Some days, the goal is not to do more. It is to breathe easier, think softer, let go of what is weighing you down and find your way back to yourself.
The Calm + Wellbeing stack from Big Books, Bigger You is made for those moments. Whether you are looking for a stress relief book, a mental wellbeing book, a self help book for anxiety, or a thoughtful gift for someone who needs comfort, these books offer gentle but powerful ways to reset.
How To Let Things Go || Shunmyo Masuno
Start with How to Let Things Go, the how to let things go book by Shunmyo Masuno. This Shunmyo Masuno book is a calming book on letting go and a beautiful zen mindfulness book for anyone carrying too much.
Why Has Nobody Told me This Befor || Dr Julie Smith
For practical emotional tools, Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before? is the Dr Julie Smith book readers keep recommending — a clear, compassionate and practical mental health book for everyday overwhelm.
It’s Not You || Dr Ramani Durvasula
For anyone healing from difficult relationships, It’s Not You is the Dr Ramani book that speaks directly to toxic patterns, making it an essential narcissistic abuse book, healing from narcissistic abuse book and toxic relationships book.
Yoshuku || Azumi Uchitani
And if you are ready to invite in hope, Yoshuku by Azumi Uchitani is the Yoshuku book, Japanese manifestation book, gratitude manifestation book and manifestation rituals book that turns possibility into a daily practice.
Because calm is not a luxury. Sometimes, it is the first step toward becoming bigger.
We’ve heard it hundreds of times at our centre in Ahmedabad.
‘We were beaten and abused, and we still became successful. So this is all nonsense.’
It’s said with pride. Sometimes irritation. Often with conviction. And the people saying it aren’t entirely wrong. Indian parenting, with all its toughness and silences, has produced generations of capable, resilient adults.
But across 3,000 childhood trauma assessments and 14 peer-reviewed studies at Wellness Space, we’ve also seen what gets masked beneath that success: the anxiety that arrives without warning. The relationships that keep repeating the same painful patterns. The exhaustion no sleep can fix. The quiet, persistent sense that something is fundamentally wrong with you.
Most people ask: What’s wrong with me? Our book asks a different question.
And that difference, we believe, is where healing begins.
Why the global ACE framework misses India
Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), stressful events before age 18, are now firmly linked to adult anxiety, depression, PTSD, and even physical illness. But it was built in America in the 1980s. It doesn’t capture the emotional pressure of constant comparisons: Why can’t you be more like your cousin? It doesn’t account for joint families where a child has no privacy, no safe space, no language for what they’re feeling. It doesn’t measure parenting that equates love with obedience and strength with silence. And it ignores the verbal fights between parents who, in a culture of low divorce rates, force themselves to stay together.
You don’t need to prove your childhood was bad enough to deserve recovery. Many people dismiss their struggles because someone else had it worse. But trauma isn’t measured by comparison. It’s measured by impact.
Why time alone doesn’t heal trauma
‘It happened so long ago. Why is it still affecting me?’
Because trauma isn’t stored only in memory. It lives in the body, the nervous system, and what the Indian Knowledge System calls the Pancha Kosha, the five layers of being: Annamaya (body), Pranamaya (energy), Manomaya (mind), Vijnanamaya (intellect), and Anandamaya (the blissful core). Trauma may disrupt all five, surfacing as body tension, disordered breathing, distorted beliefs, low self-esteem and disconnection from inner peace.
This is why talking alone isn’t enough. Recovery must reach all five layers.
What’s inside the book
The book explores how childhood experiences affect adult mental health, introduces the Pancha Kosha framework as a lens to understand trauma, and offers evidence-based approaches to recovery, including breathwork, nervous system regulation, guided visualisation, and self-hypnosis. It also provides mental health professionals with clinical frameworks and tools developed through years of research and practice in India.
Who this is for
For anyone who has spent years quietly wondering what’s wrong with them. For parents repeating the patterns they promised they wouldn’t. For therapists whose academic training didn’t quite prepare them for real clinical complexity. For anyone told, ‘Everyone had a tough childhood — move on,’ and quietly knew that wasn’t the whole truth.
You don’t need to remember everything.
You don’t need to blame anyone.
You don’t need to prove your childhood was bad enough.
You only need the courage to ask a different question.
There comes a point when books not only adorn your shelf but also provide you with a way to articulate your feelings, build frameworks of understanding around them or help you in implementing changes in your daily routine.
So, we bring 13 selected books for the Indian reader to reset, recalibrate, evolve, heal and make better choices. If you are a student wanting to improve your habits, a founder chasing a big dream, a parent grappling with too much screen time, a manager trying to understand the human mind, or just someone who wishes to get peace in your noisy head, this curated list of books is based on real problems faced by readers.
For days where the aim isn’t to do more, but instead feel less, there are the books dedicated to calm and wellbeing. How to Let Things Go by Shunmyo Masuno is a zen mindfulness book and stress relief book, offering wisdom on letting go. Why Hasn’t Nobody Told Me This Before by Dr Julie Smith provides guidance on mental wellbeing and is a self-help book for people struggling with anxiety. It’s Not You by Dr Ramani offers insight into toxic relationships and healing from narcissistic abuse, and finally, Yoshuku by Azumi Uchitani is an introduction to the Japanese practice of manifestation based on gratitude, ritual and possibility.
Here is everything you need in your focus and habit change era. Atomic Habits Workbook offers the much-needed implementation techniques while Visualise by Maya Raichoora provides visualization techniques that can help you reach a level of confidence for peak performance. Throw in the powerful decision-making and mental model book called Clear Thinking by Shane Parrish and the list is complete for everyone who wants to think clearly, do better and execute.
For career-oriented individuals, businesses, or even second acts, the growth stack on business and founders is full of momentum. For business school thinkers who are looking for the best MBA books outside of the classroom, the Visual MBA is the perfect MBA in a book for newbies. On the topic of founder books, the Diary of a CEO by Steven Bartlett captures the founder mind and the 33 Laws of Business and Life. Lastly, What’s Your Dream? written by Simon Squibb is an inspiring life purpose book and a side hustle book all rolled into one.
However, some of the books worth reading are those that give insights into how we relate to other people. For instance, Surrounded by Idiots is a popular personality types book and a great communication skills book for when things become complicated at work, home or in our team settings. Additionally, Games People Play by Eric Berne is an evergreen transactional analysis book that delves into the dynamics of human relationships. The last book of interest here is Jonathan Haidt’s The Anxious Generation which is critical for educators and parents today.
Regardless of your needs at any given point of time, be it greater focus, better decision-making, improved relationships, career direction, calmness or an inspirational gift for someone else, we have the perfect book for each one of you.
Featured Stories from the National Young Authors Challenge
The National Young Authors Challenge, conducted by Big Red Education in partnership with Penguin Random House India, was created to give students in Grades 8–12 a unique opportunity to share their stories, develop their craft, and experience the journey from writer to published author.
What began as a writing challenge quickly grew into a nationwide celebration of young storytelling talent. More than 800 students from over 250 schools across 45+ cities participated, submitting over 1,000 original stories that reflected the creativity, imagination, and diverse perspectives of young writers across India. Participants also had the opportunity to learn from Penguin authors, editors and publicists at the publishing house through an exclusive writing bootcamp designed to strengthen their storytelling and editing skills.
Following a rigorous multi-stage evaluation process, 100 stories were selected as the top national entries. Furthermore, the top 50 stories are being published as a special anthology by Penguin Random House India, curated and edited by acclaimed author Vibha Batra. In addition to the stories selected for publication in the book, these next set of 50 stories were recognised and featured on Penguin’s website.
These young authors have distinguished themselves through originality, creativity, and excellence in storytelling, earning national recognition for their work. We are delighted to showcase these stories on Penguin Random House India’s platform and celebrate the remarkable achievement of these young writers.
Together, these authors represent the remarkable talent, creativity, and literary promise of young people across India. We invite you to explore their stories and discover the imagination, skill, and originality of a new generation of storytellers.
New releases to add to your reading list this month
June brings a rich and varied harvest of new books — from political histories and spiritual journeys to business playbooks, wellness guides, and musical biographies. Here are the titles we’re most excited about this month.
Gurudev: On the Plateau of the Peak — Bhanumathi Narasimhan
Few books offer the kind of intimacy this one does. Written by a student who has spent decades in close proximity to Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, this is a portrait of a spiritual teacher drawn not from the outside but from within — through lived experience, quiet observation, and deep devotion. For anyone curious about the inner life of a master, this is an essential read.
Gurudev || Bhanumathi Narasimhan
Chasing Like Dhoni — Aayush Puthran & Samod Sarngan
What makes a finisher? What does it take to chase, under pressure, with the game on the line? This book draws lessons from MS Dhoni’s legendary approach to high-stakes cricket and translates them into a framework for how we might handle pressure in our own lives. Brisk, entertaining, and surprisingly instructive.
Chasing Like Dhoni || Aayush Puthran, Samod
The Skincare Guide That Will Change Your Life — Deepali Bhardwaj
Dr. Deepali Bhardwaj, one of India’s most trusted dermatologists, cuts through the noise with a no-nonsense guide to understanding your skin. From ingredients to routines to myths, this is the book for anyone who wants to make sense of what actually works — and why.
The Skincare Guide That Will Change Your Life || Dr Deepali Bhardwaj
Swayamsewak: The Lives of Ten RSS Foot Soldiers—Malini Bhattacharjee
One of India’s most consequential organisations is often discussed at the level of ideology and leadership. This book does something rarer: it goes to the ground. Through ten ordinary lives, Malini Bhattacharjee examines what it means to be a swayamsewak — the motivations, the sacrifices, and the quiet conviction that drives those who keep the machinery running.
Swayamsevak || Malini
Unlocking Success — Manish Maheshwari
A former Twitter India MD and NewsLaundry co-founder, Manish Maheshwari has navigated some of the most turbulent corridors of India’s media and tech world. In this book, he distils his experience into an honest and accessible guide for those looking to carve their own path.
Unlocking Success || Manish Maheshwari
The Inspired Leader — Anil Sachdev
What separates a good manager from a truly inspired leader? Anil Sachdev, founder of SOIL Institute of Management, brings decades of learning to this question, offering a model of leadership grounded in purpose, empathy, and the courage to build cultures that actually work.
The Inspires Leader || Anil Sachdev
The Girl in Chains — Devashish Sardana
A gripping work of fiction that keeps you turning pages well past your bedtime. Sardana writes with urgency and precision, crafting a thriller that is as emotionally resonant as it is propulsive. Pick this one up only if you have nowhere to be the next morning.
The Girl in Chains || Devashish Sardana
Wealth Networks — Akshay Chavan
Personal finance with a twist — Chavan argues that wealth isn’t just about money, it’s about the networks you build. A fresh perspective on financial success that takes seriously the social and relational dimensions of how people actually grow prosperous.
The Wealth Networks
One Insane Idea: 15 Ideation Techniques to Spark Breakthrough Business Ideas — Apoorv Singhal
Every great business begins with a single strange idea. In this energetic and practical book, Singhal unpacks fifteen proven techniques for unlocking creative thinking — giving readers the tools to generate not just good ideas, but genuinely transformative ones.
One Insane Idea || Apoorv Singhal
Who Owns the Past?: How Historians Rewrote India’s Past & Present — Shaan Kashyap
History is never just about what happened — it’s about who gets to say what happened. Kashyap’s bold and meticulously researched book examines the ideological forces that have shaped the writing of Indian history, and asks what it means to reclaim a more honest understanding of the past.
Who Owns The Past || Shaan Kashyap
I Died Too Early — Sumitra Manda
Intimate, surprising, and quietly devastating. This work of literary fiction explores loss, time, and the unlived life with a sensitivity that lingers long after the final page. Sumitra Manda announces herself as a writer of genuine power.
I Died Too Early || Sumitra Manda
Strategy For Life — Surya Ramkumar
What if you applied the same rigor to your personal goals as a CEO applies to a business strategy? Ramkumar makes a compelling case that clarity, planning, and iteration are not just corporate tools — they’re the building blocks of a well-lived life.
Strategy for Life || Surya Ramkumar
Wisdom that Works — Madan Sundar Das
Drawing from ancient tradition and lived practice, Madan Sundar Das offers spiritual wisdom that is rooted, practical, and applicable to the everyday. For readers looking to bring more depth and meaning to their daily lives, this is a thoughtful companion.
Wisdom That Works || Madan Sundar Das
Made in Fire: A Playbook for Builders, Believers and Future Founders — Rajnish Kumar
From one of India’s most respected banking leaders, this is a book for those who build — and for those who dream of building. Rajnish Kumar shares the lessons, setbacks, and convictions that have shaped a remarkable career, offering a candid guide for the next generation of founders.
Made In Fire || Rajnish Kumar
Zubeen Garg: The Voice that Bridged Worlds — Prosenjit Nath
A deeply felt tribute to one of Assam’s most beloved musicians. Prosenjit Nath traces Zubeen Garg’s extraordinary journey — from the Brahmaputra Valley to the hearts of listeners across India and the diaspora — exploring the music, the man, and the bridges he built between worlds.
Zubeen Garg || Prosenjit Nath
All titles available at penguinbooksindia.com and leading bookstores from June 2026.
Some months arrive with a book or two worth talking about. April arrived with fourteen. This month’s new releases span centuries and continents, moving between Maratha battlefields and Mumbai’s marathon roads, between Everest base camps and the boardrooms of Hindustan Unilever — and somehow, every single one of them has something urgent to say.
Gangrene – Akshaya Kumar, Navdeep Singh
Akshaya Kumar & Navdeep Singh Rot beneath the surface makes for the most arresting literature. This anthology excavates Punjabi Dalit life with unflinching honesty — stories where caste wounds fester quietly and explode loudly. Searing, essential, and long overdue, Gangrene is the anthology that refuses to let comfortable readers stay comfortable.
Gangrene || Akshaya Kumar, Navdeep Singh
A CEO’s Brew Stirred with Passion, Purpose and Humbition – Sanjiv Mehta
Sanjiv Mehta Twenty-one years, five continents, sixty billion dollars — and Sanjiv Mehta still believes humility is a superpower. Part memoir, part masterclass, this is the story of how a man with ‘Humbition’ turned Hindustan Unilever into a global gold standard. Served strong, no sugar-coating required.
A CEO’s Brew || Sanjiv Mehta
The Star from Calcutta – Sujata Massey
Bombay, 1922: a movie censor is murdered, a leading lady vanishes, and India’s first female lawyer Perveen Mistry has front-row seats to early Bollywood’s darkest drama. Glamour, intrigue, and a courtroom mind — Massey’s fifth Perveen Mistry mystery is a blockbuster in every sense.
The Star from Calcutta || Sujata Massey
A Fire over Mount Everest – Siddharth Kak
Siddharth Kak Everest doesn’t care about your ambitions. It chooses who climbs it. Documentary filmmaker Siddharth Kak embedded with an expedition and returned with a story no camera could fully capture — of triumph, obsession, rivalry, and a mountain that humbles even the best-prepared humans.
A Fire over Mount Everest || Siddharth Kak
India’s Forests: Revisiting Nature and History -Arupjyoti Saikia, Mahesh Rangarajan
Trees have long memories. This richly researched volume recasts India’s forests not merely as ecology but as history — arenas of colonial ambition, peasant resistance, and ecological reckoning. A book for anyone who thought the jungle was just scenery.
Before he became the most controversial mystic of the 20th century, Osho was a magnificently rebellious small boy in Madhya Pradesh. This memoir of his early years is funny, irreverent, and surprisingly tender — the origin story of a man who never once obeyed an instruction he hadn’t interrogated first.
Glimpses of A Golden Childhood || Osho
Mumbai Marathon – Aarambh M. Singh
42.195 kilometres. One impossibly chaotic city. Millions of stories pounding the pavement. Filmmaker-turned-author Aarambhh M Singh captures the Mumbai Marathon as only a storyteller can — not just as a race, but as a mirror of the city’s relentless, breathless, magnificent spirit.
Mumbai Marathon || Aarambh M. Singh
Building India’s Upstarts – Narasimhan Raghavan
No VC money. No safety net. Just grit, jugaad, and a refusal to quit. Drawing on India’s most resourceful founders, this playbook is for entrepreneurs who’d rather build something real than pitch decks endlessly. Practical, honest, and proudly bootstrapped in spirit.
Building India’s Upstarts | R. Narasimhan
From Mundane to Meaningful – Nasir Zaidi
Twenty-eight years in banking taught Nasir Zaidi that the extraordinary is hiding inside the ordinary — you just need the right lens. Part self-help, part memoir, this book coaches professionals to stop sleepwalking through their careers and start crafting lives worth actually living.
From Mundane to Meaningful || Nasir Zaidi
Queen Tara – Medha Deshmukh Bhaskaran
Medha Deshmukh Bhaskaran From the ashes of defeat, a warrior is forged. Medha Deshmukh Bhaskaran brings us another blazing chapter of Maratha history through a woman who chose to fight when surrender would have been easier. Vivid, immersive, and resolutely feminist — Queen Tara earns its throne.
Queen Tara || Medha Deshmukh Bhaskaran
Almost Sixteen – Arsh Verma
A serving IPS officer writes about the treacherous terrain of being almost — but not quite — sixteen. Part coming-of-age, part dark comedy, Arsh Verma turns the universal awkwardness of adolescence into something unexpectedly luminous. A page-turner that remembers exactly how strange youth feels.
Almost Sixteen || Arsh Verma
From Guerrilla Fighter to Chief Minister: A Memoir – Zoramthanga
From armed insurgency to the Chief Minister’s chair — Zoramthanga’s life is one of India’s most remarkable political transformations. This memoir charts Mizoram’s journey from conflict to peace with rare candour, and reminds us that conviction, not compromise, is what endures.
From Guerrilla Fighter to Chief Minister || Zoramthanga
Hawk’s Quest – Deepa Agarwal
NCERT award-winning author Deepa Agarwal takes young readers on an adventure as swift and sharp-eyed as a hawk in flight. A quest story that soars across landscape and legend, reminding readers of all ages that courage is simply curiosity that refused to turn back.
The Hawk’s Quest || Deepa Agarwal
Upanishads and J Krishnamurti – Sri M
What happens when ancient Vedic wisdom meets the most rebellious philosopher of the 20th century? Sri M — yogi, Padma Bhushan laureate, and personal acquaintance of Krishnamurti — finds surprising harmony between tradition and transcendence. Quietly radical, deeply thought-provoking.
Upanishads and J Krishnamurti || Sri M
At Penguin India, we believe reading is never just an escape. It’s a way of paying attention. And this April, we’ve given you fourteen new ways to do exactly that.
History Unpacked: The Why, When and What of Ancient India
Forget dusty dates and yawning over dynasties. This witty guide unpacks Ancient India—from the Stone Age to the Golden Age—through hilarious stories, quirky maps, and baffling connections. History finally makes sense (and stays fun) for curious minds aged ten-plus.
History Unpacked: The Why, When and What of Ancient India || Saisudha Acharya
The Padmas
From the football field to the laboratory, these fifty illustrated biographies celebrate seven decades of India’s highest civilian honors. A stirring collection of grit and greatness, it proves that perseverance turns ordinary dreams into extraordinary legacies for readers aged eight-plus.
The Padmas | Neha J. Hiranandani
The People of the Indus
Unravel the enigma of the Indus through this meticulously researched graphic narrative. From 3200 BCE to its mysterious decline, experience a visually stunning journey that replaces dull dates with the vibrant, everyday lives of a civilization that reshaped human history.
The People of the Indus | Nikhil Gulati, Jonathan Mark Kenoyer
The Incredible History of India’s Geography
From ostriches roaming the plains to being related to a blond Lithuanian, this trivia-packed journey explores the “unbelievable” in India’s geography. Full of quirky illustrations, it turns complex history into a fantastic, fact-filled adventure for curious minds aged twelve-plus.
The Incredible History of India’s Geography | Sanjeev Sanyal
A Children’s History of India in 100 Objects
From prehistoric hand axes to the iconic HMT watch, discover the vibrant pulse of India through 100 extraordinary objects. This colorfully illustrated journey captures the voices of both rulers and commoners, weaving a rich tapestry of history, identity, and culture for young readers.
A Children’s History of India in 100 Objects | Devika Cariapa
The Constitution of India for Children
From the colorful Republic Day parade to the seventeen-day countdown of its creation, this essential handbook brings India’s foundational document to life. Packed with cheerful illustrations and surprising facts, it transforms legal complexity into an engaging, witty guide for every young citizen.
The Constitution of India for Children | Subhadra Sen Gupta
Whether you’re tracing the Indus or discovering why your ancestors might be Lithuanian, these stories prove that the past is anything but boring. Dive into these essential reads to see India’s legacy in a whole new light—because understanding where we came from is the ultimate adventure.
February arrives with stories that refuse to stay quiet. From military memoirs to folk tales whispered across generations, dystopian futures to kitchen chronicles from conflict zones, this month’s releases span the spectrum of human experience. Whether you’re chasing longevity secrets, marketing mastery, or the art of being fabulous, February delivers books that inform, inspire, and occasionally make you question everything.
Here’s the complete list of books to read this February!
General Brasstacks: The Sundarji Story – Probal DasGupta
The definitive biography of Lt. Gen. K. Sundarji, the military strategist who reshaped modern Indian warfare. From Operation Brasstacks to his controversial doctrines, DasGupta captures the brilliance and complexities of a general who thought beyond the battlefield.
General Brasstacks | Probal DasGupta
The Last of the Earth – Deepa Anappara
Anappara returns with a haunting vision of environmental collapse and human resilience. In a world running out of earth to stand on, her characters navigate survival with grace and grit. Speculative fiction that feels uncomfortably close to prophecy.
The Last of Earth | Deepa Anappara
After Nations – Rana Dasgupta
What comes after the nation-state collapses? Dasgupta envisions a world where borders blur, identities fracture, and new forms of belonging emerge from the ruins. Provocative, unsettling, and impossible to ignore—political philosophy as existential thriller.
After Nations | Rana DasGupta
The Four Life Skills – Amit Agarwal
Cut through the noise with four essential skills that actually matter. Agarwal distills decades of wisdom into practical tools for navigating modern life with clarity and confidence. Self-help that respects your intelligence and your time.
The Four Life Skills | Amit Agarwal
Stories from a Kargili Kitchen – Yash Saxena
Food as memory, survival, and resistance in one of India’s most contested regions. Saxena serves up recipes wrapped in stories of conflict, community, and resilience. A cookbook that nourishes understanding as much as appetite.
Stories From A Kargili Kitchen | Yash Saxena
Voices in the Wind: Folk Tales, Oral Traditions, and Living Literatures – Namita Gokhale, Malashri Lal
The stories grandmothers told, finally preserved and celebrated. Gokhale and Lal curate India’s oral traditions—the folk tales, songs, and wisdom that shaped cultures before anyone wrote them down. Living literature that refuses to be silenced.
Voices in the Wind | Namita Gokhale, Malashri Lal
Appetite – Shivranjana Rathore, Tino De Sa
Goan voices converge in an anthology about hunger—for food, belonging, love, escape. From beach shacks to colonial mansions, these stories capture the island state’s contradictions, complexities, and insatiable spirit. Appetite in all its forms, served raw.
Appetite | Shivranjana Rathore, Tino De Sa
Manifest Anything in 100 Days – Amiett Kumar
A hundred days to turn intention into reality. Kumar offers a structured roadmap for manifestation that trades magical thinking for disciplined action. For anyone tired of wishing and ready to work toward what they want.
Manifest Anything in 100 Days | Amiett Kumar
The Lady Who Carried The Monk Across The River – Pavan Varma
A philosophical tale wrapped in parable, where a simple act of kindness reveals layers of meaning about attachment, ego, and enlightenment. Varma transforms ancient wisdom into contemporary meditation on letting go and moving forward.
The Lady Who Carried The Monk Across The River | Pavan K. Varma
Thirteen tales where the dead won’t rest and the living should be afraid. Chakravarty summons spirits, curses, and the kind of atmospheric dread that lingers after you’ve turned off the lights. Indian gothic at its chilling best.
Creeping Shadows | Aruna Chakravarti
A Life in Public Service: Nepal from Autocracy to Democracy – Bhesh Bahadur Thapa; Translator: Prawin Adhikari
A statesman’s front-row view of Nepal’s tumultuous journey from monarchy to democracy. Thapa’s memoir chronicles decades of political upheaval, diplomatic maneuvering, and nation-building. History told by those who shaped it, translated with precision and care.
A Life in Public Service | Bhekh Bahadur Thapa
Marketing that Works: Building Breakthrough Brands in India – Shivaji Das Gupta
The playbook for building brands that break through India’s chaotic marketplace. Das Gupta combines case studies, strategy, and ground-level insights for anyone trying to make their mark. Marketing wisdom earned in the trenches, not boardrooms.
Marketing That Works | Shivaji DasGupta
Busy Women: Building Commerce and Culture in Middle India – Shinjini Kumar
The untold story of women entrepreneurs reshaping India’s heartland economy. Kumar spotlights the busy women juggling businesses, families, and cultural expectations—creating commerce on their own terms. Economic history with the women finally centered.
Busy Women | Shinjini Kumar
Colombo: Port of Call – Ajay Kamalakaran
A travelogue through Sri Lanka’s capital where history docks at every corner. Kamalakaran navigates Colombo’s colonial past, civil war scars, and cosmopolitan present with the eye of someone who sees cities as living narratives. Travel writing as cultural archaeology.
Colombo | Ajay Kamalakaran
Rebellion in Verse – Raghavan Srinivasan
Poetry as protest, dissent set to meter. Srinivasan curates verses that challenged power, questioned authority, and refused silence across centuries of Indian literary tradition. A collection that reminds us rebellion has always found its voice in rhyme.
Rebellion in Verse | Raghavan Srinivasan
LeanSpark – Jaideep Prabhu, Priyank Narayan, Mukesh Sud
Innovation on a budget, brilliance without burning cash. The authors reveal how constraint breeds creativity and frugal engineering powers breakthrough success. Essential reading for anyone building something meaningful with limited resources and unlimited ambition.
Lean Spark | Jaideep Prabhu, Priyank Narayan, Mukesh Sud
Hanuman – Vimlesh Kanti Verma
The monkey god reimagined through fresh eyes and contemporary context. Verma explores Hanuman’s enduring relevance—devotion, strength, loyalty—in ways that resonate beyond temple walls. Mythology that breathes in the present tense and speaks to modern seekers.
Hanuman | Vimlesh Kanti Verma, Sunanda Verma, Avi Asthana
The Alphabets of Africa – Abhay K
A poet’s journey through the continent, one letter at a time. From Algeria to Zimbabwe, Abhay K captures Africa’s diversity, complexity, and beauty in twenty-six poetic meditations. Travel poetry that expands geography into philosophy and observation into understanding.
The Alphabets of Africa | Abhay K
The Art of Being Fabulous: 10 Rules for a Beautiful Mind & Life – Shalini Passi
Fabulousness as philosophy, glamour as lifestyle strategy. Passi shares ten rules for cultivating beauty that starts in the mind and radiates outward. Part manifesto, part style guide, all unapologetic celebration of living luxuriously and authentically.
The Art of Being Fabulous | Shalini Passi
The Longevity Code: The Science and Strategy of Resilience, Performance, and Lifelong Vitality – Pullela Gopichand and Sophia Pathak
The badminton legend and wellness expert decode what it takes to sustain peak performance across decades. From physical resilience to mental fortitude, this is longevity science grounded in athletic wisdom. A blueprint for thriving, not just surviving.
The Longevity Code | Dr Sophia Pathai, Pullela Gopichand
Era of India – Minhaz Merchant
India’s moment has arrived—but what comes next? Merchant analyzes the political, economic, and cultural forces positioning India on the global stage. Part analysis, part projection, this is essential reading for understanding where the nation stands and where it’s headed.
Era of India | Minhaz Merchant
From battlefields to kitchens, poetry to policy, February’s releases remind us that stories come from everywhere and speak to everyone. Whether you’re manifesting dreams, building brands, or simply seeking a good ghost story, this month has something that will catch your eye and hold your attention. Here’s to a month of discovery between the covers.
March is a month that often asks us to look inward, and our new releases are here to guide the way. From the intimate reflections of Bloom and Queerly Beloved to the sweeping generational sagas in This is Where the Serpent Lives, our latest shelf is an exploration of the human heart in all its forms. Whether you’re navigating the complexities of modern relationships in What They Don’t Tell You About Marriage or finding stillness in From Chaos to Clarity, these books offer a home for every reader.
Ready to dive in?
From Chaos to Clarity – Shonali Sabherwal
Strategies for Cancer Prevention and Remission Acclaimed nutritionist Shonali Sabherwal offers hope for those affected by cancer. This essential guide provides detox plans, nutritious recipes, and holistic dietary strategies for prevention, remission, and treatment phases—empowering readers with practical advice during life’s toughest battles.
From Chaos to Clarity | Shonali Sabherwal
Half of Forever – Ravinder Singh
What if forever isn’t measured in time, but depth? Ravin and Heer’s chance meetings grow into unintended love but at a heavy cost. Ravinder Singh’s reflection on transformative love quietly closes his trilogy following I Too Had a Love Story.
Half of Forever | Ravinder Singh
Queerly Beloved – Farhad J Dadyburjor
Ved Mehra and Carlos Silva plan their big fat Indian wedding, but complications mount: his mother’s smitten, his father’s secret surfaces, and his ex returns. Farhad J Dadyburjor’s sparkling romcom celebrates love in all its messy, complicated glory.
Queerly Beloved | Farhad J Dadyburjor
What They Don’t Tell You About Marriage – Yashodhara Lal
Couples therapist Yashodhara Lal reveals the real work after the honeymoon. Drawing on clinical experience and her two-decade marriage, she normalizes conflict and offers practical tools for managing differences, money, sex, in-laws, parenting, and betrayal with clarity.
What They Don’t Tell You About Marriage | Yashodhara Lal
Rebel English Academy – Mohammed Hanif
After a political execution, OK Town erupts. At the Rebel English Academy, refugee Sabiha arrives with a gun and secrets. Meanwhile, disgraced Captain Gul hunts protesters. Mohammed Hanif’s wry, searing novel explores political power, religion, sexuality, and dissent in modern Pakistan.
Rebel English Academy | Mohammed Hanif
The Yellow Metaphor – Jiban Narah
99 Selected Poems: 1990–2023 Three decades of Jiban Narah’s shimmering poetry from Assam and India’s North-east. Steeped in Mising and Assamese lore, his verses carry the Brahmaputra’s memory, displacement’s ache, and quiet rebellions—translated luminously by Anindita Kar into incandescent, metaphor-rich reflections.
Leading scholars reappraise Indian forests as living, contested spaces shaped by power, culture, and society. Spanning prehistory to present, this volume examines forests as ecological lifelines and sites of legend, memory, and scientific knowledge—asking fundamental questions about their fate.
Deepa and Ruchi’s swift childhood friendship follows them from India to Connecticut suburbs. As class disparity, family needs, and desire test their bond, a dangerous secret about wealth forces both women to weigh loyalty against survival in their burgeoning Indian American community.
Every Happiness | Reena Shah
This Is Where the Serpent Lives – Daniyal Mueenuddin
From Pakistan’s chaotic cities to lawless countryside, Daniyal Mueenuddin follows interconnected characters struggling between moral paths and worldly survival within systems of caste, capital, and social power. Intimate and epic, this tour de force destined to become a contemporary classic.
This Is Where The Serpent Lives | Daniyal Mueenuddin
Hot Butter Cuttlefish – Ashok Ferrey
Personal trainer Malik relocates to sleepy Kalabola village when COVID strikes. In Ashok Ferrey’s deliciously dark Sri Lankan romantic comedy, lines blur between hero and villain, love arrives in strange disguises, politics get personal, and Karma may be the true leading lady.
Hot Butter Cuttlefish | Ashok Ferrey
Bloom – Aisha Sharma
Aisha Sharma explores the delicate balance between resilience and vulnerability. Through intimate reflections, Bloom guides readers toward self-compassion, celebrating the quiet power found in embracing both our strength and softness on the journey to authentic self-love and personal growth.
Bloom | Aisha Sharma
Vikram and Betaal – Night of The Blood Mood – Amit Juneja
Silicon Valley entrepreneur Vikram abandons everything when his wife faces terminal cancer. A desperate bargain with a mysterious priest binds him to capture the ancient pishach Betaal. Amit Juneja’s haunting tale explores where ancient folklore collides with modern reason, testing love’s limits.
Vikram and Betaal | Amit Juneja
Winning People Without Losing Yourself – Ankur Warikoo
This collection of sharp, lived truths reveals how people behave, why, and how to respond with clarity instead of chaos. One page, one insight—a practical guide for dealing with people without exhaustion.
Winning People Without Losing Yourself | Ankur Warikoo
Evolve – Debashis Sarkar
Could intuition create blind spots? Debashis Sarkar explores counterintuitive thinking—questioning assumptions and embracing strange strategies. Drawing from psychology, economics, philosophy, and technology, this result-oriented toolkit offers research-backed principles for unlocking hidden opportunities and competitive edges through innovation.
Evolve | Debashis Sarkar
Unruly – Upasana Sarraju
Prize-winning research that makes you laugh first, think later. Funny, unhinged, and quietly radical, this love letter celebrates weird science, weirder scientists, and stubborn curiosity.
Unruly | Upasana Sarraju
Father Cabraal’s Recipe for Love Cake – Ramya Chamalie Jirasinghe
In the 21st century, former war reporter Katharina shelters a fugitive while baking cakes from an old recipe. In the 17th century, Santiago defies The Company by marrying local pepper farmer Maria. Ramya Chamalie Jirasinghe explores colonial exploitation’s complex legacies.
Father Cabraal’s Recipe for Love Cake | Ramya Chamalie Jirasinghe
The Manifestation Mindset – Vrindda Bhatt
Everything you want is within reach—master the mindset to claim it. Vrindda Bhatt’s science-backed guide moves beyond wishful thinking to grounded transformation. Through practical exercises covering health, relationships, money, and career, readers learn to train their minds for purposeful, fulfilling action.
The Manifestation Mindset | Vrindda Bhatt
Soft Kill – Shubhra Krishan
A powerful man is found dead in 1990s Delhi — no clues, no suspects, no justice. When the cold case resurfaces, buried secrets and dangerous lies unravel, forcing the truth into the light where it can finally kill.
The Booker longlist is here — and it’s anything but boring.
This year’s 10 books take us from shrimp-shanking on a foggy British coast to a gold-bar murder on a Yorkshire farm, from trains where strangers meet and fall in love to Greek cafés where grief lingers like cigarette smoke.
And we at Penguin are celebrating big: five of these bold, brilliant titles are by our authors, including Kiran Desai’s luminous new novel The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny.
The Books Everyone Will Be Talking About
The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny by Kiran Desai (Penguin Random House India)
When Sonia and Sunny first glimpse each other on an overnight train, they are captivated — yet haunted by their families’ failed matchmaking in the past. Sonia, an aspiring novelist back in India after a painful chapter abroad, and Sunny, a struggling journalist fleeing family strife in New York, embark on a search for happiness together. Spanning continents and generations, this is a sweeping tale of love, family, and the alienations of our modern world — and Kiran Desai at her most ambitious yet.
The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny || Kiran Desai
Seascraper by Benjamin Wood (Penguin Random House UK)
Thomas lives a quiet, unchanging life scraping for shrimp on a gloomy British beach, until a charismatic American visitor promises him a future beyond the horizon. This haunting and timeless novel captures the tension between a life constrained by circumstance and the risky pursuit of dreams.
Seascraper || Benjamin Wood
Audition by Katie Kitamura (Penguin Random House UK)
An actress and a much younger man meet for lunch in Manhattan. Who are they to each other? And what truths lie beneath the performances of their everyday lives? With her trademark precision, Kitamura unspools two competing narratives, rewriting our understanding of intimacy, identity, and the roles we play.
Audition || Katie Kitamura
Flashlight by Susan Choi (Penguin Random House UK)
From post-war Japan to suburban America and the North Korean regime, Choi crafts a generational saga teeming with intelligence and heart. When ten-year-old Louisa’s father vanishes on a coastal walk, the reverberations of that night echo across decades and continents in this hypnotic, layered novel.
Flashlight || Susan Choi
Flesh by David Szalay (Penguin Random House UK)
An unflinching meditation on mortality, vulnerability, and desire, Szalay’s novel confronts the very essence of what it means to inhabit a human body.
Flesh || David Szalay
The Rest of Our Lives by Ben Markovits (Faber & Faber)
A poignant and often humorous road trip novel that asks: what’s left when your children are grown and the roles that once defined you have shifted? Markovits delivers a compassionate portrait of long-term marriage and midlife reckoning.
The Rest of Our Lives || Ben Markovits
Universality by Natasha Brown (Faber & Faber)
On a Yorkshire farm, a man is brutally bludgeoned with a gold bar, leading a young journalist deep into a web of power, rhetoric, and rebellion. With the incisiveness that made Assembly a critical hit, Brown delivers a slippery, daring novel about truth, language, and how narratives shape our world.
Universality || Natasha Brown
Love Forms by Claire Adam (Faber & Faber)
Dawn Bishop left Trinidad as a teenager and gave up her baby for adoption in Venezuela. Decades later, a stranger contacts her claiming to be that lost child. In this tender, heart-wrenching story, Adam explores motherhood, longing, and the many forms that love can take.
Love Forms || Claire Adam
Misinterpretation by Ledia Xhoga (Daunt Books)
An Albanian interpreter in New York becomes entangled in the traumas of those she translates for — and in her own buried memories. Propulsive and unsettling, Xhoga’s debut is a sharp meditation on compassion, communication, and the cost of unchecked altruism.
Misinterpretation || Ledia Xhoga
One Boat by Jonathan Buckley (Fitzcarraldo Editions)
After her father’s death, Teresa returns to a small Greek coastal town to grieve, reflect, and revisit her past encounters there. Quietly powerful and exquisitely constructed, Buckley’s novel grapples with identity, free will, and the enduring ties that bind us.
One Boat || Jonathan Buckley
Celebrating storytelling without borders
It’s fearless. It’s genre-blurring. It’s full of books that will make you think, feel, and maybe even yell a little.
The shortlist drops in September, and the winner will be revealed later this year. Until then, start reading — these are the books everyone will be talking about.
