Survival of the Sickest - Dr. Sharon Moalem, Jonathan Prince (2006)

In lines of The Survival of the Fittest which was coined by Herbert Spencer in 1864 as a sequel to Darwin's theory of natural selection, this book presents why some diseases as we know today are there. Are they truely diseases or genetic survival techniques for the human race? The author gives quite a few reasons why certain diseases as we know them are mere survival genetic activities in the gene pool. It's like reading a science fiction on human existence.

Excellent book to read and will definitely make you think.

The Village by the Sea - Anita Desai (1982)

A simple story of a village boy and his family who are going through the life of abject poverty, an ill mother and a drunkard father. The interest of the industries to develop the village to a fertilizer plant has created a fear for its dwellers and in protest in front of the govt in Mumbai. The boy joins the crowd although he had no land nor had any fishing boat to survive on. As fate could have it he gets some livelihood in Mumbai and earns a small living. Similarly, a Mumbaikar who comes to the village on vacation enjoys the service of the boy's sisters in their household activities. He also admits their mother to the nearest hospital. With some earnings from providing household services to these few visitors and the boy's earnings from Mumbai, the children dream of a sustainable future even if the factories may affect the livelihood of most of the fishermen in the village.

The overall book is a simple depiction of life through these children. Though ends with a reasonably positive hope the book definitely raises the issues on rapid urbanization and the effect of that on people's livelihood and existence for future.

A nice book to read on survival.