Book Bytes: ‘Shocking’ book on Putin, Rachel Cusk’s autofiction and more

7 from 1947

In September 1947, as the communal fires spread across Delhi, they consumed the library of one Saliha Abid Husain, but could not extinguish her words. In the middle of the madness she calls hungama, she recorded all she saw much like a journalist much to the consternation of her husband. ‘7 from 1947: first-hand stories’ by Saliha Abid Husain (Women Unlimited ₹450), collects six visceral afsanas, first published in Urdu as Niras Mein Aas (1948) and dedicated to Mahatma Gandhi. A new English translation by former Planning Commission member Syeda S Hameed is now available.

Can liberal democracy be saved?

Daron Acemoglu’s What Happened to Liberal Democracy?

Democracy is in crisis. Elitism, intolerance, and rising autocracy have eroded liberalism’s promise of shared prosperity and equality. But Nobel laureate Daron Acemoglu is not ready to give up. In What Happened to Liberal Democracy? (Hachette India), the MIT economist and co-author of the landmark Why Nations Fail charts the decay, and then offers a roadmap for renewal. “The path charted by technology is not destiny; it is a moral and political choice,” writes Nobel laureate Esther Duflo. As democracies teeter worldwide, Acemoglu’s urgent message arrives just in time.

Is autofiction exploitative

A new buzzword is making its way through the literary corners of the internet. The word, of course, is autofiction. Rachel Cusk’s controversial new novel. Life of M, has pushed a spotlight on this genre, which blends autobiography with fiction. The controversy centres on the character ‘M’ whose life and filmography suspiciously resemble the actor Natalie Portman, and worse, the resemblance is unflattering. To add fuel to the fire, Portman has previously called Cusk one of her favourite writers. The question critics are asking is: should the ambiguity of a literary assassination shield the writer from being held liable. Cusk dismisses the work as fiction, but is it not exploitative to write the life story of another in a fresh package?

Ved Mehta International Prize in creative non-fiction

A new international book award celebrating creative nonfiction has been launched by Ashoka University’s Centre for the Creative and the Critical and Balliol College, Oxford. The Ved Mehta International Prize in Creative Nonfiction, worth £10,000, will be awarded annually to the best book of creative nonfiction published in English anywhere in the world. The first prize will be given in 2026 for books published in 2025. A distinguished jury—Merve Emre, Seamus Perry, and Vijay Seshadri—will select the winner. Translated works are eligible, with an additional £2,000 for translators. No submissions are accepted; the jury will select from published works.