The Sunday Haul (on 09-08-2026)

         On Saturday night there was a heavy downpour that continued for a few hours and I thought it would go on raining on Sunday also. But luckily it didn't and it was a sunny and bright Sunday morning when I started for the second-hand book bazaar at Abids, in the heart of Hyderabad. But first I had to check out the sellers at Chikkadpally. At one of the seller I found a copy of 'The Sandglass' by Romesh Gunesekere that I picked up instead of the Jamaica Kincaid collection of stories that I had seen the previous Sunday and that I told myself I would pick up next Sunday. I hope it is there until then. 

        There are a few sellers at Abids with whom I have an occasional chat. Last Sunday one seller literarally pleaded with me to pick up at least one book from his pile spread on the pavement, and also pay whatever I wanted for it. It was an unusual request. He had also said that I hadn't bought anything from him since a long time so I decided to pick up one title. For a long time I had been seeing the copy of 'We Indians' by Khushwant Singh with him and I picked it up. 

        Another title I had seen a couple of months back and had failed to buy it was 'How to Be a Writer' by Ruskin Bond that I saw again in a bunch of books laid on a table and on sale for hundred rupees. I bought and a few minutes later found another copy with another seller, a good copy that I could have got cheaper. 

            I already have a copy of 'The Travels of Marco Polo', an Everyman Library hardcover edition that I had bought in 2025 I think but when I saw another copy with a beautiful dark blue cover with a painting on it I bought it. Not that it was in a heap of Rs.30 books near Bata but because of the cover. 

So this is how bibliophiles like me end up buying multiple copies!

The Sunday Haul (on 02-08-2026)

 The blog enters the second decade. I've completed nineteen years of this blog last Friday.

After a few days of cloudy weather and downpours in the city it was a bright and sunny morning in Hyderabad last Sunday. It was perfect weather for being outdoors. I set out for Abids after breakfast of a nice rava dosa in Snehitha restaurant under the RTC X Roads metro station. First stop was at Chikkadpally where I found all the four titles of the Sunday haul. 

The first title I found was a nice copy of 'Rethinking Democracy' by Rajni Kothari. I had heard Rajni Kothari's name since a long time but haven't read anything by him. So finding this book on democracy in India feels like a lucky find. 

Minutes later I spotted a copy of 'Nationalism without a Nation in India' by G. Aloysius, a new name for me. Described as 'a sociological interpretation of modern Indian history', it sounded too interesting to ignore. I bought it since I want to read it right away. I got these books for a hundred rupees each. 

An online friend had told me about finding the first edition copy of 'Himalayan Blunder: Curtain Raiser to the Sino-Indian War of 1962' by Brigadier J.P. Dalvi, and said it was a wonderful book. She also said it was a hard to find book so I did not expect it to find it soon and also I was rather uninterested in reading such stuff. Imagine my surprise when I saw the same book peeking out from behind another title with a seller in Chikkadpally. It was an almost brand new copy though it was a 1970 edition published by Natraj and also had a foreword by Frank Moraes. 

Right beside it was another interesting title that I picked up to check. It was a hardcover book with 'The Blood Telegram: India's Secret War in East Pakistan' by Gary J. Bass on the cover. I sensed it was a good book since there was a blurb on the front cover by Philip Gourevitch. I got these two books for five hundred rupees. 

The Sunday Haul (on 26-07-2026)

 I had returned home early morning on Sunday after three days of travel and a few hours later set off for Abids to forage for second-hand titles on the pavements.

I bought 'Boulder' by Eva Baltasar tr by Julia Sanches on a hunch though it was on the cover that it was shortlisted for The International Booker Prize in 2023. A slim, short book I got it for just fifty rupees only. 

On a Sunday in May, 2024 I had found a hardcover copy of 'From the Ruins of Empire: The Revolt Against the West and the Remaking of Asia' by Pankaj Mishra that I am yet to read. Last Sunday I saw another copy, a paperback, but with a different and beautiful cover that I was unable to resist buying though I had to pay a hundred rupees for it. Pankaj Mishra has a way with words that few Indian writers like Mukul Kesavan, Chandrahas Chaudhury possess, especially non-fiction. 

The Sunday Haul (on 12-07-2026)

So late into July there is no sign of the monsoon rains everyone is looking forward to. El Nino is showing its effect and as per forecasts it may not rain until the last week of July. Expectedly it was a sunny, bright but uncomfortably warm morning last Sunday in Hyderabad. My moods weren't exactly normal and I felt like not buying anything at Abids and only wanted to look at the titles and return home empty handed. 

All that resolve vanished when I saw a copy of 'Capitalism: A Ghost Story' by Arundhati Roy at a seller at RTC Crossroads just after getting down from the bus. It is a slim book not more than fifty pages about how capitalism works and gave a few examples relating to India. I finished the book over chai in Star of India later. 

I read the name Hesiod in some book about Greek classics and last Sunday after the chai at Star of India I wandered to the seller beneath the tree where I had found a book the previous Sunday. I spotted a copy of 'Theogony and Works and Days' by Hesiod tr by M.L. West that had a beautiful illustration on the cover. This too was a slim book of less than two hundred pages that I got for hundred rupees. 

I don't know how many copies of 'The Great Railway Bazaar' by Paul Theroux I found all these years and how many copies I gave away. I've bought every copy of this title and other titles by Theroux and so when I saw the copy of 'The Great Railway Bazaar' on the pavement that another person had previously had said he wouldn't give it for less than a hundred and fifty rupees. I saw it for the past two weeks and last Sunday the original seller was there and when I asked he said to give fifty rupees! 

The Sunday Haul (on 05-07-2026)

 Early in the morning while reading the Sunday papers in an Irani cafe I thought it would rain during the day as it was cloudy and there was also a light drizzle when I stepped out to go home. But after I got ready and was ready to leave for Abids it was bright and sunny. 

The first find was a copy of 'The Man of Fifty' by Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe with a seller at the RTC Cross Roads just before Chikkadpally. I bought it because it had a foreword by A.S. Byatt and got it for fifty rupees. It is a short book of less than seventy pages that I can read in a couple of hours but when I will find that much time is the question. 

At one of the sellers at Chikkadpally I found a copy of 'All the Way to Heaven' by Stephen Alter, his memoir of a childhood spent in Mussoorie. Though he is an American he spent all his life in India so this seems very interesting. 

The best find of last Sunday was a copy of 'The Best of Raja Rao' Katha Books, that I almost did not buy because I hesitated before checking out the books with this seller under a tree a little beside the Star of India cafe. Somehow I had decided to see as I had time and spotted this wonderful book with a pencil drawing of the author on the attractive cover. This has his essays, short stories, excerpts from his novels and more. It is the right thing to dip into occasionally. This did not come cheap though as I had to pay two hundred rupees for it. 

The last book I found in a heap of fifty rupees books. I saw a copy of 'Ghosts by Daylight: A Memoir of War' and Love by Janine Di Giovanni, a war correspondent's memoir of her marriage, her work reporting on the war in Sarajevo. This seems very interesting as there are very few books by women war correspondents that I have read. This is the first. 

The Sunday Haul (on 28-06-2026)

     The weather forecast for Sunday had said that it would be cloudy all day but it was bright and sunny almost all day, at least while I outdoors in the morning. I set out for Abids with a plan to pick up the two titles I had seen at Abids but did not pick up. But before reaching Abids I stopped at Chikkadpally and found a copy of '21st Century English Novel in India: Emerging Issues and Challenges' Ed: Jagdish Batra. Somehow nowadays I am reading such titles on criticism so I picked it up though I had to pay two hundred rupees for this hardcover title. 

    Though I have a copy at home I couldn't resist buying the almost new copy of 'Raag Darbari' by Shri Shukla that I saw with a seller. I bought so I can give it to someone who wanted to read the English version. Incidentally, I have two different editions of the original in Hindi that I am yet to read. I got this copy for fifty rupees. 

One title that I had seen the previous Sunday was the copy of 'Alpha Beta: How Our Alphabet Changed the Modern World' by John Man that, fortunately, no one had picked up. It is about the alphabet and how it made a difference in the modern world. I bought it because I need it for a project I am working on. I got it for a hundred rupees. 

        Luckily, the second title I had seen and not bought the previous Sunday was still on the table of the seller. I spotted the copy of 'Contemporary Indian Short Stories Series IV' of Sahitya Akademi and picked it up for a hundred rupees. I have the first three series that I had bought over the years long back. There are twenty one stories in various Indian languages translated into English. Some of the stories I've already read in other anthologies. 

The Sunday Haul (on 21 June 2026)

 It had rained on Saturday evening and continued into the night and so Sunday morning was cool and pleasant. For the first time I kept my cap aside at home and started for Abids via Chikkadpally. There was nothing good with the sellers at Chikkadpally so I went ahead to Abids. Since I have a bus pass I travel by the public buses. It feels good to sit at the window and watch how Hyderabad is changing. One thing I've noticed is that a lot of people look at the books in my hand when I start from home. 

At one of the sellers in front of the GPO at Abids I spotted a copy of 'Against Interpretation and Other Essays' by Susan Sontag on a shelf leaning against a railing. The cover was damaged and inside too some of the pages were damaged by moisture but otherwise all the pages were intact. I hesitated for a few seconds before deciding to take it since one doesn't find Susan Sontag titles very often anywhere. I got this collection of more than twenty five essays for a hundred rupees as the seller climbed down from the price he quoted after I showed him the damaged pages inside. 

A few years ago I had found a copy of 'I Dreamed of Africa' by Kuki Gallman that I found to be an interesting account of a White woman settled in Kenya who is also into wildlife conservation. I was sad to read about the death of her son from snake bite, and also of her husband. It is one of my favorite African books so when I saw a copy of African Nights' by Kuki Gallman I bought it right away without a second thought. 

I've read this title a long time back and there's a copy somewhere on my shelves but when I saw a nice copy of 'A Walk in the Woods' by Bill Bryson I decided to buy it. I got it pretty cheap, at just fifty rupees. It's been a long time since I read anything by Bryson and moreover I needed a few laughs in my life as things aren't looking bright on every front. 

The last title in the haul I found in a heap of books selling for hundred rupees. I found a copy of  'Bhima: Lone Warrior' by M.T. Vasudevan Nair with the title and name of the author in striking read against a white background with a drawing of Bhima holding his mace. It is Bhima's version of events in his own voice. I don't know when I will finally read it but I am glad I found this wonderful title by one of my favourite writers. 

    Last Sunday also happened to be Father's Day. My son surprised me with the gift of a brand new copy of 'A Wonderland of Words' by Shashi Tharoor that I had casually mentioned to him. He ordered it online and I got it the same day on Father's Day. There are a hundred and one essays in it on various aspects of the English language. I plan to read one essay a day and finish in a little more than three months if possible. 

The Sunday Haul (on 14th June 2026)

It had rained heavily on Saturday evening so it was cool on Sunday morning though the rain did not continue. As usual I was on my Sunday trip to Abids to check out the second-hand books on the pavements. At the very first stop at a seller in RTC Crossroads just before Chikkadpally I hit a jackpot. In a heap of books being sold for Rs.50 I spotted two wonderful titles that I grabbed the moment I saw them. 

The first title I saw was a nice copy of 'My Name is Lucy Barton' by Elizabeth Strout. Somehow I lag behind in reading the new writers and their prize winning titles. Strout's 'My Name is Lucy Barton' was longlisted for the Man Booker Prize in 2016. I haven't read anything by Strout but plan to read this less than two hundred pages book one of these days as the print with widely spaced lines shows it can be finished in a day. 

Along side it was a hardcover copy a faber & faber title- 'Mothers' by Jaqueline Rose with the jacket. I don't understand how these two titles ended up here. But whatever it was I was pretty pleased I spotted them. This was the best find of Sunday I thought as I headed for Abids. 

At Abids I spotted a copy of 'Contemporary Indian Short Stories' edited by Kaa Naa Subramanyam in a corner with a seller who lets me decide the prices of the books I buy from him. I had read the name of Kaa Naa Subramanyam a long time back. This title had sixteen stories in various Indian languages translated into English including one by one of my favourite writers- Arun Joshi's 'Gherao' that I had read in a different anthology. This bound copy was from 'Anandha Grandhalayam' Ananda Nagar, Hyderabad according to the stamp on it. I paid thirty rupees for this book. 

The Sunday Haul (on 07-06-2026)

It was a bit cloudy but also uncomfortably warm last Sunday in Hyderabad as I set out for my weekly hunt for second-hand books at Chikkadpally and the pavements of Abids. As usual first stop was Chikkadpally where I picked up a title by an author I had read back in the nineties. 

Sometime in the early nineties having no job I was preparing for bank exams as well as for the Civil Services. I had found a beautiful slim volume with a yellow-cream cover on preparing for the civils, I don't remember the title but the author was Parvez Dewan. I haven't forgotten the author because the book on civils was so well written with a bit of humour in it, and often I had wondered what had become of him. He was in the IAS, and since these guys are always in the news, especially those of Kashmir, I tried but couldn't find his name until last Sunday when I saw his name again on the cover of a book. 

So when I spotted the cover of 'A History of Kashmir' by Parvez Dewan I knew I had to buy it. I got this interesting book for a hundred rupees. 

Later at Abids I found another interesting book about Pakistan. This is my fourth or fifth title about things in Pakistan. When I saw the brightly coloured and attractive cover of 'Fighting to the End: the Pakistan Army's Way of War' by C. Christine Fair I took it out and looked at it. It seemed an interesting book but was too lengthy so I hesitated for a while before taking the plunge and buying it for two hundred rupees. I plan to read it along with all the books on Pakistan that I have on my shelves. 

The Sunday Haul (on 31-05-2026)

 Another cloudy Sunday morning in Hyderabad but there was no respite from the heat though. Another week or so and it will become cooler when the rains come. Anyway, my first stop was Chikkadpally where I picked up a different sort of book. I found a copy of 'Indian English Literature' study material of BRAOU that I picked up because I want to read everything about Indian English Literature be it a textbook or anything else. It did not have anything new as it was a textbook so it was confined to the usual writers. 

The next find was at Abids. I picked up a copy of 'How to Make Enemies and Offend People' by G. Sampath, a hardcover title with a bright green cover. I enjoy reading G.Sampath's colum in the The Hindu on alternate Sundays especially those columns that feature Kattabomman.  He is one of the few writers who are genuinely funny like Sidin Vadukut who also has a column in The Hindu on alternate Sundays. Then there's Krishna Shastri Devulapally also but his column is in the Deccan Chronicle on Sundays though not regularly. Anyway this title seems to be a collection of essays on various topics. I got it for a hundred rupees.

Sometime last year I had found a title of Macmillan Modern Indian Novels in Translation series. It was Srikrishna Alanahally's 'Gendethimma' at Abids. Though I am yet to read it I also picked up a copy of a title in the same series. It was another slim volume and the title was 'Night of the Half Moon' by Gurdial Singh translated from the Punjabi by Pushpinder Syal and Rana Nayar. This too I got for a hundred rupees.

After these hauls as usual I sat in Bench cafe with two of my bibliophile friends and had a lengthy conversation of more than an hour about books, writers, movies, and events of the week. This, more than the books I find, has become the most satisfying part of my Sundays.