The Sunday Haul (on 18-09-2022)

 After the previous Sunday’s disappointment at not having been to the second hand book market at Abids due to continuous rain I was counting the days to the next Sunday, i.e., last Sunday. The weather was clear and sunny when I started for Abids after breakfast, and managed to find some really good titles in the hour and half that I was at Abids.

Since a long time I’ve been looking for books by Krishna Sobti especially her ‘Zindaginama’ that I found with a seller on WA last December. Last Sunday I found a hardcover copy of ‘Listen Girl’ by Krishna Sobti, the English translation of her ‘Ai Ladki’ that I had read about many time in several places. Translated by Shivanath and published by Katha ‘Listen Girl’s is a little over a hundred pages, just right to finish in a single sitting that I plan to read only after I finish reading ‘Zindaginama’ that is somewhere on one of the shelves at home.  

Then with the same seller I found a book that was by title Penguin that I automatically buy. It was a copy of ‘Ennal’s Point’ by Alun Richards, a writer I had never heard of before. However it seemed interesting as it was described as a ‘vivid and moving story about lifeboats and the men who sail in them’ on the back cover.

In the same pile of books I saw another title by an author I had again never heard of. It had an attractive cover and the title was ‘Saturday Night at the Greyhound’ by John Hampson. The reason why I picked it was that on the cover it also said ‘Hogarth Fiction’ published by Hogarth Press. On the back cover was a blurb by Graham Greene- ‘A Book I greatly admire’ which convinced me that it could indeed be a good read. I got these three books for only hundred rupees. 

Just before I decided to have a cup of tea in the local Irani I saw a nice copy of ‘Right of Passage: Travels from Brooklyn  to Bali’ by Rahul Jacob. It was a collection of travel essays by Rahul Jacob, and since I love travel titles I decided to buy it. I had seen the book earlier too but somehow I did not buy it then.

Even though I do not read sci-fi I couldn’t resist picking up the copy of ‘Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?’ by Philip K. Dick that I saw. I messaged a friend who loves sci-fi if he wanted it but he messaged back saying he had a copy of it. So I bought it for eighty rupees.

A Recent Haul

Not only do I buy books at Abids and second hand bookstores in Hyderabad, I also buy them on WhatsApp groups of a couple of second hand booksellers based in different cities in the country. Last week I had claimed two wonderful travel titles that I wanted to post here since I couldn’t go to Abids on Sunday because it was raining quite heavily all day in Hyderabad.

The first title I had claimed was a nice hardcover copy of ‘The Penguin book of Indian Journeys’ edited by Dom Moraes who has also written the introduction. It is a collection of travel essays by many travel writers such as Jan Morris, Bruce Chatwin, Salman Rushdie, VS Naipaul, Mark Tully, Charlie Pye Smith, James Cameron and many others on various places and journeys within India. Some of these essays I have read elsewhere.

The other title was a nice copy, hardcover again, of ‘Out of God’s Oven’ by Dom Moraes and Sarayu Srivatsa that is described as ‘a revelatory blend of memoir, travelogue and reportage’ of the travels of the authors in India during a time when momentous events took place that shook the country’s conscience and took it in a dangerous direction, perhaps never to be the same again. Somehow I want to read this book right away without losing much time.

The Sunday Haul (on 04-09-2022)

I really do not understand how I missed knowing about this book that was published in 2010, more than a decade ago. I try to learn about books on book and the ‘The Possessed’ by Elif Batuman is one such title. On the cover it says ‘Adventures with Russian books and the people who read them’ which should have alerted me. I guess I haven’t seen this title at Abids or anywhere. But even if I have found it a decade after it was published I don’t mind. On Sunday I saw this book in a pile of Rs 100 books and I was glad I took my time to check out each and every book that looked interesting.

About a few months ago I had read about Stefan Zweig somewhere online and the name stuck in my mind. So last Sunday when I saw a copy of ‘Beware of Pity’ by Stefan Zweig I bought it though I have never read anything by Zweig till then. One reason why I bought it was the attractive cover and the other than it was a Penguin title that I always trust. I got this book for sixty rupees.

The Sunday Haul (on 28-08-2022)

It turned out to be a sunny and bright Sunday morning as I left for Abids to look for books. My heart is full of eager anticipation as I head out to Abids. Every Sunday I manage to find good titles and last Sunday too I found four good ones.

The first title I found was a Penguin title. I spotted a nice copy of ‘Rocking the Babies’ by Linda Raymond and checked to see what it was about. It was an unusual story about two different women who end up caring for infants in a neonatal ICU and bond with each other after some initial mistrust. I wanted to read it right away because it was an unusual story. I got it for eighty rupees.

The next two finds were with the same seller and these were titles I already have. I picked up the two nice copies of ‘The Heart of the Matter’ by Graham Greene and ‘The Quiet American’ by Graham Greene for just thirty rupees each. The seller also had a copy of Greene’s ‘Travels with My Aunt’ which also I have but did not buy. Maybe next Sunday I might pick it up if I see it.

I have developed a thing for books especially memoirs by editors and publishers and have managed to collect a small pile of such books. So last Sunday when I saw a hardcover copy of ‘My Mistake’ by Daniel Menaker I really was not keen on picking it up and seeing what it was. However curiosity got the better of me and when I read on the back cover that Daniel Menaker had been an editor with The New Yorker I bought it without a second thought though I have never heard of Daniel Menaker. It was a lucky find and I am pleased with myself for having bothered to check out the back page or I would have missed this wonderful memoir.

The Sunday Haul (on 21-08-2022)

 Unlike the previous Sunday it was bright and sunny last Sunday when I set out for Abids a bit earlier than usual. I had to go somewhere on work so I planned to do the Abids routine and leave early. The previous Sunday it had rained almost all day and therefore I could not go to Abids but managed to get a book at Chikkadpally. I found a copy of Alice McDermott’s ‘Charming Billy’ for just fifty rupees.

So last Sunday I ended up finding two good titles. The first one I found was a nice copy of ‘They Came Like Swallows’ by William Maxwell that I already have. This is my third copy I think. I bought it because I was getting it cheap and besides William Maxwell is a writer I would like others to know about.

The second title was a copy of ‘To a Dubious Salvation’ by Etienne Leroux, a Penguin Modern Classics title. It has a stunningly stark cover that got my attentions right away. Inside I saw that it was a trilogy – Seven Days at the Silbersteins, One for the Devil, The Third Eye- translated from the Afrikaans into English. I got this for two hundred rupees.

The Sunday Haul (on 07-08-2022)

 It looks like the heavy rains aren’t going to leave Telangana any time now. Last Sunday it was cloudy with the sort of dark clouds portending heavy rains covering the sky in Hyderabad. However, it did not rain while I was out browsing the books at Abids. I hadn’t seen anything interesting and had also not found the titles I had seen the previous Sunday. It was then that I spotted a book at the bottom of a pile with the title ‘Haydn and the Valve Trumpet’ by Craig Raine. It seemed like a fiction title and I almost did not take it out until I saw Picador was the publisher. I took it out of the pile and saw ‘Literary Essays’ on the cover. I did not have to think twice before deciding to buy it though part of the title was torn off.

I have not heard of Craig Raine so far so I was pretty intrigued when I read that he is a literary critic. I was pleased I found this title because it has sixty seven essays on various writers, poets, and books. I got the book for just eighty rupees. After finding this title I did not bother to look at anything else, and besides it began to drizzle so I hurried home with my single haul.

The Sunday Haul (on 31-07-2022)

The Blog Completes 15 years.

Last Sunday it was again a bit cloudy foreboding rain sometime during the day. However it did not rain while I was in Abids on Sunday morning. I had left behind some titles that I told myself I would pick up this Sunday. Unfortunately I couldn’t find the copy of Vita Sackville West’s ‘St Joan of Arc’ and also ‘Goodbye to All That’ by Robert Graves that I had seen the previous Sunday. I was disappointed but didn’t give up hope because I know they would surface again later. However with the same seller I found a nice title by a writer whose name I remember well. I found a copy of ‘The Sympathizer’ by Viet Thanh Nguyen. While looking at the book I tried to recollect the title that became a bestseller sometime back but was not successful. But after I saw the praise for this title I picked it up though I had to pay two hundred rupees.

The previous Sunday I had seen a bunch of Orient Longman’s ‘Literature in Translation’ titles from which I had picked up only one and left behind the rest. I regretted not buying them all and so last Sunday I started for home eagerly hoping to find the titles I had not bought. Luckily no one had even looked at them. I looked at all of them carefully and chose five titles that I wanted. I got them all for three hundred rupees. 

The first title in the pile was a book by Mannu Bhandari. Only recently I had read about Mannu Bhandari somewhere so when I saw the copy of ‘The Great Feast’ by Mannu Bhandari I picked up. It was a Hindi novel originally titled ‘Mahabhoj” that was translated from Hindi by Ruth Vanita.

The second title was a copy of ‘Shock Therapy’ by Subodh Ghose. This is a collection of eighteen short stories written by Subodh Ghose in  Bengali that were translated into English by various people.  

The third title was a slim book with ‘The Long Long Days’ by P.M. Nityanandan on a colourful cover. It is a novel in Malayalam and translated into English by the author himself. Nityanandan seemed to be an interesting person. He is a Mechanical Engineer, started a company with others that manufactured gears and was also Chairman of Gears Committee of the BIS. He also wrote, was a keen flautist, also composed and performed in many concerts. Plus he was a Francophile, had lived in France and was on the board of the Alliance Francaise in Madras. I wish I could learn more about this multifaceted writer. 

The fourth title in the pile was a beautiful copy ‘The Touch-me-not Girl’ by Rajlukshmee Debee, a translation of a Bengali novel into English by the author herself. 

The fifth title was another collection of short stories title ‘Anaro & Other Stories’ by Manjul Bhagat.  Again these Hindi stories have been translated into English by the author. It has seven stories- Anaro, The Sunshine Cone, The Release, Kahari, The Secret Laughter, Bebeji, and Bano.  I have never heard of these titles or the writers but I am glad I got them all together at one place. 

The Sunday Haul (24/07/2022)

The weather in Hyderabad, or rather, Telangana has changed a lot. There have been spells of rains almost every day, some very heavy, causing a lot of damage. One has learnt to check the weather forecast first thing in the day. Last Sunday however, it did not rain though it was cloudy, at least in the morning when I started out for Abids. After about an hour and half going around the lanes and by-lanes I ended up with three good titles. 

The first book I saw was a nice copy of ‘A Bit of Singing and Dancing’ by Susan Hill which is a collection of eleven short stories- Halloran’s Child; Mr Proudham and Mr Sleight; In the Conservatory; How Soon Can I Leave; The Custodian; A Bit of Singing and Dancing; The Peacock; Missy; The Badness Within Him; Red and Green Beads; and Ossie. I got it for a hundred rupees but I wasn’t happy because I left behind a copy of Vita Sackville West’s ‘St Joan of Arc’ and also ‘Goodbye to All That’ by Robert Graves. However, next Sunday I plan to buy them if they are still available. 

I can never tire of reading about Africa, and have so many books on or about Africa on my shelves that I feel like visiting at least one African country in my lifetime. Last Sunday with a seller who sells almost new books I saw a nice copy of ‘Continental Shift: An Investigative Journey into Africa’s 21^st Century’ by Kevin Bloom & Richard Poplak that I immediately bought for two hundred rupees. ‘Continental Shift’ is an account by two S.African journalists of the sixteen African countries they travelled to. This appears a very good and informative book and I can’t wait to read it.  

Later on the way home, at Chikkadpally, I saw a small pile of translated books in the Literature in Translation series by Orient Longman.  At the bottom of the pile was a copy of ‘Sand and Other Stories’ by Ashokamitran  (Translated by N.Kalyan Raman and Gomathi Narayanan) that I got for eighty rupees. It has a foreword by Malayalam author, Paul Zacharia, and has three novellas- Sand (Manal translated by N.Kalyan Raman), Malati translated by N.Kalyan Raman, Those Two (Iruvar translated by Gomathi Narayanan). I was thrilled to find another title by Ashokamitran to add to my collection of his titles. But I was also a bit disappointed that I had not bought the rest of the titles in the pile that I hope to pick up next Sunday. 

The Sunday Haul (on 17-07-2022)

 Since missing going to Abids the previous Sunday because of rain and also a bit of ill-health I was eager to make it to Abids last Sunday. When Sunday finally dawned there was the sky all clouded over and bit of a drizzle. It looked like it would rain all day but an hour later it became clear and I was relieved to discover that I would be going to Abids after all.

The Abids trip began on a good note. There were a lot of good titles with a seller including a copy of a George Orwell title, one by Edith Wharton that I somehow did not buy. I patiently went through each and every title piled up in three stacks but in the end there was only one that seemed interesting. It was an old copy of ‘The Skeleton’ by Amrita Pritam, a slim book not more than seventy pages. I got this title for fifty rupees.

The next find was in another pile of a different seller. All the books were for hundred rupees each and after some sifting through the books I found a nice copy of ‘The Kite and the String’ by Alice Mattison that turned out to be a book on writing. It was a hardcover book and books on writing are something I do not leave behind so I bought it.

I finished reading ‘The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie’ by Muriel Spark a couple of weeks ago. She is one of writer I like very much for her story telling. Last Sunday I spotted a copy of ‘The Go-Away Bird and Other Stories’ by Muriel Spark. There are eleven stories in this collection- The Black Madonna; The Pawnbroker’s Wife; The Twins; Miss Pinkerton’s Apocalypse; ‘A Sad Tale’s Best Winter’; The Go-Away Bird; Daisy Overend; You Should Have Seen the Mess; Come Along, Marjorie; The Seraph and The Zambesi; and The Portobello Road.

A couple of months ago I had bought a copy of ‘Their Eyes Were Watching God’ by Zora Neale Hurston that I am yet to read. Last Sunday at Abids I spotted a copy of ‘Spunk’ by Zora Neale Hurston that I took. There are nine stories in this collection- Spunk; Isis; Muttsey; Sweat; The Gilded Six-Bits; Cock Robin Beale Street; Book of Harlem; and Story in Harlem Slang. I got this book also for fifty rupees only.  

The online Haul

 Last Sunday it rained all day from morning till night. In fact it had been raining since Saturday evening. Also, Bakrid was on Sunday and since all the sellers at Abids celebrate Bakrid I felt there would be no point in going to Abids and so stayed put at home. I was also recovering from a bad cold so I thought it would do me some good if I rested instead of going out. I was a bit disappointed that I couldn’t go to Abids since I had planned to pick up a few titles that I had seen the previous Sunday but hadn’t bought. But it wasn’t a totally book less weekend. On Saturday I received a couple of books I had claimed in a sale conducted by a bookseller in Mumbai on his WhatsApp group.

A long time back when I really had no idea about what I liked to read, and which title was good and worth reading, I came across a title by Jonathan Raban. I liked the book very much and some years afterwards I found a couple of titles by Raban, (Arabia, Hunting Mister Heartbreak, Old Glory) one of which was ‘For Love and Money’ which was a sort of a memoir that I enjoyed reading very much. In a sale I had claimed a copy of ‘Passage to Juneau: A Sea and Its Meanings’ by Jonathan Raban that I received in the mail last Saturday. It is about his in the Inside Passage, a journey from Puget Sound to Alaska on a boat. It is a hardcover title and looks almost new.

I came into Anita Brookner’s books only recently, and have enjoyed reading all her books that I’ve read so far. I am desperate to find ‘Hotel du Lac’ that I haven’t been able to get anywhere and I really hope I find it soon enough. I had also claimed a copy of ‘Family and Friends’ by Anita Brookner in the sale on WA which was also delivered last Saturday.

I’ve written it here several times that I love anything on Africa, a continent I am fascinated by. I have managed to find many titles on Africa written by Africans themselves and also by non-Africans. A couple of months ago I had seen the Instagram page of a Goa based bookseller where he had pictures of covers of a few books on sale. The first was a copy of ‘Small Wars, Small Mercies: Journeys in Africa’s Disputed Nations’ by Jeremy Harding that I could hardly wait to lay my hands on after claiming it. It is a Penguin title and is a journalist’s account of his journeys in some African nations.

Another title that I managed to claim and also get was a copy of ‘Blood River: A Journey to Africa’s Broken Heart’ by Tim Butcher. A couple of months ago I had found a different title by Tim Butcher- ‘Chasing the Devil’ which I had read and liked very much. Tim Butcher is a journalist with Daily Telegraph and had been its Africa Bureau Chief. I am very glad I got this book that no one had claimed on the sale.

With these two titles I have a long list of books on Africa that I have to begin reading soon.