A primer for those still in a daze after the last wave of Potter-mania swept the globe. Silent and determined, a new breed of young hero has been finding its feet in our world. He is young, confused and has never known much of a regular life. He is also dyslexic and something of a juvenile delinquent in the eyes of the law. He gets thrown out of school after school for indiscipline.

He is also a demigod, a half-blood (born of a human mother and an Olympian god) whose very smell draws monsters. His father is one of the most powerful gods in the Greek pantheon. He spends his year struggling with the ‘normal’ ways in schools meant for normal children. He spends his summers training at a camp for half-bloods like him.

He is not without enemies either, because he was never meant to be born — a god of his father’s stature isn’t supposed to marry mortals.

Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters is the second book chronicling the young demigod’s chaotic life. In a dream, Percy sees his best friend Grover in the clutches of something evil. Then, on the last day of Percy’s school year, things change quickly when a group of class bullies turn out to be murderous monsters and almost kill him during a friendly game of dodgeball.

Percy is forced to escape to Camp Half-Blood with his friends Annabeth (another half-blood) and Tyson (a mythical cyclops, though Percy doesn’t know it yet). Upon his arrival he finds the camp under attack by monsters. The camp’s magical security field (powered by Thalia’s tree, erected by Zeus to keep his dying daughter’s essence alive) is failing. Thalia’s tree has been poisoned.

Percy must choose between saving the camp and saving his buddy Grover, who he has now reason to believe, is in serious peril.

Luckily, it turns out the answer to both quests is in one place: an island on the Sea of Monsters where Grover is being held captive and where also lies the fabled golden fleece that can cure Thalia’s tree and save the camp.

Percy and his friends set out on one of the most perilous quests ever to save the world. On their way they must fight the forces of the dark Titan Lord Kronos who wants the destruction of the Olympian gods and dominion over the world.

Author Rick Riordan has gotten better with the second Percy Jackson book. Living ancient Greek myth in a very contemporary America is a thrill like no other. Sea of Monsters is good fun for adventure-seekers of all ages. A reading of the first book (Percy Jackson and the Olympians) however will add to one’s enjoyment of the story. Highly recommended!

Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters, Puffin, 265 pages

For details also visit the official site: percyjackson.co.uk

– Vijayendra Mohanty

Born in Kenya and raised in Tanzania, M G Vassanji’s work has been rather well-received in India. There was The Book of Secrets (1994), which won the inaugural Giller Prize, Amriika (1999) and The In-Between World of Vikram Lall, which won the Giller Prize in 2003 and was published here a year later.

He’s back, and with more stories described, by the publisher, as “a portrait of an increasingly modern condition, of lives caught in our swiftly changing, often contradictory world.”

The title comes from a story about Diamond, who meets his college friend Rusty after years. Haunted by the memory of his wife’s betrayal, Diamond finds himself trapped in Rusty’s world -' a shrine to Elvis. It is a strange kind of prison, until Diamond find helped from an unexpected source.

In the tale ‘The Expected One’, a young African-born Indian visits his ancestral village in drought-stricken Gujarat in search of a wife, and comes across an unexpected destiny instead. In ‘Is It Still October’, an insulted man lays bare an horrifying plan of revenge on the night of Halloween.

Good stuff, this.

– Elvis, Raja, stories, M G Vassanji, Penguin India, Rs 250.

From Chennai to Canada, author Srividya Natarajan has made sure her life is full of change. She teaches English, is interested in India's caste politics, has illustrated children's books, co-directed a documentary called Silambakoodam (2002), on the hereditary dance teachers of south India, and co-authored a book called Taking Charge of Our Bodies (Penguin India, 2004). She has also taught and performed classical dance for over 22 years in India and abroad.

With a history like this, it comes as no surprise that this lady has a few tales to tell. You can find them all in No Onions, Nor Garlic.

Amandeep, Murugesh, Rufus and Sundar are boys who talk dirty because it makes them feel like men. Like their worst nightmare come true, they are cast as fairies in a college professor's remake of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The farce that follows gradually takes over their lives. There are other interesting characters thrown in for good measure, along with dollops of humour at every turn.

This is what the publishers have to say: “Tailing the characters around this plot is an unseen but all-seeing spectator. You may never guess who that is, but will laugh all the way to the answer.”

– No Onions, Nor Garlic, Srividya Natarajan, Penguin India, Rs 295.

The only reason I did not put Lucy Edge’s book Yoga School Drop-out down was because I was asked to review it. It starts out as a fluffy chick-lit book, trying to make us laugh a la Bridget Jones’ Diary (by Helen Fielding). But Jones keeps us in splits throughout because mostly she is laughing at herself. Edge fails to keep us humored since right after the first few chapters her comic repertoire dries up, sounding labored: She begins (or tries) to laugh at others '- not always such a good idea, since she starts sounding crabby and mean rather than funny.

She gets into some heavy-duty cribbing about all yoga schools, then loses her script again whenever she decides to lecture us on yoga concepts, gurus, Sanskrit terms, the different schools or whatever else that she may have otherwise put down and away as foot notes.

It seems she just cannot make her mind if her book is to be a travelogue, a yoga shoppers’ guide, a yoga directory, comic caper, spiritual adventure, or   lengthy crib session with some enlightenment thrown in as an after-thought.  In the last few pages, five to be exact, enlightenment finally dawns on this girl. But the book would have made an interesting read if what got chucked and crammed in these few five pages — her insight — shimmered through the rest of her experiences in the yoga mind space of India.

That would have given her book a multi-dimensional appeal. That may even have given her attempt at humor another leverage, even an edge that may have kept us doubled up. The way it reads now I can’t imagine who would enjoy wading through her experiences except other cribbers with bigger blinkers, blind to the underlying message at some of the yoga schools and the search of these ’self-obsessed’ yoga freaks that the lady has so blithely trashed.
 
And I don’t know about her complacent title either -' she sets out shopping for yoga, so when did she turn into a student? And, if she can crib endlessly, why can’t I?

It seems the only Indians the lady has met during her five months are those who speak pidgin English. An Indian, for instance, who cannot find the right word for headstand and says he does ‘upside downing’ regularly. And the Indian couple outside the Maharishi cave saying things like “Much heat happening. I cannot be standing it.”

C’mon Edge, don’t you know we Indians have been slaves for so long that we speak the lingo better than that? Were you too busy trying to snare a white dude (whom you could not find back home, as you confess) that you did not have time to explore the real India?

Of course dear, there are rats in the ashrams and roaches too. And every bed at such places is hard as concrete. Of course, the politicking at such places is more vicious and venomous than what our experienced politicians can stew up. Of course, some of these yoga schools are pretenders, and are commercial establishments that are masquerading as spiritual havens. But most yoga trekkers already know all that.

Still, some of us do keep returning to these places for something else '- that something that struck you in the last five pages of your book. So, if you rewrote the book, say after a few years after those five pages of wisdom sunk into you, and you re-track your steps through these spots radiating this wisdom, I bet your book would be paisa vasool (which, in English, would mean worth the money spent on it).

Edge has got it right with the pure spiritual throb at the Sivananda Vedanta Yoga Center (off Trivandrum) at Kerala, and the Ramana Maharishi ashram at Arunachal (Tamil Nadu). Yes, she got it right about the capacity of the same simple Indians to ‘celebrate the ordinary’. And yes, right too, about the Indian male strutting, be it at an ashram reception or as tourist car drivers. And yes, her book could be a perfect, even useful, guide for yoga shoppers, the sort who wish to find out all about roaches, unshapely Indian yoga teachers, hard beds, commercial rackets, politics and rest of the mood at such yoga schools.
Though as such guides go, I would highly recommend Anne Cushman’s From here to Nirvana – a more practical, hands-on, and honest directory and guide which does not find the need to drape itself over a pretentious novel.

– Yoga School Drop-out, Lucy Edge, Ebury Press, 341 pages.
– Review by Shameem Akthar, yoga instructor and columnist.

Two international releases from Random House India, both as radically different in style as can possibly be.

First, Alex Berenson’s The Faithful Spy. This page-turner is about CIA agent John Wells, supposedly the first Western intelligence officer to penetrate the upper levels of al-Qaeda. After proving his loyalty to the terrorist outfit on a number of occasions, Wells has been given a mission in America by Osama bin Laden's chief deputy. He comes back to his country to realize that life as a spy has led to many internal conflicts. Even the CIA isn't so sure about him anymore. When two bombs go off in Los Angeles, killing 300, the action hits high gear.

The author is a New York Times correspondent who, interestingly, actually covered the occupation of Iraq. He also loves his spy thrillers, considering the ingredients are all well in place. Lots of suspense, a great many believable scenes and that much-needed twist is what you'll get, in addition to some graphical descriptions that could make your stomach turn.

A much, much better read than anything Dan Brown has ever given us.

The other release ' Angel, debut novel by Katie Price a.k.a. Jordan. She is a regular on gossip columns in the UK, a glamorous model and mother of two who can boast her own documentary series and two (!) best-selling autobiographies. Which probably means she has always had a lot to talk about.

The pseudonym is a bit of a mystery, but the writing is just what you would expect from a model. Very little.

In terms of a plot, this one tracks 17-year old Angel along her path from dowdy girl to glam doll. There is much about glamour, a whole lot of romance and, of course, sex. Jordan knows a bit about makeovers, and her book has one too, courtesy Angel's best friend Gemma. There's a boy she's always liked who has never noticed her, breast enlargement surgery that changes her life, and a really bad boyfriend before a final rescue. Yawn.

Still, if you're stuck on along journey and want nothing that could jog those brain cells, this is as good a choice as any.

The English actor Peter Ustinov once described comedy as “simply a funny way of being serious.” It’s true. And it's extremely hard to do. So, in 2005, when the Web site Sulekha.com decided to invite humorous pieces from writers for a contest called India Smiles, they weren't sure about attracting many entries.

Turns out they did. 5000 of them.

Readers of the site short-listed 60, and a panel of judges narrowed it down to the best three. The winners got some prize money and, along with the others, have just been published in a book called, well, India Smiles.

And it really is all of India smiling. There's Manjul Bajaj (The Adult Mind), a freelance writer from Gurgaon; Madhulika Liddle (A Suitor for Saraswati), an Instructional Designer from New Delhi; Diptakirti Chaudhuri (24 Frames Per Second), an MBA holder from Mumbai; John P Matthew (Flirting in Short Messages), who works at a BPO outfit in Mumbai; Vinod Ganesh (Jingle Most of the Way), a software engineer from Chennai; Sunanda Mehta (Knot So Soon, My Dear), a journalist from Pune; Bijaya Ghosh (The Un-Blossomed Bud) who teaches pharmacy in Bangalore ' truly, a nationwide effort.

The stories themselves range from rants about desperate parents to problems faced by potential sons-in-law, to tales of young mothers, technology and, of course, tradition. A good way to start your day, really.

For weekends comes a far more interesting release from Penguin — Selected Short Stories by Mulk Raj Anand.

Anand (1905-2004) often complained to friends that his short stories were not given enough attention. Which is a valid complaint, considering his longer works of fiction ' Untouchable, Coolie, The Village, Across The Black Waters — were so memorable that they initiated a great deal more critical debate.

This volume brings together some of his most outstanding stories, each a portrait of sections of society he was most concerned about. The craft is obvious, as is the feeling of reaching out towards the underprivileged that occurs in so much of his more popular work.

An excellent introduction by Saros Cowasjee ' Professor Emeritus of the University of Regina in Canada ' helps place Mulk Raj Anand firmly among other Indian literary giants. And the stories speak for themselves.

– India Smiles (Winning entries from the Sulekha.com Humour Contest), Penguin Enterprise, Rs 195.
– Mulk Raj Anand, Selected Short Stories, Penguin India, Rs 250.

Justice Vinubhai H Bhairavia, former judge, High Court of Bombay, has just published Journey to Freedom: Still Miles, Miles to Go (Jain Book Agency, Rs 400). It comes with praise from Justice V R Krishna Iyer and renowned jurist Ram Jethmalani.

“I have known the author as a struggling lawyer,” writes Jethmalani, “then a fairly successful one, a government pleader, an agitator for social justice, a Judge with pronounced activism on the Bench and a perennial commitment to the cause of the downtrodden.”

It reads like an autobiography, but is interesting more for the comments it makes on India’s Dalits. The author was born in a poor Dalit family and rose, against all odds, to the position he occupies today. With his own story as a backdrop, the book traces the development of Dalits in Independent India. “Casteism in the Hindu community is the root-cause of the caste-based backwardness of 82 per cent of the population of our country,” reads the Preface.

Despite schedules castes and tribes comprising 22 per cent of India's population, the surprise is the astonishingly low percentage of Dalits who manage to play any significant role in the judicial system. A number of chapters discuss casteism in detail, with the author pointing out that there are no short cuts to Dalit liberation. These are interesting insights, coming as they are in the aftermath of nationwide protests against reservations.

Justice Bhairavia could have paid more attention to language (the Contents page has one chapter titled 'A stunning massage' instead of 'message'), but there are important issues being raised here if one can look beyond the grammar.

For another perspective on India's backward classes, you might want to pick up Arun Shourie’s Falling Over Backwards: An essay against Reservations and against Judicial populism (Rupa & Co. Rs 495). Its release may be a well-calculated move, as the Minister documents what he describes as attempts by state legislatures and Parliament to bend the law for their own benefit. He also says the courts have been virtually ineffective in tackling arbitrary government functioning.

Clearly, this chapter on caste is far from over.

Tony Hawks gives us A Piano in the Pyrenees, a travelogue that also talks of finding love in the mountains. You plunge in expecting descriptions of stunning views and a great deal of romance.

And it’s all there, coupled with smaller stories — about the author’s dream of mastering the piano, adjusting to a foreign culture, building a swimming pool, and meeting an old friend called Ron.

This is a funny book, with the kind of dry English humour that makes women at bars everywhere giggle girlishly and play with their glasses.

Not bad for a lazy afternoon.

And then, there's Last Seen in Lhasa: The Story of an Extraordinary Friendship in Modern Tibet, courtesy Claire Scobie. It carries with it praise from a big name — Monica Ali, who describes Scobie’s surprising journey and friendship with a Tibetan nun as "an intimate and moving account of a way of life that is fast disappearing.”

It can’t hurt that Scobie is an award-winning journalist — she was awarded the Catherine Pakenham as Best Journalist of the Year in 1997 — considering the backdrop against which the book is set. Scobie leaves London for the Himalayas in search of a rare flower. She comes — as one of few Westerners ever — to the high peaks of Pemako, where the myth of Shangri-La was born.

We are treated to seven journeys in Tibet, journeys that involve monks, mobile phones, the Dalai Lama and even Lhasa's sex industry. A perfect choice if what you want is something between insight and escapade.

Chetan Bhagat has, apparently, done a lot more than convince a large number of people to pick up his books Five Point Someone and One Night @ a Call Centre. The man appears to have inspired a younger version of himself to write.

The new writer in question is Tushar Raheja, a fourth-year student at IIT Delhi. His first novel is titled Anything For You, Ma’am. “We’re all pawns in the hands of fate,” reads the back cover. “And when things go wrong; they will, at any rate; All we can do is, wait for Mr. Fate to become our mate.”

For those a little confused, Mr. Fate is a character in the novel.

As for the plot, this is a love story, we’re told, involving Tejas Narula, a third year B.Tech student at IIT, Delhi and Shreya, a BBA student in Chennai. Tejas wants to skip the compulsory Industrial Tour and travel across the country to meet his sweetheart. Raheja promises to give readers an insight into the seriousness of his love by reiterating the fact that Tejas can do anything for his lady. He also promises twists and turns, suspense, and humour.

Raheja, studying for a B. Tech. in Industrial and Production Engineering, is just 21, although that’s no excuse for his poor grasp of English grammar. Will he be the next Chetan Bhagat? We’ll have to wait a while for that answer.

In the meanwhile, stop by his Web site for more.

– Tushar Raheja, Anything For You Ma’am: An IITian’s Love Story, Srishti Publishers, Rs. 100.

Jonathan Clarke & Mr Norrell, Bloomsbury

I’m usually wary of first-time novelists. Having trudged through a considerable amount of puerile fiction (I’m cursed with the inability to leave a novel midway) and wishing several years of my life back, I’d rather wait till someone else tests the waters first.

Still, I hopped on the Susanna Clarke bandwagon awfully late, despite gushing recommendations from Sandman word-sorcerer Neil Gaiman himself, largely because the beautiful black tome was too big to even consider a flippant read. Now, available in condensed deep-red paperback, it’s conveniently smaller but a 1006-page book always remains a project.

Ms Clarke, however, makes it an immensely pleasurable task. Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell is an astounding debut, proving to be more realistic magic than magic realism. Crafting her own magical mythology, with exhaustive footnotes to a fabricated bibliography, the author succeeds in immersing you in this fantastic magical world.

It is a tale of two magicians, England at war and on the cusp of a revolution in the early 19th century, and of a destiny foretold. It’s gripping, clever, reverential, and constantly enjoyable — you never want the book to end. One of the finest fantasy novels over the last few decades (Sorry Mr Pratchett, she really is better) and definitely a remarkable literary debut.

Do not be deterred by the thickness of the volume; Read this book. You’ll wish it hadn’t ended. All you Harry Potter fans, move on from occasionally funny (albeit soap-operatic) to brilliant. This might just be your best read this year. I know it’s a contender for mine.

– Raja Sen

First, the bad news: Barbara Epstein, dynamic founding joint editor of the New York Review of Books has died, aged 76.

Then, the intriguing news: Jerry Rao, former head of Citibank in India, is reported to have taken over the Indian Review of Books, a monthly magazine earlier published by East-West Publishers, and plans to revive the same.