Billions Under Lockdown

ABANTIKA GHOSH’S ‘Billions Under Lockdown’ is a chronicle of India’s journey through the pandemic. From how the first few cases grabbed headlines to how 2021 brings hope in the form of Covid-19 vaccine — she has tried to pack in almost everything that transpired in the last one year. From the sudden lockdown to economic slowdown, from rising cases to community transmission — she maps the journey from how the old normal was replaced by the new normal to business as usual in poll-bound states and the rest of India. What’s interesting though is the peek she offers into the race for vaccine and the desi cures that fell through.

LEOPARDS are the most photographed wild cats in India, yet most of their lives remain a secret to us. In India, the leopard is a poster boy of the fight to preserve wildlife, but in many countries, it faces either ecological or local extinction. For the last 10 years, Sanjay Gubbi has been trying to interpret their lives to help in their conservation. This book draws from his research and seeks to reveal why leopards thrive in their habitats, why they are so vital to the people and the ecosystems in which they live and what threats they face. A self-taught conservationist, he was the winner of the Whitley Award (popularly known as the Green Oscars) in 2017.

DISEASE usually begins in the mind, says Dr Natwar Sharma, and in the brain could lie the answer, he believes. Thus, even though trained as a paediatrician, he has gone beyond conventional wisdom to propagate regression therapy. ‘Metaphors of Memory’ reveals the mysteries of the mind and the influence of our past and current life experiences on our present behaviour. He demystifies this healing tool through detailed case studies that demonstrate the release of unhealthy patterns, beliefs and energies as a route to healing. The book is also an appeal to the medical fraternity to open up to regression therapy as a complementary non-conventional mode of treatment.