Landmark Bookstore

Located in Forum, Koramangala, this is a bookstore with one of the best collection of books I have come across. Going there is an experience in itself. You get educated on the latest arrivals, various genres and the range of books in each category. The bookstore is extensively categorized and that makes it easy to find books and also browse subjects. The Indian writers section is one of the largest I have come across in any of the other stores. The categories range from Cookery, Commercial Interiors to Cinema and of course an entire aisle on literature and fiction.

As soon as you enter the store, you come across a range of latest arrivals, talked about/reviewed/prize winning books. There are also displays of award winning authors. Recently the flavor was Doris Lessing, with an entire display of all her works. I have listed out the categories here in case you are looking for something in particular: Cookery, Sports, Gardening, Photography, Wildlife, Encyclopedia, VB, Networking, Java, SQL, Art, Craft, Interiors, Fashion, Windows, Cinema, Finance, Trading, Certifications, Communication, net, Commercial Interiors, Health and Fitness, Marketing, Puzzles, English Reference and a lot many more. I came across a section called book CDs, which is basically books along with their movie versions – really liked this concept. They have a separate children’s section with a good collection of favorite authors. You would also find Kannada books here.

My one grouse with this bookstore is that it does not have a place to sit. There are stools at selected locations and you wonder why they are piled high with books. If a free one comes by, you would notice that it has ‘books only’ printed on top. So these stools are hallowed ground unavailable for occupation. So you come across people perched at the foot of a pillar. Though you are spoilt for choice here, you get exhausted standing around after a while. We had to break our sojourn among the aisles for a coffee break.

Landmark also has a collection of CDs, perfume, cutlery, toys and other items on the third floor. The book store is on the 2nd floor but the billing happens only on the 3rd, so you pass through all the goodies on that floor as well and probably end up spending a bit more on things other than books.

We wanted to bring you a few photographs of the place but the first one we took, of the entrance clearly says ‘no photography allowed inside’. So you will have to make do with a snapshot of just the entrance.

Kenneth Anderson’s tales from the Indian Jungle

For those of us in India who’ve grown up on tales of Corbett, Anderson will rekindle similarly fond memories of an India where fangs and claws still ruled supreme. Readers not familiar with Corbett or his ilk of hunter turned conservationists need not worry about finding themselves alienated, for Anderson possesses a rare talent which makes anything woven by him a sheer delight to read. Anderson was a british hunter turned naturalist who made India his home and much like Corbett fell in love with its diverse flora and fauna (more with the latter). Both these hunters had their fair share of ending the budding careers of many a menacing man eaters (Humans used to be a viable prey species not all that long ago you know), but that’s where the resemblance ends. Anderson frequented the pristine rain forests and dry scrub jungles of South India compared to where his predecessor operated and Anderson also got to personally witness the results of an uncontrolled population boom and the havoc it has since wreaked on the India’s ecosystems.

Getting back to less gloomy subjects, Anderson’s anecdotes (for that is the gist of everything written by him) is a first person account of his experiences in the jungles of South India. He regales the readers with delightful tales of various close encounters with some of the most majestic and dangerous creatures of sub continent, with the Tiger being the foremost of these illustrious beasts. The narration is often pacy and nail biting leaving the reader breathless. Anderson also lends a warm and personal touch to the anecdotes, a style which is uniquely his own. The reader is transported back to a period where the nascent young nation was taking its first uncertain steps from a colonial hangover and this setting adds even more to the charm of an already endearing theme. Imagine, no computers, TVs, cellphones, gameboys, discos or urban jungles, replaced instead by virgin rainforests where a tiger roams in all its pomp, dusk as witnessed from the comfortable porch of a jungle bungalow, the call of the wild filling your every waking hour… Sigh I could just go on, but I'll have to settle for reading Anderson. Somebody invent a time machine and hurry up.

Higginbothams

Located in the heart of the city on that prime real estate (M G Road) that attracts the largest transitory & tourist population Higginbothams is one of the oldest book stores in Bangalore. The old Victorian façade very similar to the Deccan Herald office next door evokes memories of the colonial past of the cantonment that Bangalore was for the British troops.

Although the rundown nature of the store is not very inviting, the fact that it’s just off the road and you can see the books from outside draws you in. The ground floor is what I would term a good example of “playing to the gallery”. Books are not really classified here other than being an assortment that would appeal to the masses. From the current Nobel winner Doris Lessing, the latest best seller Kite Runner (Khaled Hossini) to the usual suspects Agatha Christie, Terry Pratchett, Sherlock Holmes and Sidney Sheldon. For the tourist a quick pick of everything ‘Indian’, Books on Yoga, Books on the traditional dance forms (Kathak, Bharatnatyam, Mohini Attam et al) Kamasutra, Travel Guides, thankfully nothing on snake charming though :)

A doorway leads into the deeper recesses of the ground floor which is surprisingly well lit and ventilated. Encyclopaedias, Dictionaries and other reference books abound here. A large collection of Tamil books and the ever popular, among architects, home builders and carpenters alike, Fevicol Furniture Books are two notable finds here.

The first floor with a larger area is well laid out and spacious. Better categorization of books, mostly non fiction, comics and children’s books.

Source: Google Maps

The Bartimaeus Trilogy- Amulet of Samarkand

Jonathan Stroud creates a clever and sometimes light hearted plot which weaves ancient fantasy into a very modern setting. Set in an alternate reality where history’s turned out rather differently thanks largely to the proverbial genie in the bottle, Stroud introduces us to a world where Aladdin wears glasses and travels around in a car. That is of course a very rough analogy, for the story itself is far more intriguing and much more evolved in terms of plot elements and the interplay between them. Humans on the planet are divided and segregated not on the basis of the caste colour, creed or even race, they’re now discriminated against on the basis of their ability to control magical beings. The have nots are as usual ruled by the more privileged and their simmering discontentment is subtly showcased in many of the story’s various byplots.

Britain is ruled by an elite group of wizards (No, Harry Potter is not one of them), who in turn rely upon a hierarchy of magicians whose standing in the larger scheme of things is dependent completely on their ability to control magical beings like Genies, Afrits, Imps and so on and so forth. Any ‘magically talented’ youngster is quickly whisked away by the government to be raised by stentorian foster guardians (selected by the government of course) who train these individuals in the darker arts and more importantly, in the etiquette of living in such a fractured society. Nathaniel aka John Mandrake, our young protagonist is introduced into this convoluted scenario as one such young tyke already showing a flair for making it big. Though the art of summoning powerful magical entities is a closely guarded secret and requires government sanction (kinda like getting a license to drive I suppose), young Nat, in an attempt to impress his foster master, manages to summon a mid level genie to do his bidding. What follows is rather unexpected as the genie, instead of being a servile fawning pawn in Nathaniel’s scheme of things, displays a mind of his own. Bartimaeus as he calls himself has his own plans and as it turns out, being subservient to an adolescent brat is not one of them. What further enlivens the plot is that Bartimaeus has a very sardonic sense of humour and had me rolling silly on my sides at times. The story then takes a darker twist when John seeking to redress a slight by a far more powerful magician steals a rare and valuable artifact (yup I am indeed referring to the Amulet of Samarkand) from his nemesis. As the plot thickens, John unwittingly becomes involved in a deadly political game of deceit and intrigue which will see him fighting to stay alive. In the process John and the Genie become grudging admirers of each other, offering the reader a fascinatingly unique plot to peruse. A must have on your shelf.

Steven Erikson’s Malazan book of the fallen 1- Gardens of the Moon.

The latter half of the last century saw a profusion of authors plying their wares in the fantasy fiction genre. Most of these authors stuck to the time tested good guys Vs bad guys formula with a dash of dragons and a whiff of elves, but rarely did anyone reinvent the wheel. Of course notable exceptions like Robert Jordan and George R R Martin exist and thank goodness for them. Fantasy would cease to be truly magical, regressing instead into a simple soap unworthy even of being clubbed in the same league as the mind numbing stupidity of reality TV. Only once in a while do we really come across what one would term as a work of art. Steven Erikson’s Malazan book of the fallen is most definitely worthy of being crowned with that epithet.

Not only does it break the mold in terms of originality, it also serves to remind us that true fantasy fiction is alive and kicking. From soaring to majestic heights one minute where the key protagonists cover themselves with glory, to plumbing the very depths of the basest human instincts, the Malazan series has it all.

Set in a world quite removed from our own (Like most of its brethren in this genre), the series follows the adventures of a disparate bunch of characters across different corners of this imaginary world. That’s right there are a huge number of key characters in this series which would’ve probably been a point against the book, had it not been for Erikson’s ability to make every one of these characters unique and essential to the plot. Erikson’s other great ability unlike many other fantasy authors, is his knack of creating what initially seems to be unrelated mumbo jumbo only for the various plots to seamlessly mesh together in the sequels. Erikson already scores over the bunch by cleverly bringing all these seemingly unrelated elements together time and again to provide a fascinating interplay between the various characters, but what truly sets him apart from the crowd is the fantasy. The magical world dreamt by him is truly awesome. Mortals ascending to divinity, untold realms of magic governing the physics of this universe, powerful but long extinct sentient Elder races, of eternal feuds and conflicts spanning truly immense magnitudes, all this and more only at your nearest Malazan world. To get down to the business end of things, chronologically, the reader can begin with any of the first three books as a means of getting introduced to the series, but being old fashioned as I am, I chose book one, Gardens of the Moon as the most obvious means of getting acquainted with this epic series.

Gardens of the Moon begins by offering the reader an account of the conquests of the Malazan empire (which provides a uniting plot element for most of the series hence the name) on the continent of Genebackis. After brief flashback introducing us to two of the most enduring characters of the series, the story begins with the tale of an empire in turmoil. After the recent assassination of the formidable founder of the Malazan Empire, Kellanved, his deputy Laseen usurps the throne and proclaims herself the empress of the Malazan world. Plots abound, intertwined in seemingly unimaginable fantasy, the old guard once loyal to the now deposed emperor at the center of this tangled knot. Laseen dispatches the once feared and now almost legendary squad of Bridgeburners (loyal to Kellanved) to support the conquest efforts on the continent of Genebackis where things have not been going too well for the empire. The Empress however is not alone in her unnatural interest in Genebackis and the bridgeburners, for the gods themselves become entangled in the events that transpire therein. As the plot unfolds the company comes across many formidable and interesting characters some of whom will join the bridgeburners in their quest (for what Laseen?) and some of whom will oppose them. The story unravels in a myriad unpredictable hues and each hue is more interesting than the last, Super skilled assassins, dragons (that's right the usual suspects are here as well though not as you would've imagined them, not even close), powerful wizards, beasts unheard of and finally fantasy undreamt of. Dark, provocative and awe inspiring, The Malazan series is truly the stuff of great fantasy fiction. A must read!