NON-FICTION 2006
Making sense of history & society
From Shashi Joshi to Barak Obama, the focus this year seemed to be on trying to decipher trends, be they social or global. Rajiv Lochan takes a look at the books that created a buzz

Trying to make sense of the inexplicable has been the leitmotif of many good books this year. Inherent in their discourse are warnings about taking the wrong turn and getting into a historical cul-de-sac from where it might be difficult to get out.

One of the best in this regard is Shashi Joshi’s latest. Writing fluidly and with great mastery over facts, Joshi takes the reader into the viceregal history that underpinned the partition of India. While focussing on the great events of the time she also informs the reader about numerous lesser details such as the fact that Mountbatten on his departure from India took away the entire stock of wine in the viceregal house and that vegetables from the gardens in the viceregal house were sold to foreign embassies.

Equally full of interesting information along with a careful analysis of India’s predicaments as a global power is the book by Edward Luce. He looks into the sclerotic judicial system which finds it impossible to provide justice, the hide-bound civil servants who excel in uncivility, a plethora of gods who become the excuse for some of the most ungodly actions and then juxtaposes this with the rapid rise of the economy and the strengths of the people.

Luce’s SWOT analysis for a nation is paralleled by a similar analysis for entire societies by Jared Diamond who uses archaeology, history, economics and geography to make a simple but important point that restraint in using one’s natural resources is important in enabling a society to survive. Learning, culture, ability to do war and other accoutrements of the civilised world are useless if a society begins to over-exploit its natural environment and starts moving towards self- extinction, opines Diamond.

Not every pathway to economic growth results in the development of society. This particular conundrum becomes the subject of William Easterly’s critique of the policies foisted on the developing world by various aid agencies. Even after pumping in over $ 43 billion in aid each year these aid agencies have not been able to eradicate poverty. They will not either, says Easterly, since this aid is not designed to empower the people whom it claims to serve rather it only creates a new class of persons who use this aid to suppress the rest. Global aid only fosters social distress, he says.

An explanation for this is available in Amiya Kumar Bagchi’s rewriting of the history of the growth of capitalism. He focuses on the rise of the countries of the North Atlantic rim and the manner in which spurred on by war and greed these countries were able to claim themselves to be the masters of the world in the 20^th century. That rise was neither inevitable nor smooth, tells Bagchi as he details the various contradictions within capitalism.

Addressing conundrums that have rift our society is the collection of essays on the Aryan Debate. They have been put together to answer two simple questions: who were the Aryans and whence did they come from? The essays range from linguistic analysis to the archaeological debates on the rise of the Harappan civilisation and its life style. In the end there are no clear cut answers but we do get educated about our collective past.

Dealing with a more contemporary conundrum is the book on the terrorist attack on the Indian parliament. Arundhati Roy, with her usual felicity, separates fact from fiction. She and the other contributors to this volume ask simple questions that have troubled most Indians about how such a comprehensive attack could be launched with so much ease. While highlighting the sacrifices made by security personnel in saving the lives of our MPs that day, the reader also brings to the fore the complete incompetence of our government institutions, their cavalier attitude towards the rule of law and the frivolity with which they treat the public. Such dilemmas, especially engendered by a fear of the terrorist, have rift many a contemporary society.

Much more than India it is the US that has become divided. But the time has come, says Barack Obama in his currently popular avatar, to move on and stop the divisiveness among Americans. Addressing an American audience, almost as a prelude to the next presidential elections, Obama seeks to instil a fresh hope among the American public. His book speaks directly to the public, meanders through autobiographical narratives and sage observations about the security threats that contemporary America faces. Drawing upon his intuition as a politician Obama highlights the various ways in which the American public can transcend the distinctions between the competing political forces in that country represented by the Democrats fighting the Republicans. In a republic tired of trying to save itself the public is obviously lapping up, at least for the moment, the hope for peace and amity that Obama has to offer. It is important, he says, to remove the poisons of suspicion and hate from contemporary America while offering himself as the person capable of doing so.

Detoxification, of a more mundane and personal kind, is the subject of Tanushree Podder’s book on health and hygiene. She goes through a long list of toxins that harm our everyday lives. From alcohol, cigarettes and hot masalas to toxic relationships and lifestyles, all are grist to Podder’s mill as she offers wise advice on how to stop growing old and become beautiful.

But it is in Ashok Banker’s final volume in his Ramayana series that we are told that there are some bits of evil that can only be terminated through violence and Rama has little hesitation in doing so while reclaiming Sita from the rakshasa king. Getting back his loved one brings to an end Banker’s Ramayana. He is not interested in telling us how Rama got back to Ayodhya or ruled over his people. In a democratic age where even the last Hindu king has lost his kingdom to the people this seems a most apposite ending to a contemporary Ramayana.

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