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On the Shelf: Our Must-Read Books for December
Fresh offerings from Stephen King, Gillian Flynn, the Khan family and more!
The Bazaar of Bad Dreams (Scribner)
By Stephen King
Photo Credit: Scribner/ew.com
The world’s pre-eminent literary scare-master releases his sixth short-story collection. This time out, fans can looks forward to twisted tales about an obituary columnist who inadvertently causes the deaths he writes about, a married couple who enter into a fateful and deadly “devil’s pact,” and a dead man, forced to relive his life and mistakes over and over again.
The Grownup (Random House)
By Gillian Flynn
By Gillian Flynn
Photo Credit: Random House/amazon.ca
Fresh off the breakout success of her exquisitely dark marital psychodrama Gone Girl, Gillian Flynn returns with this novella about a fake psychic who, in the process of trying to pull one over on her latest mark, stumbles into a real-live ghost story at the woman’s creepy Victorian home. Before long, she finds herself battling not only the supernatural, but locked in a battle of wills with her would-be victim and her deeply troubled son.
The Relic Master (Simon & Schuster)
By Christopher Buckley
By Christopher Buckley
Photo Credit: Simon & Schuster
Author Christopher Buckley applies his unparalleled wit to this 16th-century farce about Dismas, a relic hunter/con man who, after getting caught by one of his patrons trying to sell a forgery, is forced to embark on a quest to secure the genuine article — which just so happens to be Christ’s burial shroud (a.k.a. “Europe’s most celebrate relic”). Even worse, he’s not the only hunter on the trail of this particular prize. At once hilarious and accessible, the book is also being lauded for its witty, fascinating and impressively detailed look at the religion, politics and culture of the era.
India (Phaidon Press)
By Steve McCurry
Photo Credit: Phaidon/amazon.ca
World-renowned photographer Steve McCurry (best known for the iconic “Afghan Girl” National Geographic cover) takes readers on a tour of the titular country, as filtered through his singular artistic eye with this photo essay featuring over 150 previously unpublished shots snapped across India — from festivals on the beach, to the gritty streets of Old Delhi and everywhere and everyone in between.
Family Secrets: The Khan Family Cookbook (Roli Books)
By Zarine Khan
By Zarine Khan
Photo Credit: Roli Books/amazon.in
Zarine Khan, wife of Bollywood power player Sanjay Khan and mother to luminaries Farah, Zayed, Simone and Suzanne, invites you into her kitchen — a place spoken of in hushed tones amongst the India film industry. Learn the recipes that have been passed down through multiple generations of the Khan clan (including their legendary Biryani) along with the stories behind them and exclusive photos of the Khan dynasty hanging out at home.
The Palaces of Memory (Dewi Lewis Publishing)
By Amit Chaudhury & Stuart Freedman
Photo Credit: Dewi Lewis
Another acclaimed shutterbug, Stuart Freedman offers his unique take on India, as witnessed through 30 Indian Coffee Houses — a series of employee-owned cafes that hearken back to a “now-faded grandeur” while serving as “political and artistic salons as well as simple eating places.” Offering a glimpse into the “ordinary India,” Freedman’s shots are complemented by a few insights from one of the country’s most celebrated literary talents — novelist Amit Chaudhury (A New World).
Main Image Photo Credit: www.telegraph.co.uk
Matthew Currie
Author
A long-standing entertainment journalist, Currie is a graduate of the Professional Writing program at Toronto’s York University. He has spent the past number of years working as a freelancer for ANOKHI and for diverse publications such as Sharp, TV Week, CAA’s Westworld and BC Business. Currie ...
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