KOHINOOR BY WILLIAM DALRYMPLE & ANITA ANAND — Kohinoor is a tale of greed, conquest, murder, torture, colonialism, and appropriation. Revealing previously unknown moments in the diamond’s history, the story sweeps from the century the Koh-i-Noor spent embedded in the Mughals’ fabulous Peacock Throne to the years it languished unrecognised on a mullah’s desk, used as a paperweight, through to the torture chamber in an attempt to extract the truth about the gem’s hiding place. It is now locked in the Tower of London, where it continues to arouse passions as India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and the Taliban all demand its return. HYBRID TAPESTRIES BY MUNEEZA SHAMSIE — Hybrid Tapestries provides an extensive historical map of Pakistani English literature: it traces the narrative to its multiple origins, including pre-colonial and colonial contacts, and moves across the twentieth century to extraordinary new talent. The book singles out thirteen innovative writers for a detailed chapter on each, beginning with those who became Pakistanis after Partition but who had published major works prior to Independence. Due acknowledgement is also given to the two forgotten writers of that era: Atiya and Samuel Fyzee Rahamin. Pioneering contemporary authors, from Zulfikar Ghose and Taufiq Rafat to Bapsi Sidhwa, Sara Suleri, and Hanif Kureishi, are discussed in detail. CRIMSON PAPERS BY HARRIS KHALIQUE — Harris Khalique’s erudition and breadth of vision, indeed, are breathtaking. Such a book-so readable and yet so learned-was long overdue as an antidote to the textbooks we teach and the sound bites which pass for wisdom in our media. Crimson Papers should be compulsory reading for all Pakistanis and those interested in Pakistan. It is a landmark in our intellectual life as a nation. In Crimson Papers, Harris Khalique maps Pakistan’s changing cultural, political, and religious landscapes with the eye of a poet and the wisdom of a seer. His is a voice of sanity in the conflict with absolutism-a vital corrective to the rants of those who cannot tolerate different points of view. A SINGULAR VOICE TRANSLATED BY DURDANA SOOMRO — this is the first comprehensive and full-length interview of one of the most well-known Urdu novelists, Qurratulain Hyder. Intimate and free-wheeling, this extended dialogue between two prolific writers, Qurratulain Hyder and Jameel Akhter, highlights Hyder’s lesser known biographical details and creative aspects. This rare venture provides a panoramic view of what constitutes Qurratulain Hyder as it brings to light her other fields of interest such as music, journalism, filmmaking, and of course literature. AURANGZEB BY AUDREY TRUSCHKE — the field of South Asian history has been polarised and paralysed by stereotypes of the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb Alamgir. Demonised by many Indians as anti-Hindu and celebrated by many Pakistanis as the historical inspiration for a separate Muslim state, Aurangzeb has been the proverbial blank screen on to which twentieth and twenty-first century political fantasies are projected. Truschke’s book seeks to correct this state of affairs by offering a calm and detached assessment of Aurangzeb that evaluates his place in history according to the values and traditions of his own day. Published in Daily Times, June 22nd, 2017.