HT Picks; New Reads

On the reading list this week is a book on understanding how money works in an unstable world, an anthology of stories that keep you on edge, and a volume that traces the routes in India through which people, money and ideas travelled

How macroeconomic forces affect you

This week’s pick of interesting reads includes a book on understanding money in an unstable world, a collection of unsettling stories, and a volume that traces the old Indian routes through which people and wealth travelled. (Amit Sharma)

248pp, ₹499; Westland (Understanding how money works and what we can do with it)

How does a war across the globe affect the interest rate you’re getting on your fixed deposits?

What does it mean to save, invest and borrow money in a world where macroeconomic forces control everything?

We live in world that is so interconnected that it is impossible for us to think of our money in isolation. Global forces are constantly changing how much we earn and what value our money has, and what we can do with it.

To be able to navigate this, we must first have an understanding of how things work. That is exactly what this book sets out to do.

Through engaging examples and activities, you will learn about credit, investment instruments, the worth of real estate and much more.

This is a must-read for every global citizen.*

Blurring the mundane and macabre

355pp, ₹450; Westland (An anthology of stories that keep you on edge)

A desperate businessman orchestrates a perfect family picnic, veiling his plan for murder-suicide to escape ruin. A boy paralysed by aquaphobia confronts swimming lessons in a pool where a drowned child’s spirit hungers for company. A husband battered by endless marital wars plans his wife’s demise. A man, starved of passion after months without intimacy, tests forbidden desires with a seductive masseuse. An executioner revels in his hanging record – until the world denies him glory.

In this riveting anthology, the ordinary fractures into crime, supernatural dread, tangled love and lust, deception, and raw slice-of-life truths, blurring the mundane and macabre to grip your soul.

A must-read for anyone who likes stories that keep you on the edge!*

Over roads, rivers and seas

445pp, ₹999; Penguin (Tracing the routes through which people, money and ideas travelled)

We think we know India’s history. The names of kings. The rise and fall of dynasties. But what if this is only the surface of the story?

Have you ever wondered why places like Khajuraho and Ajanta were built far from today’s big cities? Why Chittor was attacked again and again? Where did the enormous wealth of temples like Somnath and Tirupati come from? Are we missing something?

The Wealth Networks looks at Indian history in a different way. It follows the movement of wealth across roads, rivers and seas, tracing the routes through which people, money and ideas travelled. Moving between cities, ports and pilgrimage towns, these routes formed patterns that continue to shape India today. This is not a conventional history. It offers a different way of seeing. Once you notice the patterns, the past and the present begin to look different.*

*All copy from book flap.