The Hindu Temples/Sacred Sites
By R. Champakalakshmi, Usha Kris
Roli Books; price: Rs 565

Hope you like coffee and the books that go along with it. The Hindu Temple is one of them which would fit your bags when touring India. The classification according to dynasties is done wonderfully but northern Indian temples are given the royal ignore — guess we knew about Khajuraho, thanks to KS.

Though the editors have taken great pains to spell most temples right, why the Madurai Meenakshi Temple goes as ‘Minakshi’ needs some explanation. The reasons why somethings are in a particular fashion inside temples is explained in detail. This book deserves space in the library. At the coffee table, this book will not let the reader sip his coffee.

— Monisha Bir

Forsaking Paradise
By Abdul Ghani Sheikh
Translated by Ravina Aggarwal
Katha; price: Rs 150

Forsaken Paradise is a compilation of short stories by one of Ladakh’s leading litterateurs Abdul Ghani Sheikh. But while Sheikh is reputed for compelling, insightful writing, it is likely that a lot has been lost in the translation for the stories had originally been written in Urdu.

What the collection does do, however, is that it gives the reader a peep into the world of the Ladakhi. A society entwined in the heterogenous web of Tibetan and Pathani cultures, Buddhism and Islam, Indian and British rule, Ladakhi life encompasses more than the rugged beauty of the region. What the book primarily reflects are the changes that modernity has set in motion in this seemingly isolated landscape, resulting in a chaos of breaking families and market values.

— Esha Roy

Kimono — Fashioning Culture
By Liza Dalby
Vintage; price: £5.99

This perhaps would be the best buy for those interested in more than just a peripheral view of history and the social changes in a given region. For Kimono is an anthropological study of the costume and its relevance to the Japanese. What makes the book more interesting to read is the sad tale of the fast dying kimono culture despite its popularity the world over.

The author, an expert on geishas, explores why the kimono, virtually a religion in itself, has taken a beating at the hands of new fashions. Dalby writes that nothing in Japan holds a stronger grasp on the “Japanese heart, mind and purse as the kimono does.” And the importance of the costume is summed up when she says: “Love it or loathe it. The kimono evokes strong opinions.”

— Prarthana Gahilote

Sweet and Sour Soup for the Executives
By Rajiv Khurana
Excel Books
Price: Rs 150

A blend of Kabir’s dohas, anecdotes about office manners and nuggets of ideas — Sweet and Sour Soup for the Executives tells us things that are noted, observed but then carelessly tossed into the ‘outbox’ in Indian corporate offices. But while the author, management consultant Rajiv Khurana, promises ‘‘a great recipe for success’’, the danger is that such a book can lapse into an underexplored and unappetising collection of case studies from a typical Sarkari Duftar.

— Arundhati Bakshi