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Akshay's posts

• Speaking of India: A Guide to Indian Literature in EnglishFebruary 28, 2011

  

  In Craig Storti's Speaking of India, he writes that "the defining quality of most conversations between Indians is the overarching necessity to say what other people want to hear."
  
  How, then, do Indians communicate bad news? As Storti writes, they leave out certain things and don't quite say others. Other Indians, of course, understand what is being said, and also appreciate the courtesy shown.
  
  All of this subtlety has created a culture that is ripe for the production of literature, which one could define as the art of saying more than you appear to be saying.
  Speaking of India: A Guide to Indian Literature in English
  

• Some e-reader resourcesFebruary 2, 2011

  

  I have had the office Kindle for the past few weeks. Here are some resources and strategies that have helped me get more out of it.
  Some e-reader resources
  

• The Value of a Good BookstoreJanuary 18, 2011

  

  With the closing of several Borders locations, as well as Waterstone's in England, there is a feeling in the air that brick-and-mortar bookstores are an endangered species.
  A generation of consumers, myself included, has gotten used to expecting massive discounts on most products and then having them delivered to our door.
  There is, however, a cost to these savings, and it is worth considering some of them.
  The Value of a Good Bookstore
  

• Great Small PublishersDecember 17, 2010

  

  There's nothing wrong with being a big publisher -- lots of great books come from the big houses -- but there's also something to be said for the idiosyncratic taste and attention to detail that comes from a small, independent press.
  
  So, in no particular order, here are some wonderful small presses that deserve your support and will reward your attention (I will leave us off the list out of modesty).
  Great Small Publishers
  

• Small Steps Toward Sustainability in the OfficeNovember 29, 2010

  

  Offices tend to be wasteful places.
  
  For the most part, since someone else takes out the trash, manages the temperature, and keeps everything stocked and working, it takes an effort to remember the environmental impact of our actions.
  
  So, a few days ago, when a copy of The Green Scorecard slid from its regular place on the bookshelf and broke the little ceramic cup that held our bathroom keys -- a sign! -- I started to think about how our office might become more sustainable. I decided to begin with something tiny: the bathroom key cup.
  Small Steps Toward Sustainability in the Office
  

• The Habits of a Modern BookbuyerNovember 15, 2010

  

  A lot has to happen before a person buys a book.

  To paraphrase John Ruskin, people will stare at even a great book for a long time before they (very cautiously) drop the price of a single dinner on it.

  Looking over a few of my recent book purchases, I realized something. It is silly to talk about electronic versus print, or the Internet versus paper media, as if they were somehow adversaries. For the most part they are allies.

  
  The Habits of a Modern Bookbuyer