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THE ASSASSINATION OF INDIRA GANDHI

By Dr. R Sudarshan

For many of our generation, 1984 was a great year of the turmoil surrounding the killing of a popular Prime Minister. But the mind also drifted then to place that event in the landscape of history to see it not as the most critical incident of the year, but as a crossroad of history, where the ordinary and the extraordinary happen in tandem.  

Upamanyu narrates the assassination in a similar context to the passage of time. Brilliantly. He speaks of the extraordinary things like a high pedestal betrayal and a massacre of people alongside the pedestrian life that we all live - the excitement of wealth by a family, a boy seeking revenge on a sexual predator, a latrine cleaner longing for release, a lone man's companionship with sparrows and a whole lot of commonplace stories. All happen together on the stage of life but none are linked to the other.

A masterful piece of writing. A perspective that stuns you with its time-neutral philosophy. And the very exact things that you see in your life while thinking beyond your life. 

On the shelf - an incredible writer's control of language, perceptions, perspectives, and some effervescent thoughts.

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IT'S RAINING BOOKS

By Dr. R Sudarshan

Watch video: https://fb.watch/eyWr0eJz78/

July has seen a lot of rain. And we were not excluded even indoors. The torrent is not of water, but of books at the Silverfish. Twice a month, the shelves have been replenished with over 300 volumes. The dynamic 10,000 titles at the store have always had a monthly flux of over 300, which keep moving in as the old is sold. And the display shelves for 'recent arrivals' and 'best sellers' are like a serpent molting - shedding the previous and renewing afresh as the time rolls. A book store can't be more organic and livelier than that. 

'Silverfish Books' has just turned 2 years old, by the way. And the footfall has crossed 10,000. Every day, we see a new face at the store. And everyone will have found a new title to read.

For any relevant query, message 81051 12990.

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Silverfish Books, Farmer's House, # 1A - 13th Cross, Kalidasa Road, VV Mohalla, Mysore.

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Location: Bengaluru, Karnataka, India

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