OF PEARLS & PECKS OF STRAW: RECOLLECTIONS, ESSAYS, AFTER-THOUGHTS BY IQBAL AKHUND — retired diplomat and man of the world Iqbal Akhund, having previously written about his diplomatic career, recalls in this volume personal reminiscences of his ninety plus years: young days under the Raj, the conversion of his grandparents, the why and wherefore of Partition, as well as thoughts on current issues. This book-nostalgic for a world long gone and with its generous spattering of fresh anecdotes-is a tour through time and place with a brilliant, witty travel guide. PAKISTAN CINEMA 1947-1997 SECOND EDITION BY MUSHTAQ GAZDAR — first published in 1997 to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the creation of Pakistan, the book features a review of films before Partition, plots of great cinema classics, trivia, and cinema lore. It contains anecdotes and reminiscences about the people who shaped the entertainment industry, as well as interviews with directors and producers. In this second edition, I. A. Rehman, Haris Gazdar, and Aisha Gazdar provide their analysis of the two decades since, marking seventy years of the country’s film industry. SINDHI ADAB: AIK MUKHTASIR TARIKH BY ATTIYA DAWOOD — shortlisted for the Karachi Literature Festival-Infaq Foundation Urdu Literature Prize, this book covers the history of Sindhi literature and the changes that have occurred in the field during the last seventy years starting with a summary of Sindhi literature before Partition. The author covers all genres of Sindhi literature including short stories, poetry, travelogues etc. The book analyses contemporary literary topics, tendencies, and trends, as well as literature influenced by political and social affairs. It thus covers not only Sindhi language and literature but also the history of Pakistani literature. KOHINOOR: THE STORY OF THE WORLD’S MOST INFAMOUS DIAMOND BY WILLIAM DALRYMPLE & ANITA ANAND — the Kohinoor is the world’s most famous diamond, but it has always had a fog of mystery around it. Now using previously untranslated Sanskrit, Persian, and Urdu sources, and the discoveries of modern gemmologists to reconstruct its original form, the authors blow away the legends to reveal its true history. Kohinoor is a tale of greed, conquest, murder, torture, colonialism, and appropriation. PURDAH & POLYGAMY: LIFE IN AN INDIAN MUSLIM HOUSEHOLD BY IQBALUNNISA HUSSAIN — originally published in 1944, this novel is a virulent attack on the traditional system of purdah and polygamy in which man is treated as a virtual god and women-who are barely literate-as chattel. It also shows how the unlettered mother of the man concerned becomes complicit in this patriarchal system because she is able to exercise power through her son, which is denied to her as a wife and as an unmarried girl. In some ways the book is an extension of her ideas on Indian life and she translates these into fiction extremely well