The Gene: An Intimate History by Siddhartha Mukherjee (2016)

If you are interested in genetics and everything associated with them, here is a book that has it all. Siddhartha Mukherjee takes readers on an expansive journey through the history of science, tracking how we came to understand the very blueprint of humanity.

The Scope and Scholarship

The biggest takeaway from this work is the author’s incredible scholarship. Mukherjee masterfully connects the dots across centuries of scientific discovery. The book covers:

• The Foundations: Darwin’s theory of evolution, Mendel’s pea-plant studies on heredity, and the dark history of Galton’s eugenics.
• The Modern Era: The massive undertaking of the Human Genome Project and the complexities of gene sequencing.
• The Future: The influence of genetic data on stem cell research and its application to modern genetic medicine.

There is truly no place in this book where you are not learning something new or deeply interesting.

The Drawbacks: Information Overload?

Despite its brilliance, the book leaves you with a lingering question: Is it just an overload of information with very little practical application?

The book sits in an awkward middle ground for its audience:

• For the Common Reader: It is difficult to see how to apply these dense scientific concepts to everyday life.
• For the Scientist: The explanations can feel too superficial, covering old concepts that do not entirely make sense in a modern context.

The book serves as a great historical explainer, but you may find yourself wondering if you truly care about this extreme level of detail today.

Final Verdict

A great, educational read to digest slowly over a stretched period of time, but ultimately held back by its limited real-world application.

Broca's Brain - Carl Sagan (1979)

Carl Sagan was a household name in the late 60s or early 70s due to the TV series Cosmos in the USA. Cosmos aired on national television in India in the 80s. There is a general tendency for 80s kids to get enchanted by Sagan. Someone gifted the book to me in the late 90s. Yet despite several serious attempts earlier, I was not able to get past a few pages. Finally, I tried one last time, and here is what I discovered.

The book is not a standard popular astronomy book. There are astronomical figures and facts in some chapters, but, in most places, the book is a critique of older philosophical interpretations - a myth buster of sorts. Some of these myths are period-based - a pseudo-science article in a newspaper. After 50 years, we cannot quite correlate it to the original popular myth. Secondly, some of the ideas have been accepted over the years. If you are really not into the field, you wonder why you need to read such a book. Yes, the book, though well-written, has lived its life.

I will not recommend it for today’s audience.    

Delhi is Not Far - Ruskin Bond (1994)

Delhi is not far brings together essays, short stories, unpublished articles, excerpts from previously published novels, travelogues, poems, and finally a novella of the same name. The author provides diverse content spanning different periods of his life. You may encounter shifts in style and approach. If you read in chunks, these disconnects become less noticeable. Some stories may not have morally correct outcomes.

Most stories are autobiographical, connecting to the author’s childhood experiences. The backdrops of many stories are from the hills. The novel is about the youthful aspirations of two young men to make it to Delhi. There is queer love between these boys that makes it a bit complicated.

The other novella in the collection, Life Stops at Shamli, is a strange one. Is it a real place or a fantasy land? Is the author meeting some real people or ghosts living on a timestop - will haunt you. Ruskin Bond makes you hear out their stories in a non-judgmental way. This is something you would do easily in childhood, but the adult interpretation can be hard. Maybe a story to read without overanalysing it.

 

Overall, the book showcases the author's diverse writing and is a good read.  

Room on the Roof - Ruskin Bond (1956)

Rusty, an orphan English boy of seventeen from Dehradun, fights with his guardian, who had managed him with an iron fist, and finds friendship with a few lower-middle-class Indian boys. They offered him food, shelter, and found him a job. Rusty stays in the room on the roof of the house of one of his friends. He teaches him English for food and shelter. Interestingly, he grows closer to the boy’s mother and falls in love with the married lady. Rusty’s love passes away in a car accident, her husband remarries in Haridwar, and abandons their son. Rusty finds the boy, who had turned into a rogue bandit in Haridwar. He cajoles the boy, brings him back to Dehradun, and lives in the same room on the roof.

The book was written by Ruskin Bond when he was only seventeen. It has won several awards and established him as an author. It is hard to believe that the story was conceived by a seventeen-year-old. No doubt Bond is such a masterful storyteller. Boys, when faced with the hard realities, grew into strong men. I will consider that as the biggest takeaway. Rusty and Kishen (the boy whose mother he loved) maintain a symbiotic friendship. The story would leave that lingering doubt on what happened next. Unlike other stories, e.g., the Hidden Pool, this was a book about children written with an adult theme.  

The School Days - Ruskin Bond (2010)

This book is different. The author collects a few stories from various periods, some well-known and some not so. All the stories are of adolescent kids, mostly from their school life. I found the two Indian stories from the author interesting. The other stories were sometimes difficult to follow. One could attribute it to the lack of understanding of the culture and context.

Overall, a good collection. It will introduce the kids to a multicultural adventure.  

Sri Vijayeendrateertha - The Invincible - Raja S Gururajacharya (2014)

While visiting the Mantralaya Ashram in Andhra Pradesh, I sought to understand the origins of a tradition spanning over eighty gurus since the 16th century. My search led me to the only English text available: a biography of Sri Vijayeendrateertha.

A true polymath of the 16th century, Sri Vijayeendrateertha was a master of sixty-four distinct art forms and an unrivaled debater. The book chronicles his evolution from a dedicated disciple at Mantralaya to the head seer at Kumbhakonam. It details his intellectual travels across Southern India, where he defended the Dwaita philosophy of Madhavacharya against the most formidable scholars of the Shaiva, Adwaita, and Buddhist sects. His influence was so profound that it transcended religious boundaries, earning the respect of Muslim rulers like Adil Shah. This work offers a compelling window into the intellectual rigor and spiritual heritage of the Madhava lineage.

The Hidden Pool - Ruskin Bond (1966)

 Laurie, Kamal, and Anil are teens. They would soon be graduating from school into adulthood. The association is of classless young kids who have fun without any social divide. Laurie is the son of a British officer. Anil is relatively well off, but Kamal manages by selling one of thing to people and studying in a night school. The class divide does not affect them. They share and care for each other all through. They discover a natural stream in the hills and call it their hidden swimming pool. They have fun together in beetle races, chase ghosts, and their adventure culminates in a trek to a glacier. Laurie finally shifts to England. Anil graduates from school and moves to Lucknow for college. Anil, in his final letter, lets Laurie know that the river has changed course, ending their hidden pool. Kamal is left behind and finds new friends.

The perfect children’s story would still make you reminisce about your personal lives. Everyone would be able to connect with one or two things in the book with their personal lives. A great read!