Books in brief

Published January 10, 2016

The Bazaar of the Storytellers
Transcribed by W.L. Heston and Mumtaz Nasir

A Lok Virsa publication, The Bazaar of the Storytellers tells the tales of the Qissa Khwani Bazaar Peshawar. As the storytellers the famed bazaar is named after no longer form part of our cultural fabric, this book attempts to record their stories. Lok Virsa has recorded the narratives that make up this book from the storytellers themselves, a project that took 30 years to complete.

Human Drama Inc. Emotional Intelligence in the Workplace
By Neeta Mohla

A self-help book, Neeta Mohla’s Human Drama Inc. offers guidance for dealing with one’s emotions in the workplace intelligently in order stay on the path of success. The author’s thesis is that “If your emotional abilities aren’t in hand, if you don’t have self-awareness, if you are not able to manage your distressing emotions, if you can’t have empathy and have effective relationships, then no matter how smart you are, you are not going to get very far.”

You’re not Proper
By Tariq Mehmood

Written in a fairly casual, friendly style, You’re not Proper is a YA novella. Key protagonist Kiran is a 14-year old who has a Pakistani father and “white Christian” mother. The novella is Kiran’s story of struggling to find her true identity as well as her religious bearings amidst a multicultural, multiracial society. Tariq Mehmood has previously published Hand on the Sun and While there is Light.

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