The 24th Governor of the Reserve Bank of India, Urjit Patel in his latest work “Overdraft” mounts a scathing albeit nuanced indictment on the malaise and miasma plaguing the Indian banking sector. Taking utmost care to ensure that his views do not transmogrify into an all-out polemic, he is measured in his criticism and optimistic … Continue reading Overdraft Saving the Indian Saver – Urjit Patel
Month: July 2020
Understanding Coronavirus – Raul Rabadan
A very concise and clear book, rather a handbook on the pandemic that has put the entire world in a tailspin. Since the time the first cases of COVID-19 were unearthed in the Hubei province of Wuhan, surmises, conjectures and conspiracy theories have abounded about the origin, nature and trajectory of the pandemic that in … Continue reading Understanding Coronavirus – Raul Rabadan
Unmasking
The need of the moment was neither muscle not money A little bit of knowledge and a nuance that could help many By no means can it be deemed inappropriate to ask People "just wear a bloody mask!" (Word Count: 38) Courtesy of Sammi Cox Weekend Writing Prompt#167
Call of the Wild
(Image Credit: Crispina Kemp) The mammoth truck came hurtling down the highway. Trucks in general, and trailer trucks in particular are rumbling behemoths whose concept of speed is restricted to encouraging trudges, exceptions being Jason Statham movies. But the man behind the wheel seemed possessed by the Devil himself. With a determined foot obstinately fixed … Continue reading Call of the Wild
Blood Runs Cold – An Anthology
The British poet, historical novelist, critic, and classicist Robert Graves once memorably exclaimed, “A well-chosen anthology is a complete dispensary of medicine for the more common mental disorders and may be used as much for prevention as cure.” The very concept of an anthology is intriguing. An act of harnessing contradictions, tying together diverse perspectives, … Continue reading Blood Runs Cold – An Anthology
Factfulness – Hans Rosling, Ola Rosling & Anna Rosling Ronnlund
An incorrigible optimist, the late Hans Rosling would have taken on the ravaging COVID-19 pandemic head on in his own inimitable and indomitable way and perhaps even devised an ingenious method to put paid to his rampaging hopes. This Professor of International Health and a veritable superstar in so far as both his work and … Continue reading Factfulness – Hans Rosling, Ola Rosling & Anna Rosling Ronnlund
Finite and Infinite Games – James Carse
The world-famous Sociologist and Economist Thorstein Veblen coined the term “invidious” consumption to refer to the ostentatious consumption of goods that is meant to provoke the envy of other people. James Carse’s incredibly abstract and extraordinarily complex book “Finite and Infinite Games” falls squarely within the ambit of such consumption. I am willing to bet … Continue reading Finite and Infinite Games – James Carse
A Thousand Small Sanities – Adam Gopnik
We seem to be living in an age of ‘cancellations.’ If the rabid Coronavirus is not busy cancelling our well laid out plans, we seem to be busier cancelling out each other. The Left brigade unsatisfied in its pursuit of cancelling the Right, is now steadfast in going after its own creed. What’s Left over … Continue reading A Thousand Small Sanities – Adam Gopnik
BlackBerry Town: How high tech success has played out for Canada’s Kitchener-Waterloo – Chuck Howitt
In this compelling book, author, freelance writer, and retired journalist at Waterloo Region Record, Chuck Howitt chronicles how a powerful amalgam of academics, altruism and acuity can spawn an arresting ecosystem that fosters a virtuous cycle. “Blackberry Town” is a homage to the zeal and vision of one man that transformed an ordinary and uneventful … Continue reading BlackBerry Town: How high tech success has played out for Canada’s Kitchener-Waterloo – Chuck Howitt