Ukeireru: Happiness and Acceptance through Japanese Wisdom

Who in this world isn’t looking for greater peace and satisfaction? But how does one gain it? Psychologist Scott Haas is a votary of the Japanese concept of ukeireru. In his book, he offers an elegant, practical and life-changing look at the ways in which we can reduce anxiety and stress and increase overall well-being. He says ukeireru helps improve your relationships, with a greater focus on listening, finding commonalities. It helps find calm in mundane acts like making coffee and drinking tea, nudges one to learn to pause, take in the situation, and then decide on a course of action that reframes things.

Bringing together yoga guru BKS Iyengar’s inspirational messages and his recommendations on asanas that help an individual cope with trauma, ‘Imagine If’ is a tool for our turbulent times. A practitioner of Iyengar Yoga herself, Rajvi trained under Iyengar and came across several instances of people overcoming mental and physical weaknesses with the help of yoga. In her new book, she narrates stories involving people from all over the world, and how yoga helped them lend a new perspective to life. “Yoga does not change the way a person sees things; it transforms the person who sees,” Iyenger would say. The book is a glimpse into how yoga can transform you if you open yourself to it.

Regarded as Stephen King’s most iconic stories, ‘Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption’, a tale of unjust imprisonment and offbeat escape which was the basis for Oscar-nominated ‘The Shawshank Redemption’, is now available for the first time as a standalone book. Originally published in 1982 in the collection ‘Different Seasons’, it was adapted for the big screen in 1994. King has authored more than 60 books, many of which have been turned into films, television series and streamed events.

In his life of 62 years, British-born Indian anthropologist, ethnologist and tribal activist Verrier Elwin did enough to inspire generations of scholars to delve into his work over and over again. The present book is a compilation of papers presented at a two-day seminar on Elwin organised by the Archaeological Survey of India in 2017. What’s interesting is that it includes pieces by both, the scholars who study Elwin and the tribals whose lives he affected, irrespective of the fact whether they ever met him or not. Written in English and Hindi, these pieces try to explain his experiences in Central India, more specifically Bastar, where he worked, married and lived for a large part of his life. They seek to define his contemporary relevance in times when jungles and those living in them are threatened by ‘development’.

It is never too late to start saving, and it’s never too soon, says seasoned value investor and YouTuber Pranjal Kamra. A devastating pandemic, a global economic slump and a teetering job market have shown us, more clearly than ever, how essential it is to set aside savings. But in case you are not familiar with finance, in his book Kamra takes you step by step through investing, debt, tax and insurance, demystifying these and showing you how you can make it all work for you. ‘Mint Your Money’ is specifically tailored to Indian needs and the Indian finance environment.

The nerd, fat boy, skinny girl, Asian kid, the queer — school can be miserable for those who seemingly cannot conform. Maulik Pancholy’s protagonist, Rahul Kapoor, an Indian-American, is a skinny geek, struggling with sexual identity and OCD — a perfect fodder for the school bully. In his semiautobiographical debut novel, evident in the author’s note, actor Pancholy has perfectly captured the angst of a seventh grader who doesn’t fit into the norms of a middle-class white society. Supported by his family, a fiercely, protective best friend and his friend-philosopher-guide grandfather, Rahul tackles bullying and racism head-on, while finding the courage to accept his own truth. Appropriate for ages 9-12.