Publisher: Asian Educational Services, 1995 (First published 1907)
ISBN: 8120609190
Pages: 327

While the Muslim conquest of India was undertaken by invading forces via land rolling in across the mountain ranges of Hindukush, European conquest was affected through trade and intervention in internal power squabbles. The Hindu and Muslim kingdoms in the country had no naval force to speak of, at the time of Gama’s arrival in the western coast in 1498. India was engaged in a rich trade with the Middle East and China around this time through the intermediary of Arab merchants. Transshipment of Chinese goods took place here, which was again transshipped onto Mediterranean and Red Sea ports of Syria and Arabia, before the merchandise turned up in European ports. With Gama on the scene and the Europeans’ easy subjugation of the East Indies, Indian Ocean trade was effectively controlled by them. Arabs who predominated in the trade to Middle East were marginalized. The extraordinary success of the Portuguese prompted other powers to follow suit. While the 16th century saw the establishment of Portuguese naval might on the sea, the next century witnessed their fall from grace and the pole position first taken by the Dutch and then by the English. Mughal Empire was crumbling in the reign of Aurangzeb on account of his bigoted policies, which helped the Europeans secure their position on the coast, by establishing forts and factories at strategic locations. The factories are not to be mistaken for their modern namesake. The medieval factories were nothing more than warehouses for the safe storage of merchandise. Opening up of the global sea lanes attracted a large number of people to the sea, a good many of them pirates, hoping to cash in on the burgeoning trade in materials and slaves. The British crown openly commissioned pirates like Drake to prey upon the Spanish mercantile fleet. By the end of the 17th century, Indian Ocean had become infested with pirates everywhere, except the Bay of Bengal. Most of the pirates were of course Europeans, who operated from Madagascar, but who had roots as long away as to Bahamas. Soon, natives and Arabs also joined the fray. When Sivaji rose to prominence in the Deccan, his admirals proved equally superior in the sea. Kanhoji Angre (spelled Conajee Angria throughout the text) established an invincible naval supremacy centred on the forts of Suvarnadurg (Severndroog) and Vijaydurg (Gheria). The book tells the story of the continued British assault on Mahratta navy and its fruition in 1756. While Conajee Angria was alive, his forts stood firm, but his death brought incompetent admirals who were soon overwhelmed. In addition to the victory over piracy, the book also includes a section on the British engagement of the territory of Anjengo in Kerala, as seen in the background of the life of Catherine Cooke, an English girl who came to India with her parents, but had to marry men much advanced in age. John Biddulph was an English soldier, author and naturalist, who served in the government of British India. He retired from service while serving in the Viceroy’s staff.

Biddolph presents a neat sketch on the origins and spread of maritime piracy on the Asiatic shore. The authority of the Old Testament upheld slavery, and Africans were regarded more as cattle than human beings, while Asiatics were classed higher, but still as immeasurably inferior to Europeans. Vincente Sodre, the companion of Gama in his second voyage, turned a pirate soon. English pirates from New York, Boston, Jamaica and the Bahamas regularly showed their faces in the Arabian Sea. They plundered and sank Asian ships, while Europeans were sometimes spared. Some of them, like Henry Every and William Kidd, rose in notoriety due to the audacity of their strikes. Henry Every intercepted the ship Gunj Suwaie coming from Arabia carrying precious cargo and the Emperor Aurangzeb’s granddaughter. He appropriated whatever the ship had to offer, including the women. Aurangzeb’s granddaughter converted to Christianity and became the pirate’s wife. Conajee Angria, the Mahratta naval stalwart, is portrayed as a dreaded brigand in the book, before whom the British might stayed subdued. He employed European pirates in his troops. The early 18th century was a period in which might alone proved right. In such a case, it is probable that Angria indeed indulged in piracy occasionally. All European crowns somehow encouraged piracy directed against their rivals. The book mentions about pirate ships inimical to England visiting Cochin, which was under Dutch rule at that time and being entertained by the Dutch governor. On their return, the pirates gifted a gold watch collected during their raids to the governor’s daughter!

If we make a cross section of the societal background of England’s emigrants in India and the West Indies, a curious pattern is suggested in the book. Representatives of the landed gentry in every county of England colonized the West Indies. Royal charters conferring large tracts of estates and even whole islands were conferred on them. Slaves were cheap and sugar cultivation brought great wealth to them. The entire machinery of English life was copied and reproduced in the tropics. This was diametrically opposed to the condition prevailing in India. Strong kingdoms which ruled the land and wide prevalence of agriculture forced them to adopt trade as the only available option. English men could serve in the country only as servants of the English East India Company. Men from small trading families took up the challenge. The pay and perquisites were meager. They could enrich themselves only by private trade, which most of them indulged in. This naturally led to widespread corruption. Money was reserved to enhance trade interests. Biddoplh remarks that gun powder was not often used in military exercises to save cost! The traders were under the mercy of native rulers. Usually, they were asked to compensate for piratical raids committed by their countrymen in the sea. The chief of the factory and prominent officials remained in fetters till the compensation was paid in full. The collective fine system continued up to 1698, when a large sum demanded of the Surat factory in retaliation to Captain Kidd’s piracy. But the whites chose to fight back this time, marking the beginning of an era when the traders were stepping into the shoes of colonial masters. Patrolling by white ships were undertaken to check the menace and detachment of king’s sailors were sought.

The book showcases a specific period in Indian history when British military power was beginning to exert strong influence in Indian politics. Traders’ private militias gave way to Crown’s forces supposedly in the service of the company. The language is a little arcane, but readers have no difficulty to follow the argument. The names of persons and places follow a different spelling scheme than the modern one, which readers are accustomed to. The publishers should have added a glossary of the outlandish names of some places used in the book. The book is rather small, but easy to read. It includes a good index also.

The book is highly recommended.

Rating: 2 Star

Monday, August 8, 2016

A Devil’s Chaplain




Title: A Devil’s Chaplain – Selected Essays
Author: Richard Dawkins
Editor: Latha Menon
Publisher: Phoenix, 2004 (First published 2003)
ISBN: 9780753817506
Pages: 310

Ever since the untimely decease of Christopher Hitchens, the number of gurus who promote scientific reason and rational thought on a worldwide scale has dwindled by half – to the person of Richard Dawkins. This biologist from Oxford University is forever ready to take up cudgels on behalf of reason and clear thought. Braving brickbats from all corners of superstition like religious fundamentalism, creation theory, intelligent design and alternative medicine. This book is a selection of essays from all articles and lectures, reflections and polemics, book reviews and forewords, tributes and eulogies made by Richard Dawkins in the past quarter of a century. Latha Menon, who compiled the articles, is an editorial consultant who has her background in physics and has worked as editor for Microsoft Encarta encyclopedia project. The title of the volume is that of the first chapter itself, on Charles Darwin, who coined the phrase in a letter to his friend as “what a book a Devil’s Chaplain might write on the clumsy, wasteful, blundering low and horridly cruel works of nature”. Darwin was, of course, referring to the natural process of evolution which is another face of nature, red in tooth and claw.

The book covers in a nutshell all the major ideas ever put forward by Dawkins over his literary career spanning several decades as of date. If computer parlance could be borrowed, it may be called a zipped down version of the author’s prodigiously rich output. His advocacy for evolution, promotion of scientific spirit in the society and concerns on education in general is lucidly evident from the diverse nature of essays. Equally visible to the discerning eye is his inborn aversion to religion, creationism and the act of religiously minded parents – of inculcating the principles of the religion they believe in, in the minds of young children – by exploiting the natural gullibility of them at that age. He strongly opines against young children being left to the care of nuns, or by extrapolation, other religious figureheads too. Dawkins’ note to the then prime minister of Britain, Tony Blair, is remarkable for the clarity of thought and presentation of newer scientific ideas that can be easily comprehended by common men and politicians. Right approach to education is stressed in many places. Overhauling of the examination-centric approach is a crying need of the hour on account of the lack of interest and rapidly building up stress on young pupils. The chapter on Sanderson of Oundle School presented the case of an extraordinary headmaster who challenged the notions of established wisdom in school administration by throwing open the school’s labs, library and other points of interest at all times, so that the students were not constrained by non-availability of facilities at a time most convenient to them. His plan reaped rich dividends in moulding a good many students who were extremely talented and scored brilliantly when they eventually appeared for the exams.

Humour is a constant companion of the author’s incisive criticism of creationism and established religion. Perhaps that’s why his detractors find his barbs so painful and excoriating. His advice to young children is not to believe anything solely based on the trilogy of tradition, authority and revelation. His style is also marked by the rich variety of examples he comes up with, particularly when genetic transmission of particulars that helped an organism survive better than other members of its clan or species, is discussed. These are very clear-cut and illuminating as to convince most readers other than fundamentalists and highly opinionated people, who would readily believe in religious miracles, but find it hard to convince themselves that man had set foot in the moon. Such individuals combine the obstinacy of religious dogma with skepticism of enlightenment, and thereby producing a lethal combination of ignorance with belligerence. Dawkins’ pointed dig at homeopathy is also evident in more than one chapter. Homeopathy is a sophisticated manifestation of faith healing, which has no valid credentials other than anecdotal evidence of healing, mostly by placebo effect. Still, a lot of people practice the medicine and find gullible patients who are willing to undergo the treatment. But awareness is not far away, when homeopathy will be consigned to the dustbin of charlatanry.

The idea of memes as the analog of genes on the intellectual plane was first proposed by the author in the 1970s, which has been granted the status of a new word in English. He takes due credit for the origin of the word. Memes represent an idea, or a cultural element that is transferred from one person to another so as to modify his or her behavior. Like self-replicating genes, memes are also subject to natural selection. Dawkins confidently asserts that while Universal Darwinism is the ubiquitous biological principle, memes have become the theory of human culture. Taking a further step, Dawkins finds similarity with computer viruses, whose replication can also be equated to that of genes and memes. But, the fanciful prediction of computer viruses evolving towards compatibility with and mutual assistance to each other is rather off the mark, attributable to unfamiliarity with the cyber world. However, his simile of religion as a mental virus of faith is prescient and sums up the outrageous acts of the devoted. Scientific reason is touted as the antiviral software in this case.

In the tirade against quacks and proponents of alternative medicine, Dawkins summarizes the reasons why people fall in the trap and enunciates remedies by which this can be resisted. Eastern mystics come up with exotic theories in their lore which are claimed to be in anticipation of modern scientific principles invented only in the last century or so. Quantum Mechanics is a favourite pasture for these parasites. Quantum Mechanics is deeply mysterious and hard to understand, so is eastern mysticism. So, eastern mystics must have been talking about quantum theory all along – such goes their skewed reasoning. In the case of alternative medicine, Dawkins ridicules its practitioners for refusing to test their pharmacopoeia through standard, randomized double blind trials. But they consistently shy away from testing by citing pompous and insincere reasons. This forces the book to assert that alternative medicine is a set of practices which can’t be tested, refuse to be tested, or consistently fail tests. If they somehow manage to pass the test, it is no longer alternative – they’d straightaway become mainstream. The book includes Dawkins’ reviews of Stephen Jay Gould’s books. It is no secret that the rivalry between these two luminaries was very intense. However, the author gives a very favourable assessment of Gould’s work, at the same time expressing his reservations on some of the points.

The book is divided into seven sections ranging from science, memes, people, memories and personal. Each section is adorned by an individual foreword written by Dawkins himself, in which he explains the background of writing that particular article. All aspects of the author’s literary career are amply covered in this volume. Latha Menon has done a wonderful job in selecting the right articles. The book contains an impressive list of Notes and a commendable index.

The book is highly recommended.

Rating: 4 Star